Q Life Magazine Q Magazine (US) December 2015 | Page 24

| Issue 1 | First Lady Michelle Obama speaking at WISE former Qatari First Lady, “for her outstanding work on behalf of women and children here in Qatar and around the world.” She noted that “the fact that two-thirds of university students in Qatar and nearly 40 percent of the Qatari workforce are women is no accident – it is due in large part to her leadership.” HH Sheikha Moza is the founder of a number of national and international education initiatives, including Educate a Child, which aims to significantly reduce the number of children worldwide who are missing out on their right to an education. Educated Women, Stronger Nations Mrs. Obama argues that educating women is paramount because of the ripple effects it has on society. “Girls who are educated marry later, have lower rates of infant mortality,” she says. “They’re more likely to immunize their children; less likely to contract malaria and HIV. 24 Girls who are educated also earn higher salaries – 15 to 25 percent for each additional year of secondary school. And studies have shown that sending more girls to school and into the workforce can boost an entire country’s GDP.” Given Mrs. Obama’s focus on sustainable solutions to the cultural and economic factors that keep women out of schools, she was an obvious choice to make a keynote address at WISE. “Your governments and organizations are improving education for millions of children,” she told the summit participants. “Your research and advocacy are transforming how we educate our next generation. And while you come to the issue of education from so many different perspectives, you’re all doing this work for one simple reason: because, like me, you believe that every child on this planet deserves the chance to fulfill their boundless potential.”