COUNTRIES: Pakistan
DURATION: 11/03/2017 - 05/25/2019
FUNDER: USAID
CONTACT[email protected]

Program Description

Advancing Girls’ Education and Skills (AGES) aims to increase access to education and job skills for more than 140,000 girls in Pakistan while cultivating an enabling environment that supports more young women in school, at work, and participating in their communities.

This four-year initiative is implemented by a consortium led by World Learning, which also includes the governments of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, and Sindh; international organizations CARE and Right to Play; and Pakistani nonprofits Rural Support Programmes Network and The Citizens Foundation; as well as innovators, social entrepreneurs, and corporate partners.

Program Goals

  • Increase access to formal education and skills training to set girls up for success.
  • Develop workforce readiness by promoting job training programs, partnering with the private sector, and preparing offices and businesses for young working women.
  • Engage families and communities to encourage widespread acceptance of young women’s participation in the workforce.
  • Apply data to support policies and practices associated with helping girls go to and stay in school and how social equity and inclusion boosts the local economy.

In 2016, Pakistan ranked second to last in the Global Gender Gap report. More than three million girls are not in school and only one-quarter of Pakistan’s young women enter the labor force. The AGES program provides an integrated, holistic solution through four key components:

  • Education: Increasing access to school and skills training to help girls and young women succeed
  • Work: Partnering with the private sector to create work opportunities for young women
  • Awareness: Engaging communities to encourage girls and young women to reach their full potential
  • Research & Policy: Applying data and analysis to enhance education and workforce policies empowering girls and women.

Reports