Third UN Conference on LDCs
10th Meeting (PM)
DEV/BRU/11
16 May 2001
EDUCATION’S
VITAL ROLE IN DEVELOPMENT STRESSED AT THEMATIC SESSION OF BRUSSELS CONFERENCE
ON LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
As the Third United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries
continued this afternoon, speakers at an interactive thematic session, entitled
“Education for All”, focused on the vital role of education in development and
the need to implement existing education programmes, such as Dakar Framework
for Action adopted last year at the World Education Forum in Dakar,
Senegal. That Framework sets goals of
universal and free primary education, a 50 per cent improvement in adult
literacy and gender equality in education by 2015.
The session’s moderator,
Roger Dehaybe, Administrateur général de l’Agence intergouvernementale de la
francophonie, said there were plenty of documents, resolutions and diagnostic
papers on education, and today’s meeting was designed not to produce yet
another paper, but to mobilize political will and the resources needed to
achieve the goals. During the
discussion, it had been pointed out that education was both a means and an end,
but in both cases it was essential for development.
The Director-General of
the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Koichiro Matsuura,
said that the main focus of action following last year’s Dakar Forum should be
at the national level, and particular emphasis must be placed on assistance to
the least developed countries (LDCs).
Cooperation and networking were also needed, as education for all was a
collective commitment. It was important
to build on what already existed, in order to make universal education a
reality. The year 2015 was close
enough, but there was still enough time to allow each country to draw its
national plans and make better use of its national potential.
One of
the session’s co-chairs, Donald
Mackenzie, Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator, United States Agency for
International Development (USAID), said that the goal of
education for all would be a “non-starter” without involvement at the national
level. He was not talking about a
modest increase to the traditional approach of “education for some”. Rather, there must be a full, unequivocal
and urgent commitment to give every child a quality education.
Rubens Ricupero, Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), said if half of the LDCs responded to the challenge of achieving universal education by 2015, it would mean doubling their present school enrolment, which would not be easy.
One of the solutions was to guarantee a minimum income to families, to give them the incentive to send their children to school.Implemented in Brazil, such a system was a government investment, not an expenditure. While some African governments might not be able to provide the same incentive as the Brazilian Government, a similar scheme using capital from debt reduction was being explored.
Theresa Ndonji Jatta, Minister of Education of
Gambia and a panellist at the session, said that today’s session placed
education where it should be -– at the centre of development. It was important to translate good will into
action, for there was no country among the LDCs that did not have a plan of
action for education. The problem,
however, was how to implement those programmes. A definite paradigm shift was needed to overcome the low literacy
levels and the lack of access to basic education, and donor input should be
coordinated to reduce leakages and waste of resources.
Several panellists and speakers in the debate
emphasized the importance of women’s and girls’ education and the need to
devote funds to that purpose. To
achieve better women’s education, they recommended formulation of new
gender-responsive policies; improving the ability to act at grass-roots level
and implementing the best practices.
Also noted in the discussion was the role of education in fighting the
AIDS pandemic and eradicating poverty.
Fidele M. Kientega, Minister for Literacy and Basic
Education of Burkina Faso, acted as a co-Chair of the session. Sadig Rasheed, Director, Programme Division,
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), made opening remarks, and Dina
Craissati, Consultant, Egypt, presented the issues paper.
Other panellists included: Khamliene Nhouyvanisvong (Lao People’s Democratic Republic);
Penina Mlama, Director, Forum for African Women for Education; Monique
Fouillhoux, Education Officer, Education International; Steve Packer, Acting
Chief Education Adviser, Department for International Development, United
Kingdom; Christine Hemrick, Vice President of Strategic Technology Policy, Cisco
Systems, Inc.; and Yvette Stevens, Special Coordinator, Office of the Special
Coordination for Africa and the LDCs.
At 10
a.m. tomorrow, 17 May, the Conference will hold another thematic session on
international trade, commodities and services.
