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	Tony Blair accepts the message from 5 million children around the world.   Young GCE activists with Nelson Mandela at Trafalgar Square   85 year old Kimani Ng'ang'a-the world's oldest school pupil-accompanies the buddies on their final journey through New York City to the UN.
	View E-News in French | Spanish Past Issues - November 2005 Note: Most hyperlinks will open in a new window. Please close the new window in order to be automatically returned to the GCE site. EDUCATION FOR ALL IN BEIJING World leaders meet to discuss progress on Education For All at the High Level Group Meeting in Beijing this week. Read GCE's statement to the meetings... 30 November 2005 Back to Top GLOBAL CAMPAIGN FOR EDUCATION - UPDATE GLOBAL ACTION WEEK (GAW) 2006 - EVERY CHILD NEEDS A TEACHER Following the success of previous action weeks, 24 th - 30 th April 2006 will be the next GAW. During this week campaigners will unite across the world, demanding that governments of rich and poor countries work together to ensure there are enough quality teachers, to ensure every child has a quality education. Once again officials will return back to school and be presented with evidence supporting the Case for Teachers. Each country should now have received the planning pack and held the first planning meeting. If not the planning pack can be downloaded from our website. Next year's materials have also now been prepared. Due to popular demand, GCE is posting each country coalition a CD that provides the design of the posters, leaflets and stickers, to be adapted and printed locally. These materials are also available online, to find out more and download materials please visit: www.campaignforeducation.o../action/2007/action.html or email actionweek@campaignforeducation.org Back to Top GCE WISHES ANNE JELLEMA THE BEST AS SHE MOVES ON After 5 years of coordinating the Global Campaign for Education, Anne Jellema is leaving the campaign to take up the post of International Policy Director at ActionAid International. During her time with GCE, Anne has seen the campaign go from strength to strength, achieving worldwide recognition as a massive expression of civil society concern on education as well as an authoritative voice on education policy issues. We are sad to see her leave, thank her for all she has done for the campaign and wish her the very best in her new role. Back to Top CHANGES TO THE GCE SECRETARIAT The secretariat has now moved into the new offices in Johannesburg. The new postal address is: Global Campaign for Education, PO Box 521733, Saxonworld, Johannesburg 2132, South Africa GCE is receiving applicants for a new Global Coordinator. To view the job spec, and application details please visit: www.campaignforeducation.org/about/about.html If you are interested in volunteering in the new Johannesburg office, please email your CV to yunus@campaignforeducation.org Back to Top FEEDBACK FROM AN AMAZING YEAR: 2005 GCE would like to thank everyone for all their hard work throughout 2005. We have recently been busy preparing resources that sum up what an amazing year it was for global campaigning efforts. Each GCE country coalition will shortly receive a mailing of these resources. They will also be available shortly online: www.campaignforeducation.o../action/2007/action.html The Big Book 2005 pulls together summaries, photos, "friends" and anecdotes of the campaigning efforts in countries all over the world. It is a colourful, attractive book that pulls together the amazing achievements of children and adults in campaigning and lobbying their governments. The Big Map 2005 is a children-friendly map that has the name of every country that was involved in GCE, interesting facts and fun illustrations of selected events. The Big Film 2005 is a short film compiled from footage campaigners sent us from all over the world. Back to Top GCE COMMEMORATES THE LOSS OF CAMPAIGNER - JUSTICE EGWARE GCE's Big Book 2005 has been dedicated to Justice Egware, who was killed in an airplane crash in Nigeria on 22 nd October 2005. Justice was the Policy Advisor of the GCE coalition in Nigeria: CSACEFA. His dedicated and tireless championing for the right to education will continue to inspire campaigners long into the future. To read more please visit: http://www.whiteband.org/NL/gcapnewsletterhead.2005-11-14.4564762265/NLView2 Back to Top EUROPEAN GCE CAMPAIGNERS MET IN PARIS, 10TH NOVEMBER Representatives from each of Europe's national GCE coalitions met in Paris earlier this month to discuss campaign successes and brainstorm ways to strengthen the regional coalition.  