,,ii #aagth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #bbgf ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,june #bd1 #bjba,mrs4 ,shaheen 7for herself and ,ms4 ,murkowski7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations ,a ,,bill ,to support empowerment1 economic security1 and educational opportunities for adolescent girls around the world1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title2 table of contents 7a7 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,keeping ,girls in ,school ,act4 7b7 ,table of contents ,the table of contents for this ,act is as follows3 ,sec4 #a4 ,short title2 table of contents4,sec4 #b4 ,appropriate congressional committees defined4,sec4 #c4 ,findings4,sec4 #d4 ,sense of ,congress4,sec4 #e4 ,secondary education for adolescent girls4,sec4 #f4 ,global strategy requirement4,sec4 #g4 ,transparency and reporting to ,congress4 #b4 ,appropriate congressional committees defined ,in this ,act1 the term appropriate congressional committees means-- 7#a7 the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs and the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,house of ,representatives2 and 7#b7 the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations and the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,senate4 #c4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,adolescence is a critical period in a girl's life1 when significant physical1 emotional1 and social changes shape her future4 7#b7 ,adolescent girls are particularly vulnerable to ,,hiv_/,,aids1 child1 early and forced marriage1 and other forms of violence which are detrimental to their futures1 as evidenced by the following statistics3 7,a7 ,each year1 #chj1jjj adolescent girls and young women become newly infected with ,,hiv1 more than #a1jjj every day1 and comprise the fastest-growing demographic for new infections in sub-,saharan ,africa4 7,b7 ,each year1 #ab1jjj1jjj adolescent girls around the world are married before their #ahth birthday1 and more than #fej1jjj1jjj women alive today were married as children4 7,c7 ,child marriages often interrupt schooling1 limit opportunities1 and impact the physical1 psychological and social well-being of such girls4 ,significant levels of lockdown-related disruption and economic crisis due to the ,,covid-#ai pandemic could lead to at least #d1jjj1jjj more girls married before the age of #ah in the next two years4 7,d7 ,one-quarter to one-half of girls in developing countries become mothers before the age of #ah1 and girls under #ae are five times more likely to die during childbirth than women in their #bjs4 ,as many as #a1jjj1jjj girls across sub-,saharan ,africa may be blocked from returning to school due to pregnancy during ,,covid-#ai school closures4 7#c7 ,before the pandemic1 approximately #acj1jjj1jjj girls around the world were not in school1 and millions more failing to acquire basic reading1 writing1 and numeracy skills4 ,with ,,covid-#ai school closures affecting nearly #ia percent of the world's student population1 over #gdc1jjj1jjj girls have had their education disrupted and will face tremendous barriers to returning to school when it is safe4 7#d7 ,girls between the ages of #aj and #ai are three times more likely than boys to be kept out of school1 particularly in countries affected by conflict4 7#e7 ,due to discriminatory gender norms and expectations1 disparities in access to safe and quality education manifest early in a girl's life and continue to become more pronounced throughout adolescence4 7#f7 ,girls living with disabilities are less likely to start school and transition to secondary school than boys living with disabilities and other children1 and just #a percent of women with disabilities are literate globally4 7#g7 ,while two-thirds of all countries have achieved gender parity in primary education1 only #dj percent have achieved gender parity in secondary education4 7#h7 ,adolescent girls who remain in school are more likely to live longer1 marry later1 and have healthier children4 7#i7 ,investing in holistic programming that ensures all girls complete secondary education could lift gross domestic product 7,,gdp7 in developing economies by an average of #aj percent and every #a spent on such programming would generate a #b4hj return--equivalent to billions of dollars in extra ,,gdp4 7#aj7 ,children born to women who completed secondary schooling or higher have #ag4e percent reduced odds of being off track for healthy development4 7#aa7 ,since ,july #bjae1 more than #ajj public-private partnerships have been formed between the ,united ,states ,government and external partners to support innovative and community-led solutions in targeted countries1 including ,malawi and ,tanzania1 to ensure adolescent girls