UNESCO implements sub-regional project on ICT for South Eastern Europe
September 10, 2003 - International experts will meet on 12-14 September in Skopje, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to discuss the main features of a new sub-regional project Information and Communication Technologies for the Development of Education and the Construction of a Knowledge Society for South Eastern Europe.
The project was launched by the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education (IITE) last March. It is financed by the Japanese Government. Following the meeting in Skopje, thematic seminars, training sessions and workshops will be held for educational specialists, policy- and decision-makers in the region. More

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CONFINTEA Mid-Term Review opens officially today
September 8, 2003 - Six 6 years have passed since the adoption of the Fifth International Conference on Adult Education (CONFINTEA V) in Hamburg, (1997). How far have its commitments been translated into reality? What are the new emerging issues in adult education today? What new recommendations should be made in regard to future directions on adult learning? These issues will be addressed at the CONFINTEA Mid-Term Review in Bangkok, from 6 to 11 September. Organized jointly by the UNESCO Institute for Education, UNESCO Bangkok and the Thai Department of Non-formal Education, the gathering will bring together more than 300 participants involved in adult education worldwide. The official opening will take place on 8 September along with the Asia/Pacific regional launch of the UN Literacy Decade, and International Literacy Day celebrations. The conference will focus on thematic presentations, regional reviews, policy dialogue and plans of actions, and will be preceded on 6 and 7 September by thematic workshops. More

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UNESCO Director-General opens first UN inter-agency meeting on the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development
September 5, 2003 - Today, UNESCO hosted the first inter-agency meeting on the forthcoming UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD). Opened by the Director-General, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, the meeting was attended by representatives from 10 agencies: FAO, ILO, UNAIDS, UNEP, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNU, the World Bank, and WFP.

During its 57th session, the UN General Assembly proclaimed the Decade in follow-up to the recommendation made by the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg last year. UNESCO was designated as the lead agency for the promotion of the Decade, which will be launched in January 2005.

Mr Matsuura told the participants that a broad-ranging consultative process will seek to instill “a spirit of cooperation that will itself be sustainable throughout the duration of the Decade”. More

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UN agencies meet to discuss the Decade Education for Sustainable Development
September 4, 2003 - Twelve United Nations agencies will meet tomorrow at UNESCO’s headquarters in Paris to discuss the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development to be launched on 1 January 2005. The meeting will review the draft implementation plan for the Decade and identify how UN partners can contribute to the Decade through their own programmes. It will be opened by UNESCO’s Director-General, Koïchiro Matsuura.

The Decade of Education for Sustainable Development was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly last April. UNESCO was designated as the lead agency.

The Decade was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly last April and will be launched on 1 January 2005. UNESCO has been designated as the lead agency.

Tomorrow's meeting will review the draft implementation plan for the Decade and identify how UN partners can contribute to it through their own programmes. It will be opened by UNESCO’s Director-General, Koïchiro Matsuura.

More:
Provisional agenda
List of confirmed participants.

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2003 UNESCO prize for peace education award ceremony
September 2, 2003 - The laureate of this year’s UNESCO Prize for Peace Education, Father Emil Shufani, will receive his award from Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura in a ceremony on September 8. The Director-General will also present an Honourable Mention to Yolande Mukagasana (Rwanda/Belgium).

Born in 1947, Father Emil Shufani has worked for decades to bring Jews, Moslems and Christians closer together. An Israeli Arab Christian himself, he founded the project “Education for peace, democracy and coexistence” in 1988 at St Joseph’s College in Nazareth, where he has been principal since 1976. He has written numerous works, and two compilations of his interviews were published in France by Albin Michel, Le Curé de Nazareth (1998) and Comme un veilleur attend la paix (2002). In May 2003, he led a joint Jewish-Arab pilgrimage to Auschwitz-Birkenau as part of his project “Memory for Peace. Press release

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Fight against AIDS: Meeting of Africa’s First Ladies in Venice
August 26, 2003 - A group of Africa’s First Ladies will meet on September 1 at the Palazzo Labia in Venice (Italy) to examine the topic of “AIDS in Africa and the threat of new emerging viruses” and attend a scientific information conference with Professor Luc Montagnier. At the invitation of the Italian government and the Veneto region, a delegation of First Ladies – members of “African Synergies”, a movement they launched in November 2002 to link the different initiatives fighting AIDS on the continent and to mobilize resources at the international level – will come to Venice during the international film festival. UNESCO Media Advisory

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The Virtual University: Models and Messages
August 25, 2003 - UNITAR in Malaysia, the Campus Numérique Francophone de Dakar, Senegal, the Universidad Virtual de Quilmes in Argentina and USQOnline in Australia, are but four virtual universities included in a case study entitled "The Virtual University: Models and messages". The study was recently published by UNESCO's International Institute for Educational Planning. (IIEP).