With enthusiasm campaigners learnt from the challenges and successes of their neighbouring country's campaigns and together they mapped out the events and opportunities for campaigning in Europe in the following year. Back to Top UNESCO'S EFA GLOBAL MONITORING REPORT 2006 - ADULT LITERACY The report was launched in London on November 9 th . The Global Campaign for Education welcomed the long overdue attention on adult literacy. View GCE press release: http://www.campaignforeducation.org/resources/ resources_latest.php View BBC coverage: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/4420772.stm EFA GMR: http://www.efareport.unesco.org/ ID21's Focus on Literacy: http://www.id21.org/education/index.html Back to Top GCE ASKS TANZANIA GOVERNMENT TO RECONSIDER BAN OF EDUCATION NGO, HAIKIELIMU In response to the government of Tanzania's ban on research by the NGO, HakiElimu, GCE has written directly to the Minister of Education, asking him to reconsider. The NGO has been banned from undertaking studies and publishing any articles regarding Tanzanian schools, on the claim that they have been disparaging the country's education system and teaching profession. Read GCE's letter to the Minister of Education, Joseph Mungai Read IRIN's Article "TANZANIA: Government bans education NGO": http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=49373&Select Region=East_Africa,%20Great_Lakes&SelectCountry=TANZANIA Back to Top GCE PRESIDENT, KAILASH SATYARTHI, ADDRESSED WORLD EDUCATION MINISTERS AT THE UNESCO GENERAL ASSEMBLY As the only civil society keynote speaker, Kailash Satyarthi addressed the Ministerial Round Table on Education For All at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris (7th - 8th October 2005).  Satyarthi emphasised the importance of genuine, transparent participation of all walks of civil society in achieving the Education For All (EFA) goals, giving the example of the vibrant partnerships that make GCE's Global Action Week such a success.  He went on to demand an increase in the inclusion of children and young people in education campaigns. Read the full text of Kailash Satyarthi's speech... Back to Top UN MILLENNIUM SUMMIT DELIVERS RHETORIC WITHOUT COMMITMENT GCE lobbying helped secure statements on education in the final UN Summit outcome document. These include the reaffirmation of the importance of Education for All, and the need to increase finance for education through the Fast Track Initiative. Shockingly, however despite GCE campaigning, there was no mention of the fact that over 90 countries failed to meet the first Millennium Development Goal: gender parity in primary and secondary education. This is not only a tragedy for girls left behind, but a signal of poor health of the MDG project in general. 16 th September Read the full statement in English , French or Spanish Back to Top PUBLICATIONS AND RESOURCES CONTRADICTING COMMITMENTS: How the Achievement of Education For All is Being Undermined by the International Monetary Fund Written by GCE and ActionAid International This report argues that the global education targets: the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Education For All (EFA) goals, are being undermined by the IMFs imposition of budget targets. Recent research undertaken in Guatemala, Bangladesh, India, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria and Sierra Leone illustrates the need to sharply increase investment in education. An increase in spending is needed for building schools, training and employing teachers, and making education more accessible to poor and other disadvantaged children. But in most cases, they cannot do so without exceeding spending limits imposed by the IMF, thus making it effectively impossible for them to meet their MDG commitments and the demands of their electorates. http://www.campaignforeducation.org/resources/resources.php Back to Top WRITING THE WRONGS: INTERNATIONAL BENCHMARKS ON ADULT LITERACY Authored by GCE and ActionAid The report highlights the lack of excuses for denying adults the right to learn, and provides evidence of what works in practice. International benchmarks emerged from the largest every global consultation of its kind and show that adult literacy programmes can be affordable and effective. The report is being launched in a numerous countries over the next two months. The report and poster (summarizing the benchmarks) can be downloaded: http://www.campaignforeducation.org/resources/resources.php Back to Top DEADLY INERTIA? A CROSS-COUNTRY STUDY OF EDUCATIONAL RESPONSES TO HIV/AIDS Authored by GCE Education has a critical role to play in fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic, yet education itself is under threat from its effects. Bringing together research in over 18 countries, this report finds that Ministries of Education are shockingly unprepared to respond effectively and minimise the devastating impact of AIDS. Moreover, far from assisting, the international donor community has also failed to deliver leadership and political commitment.   The report also sets out a clear and achievable action plan to strengthen the educational response to HIV/AIDS.  