A Reversal of Educational Fortune? Educational Gender Gaps in Bangladesh

Abstract

Historically, educational gender gaps in Bangladesh persisted as households invested more in the education of boys than girls. Recent anecdotal and descriptive reports, however, claim that Bangladesh has achieved gender parity in education. Using advanced empirical methods and nationally representative data, this study finds that urban and rural boys (relative to urban and rural girls) have a 7.4 percent to 27.4 percent lower likelihood of being enrolled in school, 0.4 to 1.5 fewer years of educational attainment, and 9.7 percent to 30.8 percent lower likelihood of being literate. These findings draw attention to the causes of the reversal in the educational gender gap in Bangladesh.