Pojdi na glavno vsebino

Global Action Week 2017

8. marec 2017

Dear ASPnet National Coordinators,

The 2017 Global Action Week for Education (GAWE) will take place from 23 to 29 April and will focus on the theme of “Accountability for SDG 4 and Citizen Participation”.

As you may know, Global Action Week for Education is a worldwide annual advocacy campaign organized by the Global Campaign for Education (GCE), with active support from UNESCO, to raise awareness of the importance of education. GCE is a civil society movement, established in 1999, that seeks to ensure that governments act to deliver the right of everyone to a free, quality, public education.

About the 2017 Global Action Week for Education

Citizens speaking out together can have a powerful impact on government policy and action. The 2017 Global Action Week for Education will stress the importance of clear, accountable and participatory governance for delivering on the commitments of the global education agenda. It will promote the vital role of citizen participation in education policy making and monitoring progress towards the targets of the global education goal. 

Civil society, teachers and educators, the private sector, communities, families, youth and children all have important roles in realizing the right to quality education. They need to be engaged and involved at all stages, from planning through to monitoring and evaluation, with their participation guaranteed and long lasting.

It is imperative for all actors to be held accountable to one another: international organizations should be accountable to the governments, education ministries and other related ministries to citizens, donors to national governments and citizens, and schools and teachers to the education community and, more broadly, to citizens.

To check whether governments are following through with targets, great attention needs to be paid to whether financial resources are reaching the most vulnerable populations and least developed countries. Improving accountability can improve the use of existing financial and other resources, as well as make sure that financing reaches the classrooms.

For more about the 2017 Global Action Week for Education please go to https://en.unesco.org/node/269613

What is the global education agenda?

In September 2015, 193 world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development – to end poverty and hunger, to combat inequalities, to build peaceful and inclusive societies, to protect human rights and promote gender equality and to ensure the lasting protection of the planet by 2030. Education, essential to reaching all of the Goals, has its own dedicated Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4), which aims to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.”

‪SDG4 has 10 targets to stimulate action across governments, UN system, civil society, NGOs, local communities, and global citizens. These 10 targets range from the completion of free primary and secondary schooling for all by 2030, to the elimination of gender and income disparities in education, equal access to affordable vocational training, and universal access to quality higher education. SDG4 with its 10 targets is what makes up the global education agenda.

Its call to all actors is urgent. 263 million children and youth are still out of school, disproportionately affecting those in countries affected by conflict; 250 million children lack basic skills, and 758 million adults, two thirds of whom are women, cannot read or write. There is an annual financing gap of US $39 billion to provide 12 years of free education to all children and adolescents in developing countries. 

With the new education agenda, the governments have a plan to tackle all these challenges but it is everyone’s responsibility to make sure they fulfil their promises. We believe that SDG 4 is only going to be reached if everyone is aware and takes action.

What can your school do?

Schools can take action in support of the campaign at any time, but the key moment to get engaged is during Global Action Week for Education, from 23 to 29 April 2017. This week provides an opportunity to raise awareness of the global education agenda and bring attention to the importance of citizen participation in reaching the education goal.

We are therefore asking ASPnet members to actively take part or organize activities around the theme of accountability and citizen participation in education. This could involve: 

  • Inviting parents and members of the local community to participate in a school event around accountability and citizen participation.
  • Politicians being invited to address the class, to talk about how are they being held accountable to their citizens or what the government will do to support accountability in education and citizen participation, in their district, country, or around the world. 
  • Students and teachers having an opportunity to question the politicians on relevant policies including on what measures currently exist to foster citizen participation in education governance and what the government is planning to do to ensure better accountability in education.

We also invite you to help us raise awareness about the 10 targets of SDG 4 by taking part in a social media campaign by 12 April 2017. 
For information on how to take part in the campaign kindly refer to the attached document entitled “GAWE 2017 Social Media Campaign”.

Schools are welcome to create materials as required for their own campaigning purposes, but they are also welcome to use the resources that GCE will prepare for general use for the campaign. Materials such as campaign posters, logos and photos will be available to download at www.campaignforeducation.org.

We thank you for your contribution and look forward to hearing from you.

Unit for UNESCO’s Associated Schools Network (ASPnet)
Division for Inclusion, Peace and Sustainable Development
Education Sector

GAWE 2017 Social Media Campaign

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