CEDAW/C/GC/31-CRC/C/GC/18 the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, art. 10). This entails providing universal, free and compulsory primary school enrolment and ensuring regular attendance, discouraging dropping out, eliminating existing gender disparities and supporting access for the most marginalized girls, including those living in remote and rural communities. In implementing the obligations, consideration should be given to making schools and their surroundings safe, friendly to girls and conducive to their optimal performance. 63. The completion of primary and secondary education provides girls with shortterm and long-term benefits by contributing to the prevention of child marriage and adolescent pregnancy and lower rates of infant and maternal mortality and morbidity, preparing women and girls to better claim their right to freedom from violence and increasing their opportunities for effective participation in all spheres of life. The Committees have consistently encouraged States parties to take measures to boost enrolment and retention in secondary education, including by ensuring that pupils complete primary school, abolishing school fees for both primary and secondary education, promoting equitable access to secondary education, including technical-vocational educational opportunities and giving consideration to making secondary education compulsory. The right of adolescent girls to continue their studies, during and after pregnancy, can be guaranteed through non-discriminatory return policies. 64. For out-of-school girls, non-formal education is often their only route to learning and should provide basic education and instruction in life skills. It is an alternative to formal schooling for those who did not complete primary or secondary school and may also be made available through radio programmes and other media, including digital media. 65. Women and girls are enabled to build their economic assets through training in livelihood and entrepreneurship skills and benefit from programmes that offer an economic incentive to postpone marriage until 18 years of age, such as scholarships, microcredit programmes or savings schemes (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, arts. 11 and 13; Convention on the Rights of the Child, art. 28). Complementary awareness-raising programmes are essential to communicating the right of women to work outside the home and challenging taboos about women and work. 66. Another means of encouraging the empowerment of women and girls is by building their social assets. This can be facilitated through the creation of safe spaces where girls and women can connect with peers, mentors, teachers and community leaders and express themselves, speak out, articulate their aspirations and concerns and participate in decisions affecting their lives. This can help them to develop self-esteem and self-efficacy, communication, negotiation and problemsolving skills and awareness of their rights and can be particularly important for migrant girls. Given that men have traditionally held positions of power and influence at all levels, their engagement is crucial to ensuring that children and women have the support and committed engagement of their families, communities, civil society and policymakers. 67. Childhood, and early adolescence at the latest, are entry points for assisting both girls and boys and supporting them to change gender-based attitudes and adopt more positive roles and forms of behaviour in the home, at school and in wider society. This means facilitating discussions with them on social norms, attitudes and 14-64765 17/24