The report will be formally launched early next year and is available: http://www.campaignforeducation.org/resources/resources.php Back to Top BEYOND ACCESS: TRANSFORMING POLICY & PRACTICE FOR GENDER EQUALITY IN EDUCATION Edited by Sheila Aikman and Elaine Unterhalter Contributors to this book, including GCE, examine the extent and causes of gender-based inequality in education and analyse government policies for impact on women's empowerment. Original field work and case studies from Peru, Kenya, Mali, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, South Africa, India, and Bangladesh consider the challenges that confront policy makers, practitioners, campaigners, and researchers as they make progress towards gender equality in education. http://publications.oxfam.org.uk/oxfam/display.asp?isbn=0855985291 Back to Top PUBLIC SERVICE REVIEW ON INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT: ISSUE 3 The latest public service review from PSCA International focuses on the Millennium Development Goals, and includes a chapter by GCE. Full Document: www.publicservice.co.uk/pub_contents.asp?ID=197 GCE review www.publicservice.co.uk/pdf/id/issue3/ID3%20Global%20CF%20Education%20ATL.pdf Back to Top 60 MILLION GIRLS MISSING OUT ON EDUCATION Save the Children research demonstrates that school fees are the biggest barrier to girls going to school. It shows that f fees were abolished in just 14 sub-saharan countries at extra 4.5 million children would immediately go to school. Download the report "60 million girls" here: http://www.savethechildren.net/alliance/resources/mdg/schoolbook_for_print.pdf Back to Top UNESCO: CHILDREN ON THE BRINK Millions of children are growing up without parents. Millions more are in households with family members sick or dying from AIDS; children in sub-Saharan African have been hardest hit. A UN report provides new orphan estimates and a framework for action. http://www.unicef.org/publications/index_22212.html Back to Top EAST AFRICA: THE EDUCATION OF NOMADIC PEOPLES IN EAST AFRICA: REVIEW OF RELEVANT LITERATURE In the context of a renewed commitment to Education For All (EFA) at Dakar, this study examines the apparent failure of most attempts to provide educational services to nomadic groups. The study focuses on Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. It provides an insight into the challenges, constraints and opportunities for using education as part of an intersectoral approach to meet the development needs of nomadic communities. http://www.eldis.org/cf/rdr/rdr.cfm?doc=DOC19347 Back to Top GLOBAL/AFRICA: ETHICS AND CORRUPTION IN EDUCATION - AN OVERVIEW Authors: Hallak & Poisson Produced by: Journal of Education for International Development 2005 This journal article argues that the problems posed by corruption in education have been neglected for too long. It details the three assumptions that underlie the IIEP's project on "Ethics and corruption in education". It then describes the approach followed to tackle this sensitive issue within the framework of the project. The article summarises a few conclusions drawn from the research thus far in three areas: teacher behaviour, teacher management, and private tutoring. http://www.eldis.org/cf/rdr/rdr.cfm?doc=DOC19086 Back to Top UGANDA: CHILDREN IN ABJECT POVERTY IN UGANDA Education for All of the world's children is a global priority. The reality, however, is that millions of the world's poorest children will be denied their chance at education unless there are special interventions that target their development. Since such children do not form a special social category in poverty eradication intervention programmes, their inclusion in EFA efforts tends to be a hit-or-miss phenomenon. This publication looks specifically at poor children both in and out of school who live in Uganda. Source: UNESCO http://tinyurl.com/ce3xs Back to Top PRACTICE STANDARDS IN CHILDREN'S PARTICIPATION Author and Produced by: Save the Children, 2005 This briefing document outlines Save the Children's practice standards in children's participation and discusses how to meet those standards. Their interpretation is based on the context of the general principles derived from the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. http://www.eldis.org/cf/rdr/rdr.cfm?doc=DOC17941 Back to Top UNESCO: WORKING TOGETHER FOR EDUCATION EFA, MDG, DESD, UNLD - More than just being an alphabet soup, what do all these initiatives have in common and how do they complement each other? http://www.unescobkk.org/fileadmin/user_upload/efa/EFA_News/EFA-DESD_lin ks.pdf Back to Top ID21 INSIGHTS EDUCATION #4 - "Educating young people in emergencies: time to end the neglect" The latest issue of 'id21 insights education, id21's print review of education development research, focuses on the neglect of educating young people in emergency situations. http://www.id21.org/insights/index.html Back to Top LINKS BETWEEN GLOBAL INITITATIVES IN EDUCATION September 22, 