1. Introduction

The Dakar World Education Forum (April 2000) reaffirmed the commitment of nations of the world to pursue the goal of 'Education for All' (EFA) and the vision of the World Conference on Education for All, Meeting Basic Learning Needs (Jomtien, Thailand, 1990). Jomtien reiterated the notion, laid out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, that all children, young people and adults have the 'fundamental human right' to a basic education that will develop their talents, improve their lives and transform their societies. This global commitment to Education for All was reaffirmed at the Mid-Decade Review in Amman, Jordan in 1996.

The Jomtien declaration was significant for its rejection of 'business as usual'. At Jomtien the nations of the world collectively affirmed the urgency of stemming the rise of out-of-school children in countries throughout the world. They showed how global prosperity and peace can come about only when all persons - not merely a privileged élite - acquire the knowledge and skills they need to become effective workers, parents, citizens and fulfilled individuals. Perhaps most important, Jomtien articulated an expanded concept of basic education that encompasses not only knowledge and skills but an understanding of - and respect for - culture, value and the importance of finding ways in which the peoples of the earth can live together.

Jomtien anticipated the need for a full-scale review of progress towards EFA at the end of a decade, and this took place at the World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal. The more than 1,000 participants from 164 countries analysed the findings of the EFA 2000 Assessment, which had been set in motion in Amman, and adopted the Dakar Framework for Action, which laid out a set of goals and strategies for achieving EFA.

The Dakar Framework stressed that education not only provides individuals with what Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen calls 'human capabilities' - the power to reflect, make choices and enjoy a better life, but that it is 'the key to sustainable development and peace and stability within and among countries'.1 Education has powerful synergistic effects on other development objectives - empowerment, protection of the environment, better health, and good governance, among many other things - and it is one of the most effective preventive weapons against HIV/AIDS. Achieving Education for All is a necessary first step in realizing these other ambitious goals.

While candid about the enormity and the complexity of the task of bringing about EFA, the Dakar Framework - whose subtitle is Education for All: Meeting our Collective Commitments - emphasized that the goal is one that can be reached. It laid out a set of six specific goals that are aligned with international development targets as well as a plan of action for meeting them. These goals are:

1. Expand early childhood care and education. Expand and improve comprehensive early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children.

2. Free and compulsory education of good quality.
Ensure that by 2015 all children, particularly girls, children in difficult circumstances and those belonging to ethnic minorities, have access to and are able to complete primary education that is free, compulsory and of good quality.

3. Promote the acquisition of life-skills by adolescents and youth. Ensure that the learning needs of all young people and adults are met through equitable access to appropriate learning and life-skills programmes.

4. Expand adult literacy. Achieve a 50% improvement in levels of adult literacy by 2015, especially for women, and equitable access to basic and continuing education for all adults.

5. Eliminate gender disparities. Eliminate gender disparities in primary and secondary education by 2005, and achieve gender equality in education by 2015, with a focus on ensuring girls' full and equal access to and achievement in basic education of good quality.

6. Enhance educational quality. Improve all aspects of the quality of education and ensure excellence so that recognized and measurable learning outcomes are achieved by all, especially in literacy, numeracy and essential life skills.

Fundamental operating assumptions

Three fundamental operating assumptions underlie the strategies outlined in the Dakar Framework:
1. The heart of EFA activity lies at the national level. The Framework affirmed that 'Governments have an obligation to ensure that EFA goals and targets are reached and sustained'. It is incumbent upon each country to take ownership of the EFA process within its borders, to demonstrate the political will to carry through national plans of action and to provide financial resources for doing so.

2. The importance of partnerships. While national governments have the primary obligation to pursue the goal of EFA within their borders, the Framework declared that this responsibility 'will be met most effectively through broad-based partnerships within countries, supported by co-operation with regional and international agencies and institutions'. Moreover, the Framework stipulated that the role of the international community and various partner agencies is 'to support each country in the development and implementation of this national plan'.

3. The need for co-operation with civil society. The Dakar Framework specifically called for partnerships involving organizations from civil society. Signatories to the Dakar Framework pledged to 'ensure the engagement and participation of civil society in the formulation, implementation and monitoring of strategies for educational development'.

Structures for implementing the Dakar Framework

The pursuit of EFA is a multi-faceted enterprise, one that must be carried out both as a movement with its own goals and identity and as an ally of other efforts to improve the human condition. As a means of giving institutional form to the pursuit of the six goals of Dakar, the Framework called for a series of structures to be established or strengthened in each country. These mechanisms must carry out their work in the context of other national activities, such as poverty reduction, the fight against AIDS and gender programmes.

National EFA forums
An important structure for implementing EFA in many countries is the National EFA Forum. The Country Guidelines on the Preparation of National EFA Plans of Action, which was produced by UNESCO as a guide to organizing follow-up to Dakar, defines the national EFA forum as 'a consultative and co-ordination body that brings together around one table the representatives of all those with a vital stake in basic education' (3.3). These guidelines suggest that forums include 'key representatives from relevant government ministries and departments and from relevant parts of "civil society", that is, those associations and social institutions that organize citizens' interests and express their views'.

The Guidelines list the main tasks of the national forums as advocacy, resource mobilization, monitoring of the status of EFA and the generation and sharing of EFA-related information.

Regional and sub-regional forums
The Framework also calls for the formation of regional and sub-regional organizations, networks and initiatives that will be 'linked organically with, and be accountable to, National EFA Forums'. The functions of these forums are 'co-ordination with all relevant networks, setting and monitoring regional/targets, advocacy, policy dialogue, the promotion of partnerships and technical co-operation, the sharing of best practices and lessons learned, monitoring and reporting for accountability, and promoting resource mobilization'. Wherever possible, existing entities should be utilized for these purposes.

High-level group
The Framework specified that UNESCO will continue its mandated role in co-ordinating the work of EFA partners as a means of sustaining the 'collaborative momentum' of the movement. The Director-General of UNESCO is directed to organize the annual convening of a 'high-level, small and flexible group' composed of 'highest-level leaders from governments and civil society of developing and developed countries, and from development agencies'.

The purposes of the High-Level Group (HLG) are to maintain high political commitment for EFA, to mobilize international financial support, and to define strategies for progress towards EFA. The Framework describes the HLG as 'an opportunity to hold the global community to account for commitments made in Dakar'. Invitations have been sent to 29 leaders of governments, bilateral and United Nations agencies and NGOs to attend the first meeting of the HLG at UNESCO headquarters in Paris in October 2001.

Working Group
The Dakar Framework specifies that the High-level Group will be informed by the various EFA Forums and partner organization. While the Framework made no formal provision for a mechanism to a accomplish this, a collective decision was made to establish a Working Group on Education for All comprised of about 40 key actors, including representatives of governments, regional bodies, bilateral and multilateral donors, agencies and NGOs.

The Working Group, which is chaired by the Assistant Director-General for Education of UNESCO, is professional and consultative in nature and provides a forum for exchange and discussion of EFA experiences throughout the world and for recommending concrete actions. It has held two meetings at UNESCO headquaters in Paris, in November 2000 and September 2001.

Purpose of the monitoring report

This Monitoring Report was prepared by UNESCO, with inputs from EFA partners, under the guidance of the Working Group on EFA for use by the High-Level Group at its October 2001 meeting. The purpose of the report is to provide an account of the progress that countries and support agencies have achieved towards the goal of EFA, as well as to highlight important trends and findings and to point to future actions.

This report, which is also intended to share information with partner organizations and other stakeholders involved in the implementation of EFA, is viewed as the first in a possible series of annual reports. As such, a major purpose will be to provide baseline data for future comparisons.