G20 Summit in Korea: EI calls for education to be a priority
The next summit of G20 leaders will be held in Seoul from 11-12 November. To make education a priority, EI is calling on its member organisations to actively campaign to place education higher on the G20 agenda.
The purpose of the joint action would be to link the global advocacy that EI is developing at the international level with the national action that education unions are putting in place in their own countries. This would allow unions to effectively bring the attention of world’s leaders onto the necessity of implementing quality Education For All.
In order to do so, EI intends to get a declaration of principles on priority for education at the Seoul summit, with a mandate for the French government to work with EI and inter-governmental organisations on specific proposals for the 2011 G20 summit in Paris.
Within this declaration of principles there are three key messages that EI wants to communicate to global leaders and those governments attending the G20 Summit.
First of all, quality Education for All, especially for girls, is achievable in every country. As UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon said at the Millennium Development Goals Review Conference: “political will is needed to mobilise resources and to achieve EFA by 2015.”
Secondly, current levels of youth unemployment present a great risk for all countries. As a solution, the strategy for vocational education and training presented by G20 Labour and Employment Ministers in March 2009 must be implemented.
Thirdly, quality public services, including education and health, are critical for sustainable recovery. As a vital investment in the future, education must be protected from ‘exit strategies’ and budget cuts.
World Teachers’ Day, on 5 October, is a good starting point and occasion for unions across the planet to raise global awareness about the importance of education in our world. This year the theme is ’Recovery begins with teachers’, to highlight the profession's vital role in encouraging and sustaining recovery from all kind of crises.
