There is no better way to recognise this International Day of Education by celebrating getting more than 6000 children into education, who would not normally be able to attend a pre-school class as they live too far away.
The children in the picture above have been enjoying their ‘graduation’ from their participation in the School Readiness Programme, prior to entering primary school.
Their right to education has been ensured!
The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 24 January as International Day of Education, in celebration of the role of education for peace and development.
Education is a human right
The right to education is enshrined in article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The declaration calls for free and compulsory elementary education. The Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted in 1989, goes further to stipulate that countries shall make higher education accessible to all.
Education is key to sustainable development
When it adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in September 2015, the international community recognized that education is essential for the success of all 17 of its goals. Sustainable Development Goal 4, in particular, aims to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” by 2030.
Challenges to achieving universal education
Education offers children a ladder out of poverty and a path to a promising future. But about 244 million children and adolescents around the world are out of school; 617 million children and adolescents cannot read and do basic math; less than 40% of girls in sub-Saharan Africa complete lower secondary school and some four million children and youth refugees are out of school. Their right to education is being violated and it is unacceptable.
Without inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong opportunities for all, countries will not succeed in achieving gender equality and breaking the cycle of poverty that is leaving millions of children, youth and adults behind.
Transforming Education, Building our Future
The Transforming Education Summit was convened in response to a global crisis in education – one of equity and inclusion, quality and relevance. Often slow and unseen, this crisis is having a devastating impact on the futures of children and youth worldwide. The Summit provided a unique opportunity to elevate education to the top of the global political agenda and to mobilize action, ambition, solidarity and solutions to recover pandemic-related learning losses and sow the seeds to transform education in a rapidly changing world.
2023 celebrations
The fifth International Day of Education will be celebrated on 24 January 2023 under the theme “to invest in people, prioritize education”. Building on the global momentum generated by the UN Transforming Education Summit in September 2022, this year’s Day will call for maintaining strong political mobilization around education and chart the way to translate commitments and global initiatives into action. Education must be prioritized to accelerate progress towards all the Sustainable Development Goals against the backdrop of a global recession, growing inequalities and the climate crisis.
UNESCO is dedicating this year’s International Day to girls and women in Afghanistan who have been deprived of their right to education. It is calling for the immediate lifting of the ban restricting their access to education.
International Day for Education 2023 aims to:
Generate visibility from local to global level on prioritizing education to reach the SDGs
ahead of the SDG Summit, building on the outcomes of the TES
Promote and showcase the national statements of commitment at country level and
mobilize political and financial support for translating them into action
Encourage wide take-up of the global initiatives launches at the TES to accelerate
foundational learning, get every learner climate ready through greening education,
promote public digital learning, advance gender equality in and through education and
ensure learning continuity in situations of emergency and protracted crisis
Advocate for higher levels of domestic and international financing, including through
innovative sources, building on commitments at the TES.
Provide youth a platform to build on the TES youth declaration, relay their demands and
showcase their initiatives and innovations to advance the right to education
Rally influencers to push forward the global education movement calling on world
leaders to stand by their commitments and prioritize investment in education and
educational transformation
Capacity Building for Sustainable Development 