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Working Document
Executive Summary of the
Working Document prepared for the
Mid-Decade Meeting on Education for All

A First Measure of Progress

In response to widespread deterioration of education systems during the 1980s, the World Conference on Education for All -- Meeting Basic Learning Needs, was held at Jomtien, Thailand, in March 1990. Reaffirming the right to education for people of all ages, the Conference adopted the World Declaration on Education for All and agreed on a Framework for Action to Meet Basic Learning Needs. The Declaration broadened the scope of basic education to include early childhood development, primary education, non-formal learning (including literacy and life skills) for youth and adults, and learning conveyed through the media and social action.

EFA in a Changing World

The context for educational development in the 1990s has been profoundly affected by changes in the world political and economic order following the end of the Cold War: the emergence of new democratic governments, the on-going globalization of the world economy, expansion of the service sector and rapid spread of new information and communications technologies -- all of which call for new knowledge, skills and attitudes. At the same time, the population in the developing regions is growing rapidly, and the 6-11 age-group is expected to grow by some 19% over the 1990s, meaning an additional 103 million children needing a place in primary school.

Several major United Nations conferences during the 1990s have emphasized human development and underlined the pivotal role of education as a key to sustainable development and improved living standards.

The EFA process in Countries

The majority of developing nations have responded to the challenge of the Jomtien Conference by taking various actions to: evaluate their existing education systems; design policies to improve basic education; strenghten the capacities of people and institutions to manage education; create a more supportive policy environment; broaden partnerships and diversify the resource base; and explore ways to use traditional and modern channels of information and communication to provide basic education.

Regional and Global Cooperation

The International Consultative Forum on Education for All, established to promote and monitor progress towards EFA, serves as the global focal point for information and dialogue. Several other networks have also strengthened cooperation and information sharing between bilateral and multilateral donor agencies, between agencies and countries, and among NGOs.

A survey in 1995 found that donor commitments and disbursements to basic education had risen in absolute and relative terms since 1990. Several bilateral donors have identified basic education as a priority area, and the World Bank and other multilateral agencies have increased their commitments to basic education substantially.

Overall Progress towards Education for All

Information collected during the Mid-Decade Review of Progress towards Education for All gives a general, though imperfect, picture of progress and problems since 1990 along the six target dimensions proposed in the Jomtien Framework for Action.

Early childhood development (ECD) is a fast-growing component of basic education, now reaching some 456 million children in the developing regions, i.e. about one out of five in the 3-6 age-group. Efforts are being made to to target children at risk with programmes integrating education, health and nutrition components.

In spite of economic difficulties, primary education in most developing countries is growing, and the downward trends of the 1980s appear to have been largely reversed. Between 1990 and 1995, enrolments in all developing countries combined have grown by 50 million pupils, double the pace of growth in the 1980s. Net enrolment ratios (NER), the proportion of pupils enrolled who are in the official age-group, has risen in all developing regions. Nearly two out of three school-age children in Africa are enrolled, but civil strife has had a devastating effect on enrolments in some countries. NERs in the Latin America/Caribbean and East Asia/Pacific regions will surpass the 90 per cent mark before the year 2000.

According to recent estimates, some 110 million school-age children were out of school in 1995, a significant decrease from the 129 million in 1990 and the dismal projections made at that time. But in sub-Saharan Africa, the number of children without access to primary eduction is still growing.

Most developing countries still lack the capacity to monitor learning achievement in primary schools. Testing typically serves as a screening mechanism, rather than a vehicle for correcting shortcomings in teaching. Grade repetition and drop-out continue to be serious obstacles to universal primary education. In sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and South Asia, less than four out of five pupils reach Grade 4.

Despite the Jomtien Conference's call for urgent improvements in the conditions of service of teachers , their status and working conditions have reached "an intolerable low point", according to a survey released in 1996 by the International Labour Organization. Decreases in real wages have driven many teachers to leave the profession.

Despite slow improvements in girls' enrolments, they are still less likely than boys to be enrolled in school, and the gender gap in NERs actually grew worse in the 1990s except in the Arab States. However, many countries now have action plans to promote the education of girls and women, reflecting the growing awareness that this is an investment with high social and economic returns.

In 1995, developing countries counted an estimated 872 million illiterate youth and adults, age 15 and over, representing some four million more than in 1990. Only a minor decline in numbers is expected by 2000 -- unless there is a truly major effort to promote literacy and life skills education for adolescents and adults , and particularly women, who constitute nearly two-thirds of all illiterate adults, a proportion that has not changed since 1990.

The provision of basic education through the mass media has developed only modestly since the Jomtien Conference. The E-9 high-population countries (Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan), who are home to to over 70 per cent of the world's illiterate adults, have identified the use of media for education as one of the main areas for their cooperation.

Available data do not yet fully reflect shifts in resource allocations to basic education . Overall, however, the post-Jomtien years have seen a rise of educational expenditure as a percentage of GNP in all developing regions except South Asia. The least developed countries, however, fell further behind during this period: they devoted no more than 2.8 per cent of GNP to education in 1993.