The case study is available online at http://www.unesco.org/iiep/eng/focus/elearn/webpub/index.html

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Regional Training Centre for future community toylibrarians in Quito (Ecuador)
August 4, 2003 - In the framework of the partnership between UNESCO and the French NGO CIELO (Coopération Internationale pour les Equilibres Locaux) in Latin America, supporting development actions focusing on play activities as means of development, prevention, non formal learning and income generation for disadvantaged children and their families in urban areas, a permanent Regional Training Centre for future community toylibrarians has been established in Quito (Ecuador), within the toylibrary called «My toylibrary, my toys, my rights», in the «Santa Teresita del Valle» neighborhood, in the suburbs of the Ecuadorian capital.


The Regional Training Centre will be officially opened on 5 August 2003, in the context of the first training session, that will take place from 4 to 17 August 2003. The participants in this first training session will be able to get know and be trained in the organization of the Games in the street Festival that will be held on Sunday 10 August in the neighborhood of the toylibrary. More information

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UNESCO's Associated Schools Project Network celebrates its 50th birthday
July 28, 2003 - More than 180 delegates from over 80 countries will attend the “Navigators for Peace” International Congress to be held in Auckland from August 3 to 8, marking the 50th anniversary of UNESCO’s Associated Schools Project Network (ASPnet).

The network, which is one of UNESCO’s longest-running education programmes, now links more than 7,500 schools and other education institutions in 170 countries, including almost 50 in the Congress host country, New Zealand. Launched to promote UNESCO’s ideals of human rights, peace and democracy, the network has become a laboratory for educational innovation, developing programmes with and for teachers and pupils. It now also tackles such contemporary issues as environmental protection and intercultural learning.

The week-long Congress will review ASPnets’ major achievements over the past 50 years, evaluate its strengths and weaknesses, look at ways of reinforcing its contribution to the promotion of quality education for all, and decide on future directions. Media advisory

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Education for All flagships and international initiatives under scrutiny
July 24, 2003 - EFA flagship programmes and initiatives are increasingly finding their place in the education for all movement because they advance education issues of particular concern. However, further clarification on their role and functions, how they link to each other and how they fit into the EFA drive in countries and regions is needed.

This was one of the main conclusions of the fourth meeting of the Working Group on Education for All, a technical advisory body bringing together 57 representatives of the main EFA constituencies and some 20 observers. The two-day meeting ended yesterday at UNESCO's Headquarters in Paris and showed, according to John Daniel, UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Education "a very encouraging spirit of teamwork and a high level of activity".

Participants welcomed the diversity of initiatives but pointed to a certain overlap between them, a lack of funding and inadequate links with national planning processes and development frameworks such as UNDAF and PRSPs. More

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Fourth Meeting of the Working Group on EFA opens today

July 22, 2003 - Taking the theme of “Promoting Partnerships for EFA”, the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today opened the fourth meeting of the Working Group on EFA at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.

This meeting of the Working Group, a technical advisory body with representation from all major EFA constituencies, will concentrate on four key international “flagship” programmes or initiatives through which EFA partnerships are expressed: the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI), the Fast-Track Initiative, HIV/AIDS and Education; and the United Nations Literacy Decade (2003-2012). The aim is to seek better ways to ensure the integration of these international initiatives into national action and to improve the linkages between them.

Mr Matsuura said that since becoming Director-General, he had placed greater stress on EFA within the Organization’s Programme and Budget. He further stated that: “Subject to the approval of the General Conference at its next session in October, UNESCO is looking forward to some modest real growth in its budget for the next biennium. This will provide an opportunity for me to allocate even more funds to EFA and basic education in general and to decentralize more funds to field offices”. More

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Fourth meeting of the Working Group on EFA takes off next week

July 18, 2003 - All is set for the fourth meeting of the Working Group on Education for All to take place 22 and 23 July at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. Bringing together 57 representatives of the main EFA constituencies and 19 observers, the meeting will primarily review the current status and future of EFA initiatives and flagship programmes. Four panels will discuss specific initiatives: the UN Girls' Education Initiative, HIV/AIDS and education, the UN Literacy Decade and the Fast-Track funding initiative. "The aim is to agree on a common understanding of these initiatives -- how they interact, their value added, how they are making a difference at country level and what should be their future role," says Abhimanyu Singh, Lead Manager of UNESCO's Dakar Follow-up Unit.

