Lalita, 18, stands in front of a group of girls - her karate students - in the Women’s Education Centre in the Amos Block cluster of villages in Gaya District of India. Lalita is a graduate of an eight-month intensive course at the Centre and is the first child in her family and her entire village to attend school. Her father initially opposed sending her to school but is now very supportive. Lalita lives at the Centre while she teaches there. She also teaches other subjects in a centre for primary-school-age children in her home village.
UNICEF helped to develop and fund the Women’s Education Centre and continues to participate in key monitoring bodies, as well as to support teacher training.