receive a quality education4 7#ab7 ,the ,united ,states ,global ,strategy to ,empower ,adolescent ,girls1 published in ,march #bjaf1 has brought together the ,department of ,state1 the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 the ,peace ,corps1 and the ,millennium ,challenge ,corporation1 as well as other agencies and programs such as the ,president's ,emergency ,fund for ,,aids ,relief 7,,pepfar71 to address the range of challenges preventing adolescent girls from attaining an inclusive and equitable quality education leading to relevant learning outcomes4 7#ac7 ,adopted in #bjae1 the #bjcj ,agenda for ,sustainable ,development renews the commitment to creating a world where all girls are healthy and protected1 learning and have a fair chance to succeed4 ,this agenda also states that empowering girls will require scaling up investments in holistic programming models to end gender-based violence1 child marriage1 and female genital mutilation 7,,fgm7 and adolescent girls' education and skills are essential to address gender divides1 particularly in secondary school4 7#ad7 ,,pepfar1 through its ,,dreams 7,determined1 ,resilient1 ,empowered1 ,,aids-free1 ,mentored1 and ,safe7 ,initiative1 has worked to address a number of the specific barriers to education that adolescent girls face4 #d4 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that-- 7#a7 every child1 regardless of place of birth1 deserves an equal opportunity to access quality education2 7#b7 the ,united ,states has been a global leader in efforts to expand and improve access to quality basic education for all1 particularly marginalized and vulnerable populations1 including women and girls2 7#c7 gains with respect to girls' secondary education and empowerment have been proven to correlate strongly with progress in gender equality and women's rights1 a stated priority of ,united ,states foreign policy and national security2 7#d7 achieving gender parity in both access to and quality of educational opportunity contributes significantly to economic growth and development1 thereby lowering the risk for violence and instability2 and 7#e7 education is a lifesaving humanitarian intervention that protects the lives1 futures1 and well-being of girls4 #e4 ,secondary education for adolescent girls 7a7 ,authority ,the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development shall enter into agreements1 including agreements across sectors1 to address the barriers described in subsection 7b7 that adolescent girls face in accessing a quality secondary education in countries where adolescent girls are significantly more likely to drop out of school than boys4 ,such activities shall-- 7#a7 seek to support the needs of adolescent girls holistically to achieve positive life and learning outcomes2 7#b7 use existing ,united ,states ,government strategies and frameworks relevant to international basic education and gender equality to-- 7,a7 integrate new technologies1 digital learning enhancements and multi-sectoral approaches to girl's education such as distance learning and accelerated education for out-of-school youth2 7,b7 apply evidence-based approaches2 7,c7 promote inclusive1 equitable and sustainable educational achievement2 and 7,d7 support a responsible transition to education systems that are sustainably financed by domestic governments2 and 7#c7 ensure that schools provide safe and quality educational opportunities and create empowering environments1 so that girls can enroll in and regularly attend school1 successfully transition from primary to secondary school1 and eventually graduate having achieved learning outcomes and positioned to make healthy transitions into adulthood4 7b7 ,specific barriers ,the barriers described in this subsection are-- 7#a7 harmful social and cultural norms2 7#b7 lack of safety at school or traveling to school and online1 including harassment and other forms of physical1 sexual1 or psychological violence2 7#c7 child1 early1 and forced marriage2 7#d7 female genital mutilation2 7#e7 distance from a secondary school2 7#f7 cost of secondary schooling1 including fees1 clothing1 and supplies2 7#g7 inadequate sanitation facilities and products available at secondary schools2 7#h7 prioritization of boys' secondary education2 7#i7 poor nutrition2 7#aj7 early pregnancy and motherhood2 7#aa7 ,,hiv infection2 7#ab7 disability2 7#ac7 discrimination based on religious or ethnic identity2 7#ad7 heavy workload due to household tasks or care burdens2 and 7#ae7 inequitable access to digital resources4 7c7 ,coordination and oversight 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development ,senior ,coordinator for ,international ,basic ,education ,assistance1 in coordination with the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development ,senior ,coordinator for ,gender ,equality and ,women's ,empowerment and the ,ambassador-at-,large for ,global ,women's ,issues at the ,department of ,state1 shall be responsible for the oversight and coordination of all activities of the ,united ,states ,government carried out under this section4 7#b7 ,development of agreements ,in the development of agreements described in subsection 7a71 the ,senior ,coordinator for ,gender ,equality and ,women's ,empowerment and the ,senior ,coordinator for ,international ,basic ,education ,assistance at the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development shall consult with representatives across ,federal departments and agencies implementing the global strategy described in section #f4 7#c7 ,coordination with other strategies ,activities carried out under this section shall also be carried out in coordination with-- 7,a7 the ,united ,states ,global ,strategy to ,empower ,adolescent ,girls described in section #f2 and 7,b7 the ,united ,states ,government ,strategy on ,international ,basic ,education1 including its objective to expand access to quality basic education for all1 particularly marginalized and vulnerable populations4 7d7 ,acceptance of solicitations for awards ,the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development shall seek to accept solicitations for awards1 pursuant to the authority in subsection 7a71 to conduct activities under this section beginning not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act4 7e7 ,monitoring and evaluation ,the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development shall seek to ensure that activities carried out under this section-- 7#a7 employ rigorous monitoring and evaluation methodologies to ensure that such activities demonstrably close the gap in gender parity for secondary education and improve the quality of education offered to adolescent girls2 7#b7 disaggregate all data collected and reported by age1 gender1 marital and motherhood status1 disability1 and urbanity1 to the extent practicable and appropriate2 and 7#c7 use1 to the extent possible1 indicators and methodologies identified by the ,interagency ,working ,group for the ,strategy on ,international ,basic ,education4 #f4 ,global strategy requirement 7a7 ,in general ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 and every #e years thereafter for not less than #aj years1 the ,ambassador-at-,large for ,global ,women's ,issues at the ,department of ,state1 in consultation with the ,senior ,coordinator for ,gender ,equality and ,women's ,empowerment and the ,senior ,coordinator for ,international ,basic ,education ,assistance at the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 shall-- 7#a7 review and update a ,united ,states global strategy to empower adolescent girls1 which includes a focus on girl's access to quality1 inclusive secondary education1 and subsequent agency implementation plans2 7#b7 provide a meaningful opportunity for review and civil society consultation on the strategy and agency implementation plans2 and 7#c7 submit the updated strategy to the appropriate congressional committees4 7b7 ,consultation required ,in reviewing and updating the strategy and implementation plans under subsection 7a71 the ,ambassador-at-,large for ,global ,women's ,issues1 the ,senior ,coordinator for ,gender ,equality and ,women's ,empowerment1 and the ,senior ,coordinator for ,international ,basic ,education ,assistance shall consult with-- 7#a7 the heads of relevant ,federal departments and agencies 7or their designees72 7#b7 the appropriate congressional committees2 and 7#c7 representatives of ,united ,states civil society and multilateral organizations with demonstrated experience and expertise in empowering adolescent girls and promoting gender equality1 including local civil society organizations1 faith-based organizations1 and program participants where possible4 #g4 ,transparency and reporting to ,congress 7a7 ,in general ,not later than #a year after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 and biennially thereafter for #aj years until each activity initiated pursuant to the authorities under this ,act has concluded1 the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 in coordination with the ,secretary of ,state1 shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report describing-- 7#a7 the activities initiated under the authorities provided in this ,act2 and 7#b7 the manner and extent to which such activities are monitored and evaluated1 in accordance with section #e7;e74 7b7 ,availability ,the report required by subsection 7a7 shall be made available on a text-based1 searchable1 and publicly available website of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development4