2005 - (UNESCO) Since 2000, the United Nations has launched four global initiatives, all of which focus on education. A new publication explains the common values and ideals of these initiatives. The four initiatives are the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Education for All (EFA), the United Nations Literacy Decade and the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. UNESCO is the coordinating agency for three of the four goals. While the initiatives are distinctive in many respects, they have common traits: a concern with the improvement of the quality of life and the promotion of human rights, a commitment to education (especially primary education), and an emphasis on the importance of the participatory role of each human being in education and development. http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0014/001408/140848m.pdf Back to Top UNESCO CD-ROM: Education for Girls and Disadvantaged Children (UNESCO Kathmandu) Girls and disadvantaged children continue to suffer disproportionally from lack of access to education. A new CD-ROM featuring complete electronic versions of critical works on this topic has just been published by UNESCO's office in Kathmandu. http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-URL_ID=42489&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html Back to Top EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL NEWSLETTER ON GATS AND EDUCATION (ISSUE 6): This issue includes a report from a meeting between unions, NGOs and GATS negotiators held in Geneva at the end of June. EN : http://data.ei-ie.org/Common/GetFile.asp?ID=2982&mfd=off&LogonName=guest FR : http://data.ei-ie.org/Common/GetFile.asp?ID=2990&mfd=off&LogonName=guest ES : http://data.ei-ie.org/Common/GetFile.asp?ID=2991&mfd=off&LogonName=guest Back to Top LETTING THEM FAIL: Government Neglect and the Right to Education for Children Affected by AIDS Human Rights Watch Report Government neglect of millions of children affected by HIV/AIDS is fuelling school drop-out across East and Southern Africa, Human Rights Watch charged in a new report released last week. The region faces an unprecedented number of orphans, and governments must take urgent steps to keep these children in school and protect them from exploitation and other abuse. The 55-page report, is based on firsthand testimony from dozens of children in three countries hard-hit by HIV/AIDS: South Africa, Kenya, and Uganda. It documents how governments fail children affected by AIDS when they leave school or attempt to return. Churches and community-based organisations provide critical support to these children, but these groups frequently operate with little government support or recognition. http://hrw.org/reports/2005/africa1005/ Back to Top FAILING OUR CHILDREN: BARRIERS TO THE RIGHT EDUCATION Human Rights Watch This 60-page report is based on interviews with hundreds of children in all regions of the world. Human Rights Watch investigations in more than 20 countries found that school fees and related education costs, the global HIV/AIDS epidemic, discrimination, violence and other obstacles keep an estimated 100 million children out of school, the majority of whom are girls. Download PDF , Back to Top UPCOMING EVENTS For full calendar visit: www.campaignforeducation.org/news/news_events.html NOVEMBER: 4 th - 5 th - Fourth Summit of the Americans (Argentina) 8 th - Launch of UNICEF's report on AIDS, Education and Girls 9 th - Global Launch of the 2006 EFA Global Monitoring Report "Literacy for Life " London, UK 13 th - 18 th - WTO Ministerial, Hong Kong 17 th - 19 th - Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit 21 - 30 th - Commission on Human Rights, Geneva, Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, www.un.otg 21 st - 24 th - African Union, E xtraordinary meeting of the Ministers of Education of the African Union, Theme: A New Decade for Education , Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 25 th - 29 th - The Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting 28 th - 30 th - EFA High Level Group Meeting, Bejing, China 30 th Nov - 1 st Dec - FTI Partnership Meeting, Bejing, China DECEMBER 1 st - World AIDS Day 1 st - Global Movement for Children - Lesson for Life, h ttp://www.gmfc.org/index.php/gmc6/content/view/full/663 10th - White Band Day 3: "Spotlight on Trade Injustice" 20 th - UN day for South-South Cooperation Back to Top GLOBAL NEWS UPDATE EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL: STOP HIV/AIDS - EDUCATION FOR LIFE "A lack of education contributes to the spread of the HIV/AIDS pandemic," explains Fred van Leeuwen, General Secretary of Education International. "The impact of HIV/AIDS on education is devastating in developing countries: affected teachers are not replaced, children drop out of school to take care of their sick parents, the scarce funds invested in education are allocated to other