Thematic
Session: Education for All
Issue Paper
An issue
paper prepared for the Conference by the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), entitled Education for All and
Sustainable Development in the LDCs, presents “education for all” -- a goal
declared at the World Conference on Education for All, held in Jomtien,
Thailand, in 1990 and most recently reaffirmed in 2000 at the World Education
Forum in Dakar, Senegal -- in the context of the internationally agreed development
goal of reducing the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by at least
half by 2015.
The paper
opens with a chapter on the status of education for all in the least developed
countries (LDCs), including meeting three goals in the draft programme of
action for the LDCs for 2001-2010:
ensuring universal primary education by 2015; achieving a 50 per cent
improvement in adult literacy by 2015; and eliminating gender disparities in
primary and secondary education by 2005 and achieving gender equality in
education by 2015. Chapter II concerns
prospects and strategies for achieving education for all in the LDCs, including
its role in promoting development, and Chapter III consists of strategic
recommendations in such areas as building human and productive capacities and
creating enabling national environments.
Statements
One of the session’s co-chairs, FIDELE M. KIENTEGA,
Minister for Literacy and Basic Education of Burkina Faso,
stressed the importance of education for development. Unfortunately, he said, one of the characteristics of the LDCs
was the low level of education. Many
people had no access to primary education, which led to a large number of
illiterate adults. Education should be
a priority for least developed countries (LDCs), and his country had developed
a 10-year plan. Subregional and
regional efforts were also being undertaken to establish a foundation to
support non-formal education. If the
battle of education was not won, it would be impossible to achieve the goal of
sustainable development.
DONALD MacKENZIE, Acting Deputy Assistant
Administrator, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), also
a co-chair, said that education was the cornerstone of his
country’s domestic agenda. The United
States Administration had reaffirmed its commitment to the goal of education
for all. That goal would be a
“non-starter”, however, without involvement at the national level. He was not talking about a modest increase
to the traditional approach of “education for some”. Rather, there must be a full, unequivocal and urgent commitment
to give every child a quality education.
Also, education for all would not succeed without the broad involvement
of civil society in planning and implementation, especially at the local level.
Continuing,
he emphasized the importance of girls’ and women’s education. A focus on girls brought additional benefits
in higher income, better family health and improved social status. When countries focused on girls’ education,
boys’ education improved, as well.
Another major issue was the impact of HIV/AIDS. It was not just an African problem -- it was
a global scourge, which was sadly underestimated. No country could contend that it was safe from it. Education had many benefits in the war against
the disease. The problem was so bad,
though, that teachers passing away from AIDS could not be replaced fast enough.
He did not, however, want to be pessimistic, he said. In the last 30 years, enrolment in education in LDCs had significantly increased, and it was important to celebrate that success. At the same time, the clock was ticking, with
113 million children out of school and more than 80 million illiterate adults. Each day that the international community failed to act meant that another child would lack the knowledge and the life skills to make positive choices, or perhaps prevent fatal outcomes. The challenges were great, but the benefits to each country and its citizens were greater.
In
opening remarks, KOICHIRO
MATSUURA, Director-General of the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said that the World Education
Forum, held in Dakar, Senegal, in April 2000, had had a great impact on his
organization. The Forum had emphasized
education for all, as well as all kinds of education. Education was not only a basic human right, but a means of
development, for it allowed men, women and children to develop their
potential. It was also one of the means
of combating poverty.
Following the Forum, the
main focus of action should be at the national level, he said. Governments bore the primary responsibility
for the achievement of the Dakar goals, with partnership from civil society,
local community and the private sector.
Particular emphasis must be placed on assistance to the least developed
countries. National plans, cooperation
and networking were needed. Education for all was a collective commitment, the
highest expression of which was partnership and fruitful cooperation. It was important to build on what already
existed, in order to make universal education a reality.
