Stressing the importance of quality education for the future of young people and children, senior United Nations officials, including the head of its education agency and the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ youth envoy, called for cooperation to strengthen education and learning programmes in all corners of the world.
¡°No single country or agency can tackle the challenges of demographics, persisting conflicts, unequal access of girls and women to education, radicalization by groups with vested interests or environment degradation,¡± Audrey Azoulay, the Director-General of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (), said in a??(in French), referring to her participation at the Global Partnership for Education Financing Conference.
¡°Partnership is the only way to make this possible,¡± she added.
Convened by the Presidents of France and Senegal, in Dakar, the Conference seeks to raise funds to support education efforts in both humanitarian and non-humanitarian contexts. It is also the first time that a donor and a developing country are co-hosting the event.
Also speaking at the Conference, Jayathma Wickramanayake, the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ Secretary-General¡¯s Envoy on Youth, highlighted the importance of empowering young people with the skills they would need to adapt in a fast changing work.
¡°In a world of rapidly advancing digital technologies and artificial intelligence that will impact the outlook of the future of work, we have to rethink our approaches on skills development,¡± said Ms. Wickramanayake.
¡°Beyond traditional classroom interventions, investing in non-formal and informal learning is essential to developing skills that fit the world of tomorrow,¡± she added.
With over half the global population under the age of 25, the world ¡°cannot afford to not invest in education,¡± expressed Ms. Wickramanayake and urged leaders and policy makers to redouble their efforts to ensure that every young person can enjoy their universal right to education.