The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, will open the meeting and John Daniel, UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Education, will chair it. More

==>> Documents related to the Working Group on EFA meeting

==>> Information on the EFA flagship programmes

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Review of adult education in the Arab States
July 16, 2003 – Experts and practitioners working in literacy, adult education and non-formal education in the Arab States are meeting this week in Tunisia to evaluate the progress made since the 1997 international conference on adult education, CONFINTEA. One man in three and one woman in two is still illiterate in the Arab region. Organized by the UNESCO Regional Office for Education in the Arab States in cooperation with the UNESCO Institute for Education in Hamburg and with the Tunisian National Commission for UNESCO, the meeting is part of the preparation for the CONFINTEA Mid-Term Review to be held in September 2003 in Bangkok, Thailand.
Contact: Nour Dajani - n.dajani@unesco.org

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UNESCO calls for radical reform of water education programmes
July 16, 2003 - In the face of looming water shortages, which threaten to affect billions of the earth’s inhabitants by mid-century, UNESCO is calling for a radical review and reform of water education programmes and for a speedy doubling in the number of water professionals around the world. This call is contained in a speech that the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, will deliver on Thursday July 17 at the new UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education in Delft, the Netherlands. Press release

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UNESCO to host intersessional meeting of the world summit on the information society
July 11, 2003 - UNESCO is to host the Intersessional Meeting of the World Summit on the Information Society at Organization Headquarters on July 15-18. More than 800 participants - government representatives and observers from intergovernmental organizations, civil society and the private sector - will attend the meeting, convened by the President of the Preparatory Committee of the Summit, Adama Sammassékou of Mali. UNESCO Media Advisory

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OECD/UNESCO study identifies regional disparities in student performance
July 1, 2003 - Students in Finland are among the world’s best in terms of reading literacy, while students in Japan, Hong Kong-China and the Republic of Korea lead in mathematics and science, according to a newly published survey of 15-year-olds in 43 countries. By contrast, students in several Latin American countries lag seriously behind in all three areas, even after taking account of lower national income levels.

These are some of the conclusions of a new report published jointly by OECD and UNESCO, Literacy Skills for the World of Tomorrow, based on data gathered in the context of the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). The new publication was presented at a press conference at the UN Information Centre, Millbank Tower, Millbank, in London today.

PISA measures how well 15-year-olds are prepared to meet the challenges of today’s knowledge societies, by administering tests and background questionnaires to between 4,500 and 10,000 students in each participating country. It is the most comprehensive and rigorous international effort to date to both assess student performance and collect data on the student, family and institutional factors that can help explain differences in performance. More

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World Conference on Higher Education opens in Paris
June 23, 2003 - The World Conference on Higher Education + 5 opened today at UNESCO in Paris. More than 400 experts and authorities from some 120 countries are attending the Conference opened by UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura. Keynote speakers included Professor Cristovam Buarque, Minister of Education of Brazil and H.H. Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Abdullah Al-Misnad, First Lady of Qatar and Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education.

Tomorrow four Commissions will focus on New Developments in Higher Education, The Contribution of Higher Education to Development, The Evolution of Higher Education Structures and Systems and Internationalization.

--> Address by Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura (English only - pdf)

--> Seven appeals issued by Education Minister Buarque, (English only - pdf)

--> Provisional programme of the Conference

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UNESCO and Qatar to launch international fund for Iraqi higher education
June 21, 2003 – The First Lady of Qatar and UNESCO Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education, Her Highness Sheikah Mozah Bint Nasser Al Misnad, and UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura, will sign an agreement on Monday June 23 (11 a.m.), establishing an International Fund for Iraqi Higher Education. More

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Experts to discuss doping in sport at UNESCO meeting
June 20, 2003 - About 20 experts in the battle against drug use in sport will meet officials of the United Nations and other international bodies at UNESCO Headquarters from June 24 to 26 to make proposals towards the development of an international instrument on the problem. More

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New OECD/UNESCO report on educational attainment to be launched in London, July 1 2003
June 19, 2003 - Which countries are doing best at teaching secondary school pupils? Literacy Skills for the World of Tomorrow, jointly produced by the OECD and UNESCO under the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), gives some answers - More

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Experts review UNESCO's new Position Paper on literacies
June 11, 2003 - Some twenty literacy experts from around the world are currently meeting in Paris to discuss UNESCO Education Sector's new Position Paper on 'literacies'. During the three-day meeting which started yesterday, the experts will review the concept of the renewed vision of literacy as literacies and reflect on the challenges that this new understanding raises in education. They will also give inputs for policy and strategy recommendations for Literacy for All within the framework of the United Nations Literacy Decade (2003-2012). Contact: Margarete Sachs-Israel

- List of participants
- Agenda
- More information on the UN Literacy Decade Website

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UNESCO to provide five million science and mathematics textbooks for Iraqi school children
June 6, 2003 - UNESCO will make five million science and mathematics textbooks available to Iraqi primary and secondary students for the forthcoming school year under a $10 million programme supported by, and undertaken in cooperation with, the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

The textbook programme is part of a set of UNESCO activities directed towards the reconstruction and reinforcement of a quality education system in Iraq that meets the learning needs of students at primary and secondary levels. UNESCO will manage this effort in full cooperation with other partners, including Iraq’s Ministry of Education, Iraqi educators, textbook specialists, private sector companies (especially for book production), UN organizations and agencies, and other partners, as appropriate. UNESCO Press release

