1. Opening of the Conference
 

2. Election of the President
 

3. Adoption of the Rules of Procedure (ED-97/CONFINTEA/2)
 

4. Election of Vice-Presidents and the General Rapporteur
 

5. Adoption of the Agenda (ED-97/CONFINTEA/1)
 

6. Approval of the Organization of Work (ED-97/CONFINTEA/INF.2)
 

7. Oral Reports from the Preparatory Regional Conferences
 

8. Progress, Achievements and Problems: A Retrospective Review since 1985 (ED-97/CONFINTEA/3)
 

9. Adult Learning, A Key for the Twenty-first Century: Policies and Strategies (ED-97/CONFINTEA/4)
 

10. Thematic Working Groups - Adult Learning: A Right, A Joy, A Tool and A Shared Responsibility
 

11. Panel Discussion with Heads of Delegations: Major Issues related to Adult Education Policies and Implementation
 

12. Discussion of the Draft Declaration and the Draft Agenda for the Future (ED-97/CONFINTEA/5 and ED/-97/CONFINTEA/6)
 

13. Adoption of the Final Report of the Conference including the Declaration and the Agenda for the Future
 

14. Closure of the Conference

Excellencies,

 Mr Federal President,

 Distinguished Guests from all continents,

Hamburg - open to the world and internationally oriented - is proud to be host to two UN institutions: since 1996, the Maritime Court of Justice, and the UNESCO Institute for Education since as long ago as 1951.

Hamburg feels it a great honour to be hosting the Fifth UNESCO International Conference on Adult Education over the coming days. We see this as an obligation to continue to work at building international bridges.

In the name of the Senate of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg I welcome all our guests.

We live in a world that is rapidly changing. As we move into the third millennium we are experiencing profound social and economic changes.

On the threshold of the next millennium all societies in this world need to ensure that this transformation is both economically successful and socially and ecologically tolerable.

In doing so, societies must turn to their citizens, who will give constructive shape, meaning and purpose to the transformation.

Education and adult education are tools that will convey the relevant skills, values and behaviours so that we can respond to the challenges of tomorrow, and so that the peoples of this earth can live together in peace.

The Delors Report is absolutely right when it states that adult learning is nothing less than a key to the 21st century for the entire world - and the Hamburg Conference is absolutely right in adopting this motto also (Adult Learning - a key for the 21st century).

 Adult education serves a key function in several ways:

First: adult education is a tool that can give the excluded and disadvantaged a chance of playing a full part in the life of the community:

- for instance, by giving people basic skills of reading and writing - a task which has also to be faced by the so-called highly developed states,

- for instance, by helping the unemployed to find work by giving them qualifications,

- for instance, by integrating disabled people into society,

- for instance, by opening up equal participation in all spheres of life to women.

Secondly: adult education is a tool with which to overcome the challenges of the future:

- in communication: by learning to use new media and new means of communication,

- in environmental protection: by learning to use natural resources responsibly and to apply the principle of sustainability,

- in vocational continuing education: by learning to adapt to the changing demands of a global world economy. Even those who are highly qualified are not exempt from the threat of unemployment, but training is a proven means of reducing that risk. In view of the high unemployment in many countries in the world (2 million in Japan, over 4 million in Germany, 7 million in the USA, and over 18 million in the EU - source BAA [Federal Employment Office]) we have to take to heart the principle of "lifelong learning".

Adult education has a third and, I believe, particularly important key function in the dialogue between cultures. The world is becoming smaller and we have to learn to live with one another in this world. We must therefore strengthen intercultural dialogue, not least as a way of helping to guarantee peace. While the threat of war between states has happily been receding for some time, the danger of internal conflicts based on cultural differences has been growing.

Ideally, adult education can convey the value of cultural diversity and create openness towards different cultures, while allowing people to retain awareness of their own cultural identities.

Mahatma Gandhi put it like this: "My house is not to be surrounded by a wall and my windows are not to be locked. The cultures of all countries are to blow through my house with as little hindrance as possible. But I shall not let myself be blown away by anyone."

Adult education can help us to learn to live together in our world by gaining an understanding of others and of their histories, traditions and values. That is a fundamental requirement for the guaranteeing of democracy and peace, which rest on freedom, justice and mutual respect. It is a fundamental requirement for a culture of dialogue and peace - in clear contrast to the anticulture of conflict and war.

For more than half a century, UNESCO has played a leading role in adult education.

Education, and especially adult education, provides one of the most important bridges in international co-operation. The Hamburg UNESCO Conference will offer opportunities for exchanging experience and establishing new approaches to constructive collaboration between governments and specialist organizations that operate worldwide.

It is thus one of a series of initiatives of global significance: the Rio environment summit (1992), the Cairo International Population Conference (1994), the Copenhagen social summit (1995) and the Beijing World Conference on Women (1995). Just as much is hoped and expected of the Hamburg Conference in terms of helping to solve humanity's problems.

Hamburg is a metropolis of continuing education: some 400 institutes are working in this field of the future. As delegates to this Conference you have the chance, through study visits, to form your own impression of their diversity. In recent years, numerous innovations in the German continuing education system have started here in Hamburg. Take Hamburg's skill and innovativeness in the field of continuing education as a good omen for this Conference.

Take inspiration also from the open atmosphere of this City - for new ideas, new approaches to adult education in the 21st century, and new ways of working together - for the sake of the future well-being of all people on this earth.

Hamburg wishes this Conference every success.

 *) delivered in German

 Honourable Chairperson,

 Excellencies,

 Ladies and Gentlemen,

Assalamu Alaikum.

Let me express my heartfelt thanks and deep gratitude to you for giving me the opportunity to address this August forum. I am honoured to be here with all the distinguished participants. This is an opportunity to share with you my views on adult literacy, which is of crucial importance for the world community at present.

 Nearly nine hundred million population predominantly belonging to developing nations are illiterate. With technology advancing steadily they find themselves in an increasingly disadvantageous position. The gap between the literate and the illiterate in a developing society is likely to grow wider in future. The Human Development Centre has recently termed South Asia as the poorest, the most illiterate, the most malnourished, the least gender-sensitive and the most deprived region in the world. This region has a very low female literacy rate. It is time now for the world community to make a concerted effort to eradicate illiteracy, which is one of the main causes of disparity in the global family.

 Excellencies,

Adult literacy covers all aspects of continuing education. In modern industrialized societies, continuing education has become an accepted phenomenon. In this system more than one third of the population participate every year in organized educational activities. The educational scenario in these countries shows that adult learners now exceed the total population of students in primary and secondary schools.

Honourable Chairperson,

It has been universally recognized that basic education is one of the prime factors in economic, social and political development. Empirical studies indicate a strong and positive relationship between investments in basic education and changes in economic productivity. Education also has a relationship with health and social well-being, the growth of democracy and the conservation of environment. A recent study found that farmers with only four years of education are 9 per cent more productive than farmers with no education. Literacy gains of 20 to 30 per cent can boost a nation's GDP by 6 to 8 per cent and improve nutritional status significantly.

 Ladies and Gentlemen,

May I take the liberty to recall that the first international conference on adult education nearly fifty years ago laid stress on international co-operation in adult education. Later, three other conferences held in Montreal, Tokyo and Paris addressed issues relating to adult, non-formal and continuing education. These conferences addressed a very wide range of issues, including the goals of achieving universal literacy, establishing a framework for international co-operation creating a genuine spirit of democracy, increasing learning opportunities for all age-groups, promoting gender equality and contributing to sustainable development.

The policy guidelines of these conferences, however, stimulated uneven initiatives by different national governments. South Asia has a literacy rate of 48 per cent compared to 77 per cent in the rest of the developing world. Its share of the world's total illiterate population is 46 per cent which is twice as high as its share of the world's total population. There are more children out of school in South Asia than in the rest of the world. The Arab States and the Sub-Saharan region have a slightly better performance in this regard, with literacy rate of 55 per cent and 53 per cent respectively. However, the East Asian countries have by now achieved a high literacy rate of 96 per cent. This level of literacy was achieved through the sustained implementation of forward-looking national action plans stimulated by policy prescriptions in various international fora. This achievement is a source of inspiration for nations languishing in poverty and illiteracy.

