Education is a fundamental human right - Commonwealth ministers

"If your object is to transform general education, you have to begin with higher education. For higher education is the strategic heart of education; it's where choices are developed," said Mahmood Mamdani, highlighting the link between general and higher education.

Keynote speaker Prof. Mamdani was speaking during the 16th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (16CCEM) in Cape Town, South Africa, which convened ministers of educations and other delegates to discuss Access To Quality Education: For The Good Of All.

Malta was represented by Education Minister Louis Galea who said that, although in Malta education is accessible to everyone at all levels, it is still a top priority for Malta. Explaining how the government has committed itself to achieve the targets outlined in the document For All Children To Succeed, he said that the government's aim is to provide not only free education but also quality education to all.

The conference, which ran from December 11 to 14, and was chaired by South African Minister of Education Naledi Pandor and Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, was attended by delegations from 36 countries, 29 of which were led by ministers.

The ministerial meeting, which was inaugurated by Commonwealth secretary general Don McKinnon, included three parallel components - a Stakeholders' Forum, a Youth Forum, and, for the first time, a Teachers' Forum. The discussions of the three parallel fora provided an input into ministerial deliberations.

Delegates attending the Stakeholders' Forum discussed access to quality education, improving the quality of education, and financing and resourcing quality education. They acknowledged the key barriers that continue to obstruct access to quality education and suggested approaches to deal with them.

Delegates to the Teachers' Forum proposed that initiatives be developed to address the Education for All goals - six key education goals which aim to meet the learning needs of all children, youth and adults by 2015 - which build upon effective strategies and good practices for teaching and learning. The delegates also emphasised the need for regular monitoring and evaluation, given that several countries are still far from achieving the goals. The Unesco Education For All Global Monitoring Report for 2007 stated, in fact, that despite continued overall global progress at primary level, too many children are still not in school, drop out early or do not reach minimal learning standards.

"By neglecting the connections among early childhood, primary and secondary education and adult literacy, countries are missing opportunities to improve basic education across the board - and, in the process, the prospects of children, youth and adults everywhere," the report stated.

Young people attending the Youth Forum recommended to ministers the need for higher budgetary allocations according to the main priorities. They further recommended that the Commonwealth Secretariat facilitate the review of institutional frameworks of the education sector to address emerging challenges.

It was acknowledged that, although some Commonwealth countries have achieved universal primary education and others were close to achieving this goal, several countries were in danger of not meeting the agreed targets. This danger was largely attributed to lack of resources which act as a constraint to increasing enrolment and ensuring attendance.

In view of this, the ministers expressed the need for increased public spending in education, and reaffirmed that education is a fundamental human right and integral to the democratisation and development objectives of the Commonwealth. They reviewed the progress in education across the Commonwealth in the context of the Six Action Areas agreed at 15CCEM in Edinburgh 2003 and reaffirmed their commitment to accelerate the achievement of universal primary education, the elimination of gender disparities in education, the improvement of quality in education, the use of distance learning to overcome barriers, the support to education in difficult circumstances, and the mitigation of the impact of HIV and AIDS on education.

While expressing appreciation towards the Commonwealth Secretariat's specific interventions in identifying and sharing good practices, the ministers approved the Secretariat's proposed Work Plan for 2007-2010 and agreed to ensure continuing professional development of teachers, to develop and implement quality assurance measures, and to encourage and promote school to school links and at other levels of the system. Among other things, the ministers also agreed to expand access to secondary as well as tertiary education and to encourage and increase parental and community involvement in education.