Address of UNESCO's Director-General on the Organization's actions and projects in Iraq in the fields of culture and education (given on 6 June during a meeting with the Ambassadors and Permanent Delegates to UNESCO)

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Associated Schools as Water Messengers
June 4, 2003 - Young people from some 50 countries will over the next three days attend an international festival on water “Les messagers de l’eau" (Water Messengers) in Le Mont Dore and La Bourboule, France. Pupils and teachers of UNESCO's Associated Schools Project Network are among the participants celebrating the 50th anniversary of ASPnet and raising awareness of the need to protect and share the precious resource of water

The festival is organized by the Conseil Général du Puy de Dôme in co-operation with the French National Commission for UNESCO.

Contact: marie-paule.belmas@diplomatie.gouv.fr

More information:

Associated Schools Project Network (ASPnet)

The International Year of Freshwater 2003

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Training Teachers and Educators - A Priority for Higher Education
May 29, 2003 - Some of the participants of the "World Conference on Higher Education +5," scheduled to take place next month at UNESCO's Paris headquarters, will be meeting this weekend, to discuss their views on the importance of what "university" implies in terms of research, training, and the symbolic advancement of knowledge and culture as envisioned under the program "Education for All." In preparation for next month's Conference, this group of participants aim for their meeting 29-31 May, to result as an innovative contribution. Organized by the Association Francophone Internationale de Recherche Scientifique en Education (AFIRSE), the UNESCO Division of Higher Education, and the French National Commission to UNESCO, and conducted in the French language, the Conference will bring together researchers from Algeria, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, and Tunisia, among other countries. More (only in French)

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South Asian Countries Call on G-8 to Deliver Promised Education Aid
May 27, 2003 - Education ministers from the countries of South Asia have called on the governments of the G-8, due to meet in Evian (France) next week, to accelerate the delivery of promised financial aid to achieve the goal of Education For All (EFA) by 2015. They have also urged governments in the region to progressively increase their education spending to “a minimum of four percent of GDP”.

Meeting in Islamabad from May 21-23 under the auspices of the Government of Pakistan and UNESCO, education ministers and high-level delegations from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, also reiterated their commitment to bridging the gender gap by 2005.

In a Declaration adopted at the end of the meeting the participants pointed to numerous achievements made throughout the region since the World Education Forum (Dakar, Senegal, 2000), but stressed that quality improvement, gender parity and resource mobilization remained the “most serious challenges to achieve EFA by 2015.” UNESCO Press release

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South Asian Education Ministers adopt the Islamabad Declaration on EFA
May 26, 2003 - Meeting in Islamabad from 21 to 23 May, South Asian Ministers of Education issued the Islamabad Declaration on EFA. This document outlines the challenges facing South Asia: poverty, illiteracy, inadequate government funding of EFA, teacher shortage, limited use of ICTs, etc. The Declaration resolves to tackle such questions as the provision of free, inclusive, gender responsive quality basic education for all, to ensure that goal 5 (gender) of the Dakar Framework for Action be explicitly addressed in all EFA plans. The Declaration also urges governments to allocate progressively a minimum of 4 per cent of GDP to education. The South Asian EFA Forum Secretariat will henceforth move to Dhaka Bangladesh and the next Inter-Ministerial meeting will be held in 2005 on the theme of decentralization, with a focus on implementing the Kathmandu Joint Statement and the Islamabad Declaration.- Full text of the Islamabad Declaration on EFA

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Globalization and Higher Education in Developing Countries
May 26, 2003 - The impact of globalization on the development of higher education in developing countries will be the main subject of debate at the follow-up meeting of UNESCO’s Global Forum on International Quality Assurance, Accreditation and the Recognition of Qualifications in Higher Education, which opens today in Oslo.
Participants will focus on how to make quality higher education more accessible, especially in the countries of the South, the rise of private education providers in this domain, what makes for a responsible partnership between higher education authorities and business, and the role of information and communication technology (ICT), notably the development of virtual universities.
UNESCO Press release

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Innovations in training of teachers of young people and adults
May 23, 2003 - UNESCO Santiago participated in the Latin American Meeting on the Training of Teachers of Young People and Adults, held from April 7-12 in Pátzcuaro, Mexico. On that occasion, the organization committed its support to disseminating innovative experiences in this field and to offering technical assistance for the design of a Regional Plan for the Training of Teachers of Young People and Adults. Brought together by the Universidade Pedagógica de México, CREFAL, CEAAL, INEA, ILCE, ITESO, and CONAFE, education ministry personnel, NGOs and international organizations discussed the training of teachers of young people and adults and reached agreements to move forward in the design of a Regional Training Plan in order to address this education priority. More in education in Latin America. More in education in Latin America

