Education for All: An international strategy to
operationalize the Dakar Framework for Action on Education
for All (EFA)
[PDF]
PREFACE
The world has set clear
targets to reach Education for All by 2015. Two years ago at
Dakar, there was unprecedented worldwide solidarity in making
a commitment to those targets - by governments, civil society
and international organizations. Since then, new plans have
been made and old ones revitalized, particularly at the
national level. In the course of planning, the complexities of
building partnerships for EFA and the difficult challenges of
diverse contexts have emerged all the more strikingly.
Therefore, it has clearly been important to maintain and to
strengthen the international consensus and to keep the entire
international community engaged in supporting EFA at the
national level. Building convergence around the vision,
processes and mechanisms necessary to achieve all six Dakar
goals is central to these efforts. This is no easy task given
the need for in-depth communication between very different
partners who represent a wide variety of constituencies and
interests.
The Dakar Framework for Action called for
the establishment of a High Level Group that would serve two
main functions: as a lever for political commitment and
technical and financial resource mobilization, and as an
opportunity to hold the global community to account for
commitments made in Dakar. At its first meeting, this group
asked for an over-arching international strategy to
operationalize the Dakar Framework for Action; I now have
great pleasure in presenting this strategy. The Task Force
requested by the High Level Group met to give shape and focus
to the current document . This strategy has grown out of
extensive collaboration and participation, with inputs from a
wide range of EFA partners. It draws on other initiatives
which have been proposed for enhancing the level of
international engagement and its coherence. It responds to the
concern for more effective co-ordination within the
international community. It is a living document, amenable to
adaptation as dialogue is further pursued, for example, in the
EFA Working Group, in regional forums and at the next meeting
of the High Level Group.
The strategy builds on the
Dakar values of partnership, collective ownership and respect
for diversity. It maintains a focus on the national level, the
heart of EFA action, by emphasizing the supporting measures
that require international commitment and co-ordination. By
focusing on five major actions - planning, advocacy and
communication, financing, monitoring and evaluation,
international and regional mechanisms - it provides a clear
framework for current and future actions.
Two years
after Dakar, we have all become more aware of the complexity
and size of the EFA challenge. The need for effective
partnerships and co-ordinated efforts between all the partners
has become abundantly clear. In this context, ensuring the
commitment of international support to countries and
maximizing the benefits of that support through effective
co-ordination are vital and urgent if substantive progress is
to be made. This International Strategy aims to contribute to
these key tasks.
Koïchiro
Matsuura Director-General, UNESCO
List of Acronyms
ADEA : The
Association for the Development of Education in Africa AIDS
: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome ALADI : The
Association for Latin America Integration AMU : Arab
Maghreb Union ANCEFA : African Network Campaign on
Education for All ARC : Arab Resource Collective ASEAN :
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations ASPBAE : Asia
South Pacific Bureau of Adult Education AU : African
Union C-4 : UNESCO medium-term planning document C-5 :
UNESCO biennial programme CARICOM : The Caribbean community
and common market CCA : Country Common Assessment CCNGO
: Collective Consultation of Non-Governmental Organizations on
EFA CDF : Comprehensive Development framework CEART :
Committee of Expert on the Application of the Recommendation
concerning the Status of Teachers CNN : Cable News
Network CONFINTEA : 5th International Conference on Adult
Education CSO : Civil Society Organization CSN : Country
Strategy Note DAC : Development Assistance Committee E-9
: Nine high population countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, China,
Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria,
Pakistan ECOSOC : Economic and Social Council of the United
Nations ECOWAS : The Economic Community of West African
States EFA : Education for All EU : European
Union FAO : Food and Agriculture Organization FRESH :
Focusing resources on effective school health G-8 : Group
of 8 countries with the largest economies: Canada, France,
Germany, Italy, Japan, Russian Federation, United Kingdom,
United States of America GCE : Global Campaign for
Education HLG : High-Level group HIV : Human
Immunodeficiency Virus HIPC : Highly Indebted Poor
Countries IAEA : International Association for Learning
Assessment ICT : Information and Communication
Technology IDA : International Development
Association ILO : International Labour Organization INEE
: Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies IPEC :
The International Programme on the Elimination of Child
Labour ISESCO : The Islamic Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization LDC : Least Developed Country MD :
Millennium Declaration MINEDAF : Ministers of Education of
African member states NEPAD : The New Partnership for
Africa's Development NGO : Non-Governmental
Organization OAS : The Organization of American
States OAU : Organization of African unity OCHA : Office
for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs ODL : Open
and distance learning OECD : Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development PANA : Pan African News
Agency PRSP : Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper SAARC :
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation SADC :
Southern Africa Development Community SPF : South Pacific
Forum SWAps : Sector-Wide Approaches UN : United
Nations UNAIDS : Joint United Nations Programme on
HIV/AIDS UNDAF : United Nations Development Assistance
Framework UNDG : United Nations Development Group UNESCO
: United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization UNFPA : United Nations Fund and Population
Activities UNGEI : United Nations Girls Education
Initiative UNHCR : United Nations High Commission for
Refugees UNICEF : United Nations Children Fund UIE :
UNESCO Institute for Education UIS : UNESCO Institute for
Statistics UPE : Universal Primary Education WB : World
Bank WFP : World food Programme WGEFA : Working Group on
Education for All
An
international strategy to operationalize the Dakar Framework
for Action on Education for All (EFA)
Introduction: From the Jomtien Declaration to
the six Dakar EFA Goals
At the heart of
the Education for All (EFA) is the vision of every person -
female and male, of every age, in every community - engaged in
learning, the key to unfolding their full potential as human
beings.
In the World Declaration on Education for All,
adopted in 1990 in Jomtien, Thailand, the world community
adopted an expanded vision of what basic education means,
calling for a learning environment in which everyone would
have the chance to acquire the basic elements which serve as a
foundation for further learning and enable full participation
in society. This vision implied both access to education for
everybody, and meeting the diverse learning needs of children,
youth and adults. It focused on learning societies, and saw
broader and deeper partnerships at every level as the way
forward.
In Dakar in 2000, the World Education Forum
re-affirmed this vision, and adopted a Framework for Action
that emphasized the need for quality in basic education as
well as access to it (see Figure 1). Focus was placed squarely
at the national level and on the responsibility of national
governments towards education. The Dakar Framework clearly
states the commitment to create the right conditions for EFA
in each country, recognizing that some countries will need
help in doing so, and recognizing, too, the responsibility of
those with the means to make such help available. Education
for All is a joint endeavour involving all humanity, and we
all stand to benefit from our own learning and the learning of
our neighbours . In a globalized world, it is not only
unacceptable, it is dangerous to allow a situation of
educational 'haves' and 'have-nots' to persist.
This
strategy document does not review the challenges or problems
of EFA; it does not describe the scope of the problem; and it
does not tell governments what they should do. Rather, it
outlines the dimensions of both international support at
national level, and co-ordination between international
agencies, taking into account the comparative advantage of
each agency and the need for cohesion and effective
co-operation in support of EFA. Its purpose is to make the
Dakar Framework for Action operational. It is complementary to
existing EFA documentation, which the reader may consult
elsewhere. The Dakar Framework for Action spelled out the
commitments which the governments of the world, together with
civil society and the international agencies made to address
the EFA challenge - in terms of six goals (see box below) and
twelve strategies. The Expanded Commentary put flesh on the
bones of these commitments, as did the Regional Frameworks for
Action in the context of specific geographical
areas.
The six
Dakar goals
(i) expanding and
improving comprehensive early childhood care and
education, especially for the most vulnerable and
disadvantaged children;
(ii) ensuring
that by 2015 all children, particularly girls, children
in difficult circumstances and those belonging to ethnic
minorities, have access to and complete free and
compulsory primary education of good quality;
(iii) ensuring that the learning needs of
all young people and adults are met through equitable
access to appropriate learning and life skills
programmes;
(iv) achieving a 50 per cent
improvement in levels of adult literacy by 2015,
especially for women, and equitable access to basic and
continuing education for all adults;
(v)
eliminating gender disparities in primary and secondary
education by 2005, and achieving gender equality in
education by 2015, with a focus on ensuring girls' full
and equal access to and achievement in basic education
of good quality;
(vi) improving all
aspects of the quality of education and ensuring
excellence of all so that recognized and measurable
learning outcomes are achieved by all, especially in
literacy, numeracy and essential life
skills. |
In March 2002
the Monterrey Consensus emerged from the Conference on
Financing for Development - with clear implications for
investment in Education for All. It recognised education as
part of the basic economic and social infrastructure for
sustainable development. It also offers the prospect of
increased aid for development in general. Since increased
external aid is the only way for some of the poorest countries
to build capacity in basic education and other social domains,
it is now urgent to ensure that these new commitments
translate into significant new resources for EFA. Financing
agencies and bilateral donors must not shy away from the
long-term investment in education in favour of short-term
results, but rather commit to the six Dakar goals all the way
to 2015.
This International Strategy is related to a
number of development planning initiatives. It draws on them
and must be understood as a specific EFA component in relation
to these wider processes, bringing a focus on basic education.
EFA processes are neither in competition with other processes
and initiatives, nor separate from them; they include planning
and negotiation around the Millennium Development Goals, the
Poverty Reduction Strategy processes, the United Nations
Development Assistance Framework, Sector-wide Approaches
(SWAps) and a number of regional processes (e.g. the New
Partnership for Africa's Development - NEPAD). The Millennium
Goals have become a means of focusing global attention on a
limited number of fundamental development targets and a
framework for structuring development cooperation - with a
concern to ensure accountability on the part of all partners
for their part in achieving them. These processes are
described more fully in Appendix 1, where their relationship
to EFA planning is spelled out in greater detail. This
strategy paper presents what the international community must
carry out in order to realize the Dakar goals, which must be
understood as an essential aspect of sustainable and equitable
development. This strategy complements the EFA strategies of
specific multilateral and bilateral agencies. It accompanies
individual EFA strategies to which agencies have committed
themselves, serving as a stimulus for full co-operation in
implementing the twelve strategies of the Dakar Framework for
Action and as a reminder and checklist of essential
contributions which the international community must make in
supporting national-level actions. It can further serve
national governments, each with their own EFA plans, as an
indication of the areas in which they can expect support and
collaboration from the international community.
