Dakar Follow-up Bulletin No 26
Contents (2 July 2001)

Up-date on consultation on the role of civil society in the EFA movement

Selected ministers of education and non-governmental organizations will discuss the involvement of civil society in Education for All on 8 September (9 am -12.30 pm) in Geneva. A panel of speakers (a blend of ministry and civil society representatives from countries in different contexts and regions) will highlight examples of successful co-operation in policy formulation, planning and action in EFA.

The consultation will be followed by the closing ceremony of the 46th International Conference on Education (5-8 September). The theme of the Conference is Education for All for Learning to Live Together: Contents and Learning Strategies - Problems and Solutions.

For more information: http://www.ibe.unesco.org

UNESCO internal mobilization for EFA

The internal mobilization in UNESCO in favour of EFA continues. Representatives from forty-nine UNESCO field offices and institutes met in Paris, 18-20 June, to clarify the global vision and strategies for Education for All, to enhance collaboration and to share ideas and experiences on the post-Dakar follow-up process.

John Daniel, new Assistant Director-General for Education, explained that UNESCO's role in the EFA movement is that of a catalyst, because, as every chemist knows, "a catalyst helps a reaction to occur faster but is not itself used up in the process".

In response to specific requests for mobile expert teams to work on specific tasks, the ADG announced that he intended to act on this request and would consider the secondment of staff to some offices from the Education sector.

NGO meeting in Bangkok to develop strategies for future collaboration

Some 100 international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have already signed up to the 2001 Annual Meeting of the Collective Consultation of NGOs on Education for All (CCNGO/EFA) in Bangkok, Thailand, 12-14 July. The meeting will be preceded by a regional seminar on capacity-building in EFA for NGOs in Asia (9-11 July).

The Annual Meeting will develop strategies and make proposals to reinforce the contributions of civil society organizations to achieving EFA goals. Participants will work in thematic groups covering the following five issues:

  1. Reinforcing the role and contribution of civil society organizations in policy formulation and planning within the framework of the national EFA action plans

  2. Reinforcing the capacity of civil society organizations to conducting education / lifelong learning programmes and activities

  3. Monitoring and evaluating progress towards EFA goals in the context of the EFA Observatory

  4. Mapping, assessing and disseminating NGOs' contributions and innovations in EFA

  5. Improving communication about civil society's role in EFA

For more information consult the information note attached (in English) and (in French) or contact ccngo.efa@unesco.org

UNESCO document on basic education for girls

Within the framework of the United Nations Girls' Education Initiative (UNGEI), UNESCO has prepared a working document on gender equity in basic education with special reference to nonformal education. The document complements the UNGEI concept paper prepared last year by the Working Group led by UNICEF. A first draft of the document was discussed at a meeting of international experts in December 2000, and the revised document was presented to the UNGEI Working Group Meeting on 21 June.

The document is available on request from
Koto Kanno, UNESCO Paris
E-mail: k.kanno@unesco.org

NGO mobilization in Africa

Some forty NGOs and civil society groups working in education in Benin gathered in Porto Novo on 31 May to be informed about the Dakar Framework for Action, to discuss their role in the national forum on Education for All and to engage in dialogue with the authorities and development partners. The workshop was organized by Conseil des activités educatives au Bénin (CAEB), Aide et Action and Borden Fonden.

The organization of national consultations to reinforce NGO involvement in the EFA process was one of the recommendations of a recent regional workshop in Dakar (21-23 May). At this workshop NGOs, civil society groups, government officials and bilateral and multilateral agencies developed input to a framework for a regional programme for capacity building. An outline for a publication to support the capacity building process as well as ideas about resource mobilization for the regional programme were also discussed. Organized jointly by UNESCO and the World Bank, the Dakar workshop was a follow-up to the Bamako Heads of State and the NGO/CSO meetings in November 2000 and was part of the broader framework of United Nations Special Initiative on Africa.