Religious teaching on the rise ?
May 22, 2003 - Religious education appears to be on the rise in public school systems around the world and has become a key issue for education policy makers in many countries, according to the latest edition of Prospects*, UNESCO’s quarterly education review. Entitled Education and Religion, the June 2003 edition presents an overview of intended teaching time to be allocated to religion, as reflected in official curricular timetables from about 140 states. It also analyses the evolution of religious teaching over the last century in France, Israel, Pakistan and the Russian Federation. More

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UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Education highlights EFA key issues in South Asia
May 22, 2003 - National commitment is still the key to success, said UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Education, John Daniel, in his opening speech at the South Asia EFA Forum that opened yesterday in Islamabad, Pakistan. "Warm words about intentions are no longer sufficient. Both developing country governments and donor bodies must put their money where their mouths are," Daniel commented. He also highlighted the threat of HIV/AIDS in the region. "It is not just an African problem. Very soon it will be a South Asian problem unless you deploy vigorously the only vaccine available, namely preventive education," he said. Mr Daniel finally underlined that there are no quick fixes to boost development. "The only reliable springboard to national development is to get the kids through school and the adults reading," he said.

- John Daniel's keynote address

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South Asia EFA Forum opens today in Islamabad
May 21, 2003 - Education Ministers from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri will meet today and tomorrow at the South Asia EFA Forum in Islamabad, Pakistan. The ministers will in particular discuss mechanisms for financing of Education for All and outline strategies on how to reduce the gender gap in education. They will also share best practices for improving the quality in basic education. The meeting will be opened by the Federal Education Minister, H.E. Ms. Zobaida Jalal. UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Education, John Daniel will give a keynote address at the opening ceremony.

- Draft agenda

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International Jury meets to award the 2003 UNESCO Literacy Prizes
May 20, 2003 - The International jury that will award the 2003 UNESCO Literacy Prizes is meeting today in UNESCO. Four prizes will be given: the International Reading Association Literacy Award, the Noma Literacy Prize and two King Sejong Literacy Prizes.
This year, the prizes will award meritorious work in literacy and gender. The prizewinners will be known on 23 May.
A total of twenty-three submissions have been received: 8 from Africa, 3 from the Arab States, 1 from Asia/Pacific, 5 from Europe/North America, 3 from Latin America/Caribbean as well as 3 from NGOs.

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First meeting of the Joint Expert Group UNESCO(CR)/ECOSOC (CESR)
May 19, 2003 - The first meeting of the Joint Expert Group UNESCO(CR)/ECOSOC (CESR) on the monitoring of the right to education was organised today at the UNESCO Headquarters. The Expert Group discussed questions of key importance for strengthening the legal foundations of the right to education as well as the follow up to the Dakar Framework for Action, and the future cooperation between UNESCO’s Committee on Conventions and Recommendations (CR) and the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR). A website will be available soon

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Measuring literacy in developing countries
May 15, 2003 - What do we know about literacy in developing countries? Which people have what level of literacy skills? What other data would be useful to help target actions to increase literacy levels across populations, as well as to monitor the worldwide situation? The Literacy Assessment and Monitoring Programme (LAMP) aims to help answer such questions. It is an initiative that will develop and conduct a survey to measure a spectrum of literacy levels in developing countries. It is being designed by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics in cooperation with various international agencies and technical experts. More

Download the LAMP leaflet in PDF format: in English, in French, in Spanish

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Education in the Arab States: Five million girls still denied access to school
May 14, 2003 - Some eight million primary school-age children remain out-of-school in the Arab States and five million of them are girls, according to a new report published by UNESCO. However, it finds that when given the opportunity to go to school, girls tend to repeat less than boys and to complete their primary and secondary schooling more often.

Prepared by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, the Arab States Regional Report surveyed education in 19 countries - Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen, as well as the Palestinian Autonomous Territories - with a total population of 270 million people, 39 percent of whom are under the age of 14. Press release

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Tell World Leaders to Keep Their Promise to Provide Education for All
May 13, 2003 - On 9 April, 2003, over 1.5 million individuals broke the world record for the largest simultaneous lesson by participating in “The Biggest Lesson: Girls’ Education.” Now, NetAid, a member of the Global Campaign for Education, invites you to remind world leaders to fulfill the commitment they made at the G8 Summit in 2002: To help the poorest countries make education for all a reality. When the G8 countries meet again this June, let them know that they must keep their promise. Sign the petition and email at least 5 friends to get them to sign, too! Go to

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UNESCO hosts second conference on 'Education for tolerance: the case of resurgent antisemitism'
May 7, 2003 - The second international conference on “Educating for Tolerance: the Case of Resurgent Antisemitism,” organized by the Simon Wiesenthal Centre in cooperation with UNESCO will be held at UNESCO Headquarters from May 12 to 14. The opening session on May 12 (7 pm) will be attended by UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Sergio Vieira de Mello, Israel’s Minister for Diaspora Affairs Natan Sharansky, French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, Florida Governor Jeb Bush and Rabbi Marvin Hier, Dean and founder of the Simon Wiesenthal Centre. UNESCO Media Advisory

