October 2009 - The importance of education in the fight against poverty raised by 14 leading African Finance and Education Ministers in their October 1 letter to their counterparts from OECD donor countries was discussed at a High-Level Roundtable on Financing Education for All at the World Bank Annual Meetings in Istanbul on October 4. The meeting was co-chaired by the Danish Minister for Development Cooperation, Ms. Ulla Tørnæs, and Managing Director of the World Bank, Mr. Graeme Wheeler. Donor representatives such as Minister Koenders from The Netherlands and UK Secretary of State Douglas Alexander emphasized the need for sustained and long-term support for the Education for All - Fast Track Initiative (EFA FTI) from the broader donor community and the urgency to address the education needs of conflict-affected countries. Two African Ministers who had signed the letter of appeal to donor colleagues, Mr. Lucien Bembamba, Minister of Finance from Burkina Faso and Mr. James Musoni, Minister of Finance from Rwanda, stressed the importance of education as a driver for socio-economic development and lauded the work of EFA FTI. "In the framework of aid harmonization and effectiveness, I would like to say that FTI is one of the most appropriate instruments for donor coordination, and this has demonstrated good results", according to Rwandan Minister Musoni.
Other participants reiterated their shared commitment to achieving the Education Millennium Development Goals by 2015 and underlined the convincing results achieved by EFA-FTI countries especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. Another highlight of the meeting was a presentation on the One Goal Campaign by Kailash Satyarthi, chairperson of the Global Campaign for Education, and the premiering of a video clip that aims to attract at least 30 million active supporters worldwide during the World Cup Football in June 2010. Prior to the meeting, FTI's new publication "A Fast Track to 2015: Educating the world's children for a better future" was released, highlighting EFA FTI's main results in the 38 low-income countries it supports.
- Full Transcript
- Letter of the 14 African Ministers to their counterparts from OECD donor countries
- Press release issued October 1, 2009
- Providing Schooling for 72 million Children by 2015: An Overview of the Roundtable on EFA FTI in Istanbul, October 2009
Overview of Press Coverage
African countries seek for aid. Vanguard, Oct. 2, 2009
The World Bank on Thursday in Istanbul venue of this year IMF/World Bank meeting disclosed that Some African Finance and Education Ministers have written to development and finance ministers in leading Organisation of Economic Corporation and Development OECD (read more)
African ministers urge help for poor students during crisis. China View, Oct. 4, 2009
Istanbul, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- Fourteen leading African finance and education ministers Sunday appealed to wealthy governments for financial help to keep their young students in school during the global economic crisis. (read more)
African Ministers calls for more funding of basic education. Uganda Education News, Oct. 6, 2009
Ministers of Finance and Education from different African countries have appealed to developed countries to commit more funds to help developing countries provide basic education to children unable to go to school.
Rwanda: Musoni Urges Donors to Commit More Resources to Education. All Africa.com, Oct. 5, 2009
Istanbul - Finance Minister James Musoni has urged wealthy governments to continue providing financial support to education in spite of the current global economic crisis, as this will help African countries achieve economic growth and development. (read more)