Honourable Chairperson,

The concept of adult education is not new in Bangladesh. After the liberation of Bangladesh in 1971 our great leader, the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman felt the utmost necessity of education for national development and prosperity. Despite many other pressing concerns, he accorded high priority on education and said, "Education would be our first and foremost tool for national development." He recognized the need for establishing a uniform, mass-oriented and universal system of education and extending free and compulsory education to all children. This noble goal was enshrined in the constitution of Bangladesh. During his tenure of office the primary education system was brought under government funding despite severe resource constraints. His government established 11 thousand new primary schools, appointed about 50 thousand teachers and made primary education compulsory. Besides, over 150 thousand primary school teachers were given the status of government employees. Some incentives like arrangements for meals for primary students, free education for female students up to class VIII, and the free supply of books, pencils and papers were undertaken to encourage children to attend school. During this period, an Education Commission was formed with an eminent educationist Dr. Qudrat-e-Khuda as its Chairman to give the traditional colonial system of education a modern, scientific, professional and technical nature. This commission recommended the establishment of one adult education centre in each village and the use of social institutions as education centres. The commission also recommended eradication of illiteracy in the shortest possible time through a social movement ensuring participation of people of all walks of life. But it is a matter of great regret that the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was assassinated on the 15th August, 1975 by a group of traitors and conspirators. With his brutal killing the whole process of development in our country was shattered and disrupted and the people were deprived of their rights of franchise. This was followed by a period marked by coups, killings, exploitation and oppression. The people were neglected and their life became unbearable under poverty, illiteracy, terrorism and tyranny. Against the backdrop of these tragic developments we launched a mass movement in order to create awareness among the people about their right to food and franchise. After a long and arduous struggle the common people of the country emerged victorious. Through an election under a neutral non-party caretaker government we were able to establish their right of franchise. The people gave my party a clear mandate through a free and fair election to run the country and we assumed the responsibility of the government on June 23, 1996. Now, it is our firm conviction that the change of power should be through ballots-not bullets.

After establishing the people's right of franchise we have been making relentless efforts to establish people's right to food through alleviation of poverty. We consider education at all levels as one of the major factors of poverty alleviation. We are committed to eradicate illiteracy from our country within the next 10 years. Our government formed the National Committee to frame an Education Policy which would submit its report soon. Besides a constitutional obligation, Bangladesh is committed to attain its universal literacy objectives in international fora such as World Conference on Education for All, World Summit for Children and E-9 Summit. In the backdrop of the aforesaid commitments, the expansion of education has been emphasized to build a development-oriented and skilled human resource base capable of facing the challenges of the twenty first century. We are also committed to the structural reforms in the field of literacy that must accompany our drive for eradication of poverty through education and empowerment of the people.

Honourable Chairperson,

Recognizing the fact that the formal education system alone cannot eradicate illiteracy from society, it was thought necessary to embark upon a comprehensive Non-Formal Education Programme (NFE). Bangladesh has adopted forward-looking strategies to keep pace with the very fast changing global order. Our government's aim is to develop the nation's human resources, equip it with the necessary technical and professional skills needed to support a process of sustainable development. In order to strengthen the institutional and monitoring capacity of Non Formal Education our Government has established a National Council for Primary and Mass Education with the Head of the Government as the Chairperson. Right from the ministry down to literacy centres 9 types of committees have been organized to ensure people's participation at every level.

Honourable Chairperson,

I would like to share with you some of our experiences in Integrated Non-Formal Education Programme and other ongoing literacy programmes. A successful literacy programme depends on awareness in the target-group along with availability of education opportunities. If properly motivated, targeted people may come forward to participate in programme implementation. This enabling environment can be transformed into a full-fledged literacy movement, which is termed in our country as total literacy movement (TLM). This approach has enabled complete eradication of illiteracy in two districts and four thanas (sub-districts) already.

We further observe that empowerment of women can be accelerated through greater participation of women learners in literacy activities. Adult literacy Programme in our country comprises at least 50 per cent female literacy centres. Recent Programme evaluations revealed that female learners are better performers compared to their male counterparts, in learning endeavours. The female community is becoming more and more aware about its rights, and its responsibilities.

Honourable Chairperson,

Nearly 50 years have elapsed since the holding of the first international conference on literacy. But pervasive illiteracy is yet to be stamped out in some areas of the world. It should no longer be viewed as a problem of any individual nation or area. lt should rather be viewed as a challenge for mankind. Nations which are still struggling need to have a massive people's movement for both the literate and the non-literate so that literacy programmes are extensively spread all over the country. Also, for developing countries concerns like equal access to technology, information, and their cost, their impact on present and future educational systems are particularly important and should be taken into account. We are aware that technology is shifting the focus from teaching to learning from classrooms, to lifelong learning in communities. Countries coping with millions of non-literate adults need assistance so that they can provide these target-groups with literacy and consequently lead them to improved quality of life.

Honourable Chairperson,

 Excellencies,

 Ladies and Gentlemen,

May I now urge the world community to forge concerted efforts to address the following issues in order that the curse of illiteracy can be removed from the face of the earth as early as possible.

- Creating awareness of learning needs among target-groups through extensive social mobilization.

 - Intensifying the struggle against illiteracy through the alliance of government and non- government agencies.

 - Seeking co-operation of countries which have demonstrated remarkable achievement in the field of adult education.

 - Linking formal and non-formal education under the perspective of life-long learning.

 - Ensuring high quality of adult and continuing education programmes through mutual sharing of ideas and resources.

 - Prioritizing women's literacy and enhancing the scope for their employment.

 - Linking functional education, skill development, income-generating activities, micro credit approaches with continuing education programmes.

 - Ensuring that the highest priority is given to adult education programmes both by the respective governments as well as aid agencies.

I believe that these efforts through international co-operation will bring forth a prosperous world community - one in which even the poorer developing nations can begin to share in the new growth possibilities opened up by recent technological advances. In this new age of ideas and dominance of intellectual capital, we must ensure that our people have the education and skills to tap the emerging information and communication technologies. Today all of us must work to forge a structure of co-operation to usher in a global community completely free of illiteracy and thereby create an environment for effectively coping with the challenges and taking advantage of the new opportunities of the coming millennium.

I thank you all once again for inviting me to this conference and patiently listening to my statement.

 Joi Bangla

Joi Bangabandhu

May Bangladesh live forever

Khoda Hafez

 Ladies and Gentlemen,

I have the honour to welcome the participants and organizers of the Fifth UNESCO International Conference on Adult Education to the host country. For 46 years Germany has been a committed member of UNESCO. The UNESCO Institute for Education was the first institution of the international community of nations to be established in this country, and indeed in Hamburg, a city that has a tradition of being open to the world. This Institute has once again demonstrated its significance in preparing this major conference on adult education. Germany is proud to be co-operating in this outstanding event.

The theme of the conference is of great interest to me personally, and of key importance to my country and the international community. Nothing becomes outdated more quickly today than knowledge. It would therefore be unwise to regard the certificates gained in schools, vocational and tertiary colleges as the end of learning.

The concept of lifelong learning opens the way to discussion of more than traditional ideals of education and the need of one-off training and qualifications in specific occupations. It is a matter of interest to the whole of society. Whether society stagnates and ossifies or is able to meet the challenges of the future in an intellectually dynamic process depends on its readiness to continual learning - on its openness to what is new, its courage to try what is unusual and to adapt in unfamiliar territory.

The ability to innovate in the economy and in society is of fundamental importance not just for Germany. We need a new form of growth, growth based on knowledge. We need a new departure in educational policy in order to survive in the coming knowledge-based society. This means not just the knowledge that has been accumulated by experts or can be called up at any time on the Internet. Learning has to have a broader base, to embrace all age-groups including those of advanced age, and to be fully accepted by society.

