Despite significant strides toward gender equality in education over the past 30 years, at least 133 million girls worldwide remain out of school, according to UNESCO’s latest Global Education Monitoring (GEM) report.

The report highlights stark regional disparities: Central and Southern Asia has achieved parity in secondary school enrolment, while sub-Saharan Africa continues to lag far behind. In some countries, poverty compounds gender gaps—in Guinea and Mali, virtually no poor young women attend school.

Since the 1995 Beijing Declaration, girls’ enrolment has surged globally. Primary education now counts 91 million more girls than three decades ago, and secondary enrolment has risen by 136 million. Women’s participation in tertiary education has tripled from 41 million to 139 million.

Yet, the report stresses that progress remains uneven and far from transformative. Sexuality education is still not universal, with two-thirds of countries providing it at the primary level and just three-quarters at secondary. Many textbooks continue to reinforce gender stereotypes. While women dominate teaching roles, they hold only 30% of higher education leadership positions globally.

“Oceania, once at parity, now sees girls disadvantaged, while in Latin America and the Caribbean, boys lag behind in secondary education,” the GEM team noted. “When gender intersects with poverty and location, the disadvantages multiply, leaving millions of girls behind.”

The report calls for urgent action: gender-transformative curricula, stronger pathways for women into educational leadership, expanded sexuality education, protection against school-related violence, and better data for accountability.

“The unfinished business of girls’ education is not just a question of rights—it is about shaping futures for women, their children, and society at large. The promise of Beijing remains achievable, but only if evidence is matched with action,” UNESCO warned.