Abstract

In most developing countries, girls do not receive the same educational opportunities as boys. Even when given the opportunity to be educated, the girls typically face formidable barriers to the completion of their studies. For example, while virtually all girls in Kenya are initially enrolled in primary school, approximately 65% of them drop out before completing Standard 8 (source: Forum for African Women Educationalists) and the worse part of it is that, out of the ones who complete primary education, 60% of them do not proceed to secondary education and out of the ones who proceed to secondary level a further 30% do not complete secondary education. Many of the barriers that girls face in striving to stay in school are either directly or indirectly related to reproductive health, sexual behavior, and maturation. Some of the causes of school dropout in Kenya include early marriages, pregnancy, lack of gender appropriate facilities in schools, (such as latrines), low self-esteem, lack of money, harassment by male teachers and students and the low value placed on the education of girls by their parents and society in general. The World Bank estimates that 6-9 years of formal school is needed to attain sustainable literacy skills. Despite successful UPE campaigns in some countries, a large portion of the poor and most vulnerable girls still drop out before literacy is reached (Archer & Fry, 2005) As a nation, Kenya hopes to achieve Education for All (EFA) by the year 2015. This is an uphill task given the various challenges in the education sector. The year 2015 is also significant globally because it is the target year for the fulfillment of the eight-millennium goals. (The Republic of Kenya, 2004).