priorities., nonetheless education is the most effective tool against the pandemic." On World AIDS Day, EI is encouraging its affiliates to organise nationwide activities on the selected theme Education for life and to impel entire communities to take part in World AIDS Day celebrations and initiatives. Working over 4 years, in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Education Development Center, and the teachers' unions, EI has provided some 133,000 teachers, in 17 countries with the necessary knowledge and confidence to address HIV and AIDS related issues in schools. For EI training activities and downloadable World AIDS Day materials visit: http://www.ei-ie.org or email hivaids@ei-ie.org Back to Top UNESCO EVALUATION Education for Change Ltd. is evaluating UNESCO's role in support of EFA planning and follow-up from 2000 (Dakar declaration) to the end of 2004, and would like you to comment on your experiences and views about UNESCO's role. Please fill in a brief online questionnaire if you have been involved in EFA planning, or have been a close observer of the process in one of the specified 20 countries. For more information Contact Laetitia Antonowicz Email l.antonowicz@efc.co.uk http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=895031307027 Back to Top EDUCATION FOR ALL BY 2015: HOW CAN AID HELP? UNESCO estimates that US$7 billion per year in external aid to basic education is required if universal primary education (UPE) and gender parity are to be achieved by 2015. Despite a modest upturn in aid and new pledges made in 2004, a significant funding gap of US$5.6 billion remains. http://www.id21.org/education/e1efa2g3.html Back to Top INDIA: 4,360 CHILD LABOURERS BEGIN FORMAL EDUCATION An impressive figure of 4,360 child labourers entered school in the academic year 2005-2006. This feat was achieved under the banner of School Chalo Abhiyan (school enrollment campaign) during July-September 2005 by Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) (Save our Childhood Campaign). http://southasia.oneworld.net/link/gotoarticle/addhit/122402/1893/47818 http://www.millenniumcampaign.org/site/apps/nl/content3.asp? c=grKVL2NLE&b=190470&ct=1614189 17 Nov 2005 Back to Top INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION ALLOCATE A SEPARATE FUNDS FOR SPECIAL CHILDREN Realising that there are more than 20 lakh children with special needs (CWSN), HRD ministry is rapidly moving towards bringing them under the umbrella of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan. http://southasia.oneworld.net/link/gotoarticle/addhit/122444/1893/47818 18 Nov 2005 Back to Top INDIA PLANS TO UNIVERSALISE SECONDARY EDUCATION India plans one of its largest ever projects in the field of education which seeks to lay stress on universal secondary education as the government expects millions of more primary students to knock at the doors for secondary education by year 2007. http://southasia.oneworld.net/link/gotoarticle/addhit/119806/1893/39362 3 oct 2005 Back to Top PAKISTAN: Temporary school emerges from quake rubble MUZAFFARABAD, 11 November (IRIN) - The signs of panic are strewn amongst the rubble. School bags, books, pens, clothes and shoes, now covered in a thick layer of grey dust, lie abandoned in the collapsed classrooms of the Ali Akbar Awarn boys' school in Muzaffarabad, the capital of... Full Report 11/Nov/05 Back to Top RECONSTRUCTING SCHOOLS AFTER THE TSUNAMI Let us face it: progress is slow. It is slow for everyone, but especially for the thousands of children who are still sheltered in refugee camps. Education International, Novib (Oxfam Netherlands), as well as other governmental agencies and NGOs have funds available to start the reconstruction, but bureaucracy, communication hiccups, lack of raw materials, absence of skilled workers, among other things, make the process shamefully slow and difficult. When EI and Novib attended the first brick laying ceremony in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, on 12 September, government officials admitted that EI/Novib were actually the first to materialise any official construction of a public building. UNICEF for example has not yet been able to put together one single school of the 400 they pledged to make available in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam. This is hardly surprising: local authorities and administrations have still to learn how to cope with the disaster caused by the tsunami. The authorities want the best for their population and the afflux of donors; however, funding makes their requirements ever more complex and demanding. In addition, basic infrastructure like roads is either lacking or in bad condition, goods and materials have to be shipped and manually carried inland. Aceh is now more expensive than other provinces and prices are bound to skyrocket due to the recent increase of 29% in oil prices. EI and Novib are determined to provide new school facilities to children and teachers of Sri Lanka and Banda Aceh in the best possible conditions, but also fast! IRAQ: MINISTRY MOVES TO CURB ABUSE IN SCHOOLS BAGHDAD, 8 November (IRIN) - Eight-year-old Mohammed Ali from Baghdad refused to go back to school this year because he says he was abused and insulted by his teachers.... 