The
International Strategy is structured in four
parts:
Part I spells out what the
Strategy is and what it is not and proposes a way of making it
a living - and therefore relevant and useful -
document.
Part II presents five major
actions which are essential to achieving the Dakar goals and
which will be the content of partnerships at national,
regional and international levels.
Part III addresses the
implementation of the twelve Dakar strategies, enumerating the
links between the national and international
levels.
Part IV discusses the time-line
associated with achieving the Dakar goals.
The
appendices trace the broader context and background of EFA and
add some detail to complement the main text; they also present
a summary mapping of donor interventions by theme and by
location.
Figure
1: From Jomtien to Dakar and beyond: vision, values and
principles
Part I: What an international strategy is -
and what it is not
The principal
actors in EFA are governments and civil society at the
national level - the Dakar Framework for Action stated clearly
that 'the heart of EFA lies at the country level'. The Dakar
Framework is a collective commitment. This international
strategy focuses on the ways in which actors within countries
can be supported by co-operation with regional and
international agencies and institutions (see Figure 2). In
addition to governments, a host of stakeholders were part of
Dakar - United Nations agencies, regional bodies, civil
society organizations and networks. These have been
represented in both the Working Group on EFA and the High
Level Group. In October 2001, the High Level Group
expressed concern at its first meeting that the roles and
relationships between all partners, particularly with regard
to the support they are to give at national level, had not been clearly specified.
This strategy paper will address the issues that were spelled
out at that meeting:
the major actions to be taken
within specified time-lines;
the roles and responsibilities
of partners;
the linkages among activities,
including a clear description of how flagships are to be
integrated into country-level activities; and
a consensus on the global
initiative.
The following box sums up what this
strategy is and is not:
An international
strategy:
•complements the Dakar Framework
for Action •focuses on support to the national
level •maps key EFA processes and
mechanisms •specifies roles and
responsibilities •is a living document •reflects
and fosters collective ownership
It is
not:
•a repetition of the Dakar Framework for
Action •a blueprint for what countries should
do •merely a list of ‘should’s’ ‘ought’s’ or
‘must’s’ •a particular agency’s view of EFA •a
once-and-for-all statement
|
Figure
2: Links between national, regional and international
processes in EFA
The strategy
is a living document which will be modified as circumstances
and priorities evolve. It serves as a tool for setting EFA
priorities and as a guide in assigning responsibilities, as
part of other EFA processes, such as national forums and, at
international level, the Working Group and the High Level
Group. The following chart proposes a process for ongoing
strategy development.
Date |
Occasion |
Action |
April
2002 |
Second
anniversary of Dakar Launch of the first version of
strategy |
Launch of the
first version of strategy |
May 2002
|
Preparation
for EFA Working Group |
UNESCO to
network with partners to develop a matrix showing who
will do what in relation to the commitments of the
international community proposed in the strategy, with
time-lines |
July
2002 |
EFA Working
Group |
Present,
discuss, modify and have matrix approved for assigning
roles and responsibilities identified in the
strategy |
November
2002 |
EFA High Level
Group |
Make commitments to
roles/responsibilities as per output of Working Group,
followed by financing meeting to put resources
together
Set strategic priorities
for coming year (2002-2003), on basis of Monitoring
Report (analysis of results and interpretation of
trends) and agreed
roles/responsibilities |
December
2002 |
following the
High Level Group |
UNESCO to
process input from HLG and adjust strategy - new version
and updated time-line |
Part II: Partnerships and
actions
The key principle
in the international co-ordination of EFA is partnership. It
is thus imperative to view all of the provisions,
recommendations and approaches of an international strategy
through this lens. Partnerships will be linked together by
means of a number of crucial processes or elements. Outlined
in skeletal form in the Framework for Action, they are here
the subject of specific initiatives. The following are the
major actions around which the International Strategy is
articulated:
Major
action |
Intended |
results
Initiatives |
Partnership mechanisms
|
communication, awareness,
political will and co-operation at national,
(sub-)regional and international levels |
fostering national
partnerships; (sub-)regional and international
co-ordination mechanisms; inter-agency initiatives;
flagship programmes |
Advocacy + communication
|
full backing at national
and international levels |
statements of (sub-)
regional and international co-ordination mechanisms;
advocacy and public awareness-raising, etc. |
Planning + capacity
support |
viable national EFA action
plans |
support to planning
process and capacity building (in some cases through
PRSPs, UNDAF or other framework) |
Financing |
finding and channelling
new resources to EFA |
talks on setting up a
financing mechanism (Global Initiative,
other…) |
Monitoring and evaluation
|
progress assessment,
identification of gaps, priority-setting; clear and
common understanding of effectiveness of EFA efforts
|
national monitoring and
capacity-building; EFA Observatory; annual EFA
Monitoring Report; formal periodic assessment of
progress in EFA at all levels |
1. Planning for EFA
National EFA
Forums: Full participation in EFA and the harnessing of
all possible energies depend in part on full ownership of the
EFA process. It is therefore crucial at national level that
EFA Forums be established which include government, civil
society and NGOs, parents' groups and teachers' syndicates,
and so on. A national EFA Forum is a consultative and
co-ordinating body that brings together around one table the
representatives of all those with a vital stake in basic
education. It is both a vehicle of partnership and dialogue
and a co-ordinating mechanism focused on the planning,
analysis and monitoring of progress towards the goals. They
must be seen, not as occasions for the sharing of information
or government plans, but as forums for policy input and
formulation. The tendency of governments to use them merely
for the sharing of their own administrative policy decisions
must come to a stop. These forums also provide an opportunity
to keep policy-makers accountable for achieving EFA
goals.
Support for EFA forums should include advocacy
on the benefits of full participation, with specific
encouragement to include civil society where that is not
currently the case. Regional workshops will enable joint
government and civil society delegations to develop optimal
structures and processes for the workings of the
forums.
Planning for national EFA goals: As of
March 2002, around 70 countries had developed plans for
Education for All. These plans have taken a variety of forms.
Some form part of an existing education sector plan, others
are part of a Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper, while some
have been developed separately. What is important is that EFA
plans, wherever they are presented, address the six goals of
Dakar, with timelines, current and projected educational
needs, budgets and sources of financing. The chart below
(Figure 3) shows the relationships between the various
planning processes used in development co-operation and which
must complement each other rather than confuse at the national
level. They are of different kinds - strategy development,
coordination, macro-economic planning - but are linked to each
other, and the EFA goals should be part both of the
negotiation procedures and of the resulting plans.
EFA
sets the priority on basic education, and this priority will
make demands on other parts of the educational system. Thus
plans must be set in the context of planning for the whole
educational sector, because of the multiple and supportive
linkages between basic, secondary and tertiary education.
Plans for reinforcing teacher education and educational
research in tertiary institutions will be particularly
important in the effort to ensure the high quality of basic
education.
Support for EFA planning at national level
will take the form of direct national capacity-building and
policy development (e.g. using mobile technical teams). In
addition, regional EFA forums are a place where national plans
can be shared, shaped and refined. The SWAp process is a
further arena where donors and national EFA partners (for
example the EFA Forum) can push the planning process
forward.
Figure
3: EFA National Plan: coherence and links with other
development frameworks and approaches
2. Advocacy and
communication
Communication, formal and informal,
is the lifeblood of partnership and co-operation in EFA,
between all partners - national, regional and international.
In a highly media-driven world it is essential that the
challenges, progress, needs and gaps in implementing EFA be
kept before political leaders, opinion-makers, professionals
and the general public. A favourable climate of international
public opinion will make the task of decision-makers that much
easier. Messages about social justice and equitable
opportunity must be combined with stories of the impact of
education in the lives of individuals and communities.
Measures to strengthen communication and advocacy
should be varied, and be adapted to their audience. All EFA
stakeholders should examine their role in promoting it to as
varied an audience as possible including high-level
politicians, members of parliament and governments, and seek
innovative ways to do so. All EFA partners must look for every
opportunity to connect EFA with life and news throughout the
world so that the role of education will be increasingly
understood as part of equitable and sustainable development,
respectful of human rights and of collective and individual
identities.
To public media coverage will be added
direct, focused advocacy with governments, donors, civil
society and regional bodies to bring EFA into focus in their
planning of policies and programmes, and to mobilize support
and resources for EFA. Where countries are emerging from
crisis or conflict, advocacy efforts must be targeted to the
vigorous promotion of education in the reconstruction process.
A climate of dynamic two-way communication will serve as a
basis for the ongoing development of cooperation, where
international partners are attentive to national
voices.
In addition to the actions proposed in Part III
(Strategy 1, below), an international communication and
advocacy strategy should include at least the following
initiatives:
EFA website: redesigned
to emphasize the international and inter-agency nature of EFA,
with links to UIS for current data on EFA progress and to the
sites of all partner agencies. It will be a fund of knowledge
on EFA and a place where progress, challenges, setbacks and
new initiatives may be accessed. Regular posting and updating
of EFA data will include EFA national plans, meeting reports,
extracts from the annual Monitoring Report, reports on visits
and exchanges, new links, features on flagship programmes, and
so on. Responsibility for maintaining the website will rest
with the Monitoring Report team.
Monitoring Report: this
report is intended to serve as a major advocacy tool, bringing
the progress and needs of EFA to the attention of the world
community, including the public, year after year until 2015.
The joint Editorial Board will serve to build collective
ownership of the Report by EFA partners. Co-ordinated by the
Dakar Follow-up Unit at UNESCO, it will be launched during the
meeting of the High Level Group with press releases, media
kits and public announcements.
media relations: EFA
press stories and data will be fed to the media by all partner
agencies on an ongoing basis, with emphasis, on the one hand,
on substantive data, and on the other hand on human interest
stories illustrating the impact of new educational
opportunities in the lives of communities and
individuals.
dissemination of EFA
materials: significant EFA documents such as the Dakar
Framework for Action and the Regional Frameworks for Action
should be translated into official, national and local
languages to build awareness and wide public ownership, along
with the development of context-specific documents to promote
EFA goals and rally support.
global EFA week: a
week-long series of awareness-raising activities will provide
an opportunity to take stock of advances towards the goal of
EFA and to provoke public debate on education issues.
