The objective of the GOBF Threshold Country Program is to improve access to, and the quality of, primary education for girls in 10 provinces that have historically achieved the lowest levels of girls’ primary education completion rates.

• Through the construction of new schools in provinces that lack sufficient schools, more girls will be able to attend primary school. The program aims to enroll 1,650 new female students within the first year.
• Through the construction of day care centers in these schools, school-age girls will be relieved of the responsibility for caring for younger children and will thus be able to attend school.
• By providing take-home dry rations to girls who maintain a 90% school attendance rate, this program provides an incentive for parents to keep their girls in school.
• By constructing separate girls’ and boys’ bathrooms in the schools, institutionalizing female mentoring programs, conducting social awareness campaigns and offering financial merit rewards to the best female teachers in the targeted region, this program will encourage girls to attend schools, mitigate factors that presently deter girls’ school attendance, and provide needed reassurance to parents that their daughters will be best-served attending school.
• Approximately 68 percent of the total budget, or $8.8 million, is devoted to constructing 132 ‘girl-friendly’ schools with on-site canteens, day care centers and separate bathrooms for boys and girls, as well as a water supply for these facilities, housing units for teachers, etc.
• The remainder of the funds will be used primarily for teacher training, literacy training for mothers, mentoring services and management oversight.
• The evaluation component of the program will enable the GOBF to determine which activities of the program are most effective in increasing girls’ enrollment and attendance in school so they may consider expanding those activities to other parts of the country.