90 per cent of girls in developing countries work in informal sector ― HILWA

A Non-Governmental Organisation [NGO] called ‘High Level Women Advocates’ [HILWA] has observed that 90 percent of adolescent girls living in developing countries work in the formal sector where low or no pay, abuse and exploitation are common, thereby exposing them to the danger of lack of self-esteem and other standards of moral living.

The observation was made by the Chairperson of an NGO, ‘High Level Women Advocates’ (HLWA), Mrs Lydia Shehu while speaking during the celebration of the 2018 International Day of the Girl Child held at Government House Bauchi.

The Bauchi state HLWA Chairperson of the NGO who is also the Permanent Secretary of the State Ministry of Social Welfare, Youths and Sports explained that of the one billion young people in the World including 600 million adolescent girls, it is estimated that more than 90 percent of them that would enter the workforce in the next decade in developing countries would still work in the informal sector as a result of their been marginalised.

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”Young women are often found in the most marginalised segments of the informal economy with fewer assets, greater risks and lower income. The most disadvantaged girls those in rural areas and humanitarian settings and those with disabilities have even less access to decent work”, she added.

Lydia Shehu further said that, ”10 percent of primary school-aged girls are still out of school. Many more have not been able to progress to secondary school and still need support to develop basic skills in literacy and numeracy. At the current rate of progress, by 2030, more than half the world’s girls will not be on track to achieve basic skills at the secondary level”, She decried.

She pointed out that girls’ full participation in the future workforce will require tackling gender stereotypes and harmful social norms across professions, and addressing the many systematic barriers to decent work they face, including child marriage, early motherhood and gender based violence.

Also speaking, Wife of the State Governor, Hajiya Hadiza Mohammed Abubakar represented by the State Commissioner of Women Affairs, Hajiya Rukayya Ibrahim Kewa advocated compulsory basic education to the girl child in the country.

According to her, lack of jobs among mothers force them to send their girls to hawk on the streets in order to raise money for their upkeep saying in consideration of that, her pet project B-SWEEP was established with the objective of empowering women in the state.

The Governor’s Wife also opined that some parents marry out their children early due to the rate of moral decadence in the society to prevent them from being spoilt at tender ages.