Individuals and organizations will be encouraged to observe
the occasion through various activities. UNESCO, UNICEF, UNFPA
and the World Bank, together with civil society networks such
as the Global Campaign for Education, will join forces to
organize TV debates and roundtables in several countries,
among other activities.
awareness-raising
at international events: EFA partners will develop
specific plans and targeted messages for a range of
international conferences and other events, both educational
and in other domains. The aim will be to present EFA as an
essential component of human development in order to mobilize
policy-makers to put education high on their agenda. See the
chart in Appendix 5 for forthcoming events at which EFA
awareness-raising should take place.
3. Financing
Establishing mechanisms to channel new money to EFA is
the first step towards meeting the Dakar pledge that 'no
country seriously committed to EFA … will be thwarted by lack
of resources'. Two years after Dakar, the need to make good on
this pledge is all the more urgent. As countries reach the end
of the planning phase and find themselves allocating increased
budgetary resources to basic education, the ready availability
of additional external financing is becoming crucial. In the
Dakar Framework for Action, the 'Global Initiative' was the
label given to the mechanism by which new resources would be
channelled to EFA, Three specific funding proposals have been
made (see Appendix 3). One principle that is fundamental to
all three proposals is that global funds will not be set up;
rather, agreements will be reached between governments and
donors on the direction and nature of the aid to be
provided.
At a meeting of EFA partners in Amsterdam in
April 2002 the World Bank presented an action plan which
included a proposal for a financing framework; the plan was
endorsed by the WB Development Committee. It is the most
significant initiative to date and promises to result in major
new funds for the Dakar goal of primary education, including
the gender and quality issues within that, in line with the
Millennium Development Goals in education. Other Dakar goals
will also be costed and funded - adolescent adult literacy and
life-skills, early childhood care and development, further
aspects of quality. The WB has started with the goal of
universal primary school completion by 2015, recognising that
it is only part of the EFA agenda. Other funders endorsed the
plan, whose main lines of action are presented here.
The Action Plan is based on a new development compact,
following the Monterrey Consensus, in which governments
demonstrate their commitment to education through efforts to
significantly reform their education systems, in line with the
proposed technical indicative benchmarks. On their part,
external partners will provide financial and technical support
in a transparent, predictable and flexible manner. This
financing will in future include support for recurrent
expenditures, such as teacher salaries, where appropriate
policy frameworks are in place; this will require longer-term
commitments from funders. Ensuring the abolition of user fees
or charges will be priority as part of funding
negotiations.
Based on an analysis of four gaps in the
provision of primary education - gaps in data, policies,
capacity and financing
- the Action Plan proposes
measures to close each of them, as shown in the following
table:
data gap - make primary completion rate the
indicator for monitoring of EFA· improve the quality,
timeliness and management of education statistics· develop
national capacity in measuring learning outcomes· track five
key indicators annually: primary completion rate disaggregated
by gender, first year intake, gross enrollment ratio, gender
disparities throughout the education system, adult literacy·
monitor the gender gap, in the light of the 2005 target· adopt
a stronger outcome orientation under the international EFA
monitoring framework
policy gap - establish
technical indicative benchmarks against which to evaluate
national EFA plans - define the process of reform required
to bring the system into line with these
benchmarks
capacity gap - attain an adequate level
of salary/non-salary mix of resources - focus on three
strategic elements of policy for primary schooling: focus on
disadvantaged children, balance in addressing quality and
access, adequate financing
financing
gap - increase lending and
grant funding to primary schooling from multilateral and
bilateral funders - better
targeting of EFA priority countries· improve national resource
mobilization - provide
some resources to recurrent educational expenditure -
improve the efficiency of aid - SWAps, PRSPs, pooled funding,
…
In order to
operationalise the financing mechanism of the Action Plan,
partners propose to:
- hold a multi-donor consortium
meeting, preferably after the High Level Group to co-ordinate
funding commitments in the light of the gaps that have been
identified. - develop a code of conduct for lenders and
donors to EFA which will shape relationships with recipient
countries, focusing on transparency, mutual respect and
accountability, integrity, full participation and open
negotiation. - initiate a "fast-tracking" process for a
number of countries to accelerate progress towards the primary
completion goal, where there is evidence of a favourable and
committed policy environment.
4. Monitoring and
evaluation
The monitoring and
evaluation of progress in EFA are central to the maintenance
and reinforcement of political will, identification of needs,
setting of priorities, mobilization of resources and
effectiveness of actions. Monitoring of the EFA process needs
to be undertaken in a number of different dimensions and
administered by different groups of partners:
Progress on the ground towards
each of the Dakar goals, above all through the number of
beneficiaries from education. Global indicators will be
derived from data collected by the UNESCO Institute of
Statistics from countries, and supplemented by data from other
agencies including NGOs. Countries will also assess their own
progress against their own national targets.
The development of countries'
strategic planning and implementation processes. This will be
assessed by UNESCO and its international partners, based on
reports from countries
The commitment and activities of
lenders, donors and NGOs to support countries in their
progress towards the Dakar goals. This will be assessed by
UNESCO and its partners
Measurement of the gap in the
resources (financial and other) required by countries to
ensure they meet the EFA goals. This will be based on analysis
by the international community, especially the World
Bank.
Evaluation will be required to decide whether
actions by countries, international agencies, and NGOs had the
desired effect, most notably in creating further progress
towards the Dakar goals. It may also be appropriate for
evaluative studies to examine the effectiveness of
mobilization of resources in these projects.
Every EFA
policy whether country-specific or related to the global goals
of Dakar should be accompanied by a monitoring mechanism, with
the result that
countries will be able to
measure their own progress towards their own goals
the international community will
be able to assess countries progress towards the Dakar
goals
the commitment of countries to
removing barriers to progress will be clear
The
international community seeks to assess countries' progress
towards EFA, in order to have a clear perspective of the
commitment and the barriers that countries face, so that it
can mobilise resources to help demolish those barriers.
Regular, normally annual, monitoring of progress thus enables
both countries and the international community to take an
early view on where further work is needed - an 'early warning
mechanism' to allow mobilisation of resources.
At
national level, EFA reports will serve to inform the setting
of priorities and the allocation of resources and provide a
mechanism for mutual accountability between EFA partners -
government, civil society, communities, schools, parents and
learners. Data and analyses from joint government-donor
missions will be an important source of input, in addition to
national sources. At international level the chief instrument
will the annual EFA Monitoring Report. It will be collectively
owned and draw on data from a wide range of sources. It will
be an independent, analytical and authoritative appraisal of
EFA progress. Its production will be co-ordinated by UNESCO,
with the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) playing the
major role in gathering and processing quantitative data.
Other UNESCO Institutes, international organizations and civil
society networks will be requested to provide data and
analysis in their domains of competence.
In order to
improve EFA monitoring, UIS, UIE, IIEP, IBE, UNESCO Paris, the
World Bank, together with other partners at international,
regional and national levels will work to:
improve the quality of data
collected in each country and build national capacity of data
collection and analysis in the educational arena through
regional seminars and other means;
improve the analysis of EFA
progress by working with the UNESCO Institute for Statistics
to develop better indicators in areas such as literacy,
quality of education, life-skills, early childhood care and
development and political commitment;
develop measures for the
performance of international agencies, bilateral agencies and
NGOs and their partnerships with countries.
facilitate the exchange of
information and data collection methods between
countries.
The work of the EFA Observatory located
within the UNESCO Institute for Statistics will be to enlarge
the networks and scope of data collection, and to work for
balanced data gathering across the six Dakar goals. The
international community will support the Observatory by
providing it with copies of any statistics relating to EFA
progress.
Periodic evaluations of EFA will enable
partners at every level to assess progress in the longer term,
with the support of EFA international and bilateral partners.
The 2005 and 2015 targets will provide the occasions for
in-depth country-by-country and worldwide assessment, with the
need for another milestone in 2010. Thus evaluations may take
the following pattern (see also Part IV):
à 2005 -
elimination of gender disparities à 2010 - an interim
assessment leading to the necessary steps and adjustments for
the last five years à 2015 - an overall assessment of EFA
targets
A timetable for national, (sub-)regional, and
international evaluations with respect to each of the Dakar
goals must be drawn up and plans laid well in advance, in
consultation with partners at every level.
5. International and regional
mechanisms
The
purpose of international and regional mechanisms is to give
support and build capacity at the national level. In addition,
such mechanisms provide a forum for the expression of national
and regional concerns - where national voices are heard and
dynamic interaction provides a basis for partnership.
In terms of collective international mechanisms, two
structures have been created: the Working Group on Education
for All (WGEFA) and the High Level Group (HLG). The High Level
Group was established on the basis of the Dakar recommendation
for a group that was 'high-level, small and flexible' to
'serve as a lever for political commitment and technical and
financial resource mobilization'. Informed by the annual EFA
Monitoring Report and the International Strategy, it is
intended to be the body with primary responsibility for
driving EFA forward - it must accelerate momentum, strengthen
partnerships, clearly identify priorities, gaps and needs, and
highlight the resources to be mobilized. The Working Group
(WGEFA) serves as an informal and advisory mechanism which
brings together partners to discuss task-oriented EFA issues
and strengthen collaboration at the international level,
providing a forum for exchange of experiences among the
different players in EFA. The WGEFA supports the work of the
High Level Group, and will delineate clearly the roles and
responsibilities of partners in implementing the International
EFA Strategy. It will also consider and comment on the outline
of the annual EFA Monitoring Report. It will continue to give
advice and input to the UNESCO Director-General.
These
formal mechanisms must be complemented by regular contact and
face-to-face interaction between international EFA partners,
so that day-to-day co-operation is facilitated through
communication.
The full participation of civil society,
NGOs and their networks in all aspects of EFA was a key
commitment at Dakar. Three networks active in the Dakar
process have become an integral part of Dakar follow-up and
have been strengthened in their roles. This range of civil
society partners represents and facilitates communication with
large numbers of national and sub-national civil society
groupings and NGOs. The existing networks must bring in
increasing numbers of civil society groups into EFA fora, in
order to enhance both the diversity of perspective and give
voice to marginalised communities. It is crucial that these
grassroots perspectives continue to inform the interaction
between civil society and the multilateral and bilateral
partners so that EFA initiatives are planned with an eye to
their impact on thousands of small communities. These
initiatives complement civil society's role in lobbying and
advocacy at the international level.
