UNESCO addresses literacy challenge in South, South-West and Central Asia

• © UNESCO
• A scene from the film Brothers of Pen and Paper

In the countries of South and South-West Asia, an estimated 388 million adults lack literacy skills. In Central Asia, while literacy rates are high, women comprise 72.5% of the illiterate population. How to redress these situations will be the subject of an international conference of experts and representatives from governments, specialized non-governmental organizations and donor countries to be held in New Delhi (India) on 29 and 30 November.

The conference, “Addressing the Literacy Challenge in South, South-West and Central Asia: Building Partnerships and Promoting Innovative Approaches”, will be inaugurated by Arjun Singh, Indian Minister of Human Resources Development, and UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura, in the presence of Indian Congress Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and several First Ladies from the region. The keynote address will be given by Dr Shantha Sinha, Magsaysay award winner and Chairperson of the National Commission on Child Rights.

For two days, participants, including education and finance ministers and experts from universities and civil society, will review the main literacy achievements and remaining challenges of the region. They will identify best policies and new initiatives and consider the issues of cost and financing of programmes. Among other themes to be discussed are literacy for health, literacy and economic self-sufficiency, mother-child literacy and using information and communication technologies (ICTs). Special attention will be given to creating partnerships and building cooperation among stakeholders.

The meeting is the fourth in a series of six regional and sub-regional conferences organized by UNESCO to promote global literacy. The first three meetings in this series took place earlier this year in Doha (Qatar), Beijing (China) and Bamako (Mali). Two more conferences covering Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean will be held before the end of 2008.

These initiatives follow the Global Literacy Conference organized by the White House in New York on 18 September 2006, under the auspices of Laura Bush, First Lady of the United States and Honorary Ambassador for the United Nations Literacy Decade. That conference marked the start of an international campaign to promote literacy within the framework of the United Nations Literacy Decade (2003-2012) and UNESCO’s Literacy Initiative for Empowerment, LIFE (2006-2015).

• Author(s):Media Advisory N°2007-80
• Source:UNESCOPRESS
• 19-11-2007