Saying "yes" to continual learning, and social recognition of the value of all efforts to learn, will create a climate in which creativity is encouraged and a pyramid of creative achievements arises on a broad, lasting base. Arrogance and aversion to everything foreign will then lose their breeding ground. It is easier to interest someone who is willing to learn, and a society that is capable of learning, in international co-operation.

This thought brings me to the major task of UNESCO: bringing about a culture of peace. Education is a tool of peace, and adult education promotes peace.

I hope that this work for peace will be highly successful and widely acknowledged, and that the participants from other countries will gain beautiful and lasting impressions of Hamburg and Germany.

*) delivered in German

Mr President of the Federal Republic of Germany,

 Madam Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh,

 Madam President of the Bundestag,

 Mr Mayor of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,

 Excellencies, Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen,

In moments of crisis - said Albert Einstein - only imagination is more important than knowledge. In education generally and adult education in particular, we need to deploy greater imagination, more innovative approaches. I encourage you all to renew your commitment to education for all. I urge you to be daring in your visions and prescriptions so that Hamburg may be seen as a turning point in educational history.

A warm welcome to Hamburg and to this opening session of the Fifth International Conference on Adult Education. It is appropriate that we should meet in this modern and dynamic city, which - today as in the past - is a great centre of international exchange and co-operation. Since the last Conference in this series held in Paris in 1985, the situation of the world - culturally, politically, economically and socially - has been utterly transformed. We are, in effect, already living in a new century even if the calendar has yet to register the fact. The question before us is to define the new roles that adult education must play to meet the aspirations of women and men in all countries within the new world that is taking shape about us.

But first let me share with you my deep sense of loss at the death of one of the most outstanding educators of our time, the late Paulo Freire of Brazil, who confirmed only two months ago his intention to be with us here in Hamburg. The link he established between literacy and liberation has revolutionized the whole concept of education. He was remarkable for the integrity of his vision, which made him the champion of the powerless and the oppressed, and the integrity of his action, founded on a continual dialogue between theory and practice. Paulo Freire is alas no longer with us. The world has lost a great man, UNESCO has lost a dedicated partner, and I personally have lost a very dear friend. Yet the Paulo Freires of this world do not disappear: they only become invisible. For there is only one pedagogy - the pedagogy of the example. And the spirit of Paulo Freire lives on among us through the enduring example of his life and work.

I have been consulting with the Government of Brazil and other Member States of UNESCO about the best way to keep the legacy of Paulo Freire alive, and I am pleased to announce that UNESCO intends to establish an International Award to commemorate and perpetuate Paulo Freire's work. May I ask you, Ladies and Gentlemen, to observe one minute of silence in remembrance of Paulo Freire... Thank you. On Thursday evening, we will hold a special commemorative ceremony for Paulo Freire and for Dame Rita Barrow of Barbados, another great citizen of the world who fought all her life for the empowerment of women and of all citizens.

Mr President,

This Conference, organized by UNESCO and hosted by the Government of Germany and the Hanseatic City of Hamburg, is the result of more than two years' active preparation in all regions of the world. It represents a coming together of the international community around a subject of growing importance and concern: adult education and learning. In this co-operative undertaking, UNESCO is joined by sister agencies of the United Nations - FAO, ILO, WHO, UNFPA, UNDP and UNICEF - as well as by the European Union, OECD and the World Bank. We extend a warm welcome to them and to the other inter-governmental agencies from all regions of the world represented at this meeting. I should also like, on this important educational occasion, to remember and pay tribute to a great man, Jim Grant, the former Head of UNICEF, with whom we jointly initiated the international Education for All process. I likewise greet Richard Jolly who was his friend and closest collaborator and who is a good friend of mine.

This Conference is different from the previous one in so far as it aims to establish a close dialogue and partnership between governments and the NGO community and the institutions which provide adult education programmes. While it is for Member States to decide on the outcomes of this conference, we feel it should be done in close co-operation with representatives of civil society. We have therefore chosen not to have a parallel NGO conference but to bring all the actors, public and private, together throughout the conference. This is a real challenge. But if we succeed, it will already be an important achievement and could set a trend for the future. The role of NGOs, as well as employers, unions and other social partners, is increasingly vital in all forms of adult learning. Nearly all governments, NGOs and co-operating partners represented here have contributed intellectually and/or materially to the holding of this Conference. You are too numerous to thank individually, but let me assure you that we are very grateful. The simple truth is that this Conference could not have been organized without your contributions and support.

UNESCO is deeply honoured by the participation of the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Professor Roman Herzog, in this opening session of our Conference. Your presence here, Mr President, symbolizes the importance that Germany attaches to international co-operation in education and, more particularly, the growing importance of adult education and lifelong learning both in Germany and throughout the world. We are grateful for the attachment that Germany has always shown to UNESCO and to its essential purpose of "advancing, through the educational, scientific and cultural relations of the peoples of the world, the objectives of international peace and of the common welfare of mankind". Your generous support to the UNESCO Institute for Education, which Germany and the City State of Hamburg have hosted since 1951, is evidence of this commitment. The Institute, as you are aware, has played a leading role in organizing this Conference, working closely with the UNESCO Secretariat at Headquarters, with our offices in more than 60 countries and with our co-operating partners.

We are also very grateful, Madam Hasina, that you have found the time - as you did at the last conference on micro-banking and despite all the heavy responsibilities of your high office - to be with us to demonstrate your support for the empowerment of people, particularly women, through expanded educational opportunity and to help articulate their hopes and expectations.

Nearly half a century ago, the first International Conference on Adult Education took place in Elsinore, Denmark. Looking back at that Conference, we are impressed by its powerful conviction that the citizens themselves - when given the resources and opportunity to enquire and learn - can become an important force in building global peace and by the far-sighted decisions it took to advance the cause of adult education as a means to shaping a more just and more peaceful world. Today who can doubt the growing need for adult education in a world in which change is increasingly our only certainty?

How will the Hamburg Conference be remembered fifty years hence? The answer will depend on our vision and commitments, now and hereafter. Much has been achieved over the last fifty years, and UNESCO can itself claim to have made a substantial contribution to the development of adult education in the areas of policy formulation, strategy implementation, research and training, and standard setting. Its 1976 Recommendation on Adult Education, which is still the most comprehensive instrument in the field, continues to offer important guidelines for the future. Our task must be to build on these foundations in the light of the major challenges and opportunities of our time as they relate to adult and continuing education.

An overriding challenge is that which preoccupied our predecessors at Elsinore - laying the foundations of an enduring peace. The situation has of course changed enormously over the past half century. Today the greatest challenges to peace arise not so much between societies as within them. It is also important - as President Herzog has pointed out - to see peace not only as an end but as a pre-condition: as the pre-condition for sustainable development, which is itself impossible without democracy, justice, equality, solidarity and freedom. This implies learning for participation, for full citizenship, for empowerment. It means reshaping national budgets to promote the transition from vulnerable and fragile democracies to consolidated democratic societies.

We must build human capacities through education adapted to local circumstances, provided in native languages and rooted in intensive skills training. This - I would emphasize - does not require strategies conceived in ivory towers remote from the communities concerned. At the same time, we must address the problems that prevent people becoming learners - I think here of the millions of women throughout the world obliged every day to fetch water and collect firewood in order to boil the water and make it drinkable. We must give them wells and solar cookers that offer them a chance to become learners as well as engage in income-generating activities. We must also always remember that illiteracy does not mean ignorance. Wisdom, in my experience, is more often found among those who lack knowledge than those who possess it. And adult education can itself benefit from such wisdom in the process of empowering people to participate in the interest of development, democracy and peace.

Peace - the essential challenge - will remain elusive while we continue to gear investment to fighting improbable wars rather than addressing the problems that constitute the most potent threat to human security. It has been my constant message for over a decade that we must be prepared to pay the price of peace as we have always been prepared to pay the price of war. To do this, we must invest not in arms but in the capacity of men and women for dialogue and understanding and for contributing to the goal of sustainable development. This cannot be done for us but only by us. It requires a fundamental transformation in the way we perceive the world - a change that must come from within through a process of lifelong education in the fullest and noblest sense of the term. This conference is an occasion for us to reflect together how adult and continuing education can contribute more effectively towards this goal.

