Solution for all children to complete primary school in Africa

Significant numbers of children are spending six years in primary school and still not being able to read a complete sentence, adding to this, there is a rising numbers of children out of school in sub-Saharan Africa; the latest report by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) paints a gloomy picture of the state of the world’s education.

Progress towards goals set in Dakar 12 years ago has been patchy, and the biggest failure, according to UNESCO, has been on the promise made there to equip teenagers and young adults with the skills they need for life.
Its Global Monitoring Report for 2012, published today, argues for the crucial importance of educating young people to the point where they are ready for the world of work, able at the very least to read, write and add up, and with the common sense, confidence and interpersonal skills needed for any kind of employment.

As societies modernize, totally unskilled jobs tend to disappear. Factory or domestic workers are expected to be able to follow written instructions. Petty traders have to be able to deal with bureaucracy and manage their finances. Farmers cannot take advantage of new ideas without the education to hear about them and understand them.

As UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova says, “education is not only about making sure all children can attend school. It is about setting young people up for life by giving them opportunities to find decent work, earn a living, contribute to their communities and societies and fulfil their potential. At a wider level, it is about helping countries nurture the workforce they need to grow in the global economy.”

For international funding, this has been the Cinderella sector of education. Donors have been happy to contribute to the achievement of the second goal set in Dakar - the provision of free and compulsory primary education for all. But UNESCO’s latest report says that funding for secondary and vocational education often gets squeezed in favour of higher education.