JOINT STATEMENT BY THE CONVENORS OF THE WORLD EDUCATION FORUM
Paris, 21 April 2000 {No.2000-37} - The convenors of the World Education Forum which
will take place in Dakar (Senegal) from April 26 to 28 are issuing a joint
statement calling for, and pledging, reinforced support for basic education
world-wide.
Here is the statement, issued jointly by Mark Malloch Brown,
Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); Koïchiro
Matsuura, Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scienctific
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF); Nafis Sadik, Executive Director of
the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and James D. Wolfensohn,
President of the World Bank:
"We, the Convenors of the World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal, in April
2000,
"Recall that education:
* is a right enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;
* is a sine qua non for all economic, social and human development and
for ensuring each country's equitable access to the benefits of
globalization;
* plays a fundamental role in promoting civil and international peace
as well as mutual respect for cultures and peoples;
"Assert that Education for All should be placed within a sustainable and
well-integrated policy framework linked to poverty eradication, population
strategies, and promotion of gender equality and equity;
"Fully support the basic vision and objectives promulgated by the world
community in the Declaration on Education for All adopted in Jomtien in
1990;
"Acknowledge the considerable progress made in providing basic education in
some countries;
"Alarmed, however, about the unacceptable, and often deteriorating
situations in other countries, marked by persistently high illiteracy rates,
large numbers of children, especially girls, not in school, gender and other
disparities in education, and educational systems and content of inadequate
quality and relevance;
1. Stress the imperative need for immediate, strong and lasting
commitments at all levels so as to ensure the effective provision of
Education for All, in response to this inadmissible and reversible global
calamity;
2. Appeal to national governments, especially in those countries where
neglect of basic education has resulted in crisis or near-crisis situations,
to give Education for All, as a matter of urgency, the highest political,
budgetary and legislative priority, to reach out to all those excluded from
education, and to recognize that the pressing challenges facing Education
for All will not be met without resolute political will, radical reform and
new approaches, at both the conceptual and practical levels;
3. Pledge to increase significantly the allocation of resources to
Education for All and to redouble our efforts in respect of policy advice,
technical cooperation, training and capacity-building, enhancing cooperation
between governments and civil society, providing increased financial
assistance to countries with a credible plan and demonstrated commitment to
education, and expanding and strengthening the partnership for Education for
All;
4. Call upon the international community, development and financial
institutions, multilateral, bilateral and private donors to support the
cause of Education for All as an integral part of their global
responsibilities; to ensure effective mechanisms of coordination and
collaboration, in particular at country level; and thus, to ensure that no
country with serious resolve and viable plans to achieve Education for All
is thwarted by lack of resources;
5. Urge non-governmental organizations, the media and civil society at
large, including the private sector, to continue their mobilization, and
strengthen their participation in Education for All, particularly through
innovative strategies, in support of the public authorities' efforts to
discharge their obligation of ensuring education universally."
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