The Collective Consultation
of NGOs on EFA (CCNGO/EFA) is a key partnership mechanism
in facilitating civil society participation in the Dakar
follow-up. Created by UNESCO, it is linked to 600
international, regional and national NGOs and networks working
in EFA around the world. Through ongoing policy dialogue,
research, knowledge exchange and NGO capacity building, it
strengthens civil society participation in planning,
implementing and monitoring EFA. There is some overlap between
this network and the Global Campaign for Education (below),
which in fact strengthens communication and engagement in EFA
processes and meetings, both internationally and regionally.
The CCNGO/EFA will organize regional civil society forums for
the first time in 2002 and continue to develop its
capacity-building initiatives, some of which are carried out
in co-operation with the World Bank.
the Global Campaign for
Education (GCE), which is a campaign coalition initiated
by Education International, Oxfam and the Action Aid Alliance
with strong membership from teachers' unions and increasingly
other NGOs puts its main thrust in advocacy and lobbying for
the right to education. It participates in the international
co-ordination mechanisms of the High Level Group and the EFA
Working Group as well as in other consultations. It lobbies
effectively for increased aid to EFA and for fully developed
partnerships with civil society in all aspects of
EFA.
the NGO Liaison Committee, the
network of NGOs in official relations with UNESCO, has taken a
particular interest in engaging with the EFA process. It has
supported and raised the profile of the CCNGO/EFA and serves
as a communication and consultation channel on EFA matters to
the NGOs in official relations.
Flagship programmes
- an international resource for countries:
Flagship Programmes are an open partnership with an
institutional leader. As part of an overall strategy to
facilitate this purpose, Flagship programmes were identified
as one of a number of mechanisms that could contribute to
implementing the Dakar Framework for Action. An EFA flagship
programme is a structured set of activities, carried out by
voluntary partners to provide a better understanding of EFA
and to contribute to elimination of specific obstacles to the
Dakar goals through targeted and co-ordinated action. Flagship
programmes perform two major roles:
They assist countries to achieve
their EFA goals; they are not independent entities but provide
support for programmes and strategies implemented by countries
under national education plans.
They provide a special focus for
one aspect of EFA in terms of advocacy, information exchange,
advice and monitoring of progress.
The following chart
lists flagship programmes as of April 2002; they are of
different kinds - ten-year initiatives, exchange networks,
co-operative programmes, … This reflects flexible approaches
to generating effort and co-operation a particular part of the
EFA agenda.
Current Flagship programmes
are:
Flagship
programme |
Status |
Lead
agency(ies) |
Observations |
UN Girls' Education
Initiative (UNGEI) |
International partnership
in place; growing participation at national level
|
UNICEF |
Initiative of UN
Secretary-General at Dakar |
Focusing resources on
effective school health (FRESH) |
Inter-agency partnership
active in supporting specific national action |
UNESCO, UNICEF, WHO,
World Bank |
Launched at
Dakar |
UNAIDS Inter Agency Task
Team on Education |
Co-ordinates agency
initiatives |
UNESCO |
|
UN Literacy
Decade |
To start 2003; UNESCO to
co-ordinate; draft plan in place |
UNESCO |
Initiative of UN General
Assembly |
Education in
Emergencies and Reconstruction |
International
information exchange; growing participation at national
level |
Inter-agency Network for
Education in Emergencies (INEE) |
|
Consultative Group on
Early Childhood Care and Development |
Provides international
framework for co-operation at national and regional
levels |
Consortium of
agencies |
Pre-dates
Dakar |
Teachers and quality of
education |
Five inter-agency
initiatives determined |
UNESCO, ILO, Education
International |
Agreed by EFA Working
Group 2001 |
Education, inclusion and
disability |
In planning
stages |
|
Agreed by EFA Working
Group 2001 |
Education and ICTs
|
Proposed |
|
|
Educational governance
|
Proposed |
|
|
Part III: Implementing the twelve Dakar
strategies
This section
presents the twelve Dakar strategies with the action needed or
envisaged at international level, in support of the national
level and to facilitate the global development of EFA. These
proposals reflect input from EFA partners and represent an
ongoing process of implementation. Regular review of these
strategies and of the distribution of responsibilities
relating to them forms part of the work of the EFA mechanisms
(the Working Group and the High Level Group).
Special
considerations pertain for the implementation of EFA in
particular groups of countries, according to physical, social,
demographic and economic circumstances. Groupings change as
circumstances evolve and conditions change. The following
groups of countries, some of which overlap, present special
circumstances which will require careful consideration in the
implementation of these strategies; areas of special
consideration are given in an indicative manner
only:
E-9 countries The nine high-population
countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia,
Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan. Special considerations: huge
numbers of children to enrol, some high adult illiteracy,
gender issues, going to scale, maintaining quality, managing
large systems, …
Countries in crisis or emergency
situations Several countries in all regions of the
world, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Special
considerations: emergency schooling, gender issues, refugee
education, reconstruction of educational systems, governance,
demobilizing soldiers,
…
Least Developed Countries (LDCs) 49
countries in Africa, Asia, Arab States, the Pacific and the
Caribbean. Special considerations: low resource base, low
literacy rates and literate environment, gender issues, rural
marginalization, low institutional capacity,
…
Sub-Saharan Africa Special considerations:
large classes and inadequate capacity, ravages of HIV/AIDS,
low literacy rates, curriculum relevance and language of
instruction issues, gender issues, low economic resource base,
governance, conflict, …
South Asia Special
considerations: high population, large systems, linguistic and
ethnic diversity, areas of difficult access, gender issues,
low literacy rates, maintaining quality, …
Countries
in economic transition About 28 countries, mostly in
Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Special considerations:
transformation of social and economic systems, restructuring
of educational purposes and delivery, changing external
linkages, …
Strategy 1 -
Mobilize strong national and international political
commitment for Education for All, develop national action
plans and enhance significantly investment in basic
education
In mobilizing political commitment at
national level, EFA international and bilateral partners
will:
promote the negotiation of an
understanding of how political commitment is manifested and
monitored in the national context.
work with governments to revisit
international statements concerning the right to education
with a view to strengthening national legislation.
support the design of advocacy
strategies which involve interest groups such as civil society
organizations, parents' associations, teachers' unions and
learners' groups, with the aim of broadening the national
debate on EFA through newspapers, radio, television, drama and
local media.
mobilize all stakeholders at
national level to ensure the implementation of EFA.
At
the international level:
the High Level Group will
monitor and stimulate political momentum in the international
community, including donor behaviour and the level of resource
mobilization, advocating on EFA gaps and challenges with
opinion-makers, political leaders and the educational
community.
the annual EFA Monitoring Report
will serve as an advocacy tool, based on sound analysis,
authoritative assessment and uncompromising reflection of EFA
realities.
EFA partners should advocate for
EFA at major international and regional meetings such as
meetings of Heads of State, the G-8, meetings of finance
ministers, MINEDAF, etc.
UNESCO and other EFA partners
should use regional and international media, journalists' and
newspaper associations to support EFA advocacy (e.g. CNN,
PANA, World Association of Newspapers, International
Federation of Journalists).
In planning, EFA
international and bilateral partners will advocate for and
assist governments in setting up and actively utilizing EFA
forums, or other multi-stakeholder groupings at national
level, which include representation of government, civil
society and locally engaged international partners, as a
platform for planning EFA policies and implementation. EFA
partners should develop clear generic criteria at
international level to support EFA plan validation processes
at national level (cf. Appendix 4), prior to any application
of donor-specific criteria.
The process will
include:
- offering technical assistance to countries
requesting it for the preparation of plans for EFA, and for
their regular update, with emphasis on realistic plans with
time-lines and budget estimates, rather than statements of
aspirations. - identifying and working with governmental
or non-governmental groups in countries in conflict,
post-conflict, crisis or emergency situations to generate
viable ways forward in EFA, whether or not plans exist at that
point. - giving planning support at national level so that
all six Dakar goals will be addressed within the country and
so that all sections of the population, all communities and
all age-groups have access to appropriate learning
opportunities in basic education (integration of flagship
programmes, attention to hard-to-reach groups, planning for
out-of-school learning opportunities).
Enhancing
investment: financing EFA
International financing agencies
will enable countries to design policies and systems to (re-)
allocate national budgetary resources in the most effective
manner, so as to be locally sustainable. This should include
consideration of in-country extra-budgetary resources (e.g.
private sector) which do not imply user charges.
Donors should enhance
co-ordination of their efforts within sector-wide approaches
(SWAps) or in other ways and work to reduce the transaction
costs of external assistance. Funders should also work to
build the capacity of countries to use their resources more
effectively.
International financing agencies
will work to operationalize the global initiative/financing
framework (described above in Part II section 3) in such a way
that it supports national priorities, strengthens national
capacity and takes a consistent approach in the long term.
Strategy 2 - Promote EFA
policies within a sustainable and well-integrated sector
framework clearly linked to poverty elimination and
development strategies
At national level, EFA
international and bilateral partners will:
work with national partners in
EFA forums to: - institutionalize the intra- and
inter-sectoral consultation processes in the formulation of
EFA policies, mapping out a cross-sectoral and long-term EFA
development vision and operational plan;
-
institutionalize consultation and partnership with all EFA
stakeholders and ensure that the ultimate political reforms
and policies reflect, in a balanced way, the interests
represented by key EFA actors, including teachers, in relation
to the pre-eminent interests of learners and their
families;
- assist in the reform of educational systems
with a view to increasing their effectiveness and
efficiency;
- address the multidimensional nature of
the links between education and poverty reduction to maximize
the benefits of EFA, in keeping with the framework of the
Monterrey Consensus;
- set EFA plans and planning in
the context of an overall sectoral plan where the links and
interdependencies with other educational levels are clearly
articulated; EFA planning must include the strengthening of
educational research and training at tertiary level, and of
teaching at the secondary level, as a necessary support for
quality basic education.
- promote inter-ministerial
dialogue, consultation and co-ordination and develop
procedures and mechanisms to facilitate this
interaction.
monitor the implementation of
broader development frameworks, such as UNDAF and PRSP.
Special attention must be given to monitoring the effect of
development planning on the poorest and most marginalized
populations, and on countries in crisis, LDCs and countries
where such planning processes are absent, delayed or in
difficulty. Educational opportunity for each adult and child
should not be compromised or endangered because of the
volatility or vicissitudes of official planning
processes.
