Disabled girls cannot be an afterthought

Responding to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s calls at the G7 summit for world leaders to come together to ensure every girl can access an education, Tiziana Oliva, Managing Director, Global Influencing and Programmes, commented: 

“It is encouraging to see G7 leaders making commitments to give every girl a quality education. But there is also a critical opportunity here to put girls with disabilities at the centre of these efforts. Millions of girls with disabilities are far too often denied their basic right to an education, and they cannot continue to be left behind. Moving forward, it will be crucial for us to work closely with G7 leaders to hold them accountable for delivering on these ambitious goals and ensure that every single girl has the opportunity to learn. 

"As co-host of the Global Education Summit, and a global leader in disability inclusion, the UK Government must pave the way and demonstrate how important it is to place girls with disabilities at the heart of education plans. Disability cannot be an afterthought if we hope to truly build back better from the Coronavirus pandemic. 

"So we welcome the UK’s substantial financial pledge to the replenishment of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), a crucial investment for the future of children with disabilities. But we hope that the UK will now use this as an opportunity to continue to rally world leaders to increase global education funding and reduce inequalities for disabled girls.”

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For further information please contact Erin O’Reilly via erin.o’reilly@leonardcheshire.org.