To achieve the universal
education goals, UNESCO had been working on several levels and pursuing various
initiatives, he added. It was
collecting important data regarding the developing countries and disseminating
information on the initiatives. Aimed
at harmonizing the commitments to education for all, it was providing
assistance to governments in drawing their national plans, making efforts to
maintain the momentum in the efforts to achieve the goal of universal basic
education.
Non-governmental
organization (NGO) involvement was central in the public efforts towards
improved education, he said, adding that NGO participation should be better
reflected in the outcome of the Conference.
Many programmes and projects, including education of adults, were being
run with the help of such organizations.
Financing was needed for higher education and research and, to that end,
a partnership with the private sector would be very useful. The year 2015 was close enough, but there
was still enough time to allow each country to draw its national plans and make
better use of its national potential.
RUBENS RICUPERO, Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), said the thematic debate was one of the innovations brought to the current conference. So, this Conference was, in effect, not the third of its kind, but rather the first. Traditional meetings in the past, which consisted of speakers from various countries reading statement after statement, had been misleadingly called general debates. They were not debates.
On the other hand, he
continued, today he had participated in real debates on health, migration,
city-to-city cooperation, export opportunities for LDCs and education. He would also leave here to go to another on
the environment. The objective was to
have an interactive debate, so that people could listen and react. The second objective was to come up with
solutions. While there were no important
disagreements over the diagnoses of LDCs, the therapy was poor. So, to come here today and once again give
only a diagnosis would not answer much.
“We need answers, so that we can provide deliverables”, he added.
He said education was a
continuous process of learning, but first it was imperative to learn how to
learn. If half of the LDCs responded to
the challenge of universal education by 2015, it would mean doubling their
present school enrolment, which would not be easy. What then were the solutions?
The reason why families did not
send children to school was not because they did not value education, but
because they were desperate for income.
In some African countries, for example, the income brought home by
children was sometimes 45 per cent of the household total.
He said minimum incomes must be guaranteed to families, to give them
the incentive to send their kids to school.
Such a system was at work in Brazil and was a success. It eliminated such problems as street
children and all the associated complications that came with that
phenomenon. Also, it was a government
investment and not an expenditure.
While some African governments might not be able to provide the same
incentive as the Brazilian Government, a similar scheme using capital from debt
reduction was being explored.
SADIG
RASHEED, Director, Programme Division, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF),
said basic education of good quality was the right of all people. The Fund had placed the education of girls
as its highest priority for the next four years. There was also an ongoing African girl education initiative that
had been taking place for a few years now in some 31 African nations.
He said that if the
education of girls did not become a global priority of the international
community, the goal of universal primary education or gender equality would
never be achieved. Improving the
quality of education for girls meant improving the quality of life for all and
enhancing the chances for appropriate social and cultural development. Girls faced glaring inequalities and
discrimination, which were enforced in their home and their environments.
The
session’s moderator, ROGER DEHAYBE, Administrateur général de l’Agence
intergouvernementale de la francophonie, said there would be no
success if definitive action to provide education for all was not taken. The Dakar objectives and related programme
of action had to be the backbone for all future ideas.
Education was at the heart of the programme of
cultural diversity and globalization.
It also needed to be borne in mind that the private sector had already
made contributions to education and agriculture, and had made them genuine
aspects of their trading operations.
DINA CRAISSATI, Consultant, Egypt, said information and communication
technologies (ICTs) had opened up new and important avenues for rethinking
educational systems, specifically non—formal methods of delivery, and for
reconsidering the role of education.
The propagation of world culture and the slow erosion of cultural
distinctiveness and identity were creating tensions between the local and the
global, which encouraged withdrawals into closed communities and rejections of
the “other”. That represented a major
challenge to the quality of education in LDCs, which would have to address
issues related to content and values,
Those issues, she
continued, would include empowerment of people; engaging in relations and
dialogue with others while asserting one’s difference and identity; keeping up
with scientific progress without turning one’s back to the past; adopting
critical approaches; and engaging in positive action.
