The rainy season in the Sub-Saharan country of Congo makes many of the dirt roads in its eastern corner impassable, and the journey to school almost impossible. The road to an education for girls, in a culture where they are not valued as equal to boys, is fraught with even more barriers, from extreme poverty to early marriage. But Mama Adolphine never gave up hope.In 2012, a study conducted by UNESCO and UNICEF revealed that 52.7 per cent of the 7.3 million children out of school in the Democratic Republic of the Congo — some 3.8 million children — are girls. Among the obstacles to girls’ education are low family incomes and lack of school infrastructure. And according to A World at School, in some areas of the DRC, "around 70% of children who start primary school will drop out before the end of school. If you’re a girl, the risks of dropping out are even higher – as many as 77% of girls drop out of primary school in some areas of the country. ... Early marriage contributes to the low secondary school attendance for girls."Aldophine doesn't need to be reminded of these statistics - she lived them. Her parents did not think it important to spend money on their daughter's education. "Women did not have any right to go to school," she says. "But I liked studies so much. I never lost hope that one day I would study."Adolphine is 60 and the mother of six. Two of her daughters are married, four of her children are in school, and Adolphine is now a student in Action Kivu's Literacy Program.
"I am learning how to write and read," Adolphine reports. "I am very happy because now I can read my bible, I can choose and write the name of the candidate I want when there is an election in my country."The Literacy Program is the entry point to all of Action Kivu's vocational trainings - teaching girls and women to read and write gives them the first tools needed to run their own businesses upon receiving skills training in sewing, bread baking, basket weaving, and the micro-loan project. To support this critical step in the road to equality for women and girls, please consider a monthly donation!Adolphine is an inspiration: it is never too late to learn!Read other stories from the girls and women in our Literacy Program here.