At the international level, EFA
international and bilateral partners will:
promote co-ordinated action
between United Nations agencies (e.g. in the UNDAF process),
and between external donors and lenders (through the SWAp
process). This will ensure that connections between EFA and
other sectors are taken into account in planning (see Part II,
Section 1, above).
Strategy 3 - Ensure the engagement and
participation of civil society in the formulation,
implementation and monitoring of strategies for educational
development
At national level, EFA
international and bilateral partners will strengthen civil
society networks and partnerships by:
advocating for the involvement
of civil society organizations, including local and community
groups and organizations, in processes of planning, monitoring
and assessing education policies and programmes at national
and local levels, and support capacity-building for such
involvement.
providing support to
consultations with civil society organizations and
associations at country level.
providing support to the civil
society coalitions/networks in order to reinforce broad-based
ownership of the EFA process.
At regional and
international level EFA international and bilateral partners
will:
involve civil society
organizations in all regional and international mechanisms
relevant to the joint EFA efforts.
organize special sessions on
civil society involvement in EFA with the participation of
governmental and non-governmental partners to stimulate
broad-based discussion on the roles and contributions of civil
society in EFA.
provide support to the
regionalization of the Collective Consultation of NGOs on EFA.
provide support to the advocacy
efforts of the Global Campaign for Education to promote a
stronger involvement of NGOs from all regions.
EFA
partners, to create knowledge and communication from the
contributions of civil society, will:
reinforce ongoing efforts to
establish databases on civil society participation in EFA in
the different regions.
provide support in tracking the
participation of civil society participation in EFA and in the
elaboration of country case studies and their comparison, so
as to better understand ongoing processes and develop support
strategies .
facilitate cross-country and
cross-regional exchange of viable civil society practice and
partnership experiences in EFA through study tours and
ICT-based discussions.
To build capacity in civil
society organizations for participation in EFA, at regional
and international level EFA international and bilateral
partners will:
reinforce support to regional
initiatives of capacity building for local NGOs and other
civil society associations in EFA areas related to (i)
participation in policy formulation, advocacy and educational
governance; (ii) information sharing and networking; (iii)
curriculum development in all areas related to the Dakar
roles; (iii) competencies in appropriate pedagogy; and (iv)
planning, implementing and evaluating education programmes and
initiatives.
support the preparation,
translation, editing and distribution of training manuals on
selected areas for NGO/CSO capacity building in
EFA.
Strategy 4 - Develop responsive,
participatory and accountable systems of educational
governance and management
To encourage the
development of responsive, participatory and accountable
systems of educational governance, EFA international and
bilateral partners will provide technical assistance to
countries, depending on the context and their request . At
national level, partners will help countries to:
set up policy and define better
regulatory frameworks and administrative mechanisms for
managing formal and non-formal basic education, including
early childhood, primary, literacy, youth and adult education
programmes.
clearly define responsibilities
among different levels of government, and between government
and communities.
assist in the training and
capacity building of all administrators and managers working
at central, regional and local level.
advocate new systems of funds
allocation so that decentralization leads neither to
inequitable distribution of resources between districts and
schools, nor to inefficient utilization of resources.
define management structures and
other mechanisms to foster the participation of the community
and diverse stakeholders in the planning and management of
education at district and school level.
train school leaders,
administrators and managers, as well as NGO managers and
administrators of non-formal education programmes, and define
appropriate support mechanisms for them.
elaborate appropriate systems of
accountability to the communities at local and district
level.
promote the development of
intersectoral programmes at local, regional and central
levels, and integrate this dimension both in the regulatory
framework and in the training programmes.
At
international level, the partners will:
promote and establish networks
of agencies, national policy makers, senior administrators and
managers, and researchers in order to exchange experiences and
information on best practices, discuss how to introduce more
participatory management practices and ensure capacity
building.
promote networks of training
institutions, centres and faculties of education with the
responsibility of training district education officers,
supervisors and head teachers.
continue to conduct joint
reviews and sector analysis of national education
systems.
Strategy 5 - Meet the needs of educational
systems affected by conflict, natural calamities and
instability, and conduct educational programmes in ways that
promote mutual understanding, peace and tolerance, and that
help to prevent violence and conflict
Today, crisis
situations are a major and often prolonged concern in many
countries. To deal with new challenges to education
(emergency, crisis, armed conflict, chronic instability,
natural disasters and so on), the international community must
develop strategies and capacities to respond efficiently and
rapidly. In support of countries in crisis, EFA international
and bilateral partners will:
work with governmental and
non-governmental partners to restore and to provide education
in any crisis or post-conflict situation as a human right for
children, young people and adults.
promote and fund education as a
fourth pillar of humanitarian assistance, on a par with food,
shelter and medical assistance, to enable planning for rapid
response assistance that will help protect children and
adolescents and provide meaningful knowledge and
activities.
support the development of a set
of broadly accepted minimum ethical and quality standards for
education in emergencies.
facilitate broad-based
co-operation between all concerned partners so that
educational strategies build peace, hope, stability, tolerance
and mutual understanding as a platform for sustainable
development, being mindful of the development and production
of
- non-biased and gender-sensitive education
material - curricula, text-books and other educational
materials based on mutual respect and that inspire a spirit of
peace-building - democratic processes and education
systems that promote them.
emphasize the importance of
training of teachers and the role they play in the promotion
and creation of a child-friendly and non-violent learning
atmosphere, and for this reason give strong support to the
strengthening of teacher-training institutions.
work for inter-agency
co-operation and co-ordination at all levels through
strengthened interaction between United Nations organizations
(OCHA, UNDP, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP...), and with NGOs and
donors. including information exchange through the
Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies
(INEE).
work with concerned governments
to identify ways of accepting and validating diplomas and
certificates obtained by refugee and internally displaced
teachers and students in home countries or in temporary
exile
develop a set of planning and
operational guidelines, workshops and training programmes to
assist all partners in the preparation and inclusion of the
Emergency and Post-conflict Education components within the
EFA National Action Plan for the countries
concerned.
Strategy 6 -
Implement integrated strategies for gender equality in
education that recognize the need for change in attitudes,
values and practices
In support of the national
level, EFA international and bilateral partners
will:
support the development of
advocacy strategies, involving the media, which lead to
greater gender sensitivity and responsiveness among educators
and the public at large.
support capacity-building to
enable full diagnosis of the gender issue in education using
available statistics/indicators of girls' and boys'
educational outcomes (enrolment, promotion, completion,
achievement rates) to identify the type and extent of girls'
and boys' education in particular contexts.
urge for a revision of national
policies and legislation to bring them more in line with
international conventions and agreements relating to gender
equality in education.
promote the mainstreaming of the
gender perspective in the EFA planning process, for instance
by using tools such as the Asia-Pacific Guidelines for
Preparing Gender Responsive EFA Plans for national-level
stakeholders.
press for the formulation by
governments of a clear policy statement on formal and
non-formal basic education for widening educational
opportunities for girls and women, in countries where women
and girls are disadvantaged.
encourage and support
empowerment initiatives so as to train, recruit and deploy
more women teachers, and especially women principals and
administrators.
collaborate in enhancing
evidence-based policy development, including
-
addressing supply-side factors impeding girls' education at
micro- and macro-levels. - addressing demand-side factors
affecting girls' education, recognizing social, cultural,
political and economic barriers. - consulting the various
stakeholders in girls' education at the different levels of
the school system (national, district, and community levels)
and within the community, such as non-governmental
organizations, religious groups, the media, business, etc.
- support the development of equitable formal and
non-formal learning opportunities for women and girls by
involving a wide range of local partners, from both formal and
non-formal education, in the identification of needs, and the
planning and implementation of learning
activities.
encourage and support the
compilation of gender-disaggregated data and gender-sensitive
statistics and analysis, including development of indicators
and operational guidelines for measuring discrimination,
learning achievements, cost-effectiveness, and for directing
planning, monitoring and evaluation activities.
promote a common understanding
of gender and gender-training strategies among development
agencies at a national level, by identifying and sharing
practice.
At the international level, EFA international
and bilateral partners will:
promote effective partnership in
the United Nations Girls Education Initiative (UNGEI),
launched in 2000 as a ten-year drive and spearheaded by
UNICEF. Its thrust is to mainstream gender in all educational
forums and in all organizations involved, forging a consensus
leading to concerted action, particularly in the most
difficult contexts.
mobilize the mass media as a
political and communicative tool, both for creating awareness
of non-formal basic education to provide learning, and for
raising awareness of the need for gender
equality.
Strategy 7 -
Implement education programmes and actions to combat the
HIV/AIDS pandemic as a matter of urgency
While education is not a panacea, it
will play a critical role in combating the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
At the same time, the impact of the pandemic places enormous
burdens on education systems. With both the opportunities and
challenges in mind, and through the existing EFA flagship
programme, EFA international and bilateral partners at the
national level will:
support the development and
implementation of policies that address HIV/AIDS and
education.
advocate for acknowledgement of
the breadth, depth, and impact of the pandemic as a means to
'break the silence' and make policy implementation
possible.
support the development of
capacity in relation to addressing HIV/AIDS through education;
this will include attention to links with secondary and
tertiary institutions.
support the diversification of
education opportunities to ensure that access to learning
opportunities is sufficiently flexible to respond to the
demands that HIV/AIDS places on children and their families
and to meet the special needs of AIDS orphans.
contribute to the development of
comprehensive strategies and their implementation, including
the mobilization of young people, to provide opportunities for
all out-of-school citizens to learn about HIV/AIDS and how
both to prevent it and live with it.
promote and facilitate inclusion
of attention to the HIV/AIDS pandemic in poverty reduction
strategies, SWAps, and EFA plans.
At the international level:
maintain and expand the existing
partnership of agencies, national policy makers,
administrators, NGOs, researchers, etc., to exchange
experience and information, build knowledge, and develop the
capacity to begin reversing the pandemic.
share, support the adaptation
of, and distribute materials to those who most need
them.
keep up continued advocacy about
HIV/AIDS, for financial and other support to the most severely
affected education systems.
develop and support tools to
assist countries determine the effects of the pandemic on
education systems (defined broadly).
build partnerships with media
and other non-conventional partners for reaching those who are
not in school.
