Investing in the education of girls may well be the highest return investment available in the developing world. As such, increasing the level of female education is an especially high priority in Pakistan. This economist has examined the links between women's education and development, and argues on several fronts in support of educating girls. Worldwide, female children suffer higher levels of mortality than boys, symptomatic of a general pattern of female deprivation in the developing world, especially in South Asia. Underinvestment in girls results from parents' reluctance to invest in them because of their expectation that such investment will serve only girls' husbands and husbands' families. Women remain uneducated in this context. Experience, however, suggests that female education programs are relatively inexpensive compared to other development investments and that female enrollment rates could quickly be increased. Indeed, major initiatives to increase female education have the potential to transform society over time. Had a larger proportion of girls been educated one generation ago, millions of infant deaths annually could have been averted and tens of millions of families could have been both healthier and more content. These issues are discussed.