Mr President of the Republic,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

 Without an awarness of global citizenship tomorrow's world will clearly not be prepared to meet the challenges that are taking shape. As you may  imagine I am very disappointed with the results of the second Earth Summit, held recently in New York. The seriousness of the  threats is becoming clear, and what are our political leaders doing? Too little. If, despite all this, we remain optimistic it is because we see around us in every region of the world conscientious and responsible civil societies sounding the alarm, participating in the search for solutions and contributing to concrete action. But the men and women involved must be able to develop their ability to act, to cope with ecological risks and the threat of epidemics, to improve living conditions and thereby foster development and control demographic growth. It is by first of all placing our confidence in people and by investing in creativity and the capacity for initiative that we will be able to face the problems of tomorrow. Our greatest strengths as human beings are courage and imagination. We must help these qualities to flourish by combining them with knowledge.

 My dream is that women and men around the world will have a chance every day, if just for an hour, to learn, to update their skills and to make progress. My dream - which I share with Bishop Grundvig, Dame Nita Barrow, Paulo Freire and Julius Nyerere - is to see millions of people everywhere meeting together, talking and taking initiatives. So that they may survive, live better and enjoy a decent quality of life, the men and women of today must be given the opportunity to continue learning throughout life. To conquer the economic crisis with which they are faced, all countries must see to it that their citizens, each and every one regardless of social or professional status, constantly build their knowledge and skills, thereby becoming participants in the efforts to increase productivity and benefiting from the proceeds of more productive work. To attain this goal, the state must remain stable through successive governments and agreements to that end must be concluded, and respected, by government authorities. All partners must therefore feel actively involved and act accordingly - I am thinking of legislators, the media, military institutions, church authorities and others.

 Adult education has developed rapidly over the past two decades. In some countries the number of adults enrolled annually in training courses is greater even than the number of young people receiving compulsory education. Nevertheless - and this cannot be said too often - not everyone has access to training - far from it. Education and vocational training for adults still remains the privilege of the most highly schooled populations, of men more often that women, of the wealthiest countries, of the best equipped urban areas. Too often training courses do not sufficiently acknowledge cultural diversity. Individuals cannot benefit from lifelong education if courses are not offered in their native language, if they cannot integrate what is learned into their own experience, or if they cannot establish connections to give meaning and relevance to this external knowledge. We must therefore reconsider the goal of equal opportunity and view it in the context of a pluralistic world where equality and diversity are recognized as complementary dimensions and are acknowledged as such in education systems and plans. We must encourage progress towards "rainbow societies" where every citizen, throughout life, can find fulfilment, shape his or her identity and enter into dialogue with others.

 Today, on the threshold of the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, it is more important than ever to affirm that it is through education that our fundamental rights and freedoms may be secured. The revolution in information technology which will have significant effects on every area  of human activity, presents us with a double challenge: how can we provide everyone with access to technology and how can we best use technology for educational purposes. Above  all, we must see to it that everyone benefits from the new technologies, whether int the field of telecommunications or informatics. A substantial international effort is needed in that regard.

 Let us bear in mind, however that technology is not everything. The most important element in the learning process are the teachers, the cornerstone of the world's future. High priority should be accorded to training and upgrading for all teachers. The curriculum should also be reviewed, with greater emphasis on civics and all aspects relating to the transmission of social values.

 And how could we ignore the vital necessity of giving concrete form to the universal right to basic education? Our world today has more than 800 million individuals who do not know how to read or write and millions of others who once knew but have since forgotten. Throughout the world, literacy is a prerequisite for anyone who wishes to participate fully in the life of society and to understand the connections between private and local conditions and the regional and international context. Equality of access to non-formal elementary education and literacy programmes is essential if our aim is to help people contribute fully to society and continue to learn throughout their lifetime.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 The success of a conference can only be judged by its follow-up. Discussion of the new social issues of lifelong education and the requisite policies and actions will turn the 1997 International Conference on Adult Education into a golden opportunity and a new forum for broadening the debate and fostering concrete commitments. Apart from that, and paradoxically, the Conference will be particularly concerned with the question of investment. Invest we must, that is certain. But first and most importantly we must invest in people to release the stock of cultural, social and economic productivity that exists within the adult population.

 The success of the Hamburg Conference will be based on the recognition of the need for this social investment and the partnerships required to ensure it. The Conference will thus build on the proposals adopted at the 1995 Copenhagen World Summit for Social Development, the Platform for Action adopted in Beijing inj 1995 at the conclusion of the second United Nations Decade for Women, Agenda 21, adopted in Rio and the recommendations made in 1994 in Cairo at the International Conference on Population and Development and in 1996 in Rome at the World Food Summit. Each meeting concluded that citizens must become active participants and that local authorities needed to start the women and men of this world can increase their capacity to act and can continue learning throughout life.

 Education is an indispensable strategic instrument for sustainable human development. It is a tool. But it is also the right of every person - the right to become an active and creative citizen. Lastly, learning is a joy: in it each person may discover a sense of freedom, self- realization and independence. Once experienced, the joy of learning can never be forgotten; it repeats and returns throughout a lifetime; and it is inexhaustible.

 Thank you very much.  

 Your Excellency, Prime Minister of Bangladesh,

 Mr First Mayor of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,

 Mr Director-General of UNESCO,

 Distinguished Ministers, Excellencies,

 Mrs Chairperson of the Governing Board of the UNESCO Institute for Education,

 Fellow Delegates,

 Ladies and Gentlemen,

I should first like to thank you for the honour you bestow on me by electing me as your President.

It is a great honour for me to be permitted to preside over this 5th UNESCO Conference on Adult Learning. I assure you all that I shall commit all my energies and professional experience of both parliamentary work and adult education to helping successfully to attain the goals of this conference.

I see some preconditions as indispensable for this joint success:

1) We shall practice a disciplined and efficient culture of dialogue: to this end I need the support of all of you. This afternoon I shall be able to go into this in more detail.

2) We must not lose the aims of this conference from view. What do we wish to achieve?

 a) We wish to demonstrate the importance of adult education for the next century.

 b) We wish to encourage worldwide commitment to the right of adults to education.

 c) We wish to exchange experiences of existing educational structures and policies and to stimulate improvements.

 d) We wish to lay out the guidelines of an adult education policy for the future through a Declaration of the Hamburg Conference and an Agenda for the Future.

 e) And lastly, we wish to strengthen and expand the foundations of improved international co-operation in the field of adult education.

3) And finally, besides discipline, a culture of struggle and keeping to our goals, we must have courage:

 We have an ambitious programme ahead of us, but no programme can in my opinion be too ambitious if it concerns our ability to survive, the future viability of our society. For learning, education and knowledge are the keys to this future viability, to the step into the next millennium.

Allow me, Ladies and Gentlemen, to start by making a few personal observations on these points: they sound programmatic but without the emphasis lent by the programmatic visions promulgated by UNESCO itself I should not be standing on this platform today.

 1. Lifelong Learning - Opportunity and Challenge

At the start of the coming millennium, human society faces problems which can no longer be overcome by conventional means of education and training. Here are just a few key words:

- The endangering of sustained, future-oriented development by the destruction of the environment, social rejection and economic exploitation,

 - Illiteracy affecting almost a billion people,

 - Growing unemployment in many states, which may be exacerbated by the globalization of technology and the economy,

 - Persistent discrimination against women in many societies,

 - The lack of readiness to serve the common good and to accept social responsibility.

This conference will and must face up to these challenges. It aims to clarify the evident need for, and role of adult education in the transition from the production to the information society, and thereby to open up new perspectives on lifelong learning.

The challenges of our time can only be met through the well-trained co-operative efforts of all. Trained work requires not only commitment but also knowledge, knowledge which is increasingly expanding and changing with increasing speed, knowledge which must be acquired, deepened and adapted in a constant process of lifelong learning.

