Press Centre 2004/08/21: Girls’ Education
Haydi Kızlar Okula! in İzmir
Arzu Çetik for Yeni Asır Regional Daily Newspaper, 21st August 2004
Edmond McLoughney of UNICEF Turkey visited schools in Manisa on the previous day and was assured by local authorities that Gurbet Türkay and Dilan Özkaya who are both out-of-school would receive the necessary backup to resume their primary education. Photograph by Sema Hosta © UNICEF Turkey 2004
In a survey launched under the UNICEF campaign to support girls’ education, it was found that 4,068 girls in İzmir and its vicinity were not enrolled at school for various reasons.
The Governor of İzmir, Yusuf Ziya Göksu, said that they are going to declare a state of emergency
for these children and enroll them at school for the coming school year. The Governor added that:
There will be no child left out of school in İzmir
Governor Göksu made this statement in the context of the Haydi Kızlar Okula! campaign -- a joint initiative of the Ministry of National Education (MONE) and UNICEF.
Edmond McLoughney, the UNICEF Representative in Turkey and staff from MONE visited İzmir following visits to Aydın and Manisa as a part of their evaluation of the situation in provinces covered by the campaign.
Speaking at a meeting in the İzmir Girls Secondary School attended by staff from UNICEF and MONE, Governor Göksu said:
No girls will be left out of school. We have a serious test before us. There is very little time left before schools start so we must focus our efforts. We should eliminate any excuse on the part of parents for not sending their girls to school and reduce this number to zero. We are going make every effort to convince their parents -- including material incentives if necessary. No citizen can be allowed to go without enjoying the benefits of an education. Primary education is compulsory. Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have an important role to play in solving this problem. Health workers, teachers, members of non-governmental organisations and local governments will be working together in this field.
The campaign expands
UNICEF Representative Edmond McLoughney said the campaign was launched to enroll 640,000 girls in Turkey in primary education:
In İzmir, the gender gap in enrolment is about 17,000. The target is to mobilise leading public figures to help reach parents and convince them to send their girls to school. Home visits and face-to-face talks with families are very important in this respect. Some families keep their daughters from school because of traditional values. They are unaware of just how much educated girls can contribute to their communities. Our work will gain pace as the school year draws closer.
Download the latest update on Haydi Kızlar Okula! in pdf format. [PDF 404KB]
Read more about Haydi Kızlar Okula! in our Programmes section. The full text of the Provincial Governors’ Declaration in support of Haydi Kızlar Okula! can be found in the UNICEF Turkey Press Centre.
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OTHER PRESS RELEASES ON GIRLS’ EDUCATION ISSUES
- In a survey launched under the UNICEF campaign to support girls’ education, it was found that 4,068 girls in İzmir and its vicinity were not enrolled at school for various reasons.
- The Governorate of İzmir launched a campaign to ensure girls’ primary school enrolment by changing the attitude of their parents.
- Twenty-five committed teachers in Bingöl went without their summer holidays in order to meet parents who were not sending their daughters to school and help change their minds.
- Sabah newspaper reports from the province of Siirt where both the education system and the economy are is undergoing revolutionary changes.
- The Haydi Kızlar Okula! campaign was nothing short of a fortunate event for the children of the Toprak family in Altındağ who were out of school for lack of funds.
(Sabah Newspaper) - Governors of 33 provinces where the joint MONE/UNICEF campaign for girls’ education, Haydi Kızlar Okula! is in progress gathered at Dedeman Hotel, Ankara. (Posta Newspaper)
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