The uphill battle to keep Guinean girls in school
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00:00 It's time for French class at the Saint-Georges High School in the suburbs of Conakry.
00:06 The mood is serious with pupils preparing for end-of-year exams.
00:10 Boys and girls study together.
00:12 Among the older classes, girls are less and less represented.
00:17 Kali Kamara, the French teacher, said this phenomenon was felt in the majority of the
00:22 country's schools.
00:24 "Girls give up.
00:29 Either they're forced out of school through marriage, lack of financial means, or lack
00:35 of encouragement.
00:37 Maybe it's also linked to culture, the idea that girls shouldn't study beyond a certain
00:44 level.
00:47 These are some of the difficulties that we face."
00:49 Aissatou, 16, is a particularly bright pupil.
00:57 "My favorite subject is history.
01:07 I love coming to school because I like studying.
01:10 I feel at ease when I'm at school."
01:14 The young woman dreams of becoming a doctor, but was almost forced to abandon her studies
01:18 three years ago.
01:20 "I nearly missed out on an education because of a lack of money, but an NGO helped me out,
01:26 helping me to continue my studies."
01:31 Aissatou was helped by a foundation which helps finance education for girls from poor
01:35 families.
01:36 The organization also fights to change attitudes towards girls' education, noting that girls
01:42 who don't go to school are three times more likely to get married before the age of 18.
01:48 "Going to school alone is not enough.
01:52 There needs to be monitoring and input from parents.
01:56 We don't only track the progress of children through school, we also raise awareness for
02:01 parents to become interested in educating their child."
02:05 The need for this kind of initiative is clear.
02:08 In Guinea, nine out of ten girls who make it to primary school don't continue on to
02:13 complete middle school.