Pour recevoir cette lettre en français, veuillez compléter les informations requises ici.
Para recibir y visualizar este boletín de noticias en Español, actualice sus datos aquí.
MARCH 2008
It’s exciting to introduce this March e-news in my new capacity as Global Campaign for Education (GCE)’s Vice President. 2008 has already proven to be a busy year for education campaigners, with the GCE’s World Assembly in January, and the Record Breaking attempt at the ‘World’s Biggest Lesson’ on the 23rd April. But it’s clear our efforts are not in vain. Read on and I hope you find lots of news below that will continue to inspire and motivate you in your efforts for Education Rights!
With the focus of this year’s Action Week being on the World’s Biggest Lesson the uniting theme is Quality Education for All – and getting the most marginalised children and adults an education that could change their lives. With International Women’s Day just gone it’s worth noting the long way we have to go to ensure education rights across the gender divide. One in four women in the world have had their education rights denied to date, to the extent that they are unable to read and write. In Tanzania it’s still commonplace for girls to be excluded from school for being pregnant, and in South Africa girls are frequently at risk of gender based violence in the school place.
Race, Ethnicity, Poverty, Chid Labour, Conflict, Disability and Migration are amongst the other factors that keep millions out of school and the consequences are devastating. In Brazil, boys who are out of school are more likely to die of homicide. In Africa children born to uneducated mothers are 50% less likely to survive beyond the age of 5.
The 23rd April is our chance to collectively call for the effective implementation of the Right to Education, remembering the many legally binding Protocols, Covenants and Conventions that have been signed by world leaders and which affirm the right to universal, compulsory and free education. Find out more about the World’s Biggest Lesson and how you, your colleagues, friends, and school can get involved on the new website: www.campaignforeducation.org/biggestlesson
Together let’s make this a lesson to remember.
Camilla Croso
(GCE Vice President and Coordinator of the Latin America Campaign to the Right to Education, CLADE)
CONTENTS
| GCE NEWS |
| CAMPAIGN NEWS |
- GCE message to E9
- Latin America New Education Laws
- Latin America Workshop
- Ecuador: call for education revolution
- ‘Right to Education’ Survey
- Civil Society & Education Budgets
- Fe y Alegria publications
| EDUCATION NEWS |
| GCE NEWS |
World’s Biggest Lesson – 23rd April |
With a month to go plans are in place in over a hundred countries to make sure that the world record is broken – that this really is the World’s Biggest Lesson – and that real progress is made in international commitments to get everyone an education! Here are just a few of the highlights to date: In Armenia the Minister of Education looks set to come to the lesson and in Cambodia it’s His Majesty the King himself. Schools across Canada are taking part, with a lesson that’s been adapted to fit the curriculum. In Japan the World’s Biggest Lesson is coinciding with the Education for All Fast Track Initiative’s Technical Meeting, and will have officials from the FTI and Ministry of Foreign Affairs being taught in class. The campaign in Germany have invited hundreds of MPs and Chancellor Angela Merkel and hope to put on a World’s Biggest Lesson outside the Parliament Building - German Reichstag. A school in Oregon, USA is video linking up with a school in the Palestinian Territories for the lesson. And in the UK Douglas Alexander, the Secretary of State for International Development is being taught by school children outside the parliamentary buildings in Westminster. |
NEW World’s Biggest Lesson Film!  |
This four minute film is designed to be used during the World’s Biggest Lesson, in and out of classrooms, and for the publicity in the lead up to the lesson itself. View it now! You can also embed the film on your website from YouTube.com. If you’d like us to send you a DVD please email Khanyi@campaignforeducation.org, stating the name of your coalition, address and whether you would like it in PAL or NTSC format. |
NEW World’s Biggest Lesson Website! |
This website provides comprehensive information in three languages about the World’s Biggest Lesson and enables anyone to register and download the lesson. Most importantly there’s a Report Back (the same as a validation form) to help make it easy for everyone to fill in so that we count everyone involved. Visit the site. |
NEW GCE national webpages! |
It’s now easier to find out what’s happening in your country by typing the name of your country after the GCE web address ie: www.campaignforeducation.org/canada or www.campaignforeducation.org/cambodia Help us update these pages by sending details of what’s happening to muleya@campaignforeducation.org |
| Calendar |
Click here to view GCE’s latest Calendar for key dates and events happening in 2007 and 2008. |
| Jobs |