8/Nov/05 Full Report ... Email Report Back to Top KYRGYZSTAN: Focus on lack of teachers BISHKEK, 14 November (IRIN) - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has just approved a US $15.5 million grant for a project aimed at delivering better education to children in poor areas and from disadvantaged families in the Kyrgyzstan.... Full Report ... Email Report 14/Nov/05 Back to Top BURKINA FASO: FOR GREATER LITERACY, GO LOCAL In 1990, Burkinabe linguist Benoit Ouoba used his own funds to set up a teaching programme with a difference: it focused on using local languages to develop literacy, rather than the customary French. Fifteen years later, the 'Tin Tua' method of teaching has significantly improved literacy in the eastern Gulmu region where it was introduced, attracting the attention of international donors in the process. Tin Tua, meaning 'Let's Develop Ourselves by Ourselves', is drawn from Gulmancema - one of the most widely spoken languages in Burkina Faso. http://www.ipsnews.net/africa/nota.asp?idnews=30339 Back to Top CONGO: Teachers return to school in Brazzaville BRAZZAVILLE, 15 Nov 2005 (IRIN) - Primary and secondary teachers resumed work on Monday in Brazzaville and other parts of the Republic of Congo after a strike that had lasted more than six weeks. Full report Back to Top RWANDA: Nation gets US $75 million in new World Bank grants NAIROBI, 11 Nov 2005 (IRIN) - The World Bank approved a US $55-million grant on Thursday to assist economic reform and improve social services in Rwanda as well as another of $20 million to support the government's urban management efforts. Full report Back to Top COTE D IVOIRE: Rebels to organise children's exams after three-year break BOUAKE, 17 Oct 2005 (IRIN) - Rebels who control the north of Cote d'Ivoire have announced plans to begin organising exams for children living in their territory, where education systems ground to a halt three years ago. Full report Back to Top ZIMBABWE: Teachers urge free ARVs as AIDS thins their ranks BULAWAYO, 14 Oct 2005 (IRIN) - Teachers in Zimbabwe have urged the government to provide free AIDS treatment after a survey revealed the profession was struggling with the highest infection rates in the country. Full report Back to Top BURUNDI: NO SCHOOL FEES, BUT WHAT ABOUT QUALITY? The President of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza, has taken the brave step of dropping fees for primary school, thereby making access to primary education easier for many children in the country. But what about the education sector's ability to cope with a sudden increase in demand for education? Are there enough teachers? Is there enough money? And, as the student to teacher ratio will inevitably increase, what happens to the quality of education these children will receive? http://community.eldis.org/webx?14@@.eec95b5 Back to Top SOUTH AFRICA: EDUCATION FOR LABOUR http://www.cosatu.org.za/news/weekly/20050930.htm#3 On 29 September at Wits University, over 400 trade unionists gathered to pay tribute to 100 of their number who have successfully graduated from a demanding one year advanced trade union education programme. The programme, which is formally accredited by Wits University, is provided by the union-owned Development Institute for Training, Support and Education for Labour (DITSELA). Ditsela is Sotho for Pathways, and its slogan is 'Pathways to a Strong Labour Movement'. It is set to celebrate its tenth birthday next year, and has been responsible for providing training for literally thousands of worker leaders over this period. Though primarily funded by the Department of Labour, it is an independent learning institute that is owned and controlled by COSATU and FEDUSA, the two largest federations in the country. Back to Top MOZAMBIQUE: CROWDED CLASSROOMS Mozambique is on track to achieve the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education by 2015, but the education system faces problems including shortages of schools, qualified teachers and textbooks. BBC News, UK, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4242502.stm Back to Top UNESCO INITIATIVE: TEACHER FOR ACTION! A high priority Initiative on Teacher Training in Africa was officially introduced at a high-level meeting of experts at UNESCO's headquarters in Paris on 19 October. "We are creating a movement together," said UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Education Peter Smith, "When it is successful, we can say that it started on this day in Paris." Good teachers are essential to quality education. Each day, over 60 million teachers