The Civil Society Action Coalition on Education for All (CSACEFA) in Kwara State joins millions across the globe to celebrate the International Day of Education 2022.
With the year theme, “Changing Course, Transforming Education”.
State Coordinator CSACEFA KWARA, Abdurrahman Akindele Ayuba, in a release made available to JUST EVENT ONLINE said, as it was detailed in UNESCO’s recent global Futures of Education report, transforming the future requires an urgent rebalancing or the relationships with each other, with nature as well as with technology that permeates our lives, bearing breakthrough opportunities while raising serious concerns for equity, inclusion and democratic participation.
He said, according to the UN, the 2022 celebration of the day should be a platform to showcase the most important transformations that have to be nurtured to realize everyone’s fundamental right to education and build a more sustainable, inclusive and peaceful futures. It should generate debate around how to strengthen education as a public endeavour and common good, how to steer the digital transformation, support teachers, safeguard the planet and unlock the potential in every person to contribute to collective well-being and the shared home.
The statement read in part, “And this is rightly and appropriately captured in the message of the UNESCO DG – Audrey Azoulay, which reads:
“In these exceptional times, business as usual is no longer an option. If we are to transform the future, if we are to change course, we must rethink education. This means forging a new social contract for education, as called for by the UNESCO report on the Futures of Education, released last November. We need to repair past injustices and orient the digital transformation around inclusion and equity. And we need education to fully contribute to sustainable development – for instance, by integrating environmental education in all curricula and by training teachers in this field.”
Education in itself is a human right, a public good and a public responsibility”, he said.
“And this is why the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 24 January as International Day of Education, in celebration of the role of education for peace and development.”
He added that, without inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong opportunities for all (SDG 4), countries will not succeed in achieving gender equality (SDG 5) and breaking the cycle of poverty (SDG 1 and 2).
Abdulrrahman, noted that over 258 million children and youth still do not attend 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, noting that their right to education is being violated and it is unacceptable.
He charged government to urgently act to make education accessible and eliminate all the barriers impeding access.
The CSACEFA – Kwara State, however, commended the efforts of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazak for accessing UBEC fund after years of blacklisting, massive recruitment of teachers, passage of Education Trust Fund bill among other strides.
He noted that the State is still far from what is desirable in the education sector, and to achieve the theme of year 2022 International Day of Education and as it relates to the sustainable development goal (SDG) 4 which prioritise inclusive and equitable quality education, the State must speed up action.
It reads in part;
“a – The stoppage of PTA fees and all other restrictive sundry charges in Basic Schools across the State.
b – Recruitment of more teachers as some Basic Schools are still facing challenges of inadequate teachers especially in the rural communities.
c – Reconstitution and retraining of School Based Management Committees (SBMCs) across the State
d – Renovation of more classrooms and provision of amenities across rural schools
e -Inauguration of the Board of Trustees of the Kwara State Education Trust Fund and take off of the Fund.”
He made a call to all stakeholders in the education sector to continue work with the policy makers and implementers to ensure the world achieve the goal of Access to Quality Education for All by the year 2030.
Thanks for the publication. More strength.