A/HRC/30/23 I. Introduction 1. In its resolution 27/6, the Human Rights Council decided to convene, at its twentyninth session, a panel discussion on realizing the equal enjoyment of the right to education by every girl with a view to sharing lessons learned and best practices in that regard. Also in resolution 27/6, the Council requested the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to organize the panel and to liaise with States, relevant United Nations agencies, funds and programmes, relevant special procedures, civil society, including relevant children’s and youth organizations, national human rights institutions and other relevant stakeholders with a view to ensuring their participation in and contribution to the panel discussion. Pursuant to that request, the panel discussion was held on 16 June 2015. 2. In its resolution 27/6, the Human Rights Council also requested the High Commissioner to prepare a summary report on the panel discussion and to present it to the Human Rights Council at its thirtieth session. The present report was prepared pursuant to that request. 3. The High Commissioner opened the panel discussion, which was moderated by the Associate Director of Programme Partnerships (Division of Programmes) at the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). The panellists were Minister of State of the United Arab Emirates Reem Al Hashimy; the Vice-Chairperson of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and Chairperson of its working group on girls’ and women’s right to education, Barbara Bailey; the Special Rapporteur on the right to education, Kishore Singh; UNICEF Ethiopia Goodwill Ambassador Hannah Godefa; and the Regional Director for the West African Region of Plan International, Adama Coulibaly. II. Summary of the discussion A. Statement by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights 4. In his opening remarks, the High Commissioner stated that the empowerment of women had been one of the most significant achievements of the past century, and access to education one of the key elements in overturning the outdated view of women as confined to the domestic sphere. He stressed that education was a multiplier right that empowers women to make choices and to claim their human rights, including the right to participate fully in the taking of decisions that shape society. He welcomed the considerable progress that had been made in girls’ education in recent years. 5. Nonetheless, almost one third of all countries had not achieved parity in primary education. and in less than half, there were as many girls as boys in lower-secondary grades. Despite the progress made, discrimination against girls persisted, including in the form of child marriage, early pregnancy and sexual violence, and harassment inside and outside schools. Together with social and cultural stereotypes that enforce obedience and fixed gender constructs, violence against girls and the targeting of schools by extremist movements continued to impair girls’ access to education. 6. The High Commissioner also noted that, as a result of deeply entrenched discrimination, girls continued to be corralled into specific fields of study, which were often not those in high demand on the labour market. Young women, even when well-educated, consistently experienced higher unemployment rates than men, worked in more precarious jobs and were paid less for work of equal value. Enabling women and girls to obtain qualifications, but subsequently denying them the right to pursue their aspirations in full equality with men, did a disservice to young women and was a waste of many talents. 2