On the other hand, she
continued, the strong ties of decentralization and internationalization were
providing LDCs with opportunities to address bottlenecks in educational and
social reforms. Those involved the
growing drive and capacity of citizens to become “agents of change”; to be more
autonomous, reflexive and critical; to act and create; and to make better
decisions relevant to themselves and to their everyday lives.
Panellists
THERESA NDONJI JATTA,
Minister of Education of the Gambia, said that today’s session placed
education where it should be -- at the centre of development. Least developed countries were marginalized
in the global economy, and the low level of education was one of the
problems. It was important to translate
the good will into action, for there was no country among the LDCs that did not
have a plan of action for education.
The problem, however, was how to implement those programmes.
“The right mix and fit”
must go into the individual education of each person, she continued. A definite paradigm shift was needed to
overcome the low literacy levels and the lack of access to basic education. Donor input should be coordinated to reduce
leakages and a waste of resources. The
importance of education for girls and women could not be overstated. The expression “to educate a man meant educating
just one person, but to educate a girl meant educating many” was considered
trite. It was, however, true and donors
must become involved in that cause.
Education was the key, which would open the door to development. To really make an impact, it was important
to support girls in going to school and remaining. Women should also be encouraged to become teachers and role
models.
KHAMLIENE NHOUYVANISVONG (Lao People’s Democratic
Republic) said that poverty and extreme poverty were an attack on
fundamental human rights. Long-term
strategies to overcome poverty must be harmonized with other development
policies, and education should not be forgotten in that connection. Both formal and non-formal education needed
to be strengthened as a basic human right and a means of social advancement. School diplomas create opportunities. Access to education was what helped people
to understand the world and one another.
All children should have equal educational opportunities, regardless of
their gender and ethnic origin. Men and
women needed to be prepared for the future roles in society.
PENINA MLAMA, Director, Forum for African Women for
Education, said that educating girls and women was an investment in the
future. However, that potential was not
fully exploited. All the problems of
girls’ education were well known. The
Dakar commitment to girls’ education was also not a secret. One of the main problems remaining was the
lack of political will.
Also, even though many governments intended to
improve education for women, they lacked the funds, she continued. In many cases, there was not enough capacity
to formulate new gender-responsive policies.
It was important to build up the ability to act at the grass-roots
level, especially in marginalized communities.
In conclusion, she emphasized the importance of learning the lessons of the
past and to implement the best practices.
MONIQUE FOUILLHOUX, Education Officer, Education
International, said that the silence of indifference and fear towards AIDS was
finally being broken. Information and
services should be made available to young people to combat the problem, but
sexual education was prohibited in many countries, although it could teach safe
behaviour. Schools could have a primary
role not only in education, but also in health. Teaching children and adolescents to become responsible
citizens should be among the fundamental goals of schools all over the
world. Health education should become a
global issue. Teachers should receive
proper training, receiving maximum information about the disease. They should also have access to interactive
methods of education.
Steve Packer, Acting Chief Education
Adviser, Department for International Development, United Kingdom, said
there was now a stronger recognition and understanding that enabling all
children to benefit from a quality education was a component of poverty
reduction and an essential human right.
What the world was thus seeing were education plans conceived in terms
of learning outcomes that were linked to wider development objectives.
He said education sector
planning now had to be more demand-led and more understanding of the needs of
poor people. There was no longer any
one-size-fits-all model. Therefore,
while the type of planning that allowed for flexibility was challenging, it was
necessary.
There had
to be firm commitment to develop the national action plans advanced at the
World Education Forum held in Dakar, Senegal, in April 2000. In that context, the importance of putting
those plans in a wider framework also had to be recognized, even though the
challenges would be hard to meet. In
addition, the process had to be all-inclusive, particularly with regard to the
education of girls. The question was,
where did the larger international community fit in? The answer -- in helping to build new capacities, which would
help address new challenges.
