Obama Launches Female Education Initiative for Women's Day

US President Barack Obama announced a new initiative on March 7 to help girls across the globe get into, and stay in, education. The launch of the initiative, called Let Girls Learn, was planned to coincide with International Women’s Day on March 8.

“Right now, 62 million girls who should be in school, are not. And that’s not an accident,” Obama said during his weekly address. “It’s the direct result of barriers, large and small, that stand in the way of girls who want to learn. We’re making it clear to any country that’s our partner – or that wants to be our partner – that they need to get serious about increasing the number of girls in school. Our diplomats and development experts are already hard at work. Our Peace Corps volunteers will play a big role, too. And we’re putting our partnerships with NGOs, businesses and foundations to work on behalf of girls everywhere.”

Read a full transcript of the statement here. Credit: YouTube/The White House