The GCE secretariat is recruiting three new posts as below: New Media Officer GCE is looking for someone to play a crucial central role in achieving maximum change through web-based campaign and communication technologies. With more than 5 million campaigners in over 100 countries this role is crucial in growing, connecting and inspiring education campaigners through the use of on-line and electronic media. As webmaster you will develop, design and update the GCE website and e-communications to work in four languages be public focused and provide support national campaigns. Located: GCE office in Johannesburg, Salary: R310,000 – R370,000 (equivalent to €25,000 – €29,500), Closing Date: Monday 7th April (Interviews 10th and 11th April) Education Sector Analyst GCE is seeking a dynamic individual who combines up-to-date knowledge of education trends with a thorough understanding of the role of advocacy in achieving policy change. You will make a vital contribution to GCE's ability to pressurise governments of poorer countries, working with education campaigners across the world to enable a rights-based critique of government education strategies. Minimum educational requirement is a degree at undergraduate level with a preference for a Masters in either social science, development studies or education and development. Location: GCE office in Johannesburg,Salary: R390,000 Rand – R450,000 (equivalent to €31,000 – €36,000),Closing Date: Monday 5th May (Interviews 8th and 9th May) International Campaigns Advisor GCE is looking for a dynamic and motivated campaigner who can support the growth of our national education campaigns in Europe, North America, Japan and Australasia. They will advise on all tactics of campaigning including building and managing an individual supporter base, VIP engagement, targeted lobbying strategies and media events. We are looking for someone who has significant experience of campaigning and a track record of success. Location: GCE London office (though other locations considered),Salary: £28,000 – £32,000 (equivalent to €36,000 – €41,000 or US$56,000 – $64,000), Closing Date: Monday 14th April (Interviews 17th and 18th April) All posts are for 12 months with the possibility of extension. Find more and how to apply here |
| CAMPAIGN NEWS |
Ministers representing half of the world’s population met in Bali to assess progress towards Education For All. |
10th – 12th March: Ministers and educational experts from the world’s Nine High Population Countries - Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan met in Bali to discuss ways of accelerating progress towards the provision of Education For All (EFA). Combined these countries contain more than half of the world’s population, where illiteracy, gender disparity and teacher training remain major concerns. The E-9 Initiative was launched in 1993, in attempt to address these challenges, yet only two of the nine countries are likely to reach adult literacy goals and only three are likely to achieve gender parity by the target date of 2015. GCE sent a message to the meeting that noted the progress made to date but urged for the fair share of national and donor budgets to be allocated to education, fees & charges to be abolished, plans and polices to be put in place that address adult illiteracy, and the provision of education to marginalised children. Read GCE’s letter here |
New Publication: Latin America: New Education Laws |
Knowing the legal frameworks that govern countries is essential in order for one to legally claim the right to education. It is with this in mind, and in an attempt to identify common trends in the new education laws that have been enacted in the region in the past few years, that the Latin American Campaign for the Right to Education fostered the development of the book entitled The New Education Laws in Latin America: an analysis considering the social and educational panorama of the region. The book, developed by the International Institute for Educational Planning- Buenos Aires, seeks to be a tool for political pressure and demands as it analysis recently enacted education laws throughout Latin America. Download the report here |
Latin America workshop on the demandability of the right to education |
The Latin-American Campaign for the Right to Education continues to promote initiatives related to the demandability of the right to education throughout the region. UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, Vernor Muñoz launched the book ‘New Education Laws in Latin America’ (see below) and presented at a workshop on the 25th January in São Paulo. The meeting brought together 50 campaign activists from 12 Latin America Countries, Carmen Espinoza from the Inter-American Platform for Human Rights, Democracy and Development in Chile and Liliana Tojo, Director of Center for Justice and International Law in Argentina. Muñoz shared his belief that civil society must demand specific obligations from the state in regard to the Right to Education. The aim of the meeting was to give national campaigns better skills and ability to press charges and litigate their national governments that violate the human rights to education. Read the full article here |
Campaign calls for a Education Revolution in Ecuador |
