Girls Education Initiative -- Council of Women World Leaders

Girls Education Initiative

Officially launched in June 2006, the Girls Education Initiative has convened two Expert Working Group meetings

and has hosted the first event in its Presidential Lecture Series on Girls Education. In October, President Ellen Johnson

Sirleaf of Liberia conversed with journalist and Council Advisory Board Member Judy Woodruff about Liberia today and

the state of education. The well-tended event was followed by the second Expert Working Group meeting, which was

co-hosted with CARE. Almost 40 experts attended, including representatives from International Rescue Committee,

Poverty Action Lab, Population Council, Catholic Relief Services, CEDPA, UN World Food Programme, and the Council

on Foreign Relations. The three primary themes discussed were achieving a better understanding of the status of girls’

education programming internationally, girls’ education in post-conflict and recovery situations, and girls’ peer group

education programs.

For 2007, the Council will continue to work with CARE and other organizations that have indicated an interest in partnering

for different aspects of the Girls’ Education Initiative. Upcoming program components include facilitating the development a

communication toolkit by an international public relations firm and a selected advisory group of education experts, establishing

the foundation of a network of women Ministers of Education through the identification of regional chairs, hosting the next

event in the Presidential Lecture Series, and convening the third Expert Working Group meeting.