Strategy 8
- Create safe, healthy, inclusive and equitably resourced
educational environments conducive to excellence in learning,
with clearly defined levels of achievement for
all
A new definition of what constitutes 'quality'
needs to developed (in practical as well as intellectual
terms), along with how to provide quality and how to measure
it. At the national level EFA international and bilateral
partners will:
support countries to better
define quality education, to understand the linkages among the
various elements, and to identify the best entry points for
improving educational quality.
encourage careful identification
of specific learning outcomes based on well understood
indicators.
develop the capacity of
education systems to train for improved quality, to measure
learning achievement, and to set up mechanisms for measuring
learning achievement that will feed back into the system to
improve it.
ensure that excluded groups of
all kinds and all ages are paid special attention within the
main education system and through alternative non-formal
education programmes.
assist in developing strategies
to increase the relevance of schooling and other learning
opportunities, for example through
- the production and
distribution of textbooks and learning materials based on
national and local context, - the introduction of mother
tongue as the first school language, - efforts to achieve
quality schooling at a low/lower cost, - the promotion of
child-centred teaching methods, - a broad reflection on
the aim and contents of the school, - the establishment of
partnerships locally with representatives of the community to
bring local history and culture, crafts and traditions into
the school.
At the international level, EFA partners
will:
build on existing partnerships
that address different aspects of quality education (academic
achievement, relevance of content, safety and security, health
dimensions, life skills, etc.), ensuring that they are
adequately understood so that normative standards can be
developed, and so that these can be expressed in a range of
educational and local contexts.
advocate for this new vision of
quality education.
through existing networks,
provide lessons learned and make the growing knowledge base on
quality education accessible to others.
support the identification of
practical indicators of quality and the means to measure
them.
work within the existing and
developing frameworks for financing education to ensure that
quality holds as important a place as quantity.
Strategy 9 - Enhance the status, morale and
professionalism of teachers
The role of teachers is
at the heart of the concern for quality basic education. The
EFA international and bilateral partners will assist national
ministries in:
strengthening the
professionalization of teachers:
- analyse the present
status and conditions of service of teachers and head teachers
(job description, appointment mechanisms and incentives) and
suggest possible improvement. - establish equitable steps
(recognition, equivalents, etc.) to bring up to a high level
and harmonize national standards of the training,
remuneration, and certification of large numbers of
under-trained, often 'volunteer' teachers who have been
recruited to fill sudden large demand as EFA pupil enrolments
sharply increase due to EFA implementation. - adopt
carefully planned teacher deployment policies and
practices. - improve teacher recruitment processes and
establishing sub-regional minimum standards for entry in the
teaching profession. - develop a code of professional and
ethical conduct for teachers. - notch up the priority and
consequent resource reallocation for the in-service training
of teachers, especially in the areas of new methodologies
required by ICTs on the one hand, and by values education on
the other.
building national capacities for
research and development in quality teacher
education.
planning for teacher education
programmes and for leadership training of school heads to
contribute to national poverty alleviation, to programme
assessment, and to innovative curriculum development,
especially in language education, values education, HIV/AIDS
education, and the appropriate use of ICTs.
institutionalizing at the
national, provincial and community level the consultation of
teachers' associations and parents' associations with
government education authorities in the formulation,
implementation, monitoring and assessment of EFA
activities:
promoting the exchange of best
practices and instructive failures, using evidence-based
research. encouraging recruitment of the large number of
new teachers, in formal and non-formal systems, who will be
needed if the 2015 EFA goals are to be met.
using all of the above
strategies specifically to raise the morale of teachers and
reduce teacher burnout and attrition.
Strategy 10 -
Harness the new information and communication technologies to
help achieve EFA goals
In support of national
strategies for the use of ICTs within their education systems,
EFA international and bilateral partners will:
keep under review the use of
ICTs in schools, universities and education systems around the
world in order to sustain an ongoing inventory, without vendor
bias, of good and bad practice.
maintain a capacity to advise
national governments on the use of technology in schools and,
in particular, on the optimal balance, given local
circumstances, between ICTs and older education technologies.
assist countries in developing
educational software and materials that reflect their own
national and regional cultures. provide advice on the use
of ICTs for administrative purposes within educational
systems.
maintain a network of resources
on which national governments can draw in conducting the
capacity building of teachers and staff required for the
introduction of ICTs and other educational
technologies.
identify sources of advice
related to policy development and legislation that relate the
educational use of ICTs to the wider developments of national
computing and telecommunications infrastructures.
assist national governments in
their preparations for negotiations with vendors of ICT
equipment, networks and software.
With respect to the
application of ICTs to teacher training EFA international and
bilateral partners will:
provide special support to
national governments in the application of ICTs and technology
generally to the training of teachers.
publish and disseminate
up-to-date reports and case studies on the use of distance
education in teacher training.
review regularly the role of
teachers in introducing ICTs into the classroom and provide
guides to good practice.
assist in introducing skills for
the development of educational software and media into
teacher-training curricula.
advise on issues of quality
assurance in relation to these developments.
Strategy 11 - Systematically monitor
progress towards EFA goals and strategies at the national,
regional and international levels
In the area of
monitoring and evaluation, support to the national level, as
well as regional and international initiatives, are presented
above in Part II, Section 4.
Strategy 12 - Build on existing mechanisms
to accelerate progress towards Education for All
In
order to accelerate progress towards EFA, existing
institutions and initiatives will be used, with particular
regard to following objectives: advocacy, communication,
sharing knowledge, pooling and sharing resources,; harnessing
collective energies, and collaboration in monitoring and
evaluation. Some existing mechanisms are listed below;
co-operation with these bodies must be pursued so that EFA
remains high on the international agenda. Civil society groups
and NGOs are not listed here, as they are included in Part II,
Section 5, and in Strategy 3 (above).
Multilateral bodies, groups and
networks
Global:
United
Nations System and the Bretton Woods Institutions: EFA
partners (UNESCO, UNICEF, UNDP, UNFPA and the World Bank) have
been closely collaborating with other specialized agencies
(e.g., ILO, WHO, UNHCR, etc.); The Economic and Social
Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations; Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD): Thematic reviews
in specific policy areas; the collection of detailed
statistical information on education systems; and the
provision of development aid to build capacity and to spread
the benefits of education and training in other countries;
G-8: The Task Force on Education was set up after the
Genoa Summit (July
2001).
Regional:
African
Union/Organization of African Unity (AU/OAU); The Economic
Community Of West African States (ECOWAS); Southern Africa
Development Community (SADC); The Association of Southeast
Asian Nations (ASEAN); South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC); South Pacific Forum (SPF); The
Organization of American States (OAS); The Association for
Latin America Integration (ALADI); The Caribbean Community
and Common Market (CARICOM); Arab Maghreb Union
(AMU); European Union (EU).
Educational bodies, groups and networks at
regional-level
The Association for the
Development of Education in Africa (ADEA); Ministers of
Education of African Member States (MINEDAF); The Islamic
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(ISESCO).
Related bodies,
groups and networks
Gender
issues:
WomenWatch: joint United Nations
project to create a core Internet space on global women's
issues.
Vulnerable groups:
World
Food Programme (WFP): Global School Feeding Campaign to end
Child Hunger; The International Programme on the
Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC); United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR): 'Policy on Refugee
Children' and 'Guidelines on the Protection and Care of
Refugee Children'. UNFPA's Global Initiative: Supporting
the Next Generation of Parents and Leaders; World Health
Organization (WHO); The Global Consultation on Child and
Adolescent Health and Development: Strategies to save the
youngest generation from the effects of diseases, malnutrition
and life-threatening conditions and to help children and
adolescents develop their full
potential.
Teachers: International
Labour Organization (ILO); The Joint ILO-UNESCO Committee
of Experts on the Application of the Recommendation concerning
the Status of Teachers (CEART).
Part IV: Targets and timelines
The Dakar
Framework for Action explicitly set four timed
targets:
2005 - eliminating gender disparities in
primary and secondary education
2015 - ensuring that
all children, particularly girls, children in difficult
circumstances and those belonging to ethnic minorities, have
access to and complete, free and compulsory primary education
of good quality
2015 - achieving a 50 per cent
improvement in levels of adult literacy, especially for women,
and equitable access to basic and continuing education for all
adults
2015 - achieving gender equality in education,
with a focus on ensuring girls' full and equal access to and
achievement in basic education of good quality
These
are challenging target dates which imply a number of interim
stages along the way. Other Dakar objectives which do not have
specific target dates attached also need to be planned so that
progress will be steady and significant. Time will be lost and
target dates will begin to slip unless clear planning is
undertaken in detail on how they are to be reached. This must
form part of every national EFA action plan. It must also form
part of this international strategy so that stakeholders can
support countries in pursuit of these targets. Much of this
detailed planning remains to be done, in terms of determining
the successive steps involved and interim dates by which
certain conditions must be met. For instance, if all children
are to complete a primary cycle of quality education by 2015,
full enrolment in Grade 1 must be attained in 2008. Similarly,
if the 50 per cent improvement in adult literacy is to be
achieved by 2015, adequate programmes must be in place in
sufficient numbers prior to that date. A chart is presented
below that suggests a timeline for these interim dates
.
The first target date - ending gender disparities by
2005 - looms particularly large. While the factors which
militate against female enrolment and completion of primary
education, and their participation in secondary education, are
well known, urgent steps must be put in place to create the
conditions at national level for adequate solutions. The
mainstreaming of gender concerns will be particularly
important, as advocated by the United Nations Girls' Education
Initiative (UNGEI). Deepening and broadening this approach
through international stakeholders' planning processes and
operational activities will be a crucial step in creating a
climate for integrating gender training in a contextually
appropriate manner at national level (see above, Part III,
Strategy 6, for further elaboration). In view of the close
deadline, this is one of the most urgent areas for
action.
The chart on the following page presents the
targets and milestone events in the EFA
process:
Date
Target/Event
June 2002 EFA Financing Framework to
be in place
Sept 2002 Financing for 'fast-track'
initiative in place
Dec 2002 EFA plans in place at
national level, as part of education sector plan, PRSP, or
stand-alone
Jan 2003 Start of UN Literacy
Decade
2005 eliminating gender disparities in primary
and secondary education
2005 Regional EFA evaluation
conferences
2010 International EFA evaluation
conference
2015 ensuring that all children,
particularly girls, children in difficult circumstances and
those belonging to ethnic minorities, have access to and
complete, free and compulsory primary education of good
quality
2015 achieving a 50 per cent improvement in
levels of adult literacy, especially for women, and equitable
access to basic and continuing education for all
adults
2015 achieving gender equality in education,
with a focus on ensuring girls' full and equal access to and
achievement in basic education of good quality.