28th February: Ecuador campaign submitted a proposal to the President of the Constituent Assembly, Alberto Acosta. They asked the government for an education legal framework that will address the educational crisis and address the country’s economic, political and social situation, claiming that the current education system binds the nation to the nightmares of the past authoritarian regime, oppression and ignorance. The campaign asks for an education revolution that will ‘citizenise education’ and provide an education that is empowering and fosters full human development in the country. Read the full proposal here |
| New global online ‘Right to Education Project’ |
A new web-based “Right to Education Project” aims to promote mobilisation and legal accountability. To make this as relevant and successful as possible the team is asking you to take just few minutes to fill out the online confidential survey here. This new Project is based on the resources around the work of Katarina Tomasevski (late former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education) and will be managed by ActionAid and the Global Campaign for Education. The project will not only make education laws accessible, but also link constitutional and public law on education with a hands-on approach to acquiring education rights and connect the many different actors that are at the forefront of the fight for education rights globally. Take a moment to fill the survey in here. Please address any questions to the Project coordinator, Peter Hyll-Larsen. |
Civil Society Engagement in Education Budgets: A Report Documenting Commonwealth Education Fund Experience |
Establishing civil society input into education budgets is key to the Education for All process, requiring capacity-building and enabling civil society organisations to more strategically and substantively influence budgetary decisions and decisions around education budget policy. This report documents Commonwealth Education Fund experience, illustrating how civil society can engage in the budget process through budget analysis; tracking disbursement flows through the education system; monitoring expenditure; and lobbying to influence budget allocations to the education sector. Download the paper on the CEF website: www.commonwealtheducationfund.org |
New Publications: Fe y Alegria |
The International Fe y Alegria Federation has two new publications. The first “Six proposals for dialogue and action to promise” to promote dialogue with other organizations, governments, education communities and society in general in order to promote an change of focus in education policies. The second “A better education for a better society”includes for dialogue and transformation in education for Latin America and Caribbean. |
| EDUCATION NEWS |
52nd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women |
25th February – 7th March: This session focused on the priorities of financing gender equality and empowering women, with a panel of experts hosted by the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI), UNICEF and the Working Group on Girls of the NGO Committee on UNICEF. Ruthi Hoffman-Hanchett of World Vision, represented the NGO community, and delivered the message that the primary responsibility in financing girls’ education lies with governments. She stressed that NGOs can play an important role in supporting governments through technical assistance, advocacy, research and data collection, but that the accountability should rest on states themselves. She also urged participants not to refer to girls as units of productivity, but as bearers of rights – an idea that was echoed by an audience member, who said: “Girls should be celebrated for who they are.” Read more here |
David Manning: Why We Need an Education Bank |
2nd March: David Manning’s article in the Financial Times argues that education is now an urgent security, foreign policy and developmental priority, and the time has come to think radically. He claims a ‘World Education Bank’ should be launched at this year’s G8, in partnership with Brazil, India, China and South Africa. Its sole purpose would be to promote education at all levels in any country that asked for help. Developing countries would be prime beneficiaries, and governments and international organisations will be the principal sources of funding. A World Education Bank would galvanise governments and the private sector to raise the estimated $10billion needed every year to reach the Education Millennium Development Goal – a global investment from which all would greatly benefit. Read the full article here |
Water plans for 1,000 schools |
12th March: The non-profit group ‘Water Advocates’ launched the ‘WASH-in-Schools’ Initiative that will bring clean drinking water, toilet facilities, and hygiene education to 1,000 schools in developing countries. Communities can reap the benefit of schools with safe water and hygiene facilities – as children stay healthier and learn more at school, and girls are less likely to drop out of school once they begin to menstruate. Yet there’s much to be done – as currently half of the world’s 1 million schools still don’t have clean drinking water or even a basic latrine. Find out more here |
