The International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF, from its French acronym) and the Global Partnership for Education have recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen their collaboration.
Through this document, the two organizations commit to working together to promote education and training in the countries where they work. They also commit to act in synergy to ensure that their resources are used efficiently and to avoid duplication of efforts.
Their common objectives are threefold:
- Improve learning outcomes through sharing of knowledge and innovations. In particular, the OIF and the Global Partnership, through its Global and Regional Activities program (GRA), collaborate in the ELAN initiative (Ecole et langues nationales en Afrique), which will produce better understanding of the challenges and lessons to increase teaching and learning in national languages and French in multilingual contexts.
- Support global and regional networks. The OIF is the lead agency for the establishment of a francophone community of good practice in reading and dialogue among key European and African research institutions. The Global Partnership will support the OIF in establishing links with other networks and communities of interest to promote better reading and learning in all languages.
- Strengthen education systems in francophone countries. Through exchange of information and experience and joint advocacy, the two organizations will encourage the countries they support to place education at the center of national policies, to increase funding for education and to reach stronger results in quality education for all.
The OIF’s mission is to embody active solidarity among its 77 member states and governments (57 members and 20 observers), who share the French language, and to organize political activities and actions of multilateral cooperation that benefit French-speaking populations, respect cultural and linguistic diversity and serve to promote the French language, peace, democracy, human rights and sustainable development.
The Global Partnership for Education is the world’s only multilateral education fund, bringing together 60 developing country governments, as well as donors, civil society/non-governmental organizations, teacher organizations, international organizations and private sector firms and foundations, to create and fund sustainable education systems.