A few days ago, at a press conference for the German public on CONFINTEA V, Federal Minister Rüttgers used the apposite phrase in this context that lifelong learning will and must become "as important as daily bread".

Today, investment in lifelong learning is a matter of survival for everyone.

 We politicians, practitioners and theoreticians of continuing and adult education must stand by the message that continuing education is investment in the future. Investment costs money, but without this investment the edifice of social development will be threatened by decay and, in the longer term, collapse. The implosion of society must be prevented by the large-scale widening and deepening of lifelong learning, of learning that accompanies us throughout life. Ladies and Gentlemen, this must also be achieved for those societies for which the transition to the information society is still no more than rhetoric.

2. Lifelong Learning - Learning without Frontiers

Only lifelong learning without frontiers - flexible, varied and available - can prepare us for the tasks before us. The draft of the Declaration on Adult Education prepared for this conference says cogently:

"Learning throughout life is one of the keys to the twenty-first century. It is both a consequence of active citizenship and a condition for full participation in society. It is a powerful concept for fostering sustainable development, for promoting democracy, justice, and scientific and economic development, and for building a world in which violent conflict and war are replaced by dialogue and a culture of peace. Learning throughout life implies a rethinking of content and approach to education at all levels, including adult education, to open up opportunities for learning for all." (Declaration 1)

 For a long time, adult education has no longer been a closed system. Adults learn everywhere and all the time. Phases of working and learning overlap. Adult education is an integral part of development programmes, of self-help programmes, of health and environmental education programmes. In the 1000 adult education centres here in Germany, for example, 15 million people take part in such programmes each year.

If adults have the opportunity to share in determining how these programmes are developed and conducted, if their demand is thus taken seriously, their readiness to learn and to co-operate while learning also grows.

A "learning society" should not only be a MEETING of individuals, however, but also aims at community, at participation and commitment. And it means holistic education, the equality of general, political and vocational continuing education. It is not just a question of knowledge, but of education, which means the responsible application of knowledge in all human fields.

3. Limits to Provision

Given the need, and despite all the efforts and opportunities given by the new media, provision remains limited. This is not only because of a lack of funds, but rather of the necessary breadth and availability of such provision.

Continuing education programmes for adults must take numerous factors into account, as is evident when we speak of empowerment, participation and ownership.

But we also know that: education can be selective and exclusive. Those who suffer are frequently just those who have already had negative experiences of learning in childhood and adolescence and have not overcome these experiences. Programmes must be developed for them that reawaken wasted curiosity, convey the joy of learning and encourage them to make another attempt at living. Many literacy programmes for adults are indeed making efforts in this direction, and for millions of them they are a first step into the world of learning.

 4. The New Alliances

The state will continue to play a leading role, which it must not renounce, but it will not be able to dispense with the synergies and partnerships of private organizations.

 The civil society, non-governmental organizations and other private sponsors will take on increasingly important functions in developing and conducting needs-based programmes. They are often best at organizing learning in the social environment because they work close to the source of social creativity and new ideas.

5. Challenges and Opportunities at the Conference

Today, 135 countries are assembled here, together with (1507) representatives of governments, representatives of foundations, universities and multinational agencies, and more than 1000 adult educators from the ranks of the numerous non-governmental organizations.

We have all gathered at a round table, in an alliance for education and training. Government representatives will be exposed to the suggestions and criticism of practitioners. Politicians and government representatives will explain to the practitioners the limits of what is politically and financially feasible. Experience will be exchanged worldwide, professional contacts made and intensified. A giant information market will tell us, Who provides what? Who demands what? What has proved effective under what circumstances, and what has not? And finally, What may future co-operation look like in participation and partnership?

Hamburg will build on the discussions at the major UN conferences in recent years and demonstrate the significance of adult education for lasting development, for the safeguarding of the environment, the protection of human rights, the equal role of women, peaceful coexistence amid cultural diversity, and the development of the population.

The conference will also send out a key message: Individual initiatives are not enough. Adult education must involve people as actors who decide for themselves in the societal processes of change, and give them the knowledge they require for this purpose, together with the skill to apply this knowledge responsibly.

Let me stress one last thing before I conclude:

The sustainable, future-oriented development of our world needs education. Politics must create the context in which creativity and productivity unfold and a culture of peaceful coexistence can develop.

Let us seize this chance and exchange as much as possible, let us be as specific as possible!

We do not need an agenda that remains on paper, but an agenda that gives us courage and guides our action for a viable future learning society, a learning world.

Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for your attention.

*) delivered in German

Three months ago, I would never have imagined that I would be here addressing you today. But then, three months ago, my government had not been elected and three months ago, the UK was not a member of UNESCO. But now I am proud to be part of a new British government which believes that rights and responsibilities lie at the core of the international as well as the domestic agenda.

My government has made good its pledge to rejoin UNESCO. It is part of our pledge to maintain an overall strong commitment to the United Nations system and to its role in world-wide development. We have set up a new Government department in the UK - the Department for International Development - to provide a stronger focus for this governments activities and policies designed to help eradicate poverty in the world - the objectives of UNESCO are central to that process of development. The UK wants to work closely with the Director-General, with UNESCO member countries and with you all.

Today is part of this new beginning for the UK - this is our first opportunity since we were elected to contribute to a major UNESCO conference as a Member. I am delighted to be here leading a full delegation of experts and officials. I believe we can offer our own distinctive vision and expertise. I also look forward to hearing and learning from the experiences of others.

Conference Declaration and Agenda

This week this fifth world conference on adult learning will produce a Declaration and an Agenda for the Future. This sets out the critical issues which we all need to tackle in our own ways in order to promote lifelong learning throughout the world. There is much here that coincides with our experience in the United Kingdom. I would like to take this opportunity today briefly to set out what we are doing to create a learning society.

Promoting Lifelong Learning

At the top of our agenda is the belief that we need to engage the whole population in lifelong learning. The conference declaration stresses the need for a truly democratic education society and we support that wholeheartedly.

Because adult learning matters. It changes lives. For many in our diverse society a sound education at school and continuing adult learning is the key to employment and leads to economic prosperity. And more than this, adult learning also fuels creativity, imagination, active citizenship. Yet far too many people believe that adult learning is not for them. That there is little or no prospect of joining in.

There should be nothing inevitable about this. That is why we in the UK place such a high emphasis on adult learning opportunities as well as excellent initial education. That is why we are determined to tackle disadvantage and exclusion to help people achieve their potential - with high quality information and advice a wide range of learning opportunities.

 We recognize that while we play the lead role, Government on its own cannot achieve a learning society. A national non-governmental organization - NIACE, who are part of the UK delegation here - has helped make lifelong learning a reality for many people in the UK.

Over the last six years of running Adult Learners Week in the UK they (together with the BBC and Government support) have through a combination of television, information help lines and thousands of events successfully introduced many adults to learning. A compatriot of mine, Siwla Mills, captured the sheer enthusiasm of those involved in Adult Learners Week when she said: "Dont wait for the wind, seize the oars". I think that might serve as a useful motto for promoting lifelong learning everywhere.

Adult learners weeks now exist, for example, in South Africa, Slovenia, Switzerland, in Australia, the Czech Republic and Jamaica. I like to think that they represent a rather successful export from the UK. Each event will differ but together they offer us one lesson - that promoting adult learning is a vital task across the world.

Widening Participation

To achieve our shared objectives on lifelong learning, the conference documents rightly point out that we need to bring down the barriers which exclude people from participating.

 In my country a major report on widening participation has just been published. Appropriately it is called "Learning Works" and it sets out a range of ideas about putting the uninvolved learner at the centre of our concerns. We want to ensure that we have those accessible pathways to learning which will attract adults to start learning and go on learning throughout life. To promote family and community learning. To promote quality learning opportunities which offer excellence for everyone. To look at ways to help make the cost of learning more manageable.

The UK Government has set up an expert Group to help achieve its goal of lifelong learning for all. Two of the UK delegates to this conference - Professor Bob Fryer and Alan Tacet - chair that group and will be able to tell the conference more about it during the course of the week. This is not just a matter of good intentions but of laying the basis for future Government policy.

