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Story

Listening to the voices of girls and women

Magdalena Cox Xum is the youngest of a family of four girls and five boys living in San Andrés Xecul in Totonicapán, Guatemala. In this region, only 35% of school-age girls attend primary school and 1% of girls aged 12 to 21 pursue secondary education.

The female literacy rate was 62.5% in 2014, one of the lowest in the country. Only Magdalena and her younger brother have finished school and Magdalena, with the support of her mother, later trained to become a bilingual (K'iche' and Spanish) primary school teacher.   

In 2018, she became the first educational coordinator for the local UNESCO-Malala Center, created as part of the new project supported by the UNESCO-Malala Fund for Girls' Right to Education. This fund was established in 2012 following the brutal assassination attempt against Malala Yousafzai, a young Pakistani activist for girls’ right to education. It acknowledges the transformative power of education to create values and practices that respect and promote human rights, social inclusion, gender equality and peace. 

I have the right to education. I have the right to play. I have the right to sing. I have the right to talk. I have the right to go to the market. I have the right to speak up
Malala Yousafzai, interview with CNN, November 2011

Magdalena’s work goes beyond that of a teacher. She went door to door and met with potential students. She opened the doors of her own house to give lessons and bought a whiteboard and benches for this purpose. She said to a woman: "In the morning you can shepherd the animals, and, in the afternoon, you can come and study with me”. This same woman completed 5th grade now.

Magdalena Cox (tercera por la derecha) y sus amigas se esfuerzan por contrarrestar el acceso limitado de las niñas a la educación en Guatemala, impulsando las actividades de los Centros Locales UNESCO-Malala
Magdalena Cox (third from left) and her friends are working to address girls' limited access to education in Guatemala through the local UNESCO Malala Center. © UNESCO / Mariana Samayoa
I am happy to support the girls and women in our community. Although they have shown a high interest in the Centers, there are many more to reach, especially those who live in remote areas. There must be opportunities for everyone
Magdalena

Since then, Magdalena inspired others. New dedicated coordinators like Juana, Lucero and Sandra have joined her in her mission to make education a reality for indigenous girls and women in Guatemala.

My life has changed significantly over the last few months. I am used to working with women's groups in the community and now I can only contact and support them through WhatsApp. I had the opportunity to visit some of them in their homes, but mobility is limited.
Magdalena

The UNESCO-Malala Centers in Guatemala work with local partners to provide sustainable teaching programmes in rural areas where economic problems and distance from school limit girls' access to education. They offer educational programmes in the language of the participants that will contribute to their personal and socioeconomic development.

My plan for the future is to continue my work with girls and women, but also to turn to young men who express interest in learning. It is important to include boys as this can help to change negative social norms and gender stereotypes about the education of girls and women.
Magdalena

It is essential to listen to what girls and women want and need. It is why in the first stage of the project two participatory workshops were held in April 2018 in the UNESCO-Malala Centers in the municipalities of San Andrés Xecul and Santa María Chiquimula, for which many participants had to register with their fingerprints because they could not read or write. One woman said: "I want to learn practical skills that can help me generate my own income". For another woman, learning to read meant not getting lost in the street. A young girl hoped to become a teacher; a woman wanted to help her children with their homework. 

I enjoy all aspects of working at the Center. In particular, I enjoy the visits to the communities, identifying those interested and helping them register. What may seem like a simple act, such as writing their name, means a lot to these women
Sandra
Una participante en un taller organizado por los Centros Locales UNESCO-Malala de Guatemala
A participant at a workshop organized by the UNESCO-Malala Centers © UNESCO Guatemala / Armando Velásquez
The major change has been how negative stereotypes, such as ‘women do not study,’ are evolving. Mothers who were not able to get an education themselves are accompanying their daughters so that they can pursue their education.
Juana
Retratos de participantes en programas educativos de los Centros Locales UNESCO-Malala de Guatemala
Portraits of participants in the Center's programmes © UNESCO Guatemala / Armando Velásquez
Since I became an educational coordinator, I became a role model to my family, especially to my grandmother, who took part in the activities of the Center and encourages other family members to follow my example.
Lucero

The UNESCO-Malala Centers in Guatemala work with local partners to provide sustainable teaching programmes in rural areas where economic problems and distance from school limit girls' access to education. They offer educational programmes in the language of the participants that will contribute to their personal and socioeconomic development. 

It is essential to listen to what girls and women want and need. It is why in the first stage of the project two participatory workshops were held in April 2018 in the UNESCO-Malala Centers in the municipalities of San Andrés Xecul and Santa María Chiquimula, for which many participants had to register with their fingerprints because they could not read or write. One woman said: "I want to learn practical skills that can help me generate my own income". For another woman, learning to read meant not getting lost in the street. A young girl hoped to become a teacher; a woman wanted to help her children with their homework. 

Participantes en los talleres organizados por los Centros Locales UNESCO-Malala de Guatemala
Participants at workshops organized by the UNESCO-Malala Centers

In August 2019, two new workshops were launched to provide a space for beneficiaries to share their experiences within the Centers. Over 100 women and girls came to share how education had transformed their lives. For one of them, it was "getting out of the house, clearing [her] head [and] learning a lot of things", "a welcome change in her life". For another, it was the revelation that "women have the same rights [as] men” which changed her way of looking at the world. 

In March 2020 (link in Spanish), the Centers were forced to close due to the global health crisis, so it was necessary to adjust in order to continue supporting the women participating in the UNESCO-Malala Centers in the context of the new normal. However, in a country where only 29% of the population has access to the internet, connectivity is a real challenge. Remote training courses on health and well-being, gender equality, prevention of gender-based violence and economic empowerment have been provided, as well as technology tools (link in Spanish) and bilingual educational materials. In total, since their opening, the UNESCO Malala Centers for Education in Guatemala have welcomed over 500 girls and women.