Today, the Arab Campaign for Education (ACEA) is opening its first regional conference on financing education in Beirut, Lebanon, under the title “Financing Education 2030: Revisiting the role of civil society in the region of Middle East & and East Europe”.
The conference coincides with the Global Action Week for Education (GAWE) focusing on accountability to Education 2030. It is happening shortly after the GPE Dakar conference so as to consolidate and reinforce the advocacy for better financing of education in the region.
Education partners come together to share experiences
Participants from the Yemen coalition during Global Action Week for Education 2018.
The ACEA conference brings together national and regional civil society coalitions, main stakeholders and key players of the education sector in the region. Contributions are expected from those who fill in the financing gap, such as Education Cannot Wait and the Global Partnership for Education (GPE); networks that set standards of work, like the Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE); supporting agencies (UNESCO, Open Society Foundations, GIZ); and practitioners from the field whose every day challenge is to make education accessible to all, including those affected by conflicts and emergencies such as the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).
The conference draws from the rich experience of global and regional civil society organizations. The Global Campaign for Education and regional implementing partners in Latin America, Africa and Asia Pacific are showcasing their advocacy work in the area of education financing.
ACEA, the host of this conference and regional coalition for education in the Middle East and East Europe, shows that civil society plays a major role in enhancing accountability systems to the 2030 Education Agenda. Coalitions from Yemen, Somalia, Lebanon, Iraq are slated to present reports about their work on principles of conflict sensitive education and the lessons they learned from it.
The Palestinian coalition focuses on a case study on its successful work to advocate for better-financed and inclusive education for disabled children; the Sudanese coalition elaborates on the case of education programming for the Badu and the need for more financing for such programs. In addition, education coalitions from Albania, Georgia and Moldova present good practices on advocacy for more inclusive education.
The conference was designed to include open exhibitions (a space where all organizations can showcase their work: materials, videos, etc) and panel discussions to ensure maximum sharing of lessons and experiences among local, regional and international actors.
Civil society’s essential role in ensuring the right to education
Participants from the Jordan coalition during Global Action Week for Education 2018.
Prior to the ACEA conference, national coalitions in the region already started their GAWE campaigns. The Palestinian coalition launched a marathon in Gaza to draw public’s attention to the need for better financing for inclusive education services.
The Yemeni coalition for education conducted several meetings with decision makers and stakeholders in governorates of Sana’a, Aden and Dhamar to discuss education budgets and challenges. The Egyptian coalition for education conducted several activities bringing together regional education officials and school students to discuss how education services can be better financed and improved.
Events such as GAWE and the ACEA conference are vital in enhancing and showcasing collaborative efforts of global, regional and local actors advocating for better financing for education. With the help of major donors for education, these efforts should be documented and shared widely to keep the momentum going beyond these events.