Julia Gillard’s unlikely collaboration with Rihanna

Rachel Eddie
Jun 08, 2017, updated Jun 08, 2017

Julia Gillard and Rihanna are pictured together with humanitarian Hugh Evans Photo: Global Partnership for Education

Former prime minister Julia Gillard has teamed up with R ‘n’ B diva Rihanna to teach children maths in Malawi.

The unlikely duo visited the African country earlier this year with Australian humanitarian, Hugh Evans, CEO of Global Citizen, in a collaboration with Global Partnership for Education (GPE).

Ms Gillard and Rihanna toured Malawi in January as part of a campaign to raise money for schoolchildren.

The pair did maths with the children at a Mpingu classroom, a video of the trip released on Wednesday has revealed.

Ms Gillard and Rihanna also sang with the children and visited government officials, teachers and students throughout their trip.

“We’re here really to get a sense of the dimensions of change and what more needs to be done, and we know these challenges are profound,” Ms Gillard said in the video footage.

Rihanna said: “It’s one thing to read statistics, but I want to see it first-hand, and find out all that can be done, and where to start first.”

Malawi schools struggle with overcrowding, high drop-out rates and a lack of resources, according to GPE.

“Girls are particularly disadvantaged in Malawi, facing barriers such as long distances to school, lack of adequate sanitation facilities, and a high rate of child marriage,” the NGO said.

Only 29 per cent of girls who begin primary school finish their educations, with the majority dropping out between grades 6 and 8.

Rihanna founded the Clara Lionel Foundation. She is the first Global Ambassador for GPE, while Ms Gillard is board chair of the NGO. The pair travelled to Malawi with Mr Evans under a collaboration with Global Citizen. Mr Evans was Young Australian of the Year in 2004.

GPE is campaigning to raise $3.1 billion by 2020 to solve the challenges schools face in 89 nations across the globe.