The UNESCO Institute for Statistics, UIS, has said 262 million children and young people are still out of school while 617 million children and adolescents can neither read nor perform simple calculations.
The statistics were released by UNESCO in a statement to mark the maiden edition of the International Day of Education, today, Jan. 24.
The release further disclosed that less than 40 per cent of girls in sub-Saharan Africa complete secondary education and nearly four million children and young refugees are out of school describing such as “an attack on their right to education and unacceptable.”
In her message to mark the day, the Director General of UNESCO, Mrs. Audrey Azoulay noted that the world was still far from achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 4, which talks about education for all.
She said: “we must give a new impetus to global cooperation and collective action. Our challenge is to ensure that education benefits everyone by promoting inclusiveness and equity at all levels so that no one is left behind. This requires attention to girls, people living with disabilities, those living or affected by HIV, migrants, internally displaced persons and refugees, supporting teachers and ensuring that gender equality is better reflected in education and training.”
She further noted “an urgent need to strengthen national resources and international aid, because not investing in education will lead to deepening divisions, inequalities and exclusion within societies.”
The theme for this first edition is “Education: Key Driver for Inclusion and Empowerment.”
On December 3, 2018, the United Nations General Assembly adopted by consensus a resolution proclaiming January 24 as “International Day of Education” to celebrate the role of education for peace and development.
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The adoption of resolution 73/25 entitled “International Day of Education”, co-presented by Nigeria and 58 other Member States, demonstrated the unwavering political will to support transformative actions towards inclusive education.
In the release, UNESCO pointed out that education is transforming lives and is at the heart of its mission of building peace, eradicating poverty and promoting sustainable development.
It noted that “UNESCO considers education as a human right for all, and that access to education goes hand in hand with quality.”
Nigeria is at the forefront of the celebration of the first edition of International Day of Education. Mr. Tijjani Muhammad Bande, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations, presented the resolution to the General Assembly, noting that the proclamation of 24 January “International Day of Education ” was an important step towards promoting education as a fundamental aspect of sustainable development.
He also emphasised that education is not only a human right, but also key to sustainable development.