Equal Opportunities

 I have particularly noted the UNESCO concern to involve women. Equity will be one of our watchwords - for women and men, for those from different ethnic groups and those with disabilities.

Our new programme to help lone parents, mainly women, who want to go back to work is just one example of our commitment. Our New Deal initiative will help all unemployed 18-25 year Olds with quality opportunity to learn and find work. For some, improving the basic skills of literacy and numeracy will be the starting point. For others. The chance to learn new skills including the use of information technology that will improve their employment prospects will be a priority.

University of Industry

The Agenda for the Future also recognizes that we need to embrace the challenges and opportunities of information technology. I believe we can use technology to support adult learners everywhere, if we take the right approach.

In the UK, we have now embarked on a bold new venture - the University of Industry. This will bring Government, industry and education together in a private/public partnership to use new technology to open up learning opportunities at work, in the community and in peoples homes. Its aim is to use new technology to help support our aim of creating learning opportunities that are accessible for everyone.

Technology

 Part of the reason why I can extol the virtues of the UFI so enthusiastically is that my Ministerial portfolio covers IT and technology and I confess to being very keen on computers, the internet and everything that technology encompasses. I like it for a number of reasons, but mainly because we are, right now, on the threshold of a technology society.

In UNESCO, we really need to harness this power and make it work for us. "Reaching the unreachable" is a phrase I have come across in the conference documents and in other UNESCO material. We can reach everybody if we invest in the right strategies. Strategies which will ensure that technology does not become another medium for division and exclusion.

Partnership

But we will not achieve that or make real progress on lifelong learning for all without partnership - a point which the Agenda for the Future makes and which I wholeheartedly support.

I know that no government can work in isolation. Neither can educationalists or employers. The new UK Government will work with its partners. At home we will draw in expertise from non-governmental organizations, experts and others. And we will work in constructing partnership internationally through UNESCO or any other forum.

Conclusion

I am proud of what we are doing in the UK. We have put education at the heart of our national agenda. I am proud that we are once again part of UNESCO because UNESCO too has education at the centre of its priorities.

An important process of change was introduced to UNESCO by Federico Mayor ten years ago. Change is not always an easy process but it offers us the chance to move in a different direction, to build strength, to realize hopes. The UK wants to help, wherever we can; to build on UNESCO initiatives and maximize UNESCOs effectiveness and impact.

That is why I hope you will back our proposal for a UN Week of Adult Learning. We believe that such a week - which might include International Literacy Day - would be used all over the world to promote adult learning for everyone, as something that people will feel confident to participate in whatever their background or age. I do hope that our proposal will gain your support. Whatever better way to signal to the world our firm intention to put lifelong learning for all on the world map?

Because the basis for our work this week and when we return home must, I believe, be to strive to create a truly inclusive learning society. To promote learning, to create accessible learning opportunities and to help reduce the barriers to learning so that everyone has a stake in their own future and in the future of their own community. That is the challenge we face as we enter the new millennium.

 Part 1:

 Literacy in the New Environment and the Evolving Society; Chair: Victor Ordonez, UNESCO/PROAP; Speakers: Joice Kibhati (Kenya); Usa Duongsaa (ASPBAE); Jules Didacus (Saint Lucia); Hacim El Safi (Sudan); Aicha Belarbi (Morocco); Ana del Toro (INEA, Mexico).

 Part 2:

 Literacy, Decentralization and Local Power (Sahel); Chair: Peter Easton (Programme d'Appui au Développement Local au Sahel-PADLOS, Florida State University, USA); J M Ahlin, Byll Cataria (Suisse Development Cooperation); Speakers: Dana Fischer (Club du Sahel/OECD), Moustapha Yacouba (Projet d'Appui au Développement Local au Sahel - PADLOS, Comité Inter-état de Lutte contre la Sécheresse au Sahel, Tchad), Coumba Boly (Institut Panafricain pour le Développement/Afrique de l'Ouest/Sahel-IPDAOS), Laouali Malam Moussa (INDRAP, Niger).
 

Literacy and Learning Strategies

 Chair: Luis Benavides (CIPE, Mexico); Speakers: Catherine Stercq (Beligium), David Archer (Action Aid, UK), Nicola Foroni (Action Aid, Guatemala), Enrique Pieck (Mexico).
 

Women's Education: The contending discourses and possibilities for changes

 Chair: Nelly Stromquist (USA); Speakers: Renuka Mishra (NIRANTAR: A Centre for Women and Education, India); Sara Longwe (FEMNET, Zambia); Jenny Horsman (Literacy Educator and Researcher, Canada); Linnette Vassell (CAFRA, Jamaica).

Changes in the World of Work and their Impact on Adult Education and Training

Part 1:

 Panel discussion on the recent changes in the world of work: Chair: Abrar Hasan (OECD); Speakers: María A. Ducci de Santa Cruz (ILO); Lurliene Miller (HEART Trust, Jamaica); BW Kerre ( Moi Univ., Kenya).

 Part 2:

 Panel discussion on the impact of the recent changes in the world of work. Chair: Karamat Ali (Pakistan Institute of Labour Education & Research); Speakers: Hans-Konrad Koch (European Training Foundation); David H Fretwell (World Bank, Hungary); James Lawrence (UNDP), Felix Cadena Barquin (FLASEP, Mexico).
 

University-Community Partnerships: Links with the Adult Education Movement

Chair: Madeleine Blais (Univ. of Montreal, Canada); Speakers: Budd Hall (The Ontario Institute for Education, Canada); Shirley Walters and Funeka Loza (Centre for Adult and Continuing Education, Univ. of Western Cape, South Africa); Griff Foley and Jennifer Newman (Univ. of Technology, Sidney, Australia).
 

Monitoring of Adult Learning for Knowledge-Based Policy-Making

 Chair: Heinz Gilomen (Federal Office of Statistics, Switzerland); Speakers: Albert Tuijnman (OECD); S K Chu (UNESCO); Scott Murray (Statistics Canada); Sofia Valdivielso (Canary Islands).
 

Enhancing International Co-operation and Solidarity

 Chair: Kasama Varavarn (Ministry of Education, Thailand); Speakers: Paul Fordham (Univ. of Warwick, International Centre for Education in Development); John Oxenham (Economic Development Institute, Worldbank); Rosa Maria Torres (The Kellog Foundation, Latin America); Rajesh Tandon (ASPBAE); Ingemar Gustafsson (SIDA); Clinton Robinson (Collective Consultation of NGOs for Literacy and Education for All); Khetsi Lehoko (National Department of Education, South Africa); Peter Inkei (Ministry of Culture and Education, Hungary).

 
The Multiplicity of Research on "Learning for All, a Key for the XXI Century"

 Chair: Ramón Flecha (Univ. of Barcelona, Spain); Rapporteur: Peter Alheit from Institute for Applied Biographical and Lifeworld Social Sciences (Univ. of Bremen); Speakers: Hashim Abuzeid El Safi (Institute Adult Education, Sudan); John Comings (Director of National Center for Adult Learning and Literacy, Harvard Education, USA); Anita Dighe (National Institute of Adult Education, India); M. Luisa Doronila (Univ. of Philippines, Philippines); Mercè Espanya (CREA, University of Barcelona, Spain); Sergio Haddad (Açao Educativa, Brasil); Tothale Nong (AETASA, South Africa); Yukiko Sawano (National Institute for Educational Research, Japan).
 

Health Promotion and Health Education for Adults

 Chair: Mercedes Juarez (Royal Tropical Institute, Netherlands)

 Part 1:

 Promoting Health through Adult Learning; Keynote Speaker: Ilona Kickbusch (WHO)

 Part 2:

 Trends and Issues in Current Health Education Practice; Speakers: Ximena Machicao (REPEM, Bolivia); Jonathan Geidt (CACE, Univ. of Western Cape, South Africa); Chij Shrestha (World Education, Nepal); Gerlinde Zorzi (Volkshochschule Hamburg, Germany); Kris Heggenhoegen (Associate Professor, Dept. of Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School, USA).

