Call for Stronger Literacy Funding at the Global Education Meeting 2024

At the Global Education Meeting session on "Fostering Youth and Adult Literacy and Education" held on 31 October 2024, participants called for increased and sustainable financing to expand high-quality, transformative literacy and education programmes for adults.

In today's complex world, lifelong learning is more essential than ever. However, many remain deprived of their right to education, lacking critical literacy, technical, and vocational skills, as well as the knowledge, attitudes, values, and behaviors needed to become active citizens and contribute to sustainable development.

Promoting Youth and Adult Literacy and Education as a Right to Education and Lifelong Learning

The session explored how youth and adult literacy and education, as core components of the right to education and lifelong learning, can advance Sustainable Development Goal 4 and drive societal transformation. "We must build an inclusive, resilient, and gender-transformative ecosystem that supports lifelong learning for individuals of all ages and backgrounds," emphasized Isabell Kempf, Director of the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning, during her opening remarks. Mr. Andreas Schleicher, Director of Education and Skills at the OECD, further emphasized this aspect in his intervention: "We should change the narrative from every child completing primary school to every person having basic literacy skills"

She reminded participants that with the adoption of the Marrakech Framework for Action in 2022, Member States worldwide committed to realizing a right to lifelong learning. "We should honor our commitment to leave no one behind. All young people and adults-men and women, persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, refugees, and migrants-deserve the opportunity to develop basic skills such as literacy and numeracy," she continued.

Strengthening Lifelong Learning Ecosystems for Marginalized Populations

The Global Report on Adult Learning and Education 5 (GRALE5) reveals persistent gaps in participation, with nearly one in four countries (23%) reporting adult learning rates below 1%, and only 16% of the 102 countries surveyed achieving participation rates above 50%. Yet, H.E. Mr. Sukanta Majumdar, Union Minister of State of India, and H.E. Mr. Maide Hamite Lony, Secretary of State of National Education and Civic Promotion of Chad, underscored the importance of literacy and lifelong learning for economic development and social justice, particularly for marginalized groups. Ms. Nelsy Lizarazo Castro, General Coordinator of CLADE and Vice-President of the Global Campaign for Education (GCE), added that youth and adult literacy programmes must be adapted to different contexts, racial, gender and socio-economic needs are already being implemented by civil society organizations and that "what is missing is a dialogue that allows for these experiences to be scaled up into public policies".

Expanding access to quality provision of Youth and Adult Literacy and Education for Peaceful, Sustainable Societies

Literacy is essential for building peaceful societies. H.E. Mr. Augustin Antoine, Minister of National Education and Professional Development of Haiti, highlighted the role of literacy in addressing critical social issues in his country: "Providing suitable education for young people excluded from mainstream schooling or unfortunately recruited by gangs is imperative. Our educational programs must equip these vulnerable youth with skills for employment or self-employment to improve their prospects."

Securing Adequate, Pro-marginalized, and Sustainable Funding for Youth and Adult Literacy and Education

Despite commitments to enhance public funding for adult learning, 57% of the 102 countries surveyed in GRALE5 allocate less than 4% of their national education budgets to adult literacy and education. Katarina Popović, Secretary-General of the International Council for Adult Education, stressed that "Sustainable financing for literacy should be seen as an investment in social and economic resilience. Governments and donors must recognize literacy as integral to health, employment, and civic engagement, as well as a foundation for all other educational domains."

These key messages took shape since the beginning of the session, which opened with moment of testimony from Ms. Luciana Graciano Gomes da Silva, an indigenous learner from Brazil, who shared the transformative power of the adult literacy programme 'Accesible Literature', in the presence of Ms Carina Alves, the programme's Founder and Director, which was awarded with the UNESCO Confucius Literacy Prize in 2022 The session concluded with a strong call to action, urging countries to intensify efforts to achieve meaningful impacts by 2030. Through collaboration and renewed commitment, participants agreed, we can build a more equitable and sustainable future in education.

Background

Held on 31 October and 1 November 2024 in Fortaleza, Brazil, the Global Education Meeting (GEM) addressed the role of education in bridging inequalities, transforming societies, and promoting sustainable development. Organized by UNESCO and hosted by the Government of Brazil, GEM brought together leaders to accelerate progress on the SDG 4 Education 2030 Agenda. The meeting concluded with the adoption of the Fortaleza Declaration, charting a transformative path for education systems worldwide.

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