“I grew up in a modest family and married at the age of 15, so I could not finish school. But I was able to continue my studies at the Center,” said Isabel Aracely Tzoy Tzoc.
Like Isabel, most girls and women in Guatemala are unable to access or complete their education. Obstacles such as poverty, distance to school, early marriage and pregnancy, and traditional gender stereotypes limit their education opportunities.
In the municipality of Santa María Chiquimula, Department of Totonicapán, just over 18% of girls are enrolled at the middle-school level (corresponding to ages 13-16). This figure drops significantly at the secondary-school level (corresponding to ages 16-18), with only 1.36% of girls enrolled. Among those with the least access to education are girls and women who live in remote mountainous areas, accessible only by an hour-long journey by foot from Santa María Chiquimula.
For this very reason, the UNESCO Malala Center was established in 2018. The Center in Santa María Chiquimula is one of two centers established as part of a project in Guatemala, which aims to establish a local educational model in rural areas for indigenous girls and women. The educational programmes offered by the Centers are being run in indigenous languages, draw on indigenous culture, and build skills for personal and socioeconomic development. The project’s educational model is intended to be both sustainable and replicable.
Supported by the UNESCO Malala Fund for Girls’ Right to Education, the Center provides girls and women information on flexible education opportunities and offers various personal development workshops. The Center was created in line with Malala’s commitment to education for girls. Speaking recently before world leaders at the Transforming Education Summit in New York, Malala stated that “If you are serious about creating a safe and sustainable future for the children, then be serious about education.”
Isabel is one of the many girls and women who has benefitted from the programmes of the Center. Soon after getting married, Isabel began to endure domestic abuse and physical and psychological violence from her husband. Eventually, her son Cristóbal started reproducing violent behavior in pre-school. She managed to escape from the marriage at age 23 and set out to continue her education.
Isabel heard about the UNESCO Malala Center in Santa María Chiquimula through the Educational Center Fe y Alegría, a partner in the project.
She began to participate in the Center’s activities, including the health and well-being programme, and now feels that she has gained self-esteem. “Although talking about gender-based violence is difficult for me, taking part in the workshops has helped me cope, and I can now say that I am living a life free of violence,” she said. “It gave me value as a human being, and a drive to keep learning.”
Isabel is now studying at the National Institute for Radiophonic Education, another key partner in the project. She is planning to complete her secondary level studies and become a doctor so that she can secure a future for her son.
UNESCO is implementing the UNESCO Malala Centers in Guatemala by working with the National Literacy Committee (CONALFA), the Ministry of Education and organizations such as the National Institute for Radiophonic Education (IGER) and Fe y Alegria, in cooperation with the municipalities of intervention.