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World record attempt at the largest lesson in support for Education for All
April 3, 2003 - Children and adults from more than 100 countries will attempt to break the world record for the Largest Simultaneous Lesson on Wednesday April 9, as part of the celebrations for this year’s Education For All Week (April 6-13) which is being held under the banner of “All for Girl’s Education”. More

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Second edition of the UNESCO Race
April 2, 2003 - The second "UNESCO Race" will take place on Saturday 5 April, beginning at 8.30 a.m. The Director-General of UNESCO will signal the start of the run, in which he will take part.

This event, which covers a distance of 5.2 kilometers (from UNESCO to Avenue Foch), will not be timed, following the example of the "United Nations Run" in New York.

There will be musical entertainment throughout the route and "UNESCO Run" tee shirts will be available to all those taking part.

Breakfast will be served at the finishing point, near the tents set up for the Paris Marathon.
You are all warmly welcomed to take part in this "Friendship Run", which will give us an opportunity to rediscover some of the beautiful avenues of Paris. More

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Launch of Literacy Decade in Thaïland
? March 31, 2003 - Hot on the heels of the official international launch of the literacy decade in New York on 13 February 2003, the national launch in Thailand is set to take place during the Bangkok International Book Fair on Wednesday, 2 April 2003. The Opening ceremony will be held in the morning, with speeches by the Director of UNESCO Bangkok, Mr Sheldon Shaeffer, the Minister of Education, H.E. Pongpol Adireksarn Dr Gamini Abeysekera, and the representative of UNICEF Thailand.
A discussion forum will then kick off the ten-year task of combating illiteracy in Thailand. More

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The High Commission on Education in Afghanistan meets in Paris
March 23, 2003 - A few months after its creation by President Hamid Karzai in November 2002, the High Commission for Education in Afghanistan held a meeting of its coordinators at UNESCO, Paris, from 24 to 29 March 2003. The purpose of the meeting was to draft a report for submission to the Afghan President at the final meeting of the Commission to be held in Kabul next May. The document, which will review the country’s educational situation, will contain recommendations and guidelines on educational policy. Basic education, distance education pre-schooling and girls’ education will hold a significant place. UNESCO assisted the High Commission by putting at its disposal the ? expertise of specialists in these aspects of education.
Contact : d.gay@unesco.org

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International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
March 21, 2003 - UNESCO celebrates the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, with a series of events for the general public, including debates, round table discussions, films and young people's workshops.

Related Links:
-- The Programme Ceremony
-- Message of the Director-General of UNESCO
-- UNESCO Media Advisory

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Learn about the Transatlantic Slave Trade!
March 19, 2003 - "Breaking the Silence"/Learning about the Transat?lantic Slave Trade is a comprehensive web resource for teachers and learners. It is a joint initiative between UNESCO, the British Council, the Norwegian Government, and the NGO Anti-Slavery International, who developed the site using the framework of the "Breaking the Silence" project conducted by UNESCO's Associated Schools Project Network. The website guides teachers, educators and students to accessible and accurate resources on the slave trade and its legacies, including contemporary forms of slavery, and proposes class plans and exercises. Other language versions are envisaged.

Related Links:
-- UNESCO Associated Schools Project Network
-- Transatlantic Slave Trade Education Project (TST)
-- The Slave Route

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UNESCO's Director-General receives honorary degree in education
March 19, 2003 - The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, was awarded Doctor Honoris Causa of the Institute of Education of the University of London during ? an official ceremony held yesterday in London, the United Kingdom.
In his acceptance address, the Director-General presented some aspects of UNESCO’s vision of the quality of education in the 21st Century.
"There has never been a time when the unity of humankind has been more palpable and yet more vulnerable. For this reason, we must re-work our vision of education to take account of our diversity and particularity while also re-affirming the universal values that hold us together, " he said.

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UNESCO and the Russian Federation cooperate to restore Chechnya's education system
March 13, 2003 - UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura and the Minister of Education of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Filipov, will sign an Aide-Memoire on Thursday, March 14, reinforcing cooperation on the restoration of the education system in the Republic of Chechnya. More

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Consultation for the Arab States on Educational Governance
March 7, 2003 - Cairo (Egypt).Preparing the challenge of Educational Governance at Local Levels, UNESCO regional Office in Beirut and Cairo held a consultation on that theme in Cairo, March 8 to 11. This meeting, organized in collaboration ? with UNESCO Basic Education Division and the Ministry of Education in Egypt, focused on educational governance in the Arab States. It aimed at pointing out the priorities and strategies for development of Educational Governance at local levels and promoting exchanges of international and regional experiences in the area of decentralization and community participation in education.

