Organized by UNESCO in partnership with the African Union and the Government of Ethiopia, the 9th meeting of the High-Level Group on Education For All – composed of Ministers of Education and International Cooperation and representatives of international and regional organizations, civil society and the private sector – will be based on the findings of the 2010 Education for All Global Monitoring Report.

             Plenary session discussions will focus primarily on the impact of the economic crisis on education and address many of the persistent problems that limit access to education for large sections of society. A panel discussion on educational responses applicable to countries in emergency situations, such as Haiti, will also be organized.  

            The aftershock of the global financial crisis threatens to deprive millions of children in the world’s poorest countries of an education, warns the 2010 Report, “Reaching the marginalized”. As a direct consequence of the crisis, public expenditures on educational systems in sub-Saharan Africa could be cut by as much as US$4.6 billion annually in 2010. With 72 million children still out of school, a combination of slower economic growth, rising poverty and budget pressures could erode the gains of the past decade.

             Established to follow up the 2000 World Education Forum in Dakar (Senegal), the High-Level Group Meeting on Education For All is an annual event convened by UNESCO’s Director General. Its role is to generate political momentum and mobilize financial, technical and political support towards the achievement of the EFA goals initiated ten years ago and the education-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Press conference at the UN Conference Centre, Addis Ababa, on 23 February at 2.30 pm with Meles Zenawi, Irina Bokova, Jean Ping.