Education prepares people are gets them set to grab opportunities when it shows, an illiterate person that (maybe) discovered an opportunity will still have to run to an educated person for help, thereby submitting him or her self to the mercy of the educated man /woman.
And mind you, acquiring education does not necessarily mean going to school and spending several years there, being educated in a simple term is submitting oneself to knowledge.
Irrespective of your country, background, gender, education is still very important. Every middle-class parent spends their income on their children's education, because they believe education can only make their lives better. Governments boost education, and countries spending on education as a percentage of GDP is higher. Education is for a better future.