India: Right to Education Bill delayed despite support from the Prime Minister |
16th March: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has emphasised upon the need for ensuring education for all sections of the society, stating: “If we have to harness the children’s’ talent to full potential, it is essential to concentrate, specifically on two things. First, enhancing the opportunities for higher education and second, it must be ensured that every section of society gets equal share of education.” Yet there have been delays the Finance Ministry and Planning Commission have failed to revert to the Ministry of Human Resource Development. Read news articles in The Economic Times and The Indian News |
Mauritania: Children get into school, but quality education decreases |
10th March: Although Mauritania looks set to meet the education Millennium Development Goal (MDG) – the quality education has plummeted. Classrooms are now overcrowded, and there are inadequate materials, classrooms and teachers to meet the education demands. The budget allocation to education has increased from 8.2% in 2005 to 14% to 2007 – but the investment is simply still far from enough. Read more here |
Malaysia: Free Education for All, says Prime Minister |
1st March: Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the government will ensure that all Malaysians receive free education. He said the government placed strong emphasis on education as it was important in efforts to create a progressive community who would be able to continue with the country's development in future. Read full article here |
Sudan: Hundreds of thousands of Darfur children not in school |
About 650,000 or half of all children in Darfur do not receive an education, despite efforts by various organisations to provide schooling in camps and towns across the western Sudanese region. Read the full article here |
Zambia: Call for an Adult Literacy Policy |
A new study funded by South Africa's Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa suggests that adult illiteracy fuels poverty, particularly in rural areas where more than 50% of women were illiterate compared to about 20% of women in urban areas. To date the government has no formal adult literacy policy, instead adults learn through programmes run by volunteers, or are sometimes forced to join government schools, with their children, and grandchildren. "The need for the [adult literacy] policy has become even more urgent as people are now beginning to respond more favourably to the call for education for all, which government committed itself to fulfilling," said Victor Koyi, chair of the Zambia National Education Coalition. Read the full article here |
The Global Campaign for Education (GCE)is a movement to end the worldwide crisis in education. Thousands of development charities, trade unions and child rights groups make up the national coalitions in over 100 countries. Together we campaign and lobby governments to make sure they act now to deliver the right of every girl, boy, woman and man to a free, quality education.
Regional & International Organisations: ActionAid International, ANCEFA, ASPBAE, CAMFED, CARE, CEAAL, Comic Relief, Early Childhood Care & Development, Education International, FAPE, FAWE, Fe y Alegria, Fundacion Ayuda en Accion, Global March Against Child Labour, Ibis, IDAY, Inclusion International, Latin America GCE Coalition, Leonard Cheshire Global Alliance, Light of the World: Christoffel Development Organisation, NetAid, OEB/CEDEAO, Oxfam International, Plan International, Public Services International, REPEM, Save the Children Alliance, SightSavers International, VSO, World Alliance of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, World Vision International
National Civil Society Coalitions: Albania: ACCE, Argentina: CAPDE, Armenia: ACRPC, Bangladesh : CAMPE, Benin: CBO-EPT, Bolivia: FEB, Brazil: CDE, Burkina Faso: CCEB, Cambodia: NGO Education Partnership, Cameroon: EFA Network, Canada: GCE Alliance, Chile: FECPT, Costa Rica: MERCC, El Salvador: CIAZO, France: Solidarite-Laique, Gabon: SENA, Gambia: GEFA, Germany: GCE, Ghana: GNECC, Guatemala: CETT, India: NCE, Indonesia: E-Net for Justice, Ireland: GCE Coalition, Japan: JNNE, Kenya: Elimu Yetu Coalition, Lesotho: LEFA, Liberia: LETCOM, Malawi: CSCQBE, Mauritius: DCI, Mexico: ICE, Mozambique: MEPT, Nepal: GCE, Nicaragua: Foro Net, Niger: ROSEN, Nigeria: CSACEFA, Norway: Union of Education, Pakistan: PCE, Peru: MPDEP,Philippines: E-Net, Romania: GCE, Senegal: CONGAD, Sierra Leone: EFA Network, Solomon Islands: COESI, South Africa: GCE-SA, Spain: GCE Coalition, Sri Lanka: CED, Sweden: EFA Forum, Tanzania: TEN/MET, The Netherlands: GCE, Togo: CNT/CME, Uganda: FENU, UK:GCE-UK, Vietnam: GCE, Zambia:ZANEC, Zimbabwe: Teachers Association
To apply for membership please contact yunus@campaignforeducation.org
Click here to unsubscribe.
If you have been forwarded this email and would like to subscribe please click here
Send e-newsletter enquiries and feedback to the editor Alex Kent at alex@campaignforeducation.org
Find out more about GCE on our website www.campaignforeducation.org