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The world's top experts in endangered languages meet at UNESCO
March 6, 2003 - As the linguistic diversity of the planet shrinks at an unprecedented rate, to the point that most of the world's languages may be replaced by a few dominant languages by the end of the 21st century, the top experts in this field, from the scientific community and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), are to meet at UNESCO from March 10 to 12. More

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International Women's Day
March 5, 2003 - On the occasion of International Women’s Day, celebrated March 8, UNESCO is organizing a series of events through the month: two art exhibitions, a discussion forum on breast cancer, and the screening of a documentary that presents portraits of women from all over the world. More

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Conference on mediation and youth
March 5, 2003 - How can we prevent conflict situations among young people? That is the question which participants in the conference “Mediation and Youth” will try to answer, at UNESCO Headquarters on March 7 (2 to 6 p.m., Room XI), by examining the different conflict situations that young people can experience, and the ways to intervene to avoid violent and tragic outcomes. Mediation is a tool, an educational method, which enables young people to resolve conflict in a non-violent manner. This method can be applied at school by teaching children to understand others, to “put themselves in the other’s place”. It can serve to create alternatives to penal sanctions when charges have been brought. It can also help individuals in particularly difficult familial or professional situations. John Daniel, Assistant Director-General for Education, will be present at the opening of the conference. More

Training of decision-makers in Asia and the Pacific on ICT policies in education
February 26, 2003 - A series of workshop is currently taking plac?e in Bangkok to assist decision-makers from Asia and the Pacific in the development or improvement of educational ICT policies. The workshops that took off on February 18 are organized jointly by the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education (IITE) and the UNESCO Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education (UNESCO Bangkok). They will continue until April 25. >>More about the Seminar >> First Announcement >> General Scheme

Investing in education pays rich dividends confirms UNESCO/OECD study
February 18, 2003 - Investing in secondary and tertiary education - and not just primary education - pays rich dividends. A study by UNESCO and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on 16 emerging economies finds that investments in human capital over the past two decades may have accounted for about a half a percentage point in the annual growth rates of those countries. UNESCO Press release

Discovery, UNESCO and the UN Works programme mark International Mother Language Day with a celebration of cultural diversity
February 11, 2003 - In celebration of International Mother Language Day - February - Discovery Communications, Inc. (DCI), in partnership with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the UN Works Programme, will highlight some of the world’s endangered languages with a broadcast to over 100 million viewers internationally on the Discovery Channel. UNESCO Press release

United Nations Literacy Decade to be launched later this week
February 11, 2003 - The United Nations Literacy Decade (2003-2012) will be launched on Friday, February 13, at a ceremony in New York. The Decade aims to bring literacy to those who do not currently have access to it. Today 862 million adults are illiterate and over 113 million children are not in school. Visit the website to know more.

Discovery, UNESCO and the UN Works programme mark International Mother Language Day with a celebration of cultural diversity
?February 11, 2003 - In celebration of International Mother Language Day - February - Discovery Communications, Inc. (DCI), in partnership with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the UN Works Programme, will highlight some of the world’s endangered languages with a broadcast to over 100 million viewers internationally on the Discovery Channel. UNESCO Press release

UNESCO and the Government of Afghanistan launch nationwide literacy project
January 28, 2003 - UNESCO and the Government of Afghanistan today launched a major project to boost literacy throughout Afghanistan, which suffers one of the world’s lowest literacy rates. UNESCO estimates that only 51.9 percent of Afghan men over the age of 15 and a mere 21.9 percent of women in the same age group can read and write.

A vast effort is underway to rebuild the country’s education system and to get all Afghan children back to school. However, the adult population, which is responsible for the immediate reconstruction of Afghanistan and the revival of its economy, also needs to upgrade skills and knowledge. More than two decades of war have left Afghanistan with few qualified workers and professionals: most either fled the country o?r were killed during the conflict. Under the rule of the Taliban, women were not allowed to work and girls were forbidden from attending school. Link to UNESCO Press Release

The impact of social transformation on the global demand for early childhood education
January 22, 2003 - Rapid urbanization, the movement of men and women from agricultural to nonagricultural work and from informal to formal sector work, and the need for a more highly educated workforce in order to compete effectively in a globalized economy are likely to dramatically affect demand for early childhood care and education (ECCE) programs. The eighth issue of UNESCO Policy Briefs on Early Childhood is devoted to the “Social Transformations and Their Implications for the Global Demand for ECCE”, now available

- For a print copy contact : sh.choi@unesco.og
- Previous issues of the Briefs, as well as translations, can be found

Collective Consultation of NGOs on Education for All meets next week in Porto Alegre
January 17, 2003 - The Collective Consultation of NGOs on Education for All (CCNGO/EFA) will hold its 2003 annual meeting in Porto Alegre, Brazil, 19-23 January 2003.