care for 1 billion children. Yet another 15-35 million more teachers are needed in order for illiteracy to be eradicated and for Education for All (EFA) by 2015 to become a reality. Sub-Saharan Africa is particularly hit by the shortage of teachers and needs drastic measures to ensure that the learning needs of each child is met. Peter Smith told the group of experts that they should "be soberly honest" with themselves as it is virtually impossible to train enough teachers using conventional measures. "We must investigate the use of ICTs," he said, "and consider different ways for teachers to be prepared and for students to learn." Smith also encouraged the members present to cast the teacher training net as far as possible. "If we step safely," he said "we will leave children behind." Instead, he encouraged the participants to "launch a movement that will wipe out illiteracy and teach every child." Contact: Georges Haddad, UNESCO Paris, g.haddad@unesco.org Back to Top EDUCATORS EXPLORE WAYS TO MEET THE MDGS by Elizabeth Howard In late October, heads of two vastly different school systems have met in New York City to share ideas on the major restructuring challenge they both face. Rwanda's minister of Education, Science, Technology and Scientific Research, Romain Murenzi, along with Professor Silas Lwakabamba, President of the Kigali Institute of Sciences, Technology and Management, sat down with Joel I. Klein, chancellor of the city's Department of Education. New York City has 1.1 million children attending kindergarten through twelfth grade in 1,400 schools. In Rwanda there are 1.9 million children in primary school (grades 1-6), 250,000 secondary students (grades 6-12), and 25, 000 students enrolled in higher education programs. Klein has put in place a comprehensive reform program called Children First, designed to transform a troubled school system to ensure that every child would graduate with the skills to become a fully engaged member of society. Murenzi's challenge was to restructure and rebuild a school system that was destroyed during the genocide in Rwanda between 1994-1995. Murenzi said the challenges facing Rwanda are formidable, and he outlined three priorities. The first is to build parent and teacher boards for local schools. By engaging parents, educators hope that children will be encouraged to stay in school and complete their education. The second priority is to centralize Rwanda's 13 school districts by April 2006, to facilitate all the schools in the country to work towards a common goal. Eliminating child labor is the third priority. In Rwanda, often at the encouragement of parents, children drop out of school to work in tea plantations, providing the immediate advantage of income for the family. "What advice might you have?" Murenzi asked Klein. "Our goal in New York was to simplify the organizational structure," Klein responded. "We created a parent co-coordinator position in each school, and this individual is the person who coordinates our community outreach. It has been very effective in solving local community problems and establishing a dialogue with the educational leadership in New York." When the conversation turned to technology, there was more to discuss than might have been supposed. Lwakabamba described his task of bringing technology and distance learning to Rwanda, and he said that a related aim is developing alternative energy sources to underpin the effort. There is sufficient water for power generation in Rwanda, he said, but the difficulty is in accessing it. Through building infrastructure and educating people to become engineers, Rwanda hopes to become both a source and an example for the region. Once an energy source and connectivity has been established, the goal is to bring computers into every school so all children in Rwanda will be linked to the world. What would be helpful?" queried Klein? The Rwandans said they hope connections can be made that will lead to U.S./Rwandan collaborations, including teacher and faculty exchanges, opportunities for distance learning and networking that will identify more resources, both in-kind and financial. Mora McLean, the CEO and President of AAI, said such encounters raise public awareness about and spur discussion of in the Millennium Development Goals across the United States and highlight the role Americans can play in assisting Africans to achieve them. We want Americans to understand how the values underlying the MDGs converge with U.S. values and interest," she said. http://allafrica.com/stories/200510250746.html Back to Top ©2005 GCE You are welcome to reproduce items from the GCE E-News for any non-profit use, as long as you credit GCE together with any original source mentioned in the article. IN THIS SECTION News Headlines News in Full Recent Media Coverage Past Issues Sign up to receive News Upcoming Events
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