 Part 3:

 Panel discussion on future perspectives and policies in health education and ways to implement these ; Chair: Michèle Jean (Sous-ministre Santé, Canada); Panelists: Ilona Kickbusch, Jonathan Geidt, Chij Shrestha, Mercedes Juarez.
 

Cultural Citizenship in the 21st Century: Adult Education and Indigenous Peoples

 Part 1:

 The Changing International Context of Indigenous Peoples; Keynote speaker: Rodolfo Stavenhagen (Delors Commission)

 Part 2:

 The Views and Perspectives of Indigenous Organizations; Chair: Jack Beetson (Federation of Independant Aboriginal Education Providers, Australia); Speakers: Nora Rameka (Maori Adult Education Association, New Zealand); Natalio Hernadez (Casa de los Escritores en Lenguas Indígenas, Mexico); Hilda Canari Loaiza (CADEP, Peru); presentations commented by Rosalba Jimenez (Organización Nacional Indígena de Colombia).
 

Literacy, Education and Social Development

 Chair: Sibiri Tapsoba (IDRC, Dakar, Senegal); Speakers: Mamadou Ndoye (Minister of Basic Education, Literacy and National Languages, Senegal); Malini Ghose (NIRANTAR, A Centre for Women and Education, India); Laila Kamal (Community and International Development, Egypt); Georg Elwert (Free University Berlin, Germany); David Olson (Univ. of Toronto, Canada).

 
Literacy Research, Evaluation and Statistics

 Chair: Daniel Wagner (International Literacy Institute, Univ. of Philadelphia, USA); Speakers: C J Daswani (NCERT, New Delhi); Maki Hayashikawa (UNESCO, Paris); Claudio de Moura Castro (Inter-Amercican Development Bank, Washington); Scott Murray (Statistics Canada, Ottawa); Jarl Bengtsson (OECD, Paris); Lalla Ben Barka (ERNWACA, Mali); Commentator: Sissel Volan (NORAD, Norway).
 

Literacy and Technology

 Chair: Jan Visser (UNESCO, Paris); Speakers: Alan Tuckett (National Organization for Adult Learning, UK); Minda Sutaria (INNOTECH, Philippines); Gordon Naidoo (OLSET, South Africa); Christopher Hopey (National Center on Adult Literacy, USA); Sibiri Tapsoba (IDRC, Dakar, Senegal); Commentator: Mohamed Maamouri (Tunisia, ILI).

 
Literacy in Multilingual/Intercultural Settings

 Chair: Luis de la Torre (Educator); Speakers: Enrique Camargo (Bolivia); Gloria Pinto (Honduras); Maurice Tadadjeu ( PAOPELCA, Cameroon); Isabella Buague (Ministry of Education, Ghana).

 
Raising Gender Issues in Different Educational Settings

 Chair: Thais Corral; Speakers: Vimala Ramachandran (ASPBAE, India); Lean Chan Heng (University Sains, Malaysia); Alejandra Jimenez (Chile).
 

Adult Education and Population Issues in the Post-Cairo Context

 Chair: O J Sikes (UNFPA); Keynote Speaker: María Josefina Bilbao (Minister for Women, Chile); Speakers: Babatunde Osotimehin (The Social Sciences and Reproductive Health Research Network, Nigeria); Jacqueline Pitanguy (CEPIA, Brazil); Mona Zulficar (Shalakany Law Office, Egypt); Wanda Nowicka (Federation for Women and Family Planning, Poland); Commentators: Ansar Ali Khan (UNESCO/Bangladesh); Pramilla Senanayake (International Planned Parenthood Federation, London).
 

Museums, Libraries and Cultural Heritage: Democratizing Culture, Creating Knowledge and Building Bridges

 Chair: Nicole Gesché-Koning (Council for Educational and Cultural Action/International Council of Museums); Speakers: Jutta Thinesse-Demel (Adult Education and Museums in Europe); Roberto Hernáiz-Landáez (Fundación ESARTE, Venezuela); Arlette Thys (International Library Association); Bian Martin (Heriot-Watt Univ., Scotland).

 
The Changing World of Work: Implications for Adult Education Programmes

 Part 1:

 Formal education for the world of work. Chair: H Müller-Solger (Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Technology, Germany); Speakers: Ikhyun Shin (KEDI, Korea); Barry Hobart (Univ. of South Australia).

Part 2:

 Non-Formal Education Within the World of Work. Chair: B W Kerre (Moi Univ., Kenya); Speakers: Madhu Singh (Consultant, UNESCO, India); Bernd Overwien, Claudia Lohrenscheid and Sigyor Bakke-Seeck (Commission on Educational Research in the Third World, Germany).
 

Global Community of Adult Education through Information and Documentation: Developing a Network of Networks

 Chair: Terrance Keenan (Syracuse University Library, USA); Speakers: Alfredo Rojas (REDUC, Chile); Shigeru Aoyagi (Asian Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO, ACCU, Japan); Lucien Bosselaers (ALICE, European Union); Justin Ellis (Ministry of Education and Culture, Namibia); Heribert Hinzen (IIZ/DVV, Hungary); Susan Imel (ERIC, USA); Zoran Jelenc (Slovene Adult Education Centre, Slovenia); Judith Kalman (Centro de Investigación y Estudios Avanzados, Mexico); Eva Kupidura (ICAE, Canada); Agneta Lind (SIDA, Sweden); Rosalie Ndejuru (CDEACF, Canada); Martha Nghidengua (Rossing Foundation, Namibia); Abdelaziz El Sombol (ALECSO, Arab States).

 Representatives of IFLA, ERIC, ALICE, UNESCO, ICAE amongst others actively participated in this session.
 

Adult Environmental Education: Awareness for Environmental Action

 Chair: Walter Leal Filho (Univ. of Lüneburg, Germany); Keynote address: Kim Mørch Jakobsen (Ministry of Education, Denmark); Speakers: Ruth Kiwanuka (Joint Energy and Environment Projects, Uganda); Angele Fatou Sarr (FOPEN Solaire, Senegal); Zareen Myles (Women's Action for Development, India); Pierre Foulani, Adoum N'Gaba-Waye (CREFELD, Tschad); Raul A. Montenegro (Fundación Para La Defensa del Ambiente, Argentina).
 

Adult Learning for Prisoners

 Chair: Robert Badinter (Ancien Ministre de la Justice et Ancien Président du Conseil Constitutionnel, France); Speakers: Bernard Bolze (Observatoire International des Prisons); Jean-Claude Delcorps (Ex-Inmate, Belgium); Pastora Ortega (Secretariado Paz, Justicia, y no Violencia, Nicaragua); Zoongo Marie-Lea (Union Inter-Africaine des Droits de l'Homme, Burkina Faso).
 

Making Education Accessible and Available to All Persons with Disabilities

 Chair: Lucy Wong Hernandez (Executive Director, Disabled Peoples International); Speakers: Khalfan Khalfan (DPI, Tanzaia); Nawaf Kabbara (NARD, Lebanon); Jahda Abu Khalil (NARD, Lebanon); Bill Langner (International Centre for Lifelong Learning, USA).
 

The Politics and Policies of the Education of Adults in a Globally Transforming Society

 Part 1:

 Is the World in the Process of a Great Transformation? Chair: Eric Bockstael (Wayne State Univ., USA); Speakers: Harbans S. Bhola (Univ. of Indiana at Bloomington, USA); Sheri Hamilton (National Literacy Coalition, South Africa); Talvi Marja (M P, Estonia); Gloria Ramirez (Mexican Human Rights Academy, Mexico); Walter Uegama (Univ. of British Colombia, Canada).
 

Part 2:

 Is Adult Education the Right Response? Chair: T. Marja (M.P., Estonia); Speakers: Keith Forrester (Leeds Univ., UK); Jozef Katus (European Symposium on Voluntary Associations, Netherlands/Hungary); Keith McLeod (Univ. of Toronto, Canada); Rifat Okcabol (Bogazici Univ., Turkey); Daphne Ntiri (Wayne State Univ., USA); Jean-Claude Quenum (Voix d'Afrique Formation, Benin/France), Dimitris Vergidis (Univ. of Patras, Greece).