It will be organized in conjunction with the second Porto Alegre World Education Forum, which gathers educators from all over the world to discuss issues of education and social transformation.

These events are held just prior to the third session of the World Social Forum, which has become a symbol for civil society expression and reflection on alternatives to the dominant neo-liberal orientation of globalization.

"Holding our annual meeting in this specific context will provide an opportunity to raise the profile of education as a pillar for humanizing globalization," says Susanne Schnuttgen, coordinator of the CCNGO/EFA at UNESCO. More

103 Countries ask UNESCO to prepare an International Convention against doping in sport
? January 10, 2003 - The ministers and senior officials of physical education and sport from 103 countries today asked UNESCO to elaborate, with the United Nations and other competent agencies, an International Convention against doping in sport.
Meeting for two days at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris for a Round Table of Ministers of Physical Education and Sport, which finished this evening, 45 ministers and numerous senior officials of physical education and sport from 103 countries adopted a communique in which they called for sport to be given its rightful place in education systems, for improved protection of young athletes against the risks of high level sport, and to fight doping, notably through the elaboration of an international instrument. More (UNESCO Press Release)

Sport and physical education ministers meet at UNESCO
January 7, 2003 - Ministers of sport and physical education from more than 90 countries will meet on January 9 and 10 this week at UNESCO Headquarters for a round-table discussion on strengthening sport in schools, protecting young athletes and international action to stamp out the use of drugs in sport. About 200 representatives of NGOs from around the world and from UNESCO Member-States will also take part. The opening ceremony will be attended by Adolf Ogi, Special Adviser to the UN Secretary-General on Sport for Development and Peace, Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee, French sports minister Jean-François Lamour and UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura. More (UNESCO Media Advisory)

UNESCO policy brief on early childhood in Papua New Guinea
December 19, 2002 - More than 800 living languages within a population of 5,2 million people is the bare reality in the island nation of Papua New Guinea, the world’s most linguistically divers nation. This unique situation is described in the seventh issue of the UNESCO Policy Briefs on Early Childhood.

The two latest case studies in the UNESCO Early Childhood and Family Policy Series are also available from today - “La mise en oeuvre de la politique intégrée de la Petite Enfance au Senegal” and “Data Collection and System Monitoring in Early Childhood programmes” can both be found online.

International Workshop on Education and Poverty Eradication
Kampala, Uganda, 30 July to 3 August 2001
The purpose of the workshop is to bring together educators and representatives of all sectors involved in the relief of poverty. More

2001 Annual Meeting of the Collective Consultation of NGOs on Education for All
The Collective Consultation of NGOs on Education for All (CCNGO/EFA) will hold its 2001 annual meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, 12-14 July. The meeting will discuss NGO perspectives on EFA and develop a framework for joint activities to be carried out in the context of the Dakar follow-up. More

International Friendship Encounter Sport for a Culture of Peace
Dinard, Saint-Malo, France, 12 to 17 June 2001
In mobilising young people and teachers from all around the world, in a spirit of fraternity and through a joint common project, this international encounter aims to reinforce the ethical and humanistic dimensions of sport and physical education, to foster co-operation, to promote friendship, solidarity and intercultural dialogue. More

May 2001

Inter-Agency Network Group for Education in Emergencies
Organized by UNESCO, UNICEF and UNHCR UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on 28 and 29 June 2001
This meeting will bring together the Steering Committee of the Inter-Agency Network Group for Education in Emergencies consisting of representatives from UNESCO, UNICEF, UNHCR, NRC-Norwegian Refugee Council and CARE. More

Improving Performance in Primary Education - A challenge for Education for All Goals
9-13 July 2001, Dakar, Senegal
The purpose of the International Workshop is to bring together educators and representatives from other sectors, from international agencies and NGOs to exchange information, discuss experiences and to come up with a common strategic framework within which all stakeholders can take action to improve performance in Primary Education. More

An International Expert Meeting on General Secondary Education in the Twenty-First Century: Trends, Challenges and Priorities
will be organized by UNESCO and the National Commission of the People's Republic of China for UNESCO in Beijing from 21 - 25 May 2001. Participants will be high-level Ministry officials responsible for secondary education from eight countries in different regions and varying contexts. More

April 2001

The Third United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC III)
will be held from 14 to 20 May 2001 in Brussels, Belgium. One of the major aims of the Conference is to contribute to a significant improvement in the human conditions in LDCs in the present decade. During the Conference, UNESCO will lead a round-table on "Education for All and Sustainable Development in the LDCs". More

Panel on "Higher education in Africa in the information age"
New York, 10 May 2001. The theme for this year's ECOSOC High-Level Segment dialogue is "The Role of the United Nations System in Supporting the Efforts of African Countries to Achieve Sustainable Development". More