India, Sept. 8 -- I first met Safeena Husain, the founder of Educate Girls, in 2017 to talk to her about the link between education and women's workforce participation. Through the years we've spoken intermittently and each time it's been an education for me.

Starting with 50 villages in Rajasthan in 2007, Educate Girls had one mission: To keep girls in school. Using a team of volunteers who go from door to door convincing parents to keep their daughters in school, Educate Girls has mobilized over two million girls in over 30,000 villages in Rajasthan as well as Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Keeping a girl in school has the immediate result of delaying her marriage. It means she will have fewer and healthier children. Each ad...