For example, the path breaking work of Muhammed Yunus and the Grameen Bank shows that small micro-credit loans given to women are nearly always paid back and that the funds are used to invest in businesses, that provide funds to educate children and lift families out of poverty.

FORBES: How Women Entrepreneurs are Transforming Economies and Communities

The inability to educate all children also has deep roots in poverty.

NPR: The Missed Education of African Girls

Parents who refuse to properly nurture and educate their children are consigning them to a life of poverty and second-class citizenship.

FORBES: The War on Bad Parenting

Anti-poverty activists say the most important thing anyone could do to help the poorest areas in the world is to educate and empower women.

FORBES: The Importance of Early Childhood Intervention on Student Achievement