ACTIONS AND RESULTS

Sub-Saharan Africa

While African countries have managed to increase primary school enrolments, the number of out-of-school children in the 6-11 age group grew by some 2 million since 1990, now totalling 39.3 million, two-thirds of whom are girls. Countries have also sought to improve learning achievement, for example, by making the curriculum more relevant and using local languages for instruction in the early years.

Out-of-school programmes have reached many under-served groups. Adult literacy rates reached 56.8 per cent in 1995, up from 40.2 per cent in 1980, but the gap between men's and women's literacy rates (19 percentage points) closed only slightly. Less than half of African women are literate today and their literacy rates are below 25 per cent in a number of countries.

Arab States

By 1995, the regional average NER reached 78.6 per cent for boys and 69.7 for girls, but some countries recorded declining NERs. Repetition rates appear to have decreased somewhat and the percentage of pupils reaching Grade 4 increased from 91 to 94 per cent, which may reflect countries' efforts to improve the quality of education.

However, adult illiteracy remains a serious problem in the Arab States, although literacy rates have continued to improve, reaching an estimated 68 per cent for men and 44 per cent for women. Further overall improvement can be expected as the number of out-of-school children in the 6-11 age-group decreased from 9.1 million in 1990 to 8.2 million in 1995, of whom 6.1 million are girls.

Asia and the Pacific

Since 1990, there has been a general improvement in the regional NERs, currently at 87.4 per cent in South Asia and 64.5 in South Asia. There was a larger increase in the NER for boys than for girls in Asia as a whole, widening the gender gap in NERs to 10 percentage points in East Asia and to 20 percentage points in South Asia. As enrolments expanded faster than the growth of the 6-11 age-group, the out-of-school population decreased from 56.5 million to 33.2 million.

The challenge in this region is to find cost-effective ways of providing basic education to vast numbers. Some countries have introduced "home schools" and community schools staffed by para-professionals to reach more children.

Between 1990 and 1995, adult literacy rates rose from 80.3 per cent to 83.6 per cent in East Asia, and from 72.2 to 76.3 per cent in South Asia. Nevertheless, rapid population growth in South Asia continued to raise the absolute number of illiterates. The gender gap is also pronounced in literacy: women's literacy rates lag behind men's by some 14 percentage points in East Asia and by 26 percentage points in South Asia.

Latin America and the Caribbean

The average NER for the region rose to 88.5 per cent in 1995, with the NER for boys higher than that of girls, but girls tend to drop out less than boys. Adult literacy rates showed little difference between men (87.7%) and women (85.5%), although urban-rural disparities within countries were notable. Large-scale reform efforts are on-going in most countries in the region, usually addressing issues of quality, language of instruction and efficiency.

Europe and North America

Despite primary school enrolment rates around 100%, some recent survey data show a worrisome emergence of functional illiteracy in many parts of the region. Low levels of learning achievement, semi-literate school-leavers, and new skills requirements have combined to generate new literacy problems in this region.

Common Concerns across the Regions

The seven regional policy review seminars held as part of the Mid-Decade Review concurred on a number of issues of concern: a) the "expanded vision of basic education" needs to be applied both in policy and practice; b) more resources must be found for basic education; c) the recruitement, training and status of teachers must be improved; d) the quality of education must be improved to enhance learning achievement; e) assessment of learning achievement must be generalized; f) more emphasis is still needed on girls' and women's education; g) basic education must be made more available to children, youth and adults with special needs; and h) more attention needs to be given to develop adults' literacy and numeracy skills and on sustaining these skills.

IMMEDIATE PRIORITIES

Progress since 1990 has been uneven and often below expectations, but progress is nevertheless being made. Rhetoric has not always been matched with action, and despite its currency, "Education for All" is often reduced to "schooling for all". Also, the important Jomtien concept of meeting basic learning needs has received much less attention than the effort to provide a school place for every child. Thus, the "expanded vision of basic education" has been followed selectively, and most resources still go into providing places in primary school, with far less attention to youth and adults. Furthermore, the gender gap in education is closing only slowly and is even widening in some regions. Overall, developing countries have shown greater interest than industrialized countries in EFA, although the latter also face some serious problems.

Four Challenges

  • Improving learning achievement - Rich and poor countries alike are concerned about the quality of education offered in their schools and out-of-school programmes and the perceived inadequacies in learning achievement. Introducing even simple learning assessment methods, together with proven means to enhance the quality of instruction, are necessary and urgent to optimize returns on the investment in education and to meet basic learning needs effectively.

  • Resources and partnerships for EFA - Public funding for education is generally inadequate, and often poorly used, to expand access and improve quality. Building partnerships in support of basic education can mobilize more and varied material and other resources.

  • Building capacities to provide basic education - Putting in place the institutional arrangements and skilled professionals needed to meet the basic learning needs of all children, youth and adults over their lifetime calls for imaginantive strategies beyond necessary school reform.

  • Meeting the basic learning needs of all - Disparities in educational provision and attainment are still widespread, affecting girls and women in the first instance, as well as various disadvantaged groups. The experience gained around the world in providing basic education more equitably needs to be applied more generally and urgently.

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