2015
International EFA assessmentAppendices 1. EFA in the
broader context
The Framework for Action sets
education in the context of sustainable human development -
stating that education is the key, and that planning for EFA
should take place in the broader context of development
planning. Several international and regional processes of
development planning have been engaged, with corresponding
processes at national level. Where goals are shared, this
should be noted and the relevant stakeholders encouraged to
work jointly to implement them. Where there are connections,
these must be spelled out and appropriate linking mechanisms
designed and put in place.
Millennium goals
Two of the
Millennium Declaration (MD) goals for development and poverty
eradication, which have 2015 as the target date, relate to
education:
to achieve universal completion
of primary schooling
to achieve gender equality in
access to education
These overlap with the Dakar
objectives, which are both broader and more specific The MD
goals provide a framework of overall basic development within
which education is a key element; the nature of the
international commitment to education is spelled out in the
Dakar Framework for Action. As long as the world pursues the
Dakar goals, it will also achieve the MD goals, and more. The
Dakar goals should form the basis for national and
international educational planning and implementation, as the
best means to ensure that educational opportunities are made
available across all ages and all communities.
Poverty Reduction Strategies and related
frameworks
Poverty Reduction Strategies and
their papers (PRSPs) are a process initiated by the World
Bank. They are the focus of development planning in 58
countries which expect to obtain debt reduction under the HIPC
initiative. A PRSP covers all sectors of development in which
a country should invest, including education which is seen as
a key component. A completed PRSP is a step in the process of
guaranteed debt reduction and development financing through
the World Bank.
The place of education in specific
PRSPs is varied; while its importance is universally
recognized, a PRSP may contain anything from a general
statement to a reasonably detailed plan for the sector. There
is a need to ensure that the EFA goals are the subject of an
adequate and detailed planning process and that this becomes
input into poverty reduction strategy planning. The assumption
is that a completed PRSP process will definitely result in
additional funding to the elements of poverty reduction which
have been agreed in the paper. For countries having completed
the PRSP process or are nearing completion, the implication is
that additional funds for EFA will be forthcoming as part of
the package. Two concerns arise from this:
firstly, that the funding of EFA
plans should not be delayed where they are ready before the
PRSP process is completed. Where good plans exist, funding
should go ahead without delay, for example through the
proposed Financing Framework.
secondly, a number of countries
with enormous EFA needs, such as some of the E-9 countries are
not part of the PRSP process. International support to EFA
planning and implementation, including funding where
necessary, should not be reduced or delayed as a result.
Countries such as Bangladesh, China, Egypt and India deserve
mention in this context.
It is worth noting that the
PRSP process is linked to other planning processes,
particularly the UNDAF (United Nations development assistance
framework) which aims to co-ordinate United Nations agency
programmes in partnership with national governments. It is
undertaken in the name of the United Nations Development Group
(UNDG). Input into this planning process is provided through
Common Country Assessments (CCA), based on the principles of
the Comprehensive Development Framework (CDF). The UNDAF
process results in a Country Strategy Note (CSN) summarizing
the United Nations contribution to the country's development
process. UNDAF is planned for all developing countries and
transitional economies. The United Nations agencies should
bring education and EFA goals into this planning process, thus
ensuring that, from another perspective, they are included in
planning the joint development efforts of countries and the
United Nations system, and that they are included as inputs
into the PRSP process.
Sector-wide approaches (SWAps)
As
a mechanism for co-ordinating aid to a particular sector such
as education, SWAps offer the opportunity for more coherent
planning of external funding. They are based on the need for
development partners to work to a common agenda and be led by
local stakeholders, with a resulting reduction of the
country's transaction costs. This implies an inclusive
approach embracing government, lenders and donors, and civil
society organisations. This is rarely achieved. Although SWAps
focus on co-ordinating external aid, they also imply a local
capacity for system-wide planning with the government setting
the agenda. In terms of EFA goals, it can be an advantage to
set them within the context of SWAp, thus highlighting for
instance the links between basic and higher education. A SWAp
should be adopted wherever donors are willing to work together
and to co-ordinate their efforts, in the interests of sectoral
coherence and of efficiency of resource allocation and
use.
Regional planning
processes
In addition to internationally driven
planning processes, some regional frameworks exist in which
EFA planning must have a proper place. The New Partnership for
Africa's Development (NEPAD) is one such framework. In basic
education, NEPAD refers only to the Millennium Goal of UPE by
2015, and to curriculum, quality and the use of ICTs. In view
of the huge EFA needs in Africa in the area of each of the six
Dakar objectives, planning for basic education needs special
attention wherever the NEPAD is used as a framework for
planning specific initiatives or allocating new funding. It
should be used in conjunction with other planning processes
mentioned above, in countries where they pertain.
2. Background to developing an
international strategy
Since Dakar in the year
2000, two overlapping processes have contributed to strategy
development: firstly, discussion in the EFA forums below,
concerning the nature and content of an international
strategy, and secondly proposals for a global initiative.
These latter discussions have focused largely on financing
mechanisms, but not entirely. They also make proposals for
other aspects, such as planning and monitoring, which are also
part of the international strategy.
The EFA Working Group (2nd meeting, September
2001)
The Working Group examined progress on an
international strategy, including the UNESCO document, and
processed the next steps extensively. Input into the present
document resulted from the commitments of various groupings of
participants around themes and strategies. The Group suggested
policy dialogue, communication strategy, mobilization of
financial resources, monitoring and evaluation, generation and
exchange of knowledge, advocacy, capacity-building and
flagships. These find their place under one of the twelve
Dakar strategies, the basis of this document . Inputs received
on these elements have also been integrated under relevant
strategies.
The EFA High Level
Group
The High Level Group called for urgent
action both on the Global Initiative and the International
strategy. On the latter, the communiqué stated:
A
strategy to operationalize the Dakar Framework must be
developed by March 2002 by a Task Force constituted by
representatives of all partners. The strategy would identify:
major actions to be taken within specified time-lines;
general roles and responsibilities of partners; linkages among
activities, including a clear description of how flagships are
integrated into country-level activities; and a consensus on
the global initiative. Once the content and scope of a
global initiative are agreed, it should be implemented with
immediate effect and progress presented to and reviewed by the
High-Level Group.
The elements identified by the High
Level Group (highlighted in the paragraph above) constitute
the major framework for this document.
3. Proposals for financing
EFA
Over the two years since the Dakar Forum
three proposals for financing EFA have been made: the Global
Initiative (UNESCO), the Global Initiative (Global Campaign on
Education), the Financing Framework (World Bank). Their
essential characteristics are presented here. Part II, Section
3 above represents the consensus which has developed out of
discussions around them.
The
Global Initiative (UNESCO)
The Dakar Framework
for Action called for a global initiative 'aimed at developing
strategies and developing the resources needed to provide
effective support to national efforts.' The initiative was to
be structured around six options, five of which concern the
financing of EFA. The sixth relates to monitoring and
evaluation. UNESCO took this process forward with the document
entitled 'The Global Initiative towards Education for All: a
framework for mutual understanding.' It spelt out in detail
what each of the six options would entail and set them in the
context of international aid flows. It emphasized the need
also for technical, non-financial resources, but majored on
the financial implications. Its recommendations on monitoring
are being implemented through the independent Monitoring
Report, and on planning co-ordination through this document.
The options it presented are shown in the following
chart:
Option |
Recommendation |
Increasing external
finance for (basic) education |
- increase ODA to basic
education· - OECD/DAC to increase grant element to
at least 86per cent of overall ODA· - fulfil the
principles of the 20:20 initiative. - use HIPC to
support EFA· - target assistance for optimal
effect· -consider alternative sources of
financing.
|
Ensuring greater
predictability in the flow of external assistance
|
- aid providers to fulfil
effectively negotiated commitments· - aid recipients
to absorb funds efficiently· - set medium to long
term financial targets for EFA which reflect political
commitment· - identify and remove bottlenecks related to
constricting aid conditionalities. |
Providing debt relief
and/or cancellation for poverty reduction and basic
education |
- must be enacted with the
utmost urgency· - to be undertaken through the
mobilization of new and additional resources· - not
to be diverted from already declining ODA· - to
reinforce the efficient use of debt relief for achieving
EFA |
Facilitating more
effective donor co-ordination |
- ensuring consistency in
goals and strategies of all actors at global and
national levels· - mapping of resource needs at the
country level· - mapping of donor action at the
country level· - highlight and disseminate good
examples of country-led, effective
co-ordination |
Strengthening
sector-wide approaches |
- allow governments and
partners to be aligned with shared priorities· -
external longer term support against well-defined policy
objectives· - strengthen collaboration between
ministries concerned with EFA· - longer term
macro-economic planning, good governance and effective
participation of CSOs. |
Monitoring of progress
towards EFA goals and targets |
- mapping of country
needs· - mapping of donor action at the country
level· - annual EFA progress report based on inputs
from: - - regional and national levels - -all
development partners |
The Global Initiative (Global Campaign for
Education)
The Global Campaign for Education,
the civil society coalition initiated by Oxfam, Education
International, ActionAid Alliance and Save the Children,
issued a call for implementing a global initiative in a paper
entitled 'The Global Initiative on Education: meeting the
promises'. This was later complemented by a further document
entitled 'An Action Plan to achieve the MDGs in education'.
Focusing on universal completion of primary education, the
latter document welcomed the climate of new opportunity which
arose around the April 2002 Amsterdam meeting in financing
EFA. Based on the central importance of national plans for the
EFA goals, it called for flexible and transparent norms in
assessing plans which should be developed using a
participatory process. It emphasised the monitoring process as
a means of identifying gaps and appealed for the establishment
of a financing framework to fill them. The framework would
include an EFA donor consortium to meet twice a year in a
pledging conference, with donors channelling funds in their
preferred way. The EFA High Level Group would serve as a
monitoring body of these efforts. Appealing to the World Bank
to take on a larger number of 'immediate action' countries
than the ten proposed for 'fast-tracking', it also called for
attention to countries with weaker policy environments who
might not qualify for aid on the basis of a polished EFA
national plan.
