The Zambian government and the World Bank have signed a credit agreement for additional financing to support the Girls Education and Women’s Empowerment Project.
The additional financing, approved by the World Bank Board of Directors in March 2020, will support the government’s goal to increase access to livelihood support for women and to boost access to secondary education for disadvantaged adolescent girls in extremely poor households in selected districts.
This financing includes a $142 million credit from the International Development Association (IDA) and $35 million in co-financing grants from the UK Department for International Development and the Swedish International Development Association, which are jointly funding the program under a Bank-administered multi-donor trust fund.
This support augments the existing GEWEL Project, worth $65 million, which was approved in 2015. The GEWEL Project has supported more than 28,000 girls from poor households by covering their secondary school costs and 75,000 poor women in Zambia with livelihood packages, including, life and business skills training, mentorship, and support to form savings groups.
Recognizing the dire needs of these girls and women, the GEWEL Project also supports regular and predictable cash transfers to 245,000 extreme poor and vulnerable beneficiaries through the government’s Social Cash Transfer Program.
Such cash transfers have improved basic consumption, resilience and investments in productive activities in Zambia and are crucial to protect the basic needs and human capital of the poor particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is negatively impacting the country’s extreme poor and vulnerable.
The strength of the multi-donor trust fund approach is that it provides a mechanism for international partners to pool funding, with strong controls, around a common goal. It is envisaged that the trust fund will help facilitate support for social protection at a critical time.
“With this support, we are hopeful that better human capital outcomes will be attained through educating adolescent girls, empowering women and supporting the poorest households with longer-term investments, as well as enhancing government’s capacity to manage such interventions,” said Sahr Kpundeh, World Bank Country Manager for Zambia.
The project is mostly implemented in rural areas where education levels are low and the prevalence rates of gender-based violence are high.
“Considering that gender-based violence (GBV) is a major concern in Zambia, under the Additional Financing a more concerted approach to prevent, mitigate, and respond to GBV risks will be introduced, with complimentary interventions within the Bank’s health and education projects,” said Emma Hobson, World Bank Task Team Leader of the project.
The project brings together a collaboration between three ministries Gender, Community Development and Social Services, and General Education to support Zambia’s poorest citizens.
An educated woman translates into a successful world. We have seen what women in high positions can do. Just few months ago I was proud to witness my very beautiful wife regina graduating. It was a glorious moment and made me so proud to be her one and only. I have travelled the world and had women from all corners after me , but when you marry your best friend who is intelligent you will always be loyal like I am. Kz
This is great news. With those partners in charge, the funds will be tough to steal. They will go for use for the intended purposes.
How will this work exactly? Are there no needy boys and men anymore? Of course they’re still there and those needy boys are some woman’s problem.
I trust the Minister of Education will receive this educational support with both hands
Does it mean the empowerment is meant for the women represented in the caption??? Then why work with discrimination at this time and age??? Zambia is for Zambians regardless of political affiliation…. PF the most rotten party in Zambian history
@Nemwine Good point, black men are marginalised everywhere. Black boys lives and education matter too.
The PF has started with its so called empowerment programs to women when elections are round the corner …the WB should have seen through this as these thieves do not have the capacity to fulfill any credit agreement.
Tarino Orange, this is not a new programme. It has already shown results in Zambia
Zambian village ladies are worth investing in! They are the foundation of Zambia’s future development in my view.