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ROLE OF NGOs AND CIVIL SOCIETY STRESSED AT WORLD EDUCATION FORUM
BRIEFING IN DAKAR |
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 Dakar,
Senegal, 25 April - Equitable and universal basic education
will never be accomplished without an increased role for non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) and civil society, stressed organizers
of the World Education Forum at a media briefing to launch the
largest intergovernmental and non-governmental conference in
a decade to combat illiteracy and reach worldwide goals in basic
education. |
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| "The
United Nations has an important role to play in underscoring
the point that without a greater role for NGOs and civil society,
education for all will never be achieved," said Svein Osttveit,
executive secretary of the Forum. The three-day conference which
opens tomorrow morning in Dakar, Senegal, has brought together
heads of state, education ministers and key decision-makers
from more than 180 countries; representatives of more than 100
international and grassroots NGOs; as well as UN Secretary-General
Kofi Annan and the executive heads of UNDP, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF
and the World Bank. |
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| The
Forum will synthesize the results of the largest and most comprehensive
stocktaking of education in history and set clear goals to meet
the learning needs for all by 2015. More than 180 countries
took part in the ground-breakingly comprehensive two-year Education
For All 2000 Assessment as well as taking part in six major
regional conferences held in late 1999 and 2000. |
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| "The
educational assessment is a report card for countries, and like
most report cards there are some higher marks and some failing
marks," said Victor Ordonez -- basic education expert at UNESCO
and the principle resource person for the world forum-- noting
that educational conditions in sub-Saharan Africa will be a
major priority at the Forum. |
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| "Even
countries with high marks disguise alarming information…and
only surface progress," Mr Ordonez said. On the one hand, the
number of children in school has risen from 599 million in 1990
to 681 million in 1998, while the number of out-of-school children
has correspondingly decreased from 127 million to 113 million
in that time. But, as Mr Ordonez stressed, rural and female
students, in particular, continue to be excluded from education
even as governments have in many cases increased educational
access for urban and male students. |
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| While
underscoring the need for educational funding and aid as well
as the exchange of best practices and technologies, Mr Ordonez
put the onus of responsibility on governments to show genuine
political will and for the media to draw a sharper focus on
the needs and role of education. "Addressing the problems of
education addresses the basic problems of the world (…) like
violence, the environment and HIV/AIDS. There can be short-term
solutions to world problems but education is the only long-term
solution." |
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"When taking stock of the lessons and failures of the past decade,
we see that millions of children are still excluded from school…their
right to education violated," said Jennifer Chiwela, spokesperson
for the two-day International Consultation of Non-Governmental
Organizations which concluded today. Ms Chiwela, from the Ghana-based
People Act Foundation, stressed that NGOs must never be excluded
as stakeholders and participants in promoting education for
all. "We have been called partners for years, good intentions
have been made known, but when it comes to action NGOs have
not been recognized." |
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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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