World Bank EFA
Action Plan: Executive Summary
Education for
Dynamic Economies: Action Plan to accelerate progress towards
Education for All (EFA): Executive Summary
a. At
its last meeting, the Development Committee reviewed the paper
Education for Dynamic Economies: Accelerating Progress Towards
Education for All (EFA). The paper assessed progress and
identified key issues and challenges in meeting the goals of
universal primary education. It concluded that these goals
were unlikely to be attained without accelerated action at the
country level and a scaling up of international support. The
paper further indicated that the World Bank would work closely
with other partners to intensify its efforts to help countries
address the data, policy, capacity, and resource gaps that
currently constrain progress, and proposed country-by-country
analysis to establish EFA policy and financing needs. The
Development Committee requested staff to prepare an action
plan for accelerating EFA, to be discussed during its next
meeting (April 2002).
b. The world community has
established and strongly backed EFA targets several times
during the past decade: the 1990 Jomtien targets were
reaffirmed and extended in Dakar in April 2000 and again
reiterated and refined as part of the Millennium Development
Goals in September 2000. The strong international political
commitment to education has, however, not translated into
sustained EFA gains at the country level. This is, in part,
because the commitments were not supported by either a
"roadmap" for success or an objective framework-for countries
and their external partners-to measure progress and
aid-worthiness. The Dakar Framework for Action was an
important step in the right direction and needs benchmarks for
gauging progress across countries to take sufficient account
of the financial and policy implications of the proposed
actions, and to define the rules of engagement between
countries and their external partners. The action plan
proposed in this paper builds on the Dakar Framework for Action and is intended to
constitute a solid foundation for an EFA roadmap.
c. To
first establish a sounder basis for assessing the scale of the
problem and to set a baseline for monitoring country progress,
an internationally comparable data base of primary completion
rates was constructed, from 1990 to the most recent year
possible, for 155 countries-the first time EFA progress has
been measured in terms of primary completion rather than
enrollment. This new indicator recognizes that true and
sustainable learning begins to occur only after the completion
of at least 5 to 6 years of primary education of reasonable
quality. Based on a review of successful countries as well as
those where completion rates have stagnated or declined, a set
of key policy and financing norms were identified, which are
associated with countries' differential progress. The
parameters observed in successful countries constitute
technical benchmarks or "norms" against which countries' EFA
plans may be evaluated and costed.
d. The following
findings emerge from the analysis:
- The risk of not
achieving EFA goals is much more serious and widespread than
earlier believed. Whereas only 32 countries were formerly
believed to be at risk of not achieving the EFA goal of
universal primary education on the basis of enrollment rates,
use of completion rates raises the number to 88 countries, out
of the total 155 for which data were established. Some 35
countries are unlikely to meet the goal of eliminating gender
disparities at the primary level by 2005, even when the goal
is simply universal primary enrollment and not universal
primary completion.
- or the majority of "at risk"
countries, EFA is achievable-with the right policies.
Fifty-nine out of the 88 countries at risk can reasonably be
expected to achieve universal primary completion by 2015 if
they bring the efficiency and quality of their education
systems into line with benchmarks observed in
higher-performing systems and receive significant increases in
external financing and technical support. The 29 countries
lagging farthest behind will not reach the goal without
historically unprecedented rates of progress, but these rates
are attainable with creative delivery solutions, including the
use of information technologies flexible and targeted
international support, and overall reduction in
poverty.
- Education policies that improve learning
outcomes are as important as additional resources. While there
is no single recipe, common features of low-income countries
that have either achieved or are on track to achieving
universal primary completion are political commitment and
national leadership for education demonstrated by: (i)
adequate domestic resource mobilization for primary education;
(ii) efficient and effective use of resources; (iii) focus on
educational quality and learning outcomes; and (iv) specific
actions to make schooling accessible and effective for poor
and disadvantaged children and especially for girls.
-
At-risk countries have a significant financing gap. Even after
maximum mobilization of resources domestically and under the
Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative, funding
required from external partners would be substantially above
present levels.
e. Accelerating progress towards EFA
requires integrated action to close four gaps. Countries need
data of good quality to accurately measure and monitor
progress and inform policy; sound policies to help translate
the vision and strategy of a robust education system into
development outcomes; strong institutional capacity to ensure
effective and sustainable delivery of quality education
services; and adequate domestic and external financing to fund
needed investment and recurrent expenditures. Success in
closing these gaps will rest foremost on strong country
ownership of the EFA agenda.
f. Achieving EFA goals by
2015 presents daunting challenges but the prospects of
achieving the goal are much better today than they have ever
been since the formal launching of the EFA movement in 1990.
Renewed global interest in the role of education in
development has increased national and international political
commitment to act: several countries have demonstrated that
dramatic progress is possible if appropriate actions are
taken. EFA planning and implementation can be greatly enhanced
through effective integration into the PRSP and the CDF
framework both of which provide an important framework for
countries to take ownership and leadership of the development
process and to more effectively coordinate external support.
As part of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the EFA
agenda can more effectively be addressed within the
overarching poverty reduction framework.
g. Financing
of EFA for the 47 IDA countries analyzed indicates that in
order to achieve universal primary completion by 2015, average
annual expenditure on primary education for these countries
would need to increase from $7.4 billion to $16.4 billion
between 2002 and 2015. The bulk of these additional resources
could be generated domestically with increased national
commitment to education but many of them would require
significant external support during the transition period
while the countries reform their systems and put the education
systems on a sustainable path of quality and equity. These 47
countries would require between $2.5 billion to $5 billion per
year in additional external resources as an absolute minimum.
This estimate is three to five times the amount that they
currently obtain in external aid for primary education. A
regional breakdown of the estimate shows the importance of
intensifying support to sub-Saharan Africa: the region would
require a seven-fold increase from its present level of aid
inflows for primary education in real terms.
h. The
$2.5-$5 billion estimate appears different from the Financing
for Development (FfD) Report's estimate of $10-13 billion a
year, included in the overall estimate of $40-60 billion a
year needed to reach all of the MDGs. It is important to note,
however, that the two estimates are very similar in terms of
additional resources required: the difference lies in whether
the resources would be generated domestically or externally.
The difference between the two estimates underscores the key
point made in both reports, that policy reform and country
commitment, reflected in additional domestic resources, are
the critical ingredients in determining the external financing
gap.
i. The proposed action plan is rooted in a
development compact between countries and their external
partners. In the compact, governments would demonstrate their
commitment to education through efforts to transform their
education systems, in response to which external partners
would provide financial and technical support in a
transparent, predictable, and flexible manner. This action
plan should be viewed as a first step in a results-oriented
implementation framework for EFA. A great deal more work needs
to be done to develop a detailed, costed and time-bound action
plan. Over the next few months, the costing exercise will be
extended to all the countries that have not yet achieved EFA
and the analysis will be broadened to address other EFA goals
such as gender equality in primary and secondary education and
adult literacy. Further consultations will take place between
countries and partners to seek consensus on the elements of
the action plan and to review roles and responsibilities for
partners in harmonizing, and making more effective, assistance
to countries.
j. We propose to the Development
Committee an EFA "fast track" in which about 10 countries are
selected, by June 2002, for increased and immediate support,
to help generate an early demonstration effect. The fast
tracking would be done within the PRSP/CDF framework and
implemented through a multi-donor education consortium that
would align the external financing needs of these countries
with available financial support from donor
agencies.
4. Criteria for the
assessment of national EFA plans
If EFA plans must
qualify as credible, this implies an assessment of the plan in
some way, including an agreed approach to measuring the degree
of political commitment on the part of government. There are
two phases in this process: first, an overall assessment
agreed by all stakeholders in that particular country that the
plan is in line with the Dakar Framework for Action, and
second, a particular assessment by donors, together or
separately as the case may be, for funding purposes in which
further criteria defined by the donor may come into play.
These further criteria may, for example relate to a particular
EFA goal, or define technical performance indicators. Here a
minimum set of criteria is presented for the overall
assessment of plans; consideration of specific criteria will
take place in each country as part of the negotiations between
country and donor(s). Does the plan show clear evidence
of
political commitment by
government as a whole
engagement of all stakeholders
in its preparation, particularly civil society
representatives, and resulting collective ownership of the
plan
attention to all six Dakar
goals
sustainable monitoring and
evaluation procedures, including performance indicators
a thorough analysis of the
present situation (recent data and studies)
links to other development
planning processes
sector-wide planning, linking
EFA to all levels of education
an appropriate policy
framework
building a sustainable
institutional framework
detailed budgeting of financial
resources, and resulting
identification of gaps
The international EFA partners
actively assist in the development of EFA plans; there is need
to develop clearer strategies in some countries of fostering
an inclusive process where civil society stakeholders are not
merely informed of government plans, but actively involved in
their formulation, and in the thinking which underpins them.
Multilateral agencies and, crucially, civil society networks
must invest in communicating the added value which such
participation can bring. Current engagement of civil society
in EFA forums at the international level is beginning to model
this approach.
5. EFA advocacy
events and occasions
Title |
Date |
Place |
Outline |
The UN
Special Session on Children |
8-10 May
2002 |
New York,
USA |
An
unprecedented meeting of the UN General Assembly
dedicated to the children and adolescents of the
world. |
G-8 Summit
|
26-28
June2002 |
Kananaskis,
Canada |
May
consider G8 Education Task Force
Report |
The XIV
International AIDS Conference |
7-12 July
2002 |
Barcelona,
Spain |
This
year's theme is 'Knowledge and Commitment for
Action'. |
The World
Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg Summit
2002) |
26 August - 4
September 2002 |
Johannesburg,
South Africa |
Action toward
meeting difficult challenges, including improving
people's lives and conserving our natural
resources. |
Meeting of
African Education Ministers (MINEDAF VIII)
|
2-6 December
2002 |
Mauritius
|
|
CONFINTEA
Mid-term Review |
late2003 |
|
literacy as
major theme within focus on lifelong
learning |
World Summit
on the Information Society - 1st phase |
December 2003
|
|
literacy and
basic education as a basic tool for learning through and
access to ICTs |
Universal
Forum of Cultures |
May
2004 |
Barcelona
|
EFA and
cultural expression and heritage |
World Summit
on the Information Society - 2nd phase |
2005
|
|
|
[on going] |
|
|
|
6.
Mapping of donor assistance by thematic areas and
country [See following pages in PDF]
|