Education and Gender Equity Amidst COVID-19: Achieving SDGs 4 and 5
By S Pee Vululleh, Executive Director, Lau Foundation
January 2023: Kids receiving their BackToSchool supplies in present of their teachers and parents
Introduction
This paper intends to explore, focusing on the impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4), quality education for all, and will extend and connect to Sustainable Development Goal 5 (SDG 5), gender equality. The discussion will deepen into the effects of lost ground due to the pandemic and if there are any mechanisms to put in place to ensure the ground is not lost again if another pandemic, natural disaster, or unnatural disaster occurs. The United Nations (UN) Member States adopted the Sustainable Development Agenda in 2015, setting 2030 as a deadline for achieving gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls, extending to providing equitable education opportunities for all. This Agenda ensures that all girls and boys complete accessible, equitable, and quality primary and secondary education that can lead to relevant learning outcomes for societal benefits (UN Women, 2022). Gender equity entails fairness and justice in the distribution of resources, benefits, and responsibilities among all genders, which is critical because societies worldwide have deemed females, transgender people, and nonbinary people as weaker than males. Government must meet each community wherever it is and allocate resources and opportunities as needed to create equal outcomes for all community members (Martinez, 2022). Nowadays, gender equity has helped shape the roles and expectations of men, women, and all genders at work, at home, and society. The world will be a better and more comfortable place to live when all people are accepted for their talents, skills, and abilities, regardless of gender or level of education.
