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| IN BAMAKO,
SIX AFRICAN COUNTRIES COMMIT TO REINFORCING EDUCATION FOR ALL
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 Bamako,
November 28 - The Heads of State of Burkina Faso, Chad,
Mali and Niger, as well as the Prime Minister of Guinea and
the deputy minister in charge of early childhood issues for
Senegal, resolved to make education for all a national priority,
at a conference organized by UNESCO and the World Bank in Bamako
(Mali) on November 26 within the framework of the follow-up
to last April’s World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal. |
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| The
six countries-which have some of the lowest school enrolment
rates in the world-announced they will reinforce Education for
All notably through a significant increase in funding allocated
to education. They resolved to allocate at least four percent
of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) toward education from now through
the year 2015, as opposed to between one to three percent of
GDP at present. They also decided to grant 50 percent of their
education budgets to the development of basic education and
"to undertake reforms for the redefinition of priorities, the
reallocation of budgets and the sharing of responsibilities
in education between the State, communities and organizations,
within the framework of a decentralized management that reinforces
the autonomy of schools, while underlining the responsibility
of the State to finance education." |
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| The
five countries of the Sahel region and Guinea decided "to make
education a national cause which mobilizes the various sectors,
in particular the principal actors and partners in education
like teachers’ unions, parents’ associations, local communities,
grassroots communities, NGOs and the private sector." In addition,
they made plans to gradually introduce national languages use
into their education systems and to promote their development.
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| In
order to ensure a social mobilization around the reforms to
be undertaken, participants at the Bamako conference decided
to put in place a "vigorous communication policy". A follow-up
mechanism to the Bamako resolution envisages meetings every
three years of the Heads of State of the six countries, along
with an annual meeting of their personal representatives to
evaluate progress made. |
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| The
Heads of State also made an appeal in support of "putting in
place a consensus to alleviate violence on school and university
campuses, as well as to support the realization of new partnerships
with external aid agencies based on transparency and a search
for maximum effectiveness through the coordination of activities
by our governments and a better taking into account of the interests
of our countries." |
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| To
achieve schooling for all by 2015, between 40 and 50 million
dollars in budgetary support are necessary per country and per
annum. When resources are made available as a result of measures
to lighten the debt burden, these "will be used for at least
40 percent of the financing to achieve universal primary schooling,
within the framework of the campaign against poverty ". |
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| President
Alpha Oumar Konaré of Mali warned that anticipated results will
be irredeemably compromised if budgetary needs are not filled
in the coming two to three years. He added that "if education
is a right, then to study is a duty". UNESCO Director-General
Koïchiro Matsuura stated that UNESCO "has elaborated a preliminary
draft financing strategy aimed at increasing the flow of international
assistance to Education for All." |
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| "The
discourse on this subject undertaken between diverse multilateral
and bilateral partners in order to rationalize the flow of funding
into basic education is very encouraging,” the Director-General
said. “This should allow us to raise awareness among all the
partners and contribute to the improvement of mechanisms to
deliver assistance, statistical evaluations, and to monitor
the implementation and coordination among donors." |
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| Representatives
from UNICEF and the World Bank renewed their commitments made
at the Dakar Forum last April, affirming their support for national
plans of action to reinforce Education for All. |
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| The
conference of Heads of State was preceded by a ministerial meeting
held from November 25-26 which brought together Education Ministers
of the six countries, Finance Ministers or their representatives,
as well as representatives of unions and parent associations,
Members of Parliament and representatives of NGOs, USAID and
the governments of France and the Netherlands. |
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For
more information:
contact
the World Education Forum media co-ordination office
at tel (221) 826 80 52 or (221) 641 8281
or email a.muller@unesco.org
WEBSITE: www.education.unesco.org/efa
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