 Part 3:

 What Strategy and Organizational Structure is required? From Local Units to the International Organizations. Chair: Harbans S. Bhola (Univ. of Indiana at Bloomington, USA); Speakers: José Asun (Univ. of Barcelona, Spain); Ettore Gelpi (International League of Education, France/Italy); Gunther Gehre and Karel de Witte (Catholic Univ. of Leuven, Belgium); Pierre Leboutte and Lucien Pieret (Parthages, Belgium); Mara Ustinova (Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia); Mitjar Zagar (Ethnic Institute, Slovenia); George Cushingberry jr. and Tony Perry (Michigan Ethnic Heritage Centre, USA).
 

Literacy and Basic Skills for Community Development in Industrialized Countries

 Chair: Mary Hamilton (Lancaster University, UK); Speakers: Stanislav Hubik (Czech Republic); Danielle Colombel (France); Paul Emingak (UNAVUT, Canada).
 

Literacy for Tomorrow

 Chair: Agneta Lind (SIDA, Sweden); Speakers: Rosa Maria Torres (Kellog Foundation, Latin America); James Page (Literacy Secretariat, Canada); Bhaskar Chatterjee (National Literacy Mission, India); James Kanyesigye (Action Aid, REFLECT, Uganda).

 
Adult Education and Co-operation among Majority and Minority Communities

 Chair: Saad Eddin Ibrahim (Ibn Khaldoun Centre for Development Studies, Egypt); Speakers: Mona Makram-Ebeid (American Univ. of Cairo, Egypt); Teeka Bhattarai (Seacow, School of Ecology, Agriculture and Community Works, Nepal); Smaranda Enache (Liga Pro Europa, Romania); Alan Phillips (Minority Rights Group, UK).
 

New Information Technologies: A Key for Adult Learning?

 Chair: Pauline Marois (Minister of Education, Quebec, Canada); Speakers: Mamadou Ndoye (Minister of Education, Senegal); Lalita Ramdas (International Council of Adult Education, India); Rafael Roncagliolo (World Association of Community Radios, Peru); A P Hardhono (Media Research Centre, Indonesia); Eero Pantzar (Dept of Education, University of Tampere, Finland).

 
Adult Environmental Education: Awareness for Environmental Action

 Chair: Walter Leal Filho (Univ. of Lüneburg, Germany); Speakers: Ejvin Beuse (The School's Energy Forum, Denmark); Shirley Follen (NAAPAE, Canada); Vilma McClenan (Caribbean Regional Council for Adult Education, Jamaica); Robbie Guevara (Centre for Environmental Concerns, Philippines); Kerrie Stratley (Wainmate, Fiji).

 
Policy and Social Implications of the Changing World of Work

 Part 1:

 Policy-making and its political implications. Chair: Lurlienne Miller (HEART Trust, Jamaica); Speakers: Tony Greer (Dept of Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs, Australia); Karamat Ali (Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research).

Part 2:

 Democratisation and the empowerment. Chair: Tony Greer (Dept of Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs, Australia); Speakers: Ettore Gelpi (International League of Education, France/Italy); Helga Forster (Federal Institute for Vocational Training BIBB, Germany).

 
Migrant Education

 Chair: Andrew Ma (CARITAS, Hongkong)

 Part 1:

 Panel presentations comparing migrant education practices in Asia and Europe. Speakers: Stella Dadzie (Learning to Live in a Multi-cultural Society Adult Education and Training Network); Christiane Wilkening (Senatsamt für Gleichstellung, Hamburg); Lin Ching Hsia (Informal Centre for Labour Education, Solidarity Front for Women).

 Part 2:

 Small group workshops. Chair: Jakob Erle (Association for World Education); Speakers: Rene Mark Nielsen and Carsten Levin (Denmark); Pat Mix, Vicky Morales and Iska Koch (Amnesty for Women); Andrew Ma (CARITAS, Hongkong).

 
Adult Learning, Democracy and Peace

 Part 1:

 Panel Discussion on Adult Learning and the Challenges of the 21st Century. Chair: Owe Korsgaard (Association for World Education, Denmark); Speakers: Edicio de la Torre (Philippines); Dani W Nabudere (Uganda); Shirley Walters (Univ. of Western Cape, South Africa); Teresa Quiroz (Association for World Education, Chile).

 Part 2:

 The Pedagogical Challenges of Promoting Democracy and a Culture of Peace. Chair: Jakob Erle (Association for World Education).
 

Adult Learning and Ageing Populations

 Chair: Lesley Hart (Univ. of Strathclyde, Scotland); Presentation of Session: Huib Hinnekint (Centrum voor Andragogisch Onderzoek, Belgium); Speakers: Teresa Lodetti (FERPA, Belgium); Rosa Ma. Falgas (ICAE-EAEA, Spain); Noel Rey (FIAPA, France); Nelly Schwarz (CEAAL-ANOS, Chile); Lucía Hornes (REPEM-CEAAL, Uruguay).

Universities and the Future of Adult Education in the 21st Century: The Demise of the Ivory Tower?

 Chair: John Morris (International Congress of Univ. Adult Education, Canada); Speakers: Mechthild Hart (De Paul University, USA); Renuka Narang (Univ. of Bombay, India); Shahrzad Mojab (OISE, Canada); Ina Grieb (Univ. of Oldenburg, Germany); Widar Hvamb (Norwegian Council of State Colleges).

 
The Economics of Adult Learning: The Role of Government

 Chair: Ylva Johansson (Ministry of Education and Science, Sweden); Speakers: Toshiko Nomura (Nomura Centre for Lifelong Integrated Learning, Japan); Ronald Pugsley (United States); Jan Van Ravens (Netherlands); Roy Carr Hill (United Kingdom); Qutub Khan (UNESCO Regional Office Bangkok); David Atchoarena (IIEP, Paris); Bhaskar Chatterjee (National Literacy Mission, New Delhi); Abrar Hasan (OECD); Dirk van Damme (Ministry of Education, Flemish Community, Belgium).

Learning Gender Sensitivity - Practising Gender Justice

Chairperson: Kasama Varavarn, Thailand, Director-General of the Department of Non-Formal Education, Ministry of Education

Panelists: Josefina Bilbao, Chile, Minister of the National Women's Service, Juliette Dworzak, Sierra Leone, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of FEMNET and Director of the Gender and Research Studies Department of the University of Sierra Leone, Smaranda Enache, Rumania, President of Liga Pro Europa, John Mutorwa, Namibia, Minister of Basic Education and Culture, Rabea Naciri, Morocco, Professor at the University Mohamed V of Rabat
 

Public Round Table II

Cities of Learning: The Rebirth of Industrial Cities and Adult Learning

Moderators: Richard Connolly, USA, Professor, Rockland College / New York State University, Lu Hanessian, USA, broadcast journalist

Panelists: Jarl Bengtsson, Sweden, Director of the Centre for Educational Research and Education of OECD, George Cushingberry Jr., USA, Michigan Ethnical Heritage Center, Talvi Märja, Estonia, Member of Parliament of the Republic of Estonia and President of the Estonian Commission for Culture and Education, Daphne Ntiri, USA, Wayne State University /Detroit, Tony Perry, USA, Michigan Ethnical Heritage Centre, Elston Sepie, South Africa, representative of the South African Township Communities Movement, Walter Temelini, Canada, Professor for Multi-Cultural Education, University of Windsor/Ontario

 
Public Round Table III

Consequences of Literacy: Adult Literacy and Human-Centred Development

Chairperson: Rosa Maria Torres, Ecuador, Programme Director for Latin America and the Caribbean (based in Argentina) of the Kellog Foundation

Panelists: Mamadou Ndoye, Senegal, Minister of Basic Education, Bhaskar Chatterjee, India, Director-General of the National Literacy Mission, Leila Kamal, Egypt, adult education activist in the public domain, Patricia McNeil, USA, Deputy Secretary of State, United States Department of Education