Tag: SDGs

Sustainable Development Goals Anniversary: Let’s fund what is fair!

Posted on by Nate Radomski

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As the Sustainable Development Goals second anniversary comes to date, the Latin American Campaign for the Right to Education has launched a campaign to demand full financing of Sustainable Development Goal 4. On its behalf, the International Federation of Fe y Alegría has joined and supports the campaign since the funding of education budgets is a crucial need in order to fulfill the State’s obligations towards the 2030 Agenda.

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Lens on inclusion to measure the global improvements in education

Posted on by Nate Radomski

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At the end of last week, the UNESCO GEM (Global Education Monitoring) Report’s Advisory Board met in Paris to discuss the success of the 2016 GEM Report, hear about the plans for the 2017/8 and 2019 GEM Reports, and decide on the future theme of the 2020 GEM Report. A consensus was reached on the theme: Inclusion and Education.

The desire to leave no one behind permeates the entire 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Two of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) are dedicated to addressing inclusion: A goal on gender equality and empowerment of all girls and women (SDG 5) and one on reducing disparities between and within countries (SDG 10). There is also an unprecedented global commitment to using disaggregated data to monitor gaps and inequalities, in education and other sectors. Disaggregated information is critical to identifying populations who never exercised their right to education, who left school before completing a full cycle, and who did not succeed in acquiring key foundational and transferable skills.

The GEM Report has long taken an equity, pro-inclusive perspective when monitoring progress towards global education goals. Our team has shown that the poorest children are four times more likely to be out of primary school than the richest children. An estimated one-third of all out-of-school children at the primary level have a disability. Aggregated analysis from 51 countries found a 10 percentage point gap in primary completion rates between people with and without disability, which is likely an underestimate. About 40% of people around the world are not taught in a language they speak or understand.

In 2010 the GEM Report established the World Inequality Database on Education (WIDE) to highlight countries that are adversely affected, and through what processes, in order to contribute to policy formulation and resource allocation. Data from this source show the extent to which disadvantage and marginalization undermine success in education progress. They indicate how overlapping disadvantages sometimes create almost unsurmountable barriers for those trying to learn at school or university or through adult training and education programs.

We know that if current policies remain in place, all groups will not enjoy the benefits of education by 2030. New strategies and policies must be adopted to ensure access to the 263 million children, adolescents and youth who are out of primary and secondary school; the 758 million adults lacking basic literacy and numeracy skills; and the millions more who, despite having been to school, experienced little improvement in their learning levels and employment prospects.

This post was adapted from the GEM Report blogsite

 

Education NGOs meeting in Cambodia warns about the need for SDG-4 perspective in public policies

Posted on by Nate Radomski

Representatives from numerous national, regional and international non-governmental and civil society organizations and members of the 2030 Education Collective Consultation of Non-Governmental Organizations (CCNGO) from different parts of the world met in Siem Reap, Cambodia, from May 8-9th, 2017.

The main goal of the meeting was to take stock and discuss the progress made in achieving SDG4-Education 2030 from the adoption and formulation of recommendations.

Participants analyzed the initiatives undertaken, the main challenges faced, the opportunities identified and ways to move forward. They also discussed the support that CSOs should provide to SDG4 at the national, regional and global levels, as well as the contributions of the CCNGO in this regard.

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Challenges and Opportunities

The statement issued following the meeting indicates that the challenges to education have been exacerbated by external factors in the social and political environment, in particular, by conflicts, war, violence, fundamentalism and insecurity affecting citizens in such situations. “As far as policies are concerned, they either do not yet exist or are not based on the SDG4-Education 2030 perspective and even, in some cases, diverge from it.” With regard to funding, they noted that both national and official development assistance for education had declined.

Another of the major challenges identified during the meeting is the increased privatization and commercialization of education, and the risk of undermining free and public quality education, aggravating inequalities. They consider that there is still a shortage of trained teachers, compounded by insufficient initial and continuing training and poor working conditions.

Recommendations

In addition to identifying the various risks involved in achieving quality, free, inclusive and equitable education, the organizations acknowledged that it is the responsibility of governments to ensure its provision and offer a number of recommendations to do so. The representatives urged those who have not yet done so to formally establish legal frameworks on the right to education.

“We call for intensified efforts to meet the agreed commitments to allocate between 4% and 6% of GDP and/or between 15% and 20% of public spending on education, bearing in mind that more and more resources are needed. Resources for education must be maintained and increased as necessary, even in crisis situations, while respecting the standards of equity and quality.”

In their statement, they strongly recommended that donor countries reverse the decrease in aid and meet the target of allocating 0.7 percent of gross national income to official development assistance to developing countries and 0.15 per cent and 0.2 per cent for least developed countries.

They encouraged Governments to intensify their efforts towards inclusive education, in particular by focusing on gender equality, disability, migrants and refugees, and respect for diversity. They should also remedy the shortage of teachers through the training and recruitment of qualified teachers, and ensure their permanent professional training.

About the participation of the International Federation of Fe y Alegría in the Collective Consultation

The United Nations (UN) recognizes the International Federation of Fe y Alegría, a movement present in 21 countries, as an NGO with Special Consultative Status. This way, the UN grants the association the character of accredited organization for the consultation in education and human rights, and it allows it to assist and intervene in the UN conferences, as well as send statements.

The Special Consultative Status is granted to NGOs that have specific competencies and it refers specifically to some of the areas covered by the Economic and Social Council, the forum in which the NGOs are represented inside the UN. This status offers NGOs access not only to the Council, but also to its subsidiary bodies, to the human rights mechanisms in the UN, to special processes, and to special events organized by the General Assembly president.

About the Collective Consultation

The Collective Consultation of Non-Governmental Organizations on Education for All (CCNGO/EFA) is UNESCO’s essential mechanism for dialogue, reflection and collaboration with NGOs in the field of education. Since its inception in 1998, the scope of CCNGO/EFA has been changed to become an international network of more than 300 national, regional and international NGOs members of the CCNGO/EFA. The network remains an essential mechanism and a platform that allows civil society organizations to contribute to the collective commitment by 2030 with the aim of ensuring inclusive quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all.