With schools closed for the past five months, and families losing their livelihoods due to the pandemic, many girl students across Nepal are helping their parents and may not rejoin schools once they reopen, a new survey has shown.

Some of the girls, especially from poorer families, have been lured into seeking jobs, and some have even fallen prey to labour and sexual exploitation, the survey by the Room To Read literacy group has shown.

The Girls’ Education Risk Survey among 3,992 girls in four districts from April-June this year showed that financial hardship caused by the pandemic may push back Nepal’s gains in improving its female school enrolment.

During the COVID-19 lockdown there has also been an increase in domestic violence against female members of households, and Room To Read itself has lost some of its students to child marriage.

“Keeping girls at school was already a difficult task, but this pandemic is keeping them away from school and is putting them at a higher risk,” explains Salina Tamang at Room to Read Nepal.

https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/half-of-nepals-girls-may-drop-out-of-school/