Experts meeting on Improving Performance in Primary Education

Some 60 education experts, teachers and representatives of international agencies will meet 9-13 July in Dakar to exchange experiences and decide on a common strategic framework for improving performance in primary education. The meeting is jointly sponsored by UNESCO and the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (ISESCO)

Contact: Winsome Gordon, UNESCO Paris
E-mail: w.gordon@unesco.org

Countries in action (Ecuador, Kazakhstan and the Republic of Moldova)

Ecuador

A three-day National Dialogue on Education took place in Guayaquil, 31 May to 2 June, under the auspices of UNDP's Dialogue 21 Project. Nearly 100 participants representing Ecuador's wide education community took part in the dialogue. Agreements on the following points were reached:

  • Promoting reading in the framework of lifelong learning and of the renewed vision of literacy in the context of the United Nations Literacy Decade. This agreement will lead to the launching of a national campaign "Si tú lees, Ecuador aprende" ("If you read, Ecuador learns").

  • Creating a special body that debates and proposes alternative education policies and enhances citizen participation in education. Activities will start with discussions about the Education Law currently being debated in the country.

  • Promoting local development by involving all local actors in education and learning, and by stimulating local agreements on education.

Contact: Diálogo 21 - Guayaquil
E-mail: d21_pnud@telconet.net or
Diálogo 21 - Quito
E-mail: proyecto.dialogo21@undp.org

Kazakhstan

A National Group for the preparation of an EFA plan of action has been established in Kazakhstan. Headed by Nuraly Bekturganov, Minister of Education and Science, the Group comprises thirty members including members of parliament and experts from relevant ministries, education experts, teacher representatives, etc. Rysty Zhumabekova, Director of the Department for Secondary Education, has been appointed EFA national co-ordinator.

Republic of Moldova

The Moldova State University is organizing an EFA national roundtable in Chisinau, 25-27 September 2001, in co-operation with UNESCO headquarters, the Republic of Moldova National Commission for UNESCO, UNDP, World Bank, Soros Foundation and UNICEF.

A delegation from the Republic of Moldova visited UNESCO headquarters at the end of May. The decision was taken that UNESCO will send two preparatory assistance missions to Chisinau to analyse the situation of education in the country and to propose how to adapt the education system to achieve the goals of the Dakar Framework for Action. A country in transition, the Republic of Moldova faces problems in maintaining and improving the level of access to education and the quality of education.

Newspapers in education: a tool to help people learn to read

All over the world, newspapers -- and schools -- are creating exciting new ways to build the next generation of readers. Participants at the 4th International Newspapers in Education Conference (16-19 September, Cape Town, South Africa) will examine how newspapers are fighting to capture the attention, interest and loyalty of the young. Topics will include success stories about using newspapers to build citizens who think critically and to help people learn to read and to promote tolerance.

At the Conference the winner of the annual World Young Reader Prize will be announced, rewarding the newspaper that has created the most innovative educational prize in the previous twelve months. Guidelines for that prize are available at http://www.wan-press.org/yrp/wyrp/guidelines.html

Full details on the Cape Town Conference: http://www.wan-press.org/ce/nie.conference/invite.html

Hot off the press

Drug misuse in Asia

How can skills-based non-formal education be used to reach vulnerable young people who are at risk of drug misuse and HIV/AIDS? How can the capacities of NGOs working with marginalized youth be developed and how can networking mechanisms designed to enhance south to south co-operation within and between countries be created?

Two new documents published by UNESCO are devoted to the Drug Abuse Prevention Programme in Asia (DAPPA). The first, a 32-page position paper "Dependence to Independence - Young People, Drugs and Marginalisation in Asia", explains key aspects of the strategic thinking behind the development of DAPPA and describes some key components of the project. The second, a shorter brochure "Working Where the Risks Are. Drug Misuse Prevention Programme in Asia" (20 pages), gives an overview of DAPPA and the situation of drug abuse among youth in Asia.

DAPPA is the result of innovative collaboration between UNESCO and the European Commission, and in partnership with a number of NGOs.

To receive a hard copy of the publication :
Contact: Mehboob Dada
E-mail: m.dada@unesco.org

Contact: Anne Muller (a.muller@unesco.org)