This report on the development and state of adult learning and education (ALE) in Subsaharan Africa is necessarily framed within the context of global development and change and in particular with the policy agendas of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Education for All (EFA). The role of ALE is explicitly or implicitly addressed in these initiatives and this challenges the field to examine what has been done since CONFINTEA V to foster and develop democracy, communities, societies and human rights through adult learning. The report synthesises the Member State reports submitted in response to a request by UNESCO, supplemented where necessary by other sources,reports and research documentation.
The limitations of this report include its necessary brevity and lack of data in certain key areas. There is a need for some pan-African standardisation of the terminology relating to literacy, adult basic education, non-formal education and lifelong learning, not in any restrictive or prescriptive way, but simply to aid understanding and comparability of data and research emanating from countries in Africa. Clarity is also needed in distinguishing adult education from more general community development.
The report synthesises the UNESCO Member State reports submitted in response to a request by UNESCO, supplemented where necessary by other sources, reports and research documentation.
Download: The state and development of adult learning and education in Subsaharan Africa (PDF, 0.2 MB)
- Author/Editor: John Aitchison; Hassana Alidou
- The State and development of adult learning and education in Subsaharan Africa: regional synthesis report
- UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning, 2009
- ISBN 978-92-820-1164-5
- Available in: English, French
