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WORLD BANK / MICHELE OBAMA
STORY: WORLD BANK / MICHELLE OBAMA
TRT: 3:15
SOURCE: WORLD BANK
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH /NATS
DATE: 13 APRIL 2016, WASHINGTON DC
1. Med shot, Jim Yong Kim walking onto the stage
2. Wide shot, Jim Yong Kim shaking hands and walking onto stage
3. SOUNDBITE(English) Jim Yong Kim, President, World Bank Group:
“Right now, around the world, 62 million girls are not in school. And about half of these girls are adolescents. Not only do we need to get more girls into school, but we also need to ensure that they can stay in school and receive a quality secondary education. You don’t have to be an economist here at the World Bank to know that unleashing the full economic potential of half the population can drive the growth and prosperity of nations.”
4. Wide shot, Jim Yong Kim speaking
5. Med shot, Michelle Obama walking onto stage and hugging Jim Yong Kim
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Michelle Obama, First Lady, United States of America:
“Let’s just take a moment. 2.5 billion dollars in support of adolescent girls’ education over the next five years. That is truly amazing. And this isn’t just a breathtaking investment of resources; it’s also a powerful statement of mission. It’s an expression of our belief in the power of education to transform the lives and prospects of millions of girls worldwide, as well as the prospects of their families, their communities, and of course, their countries.”
7. Tilt up, audience taking photos to Michelle Obama speaking
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Michelle Obama, First Lady, United States of America:
“Why do we still too often value girls simply for their bodies instead of their minds?”
9. Med shot, people clapping and taking photos [end of previous soundbite]
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Michelle Obama, First Lady, United States of America:
"As both a woman and as a mother of two beautiful daughters, because when I travel the world and I meet girls who are so bright and so hungry to go to school. I see myself in these girls. I see my daughters in these girls. And none of us. None of us. Not a single person in this room would ever dream of not educating our own daughters. None of us would dream of consigning our girls to a life of poverty, illiteracy, or abuse. So why would we accept this fate for any girl on this planet? Why?"
11. Med shot, crowd taking photos of Michelle Obama
12. Med shot, crowd listening
13. Med shot, crowd listening with cameras in background
14. Med shot, crowd clapping and cheering
15. Wide shot, crowd clapping
World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim today announced that the World Bank Group would invest $2.5 billion over 5 years in education projects that directly benefit adolescent girls, whose empowerment is central to the Bank Group's development efforts.
The World Bank announcement, made at the Let Girls Learn event during the World Bank Group-IMF Spring Meetings in Washington, was followed by a call to action from the First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama, urging key policymakers and influencers from around the world to commit to urgent action in support of adolescent girls.
First Lady Michelle Obama highlighted the power of this investment in adolescent girls, as well as the transformative impact that adolescent girls’ education has on girls, their families and their countries.
By 2020 the Bank Group expects to invest at least $2.5 billion in education projects targeting adolescent girls (ages 12-17). About 75 percent of these investments are expected to be from IDA, the Bank Group’s fund for the poorest countries, and largely in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, which have the highest number of out-of-school girls.
Programs to be supported will include a range of efforts to provide adolescent girls with access to quality education at the secondary level, ensure they are enrolled in and stay in school, and provision of scholarships, conditional cash transfers, and schools with basic facilities like clean drinking water and toilets that promote enrollment.
Today, 62 million girls around the world are not in school, and half of them are adolescents. A World Bank study found that every year of secondary school education is correlated with an 18 percent increase in a girl’s future earning power. Research shows that educating girls has a multiplier effect: better educated women tend to be healthier, participate more in the formal labor market, earn more income, give birth to fewer children, marry at a later age, and provide better health care and education to their children.
Educating adolescent girls and promoting gender equality is part of a broader, holistic effort by the Bank Group. This includes financing and analytical work in support of removing financial barriers that keep girls out of school, delaying child marriage, improving access to reproductive health services, and strengthening skills and job opportunities for adolescent girls and young women.
This multidimensional approach is outlined in the Bank Group’s new global strategy for gender equality. Today’s commitment represents a major step toward implementing the goals of this strategy as well as helping achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal 4, which calls for access to quality education and lifelong learning for all, and Goal 5 to achieve gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls.
As always, Bank Group financing depends on country demand, the state of the global economy, and a strong replenishment this December of IDA, the Bank’s fund for the world’s poorest countries.
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