Christine Hemrick, Vice-President of
Strategic Technology Policy, Cisco Systems, Inc., said she wanted to
leverage ICTs as a good basis for education processes. She realized that there were many questions
about using e-learning for LDCs. Yet,
just as there was a lot of attention being paid to the genuine issues of the
digital divide, it would be remiss to neglect the opportunities provided by
ICTs for education.
She said she was not
talking about simply dumping computers in classrooms, but designing entire
education programmes from start to finish.
Information and communication technologies could improve the quality of
learning, make better use of teacher and pupil time and be extremely cost
effective in terms of return on investment.
Information and communication technologies provided for the continuous
improvement of academic content leaving teachers free to focus on the most
important aspect of their jobs -- motivating students and helping them to
learn. E-learning would also enable
anytime, anywhere learning.
She realized, however,
that ICT systems required technology and training that were scarce and
costly. Up-front costs would be
high. There was also scepticism and
opposition by traditional educational establishments. One could say that with all those issues -- why bother? “Simply because it can work”, she said. “We know it works and we have seen it at
work.”. Cisco learning instruments were
now being made available to non-profit organizations, along with support for
learning, at no cost. “It is not too
early to get into ICT education, but it could be too late if we do not consider
the needs of LDCs in terms of narrowing the digital divide now”, she added.
Yvette Stevens, Special Coordinator, Office of the Special
Coordination for Africa and the LDCs, said the importance
of science and technology in addressing
poverty could not be overemphasized.
Information communication technologies were critical not only to basic
education processes, but also in other formal and non-formal settings of the
process. She said South-South
cooperation was important, so that experiences in education could be
shared. Education, information and cooperation
must be promoted in the development of scientific knowledge. Scientific and technological institutions
must also be strengthened, while new technologies must be allowed to adapt to
local settings.
Interactive
Session
During an interactive
session that drew keen responses from the floor, the issue of incentives for
teachers was raised by a few participants.
One speaker called for a reorganization of the teaching profession,
stressing that reasonable salaries might yield quality results.
It was also observed that there was a lack of opportunity in the educational field, and that there had been no action of any significant kind to improve education in the LDCs in the last year. A speaker said that, while there was consensus, there were no political commitments or changes to meet the target of reducing poverty. There was no longer any need whatsoever for any more messages of solidarity or goodwill -- hard answers were now required. It was also noted that more money was given towards military spending or currency speculation in a shorter space of time than there was to education in a year.
Other speakers underscored
the need for education in the LDCs to be more relevant, with one speaker
stating that African children should not have to spend time learning irrelevant
European history.
There was a tendency to forget about the role of teachers, a speaker said, drawing attention to the need to create proper working conditions and incentives for them. It was not normal that, in many cases, teachers in the developing countries were forced to take second jobs to sustain themselves. He also stressed the need to provide proper teacher training and to consider their views in making decisions on education.
One of
the easiest ways to achieve education for all was to engage the children in
peer-to-peer literacy programmes, speaker pointed out. Another speaker said “appropriate education”
should involve reorienting education towards sustainable development, for
modern education was producing the worst kind of “environmental vandals” who
were responsible for most of the damage to the planet.
In his concluding remarks,
Mr. RASHEED stressed the importance of both national and partners’ efforts in
education. Massive investments in
education were needed to achieve educational goals. Today, neither LDCs nor their partners were making sufficient
investments in education. Today’s
discussion also demonstrated a high level of agreement regarding the need to
improve women’s and girls’ education.
Summarizing the session,
Mr. DEHAYBE said that many important views had been expressed in the debate,
although those were not new. The
context of discussion was new, however, because speakers had placed education
at the heart of international commitments.
The participants had heard how vital education was and how important it
was to invest in it. Girls’ education
and the role of education in the fight against poverty were also stressed. Participation of the countries concerned was
needed, as well as broad involvement of civil society. Some illustrative figures and examples had
been presented.
It was pointed out in the
discussion that education was both a means and an end, he continued, but in
both cases it was essential for development.
All the speakers had expressed the wish for better partnership, and the
presence of