The Ziguinchor region, located in southern Senegal, reported this year a school dropout rate of 10% among girls, according to Cheikh Faye, academy inspector (IA).
Cheikh Faye revealed these figures during an awareness workshop on equal rights, keeping girls in school and the feminization of legal professions. This event was chaired by Sidy Guissé Diongue, deputy governor of Ziguinchor, in charge of administrative affairs.
The activity was organized by the Association of Women Magistrates of Senegal (AFMS) with the support of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The academy inspector attributed this high wastage rate to factors such as unwanted early pregnancies.
Cheikh Faye stressed that keeping girls in school is a priority for the authorities of the Ministry of National Education. “The issues of girls’ education are development issues because they make it possible to reduce poverty. The challenge is to develop a strategy to keep them in school”did he declare.
He also noted that school dropout is very high among boys, often due to their dropping out early to engage in income-generating activities such as driving motorcycle taxis.
Marie-Odile Thiakane Ndiaye, president of the AFMS, explained: “We came to meet young girls to allow them to discover the profession of magistrate. This can spark vocations”. She indicated that of the 500 magistrates in Senegal, only around a hundred are women. She hopes to see this number increase in the coming years.
Recalling the 2000s, she mentioned that women represented 25% of students at Cheikh Anta Diop University (UCAD). She was delighted to see a gradual improvement in the female presence in these institutions.“We must continue to raise awareness among girls and use all innovative strategies to keep them in school while explaining to them more about their rights”she added.
Deputy Governor Sidy Guissé Diongue expressed his gratitude to the AFMS for taking the initiative to discuss with the girls of Ziguinchor on crucial topics for their education.
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