Conakry, May 2, 2023 – Under the High Patronage of the Prime Minister and Head of Government, Dr Bernard Goumou, the Ministry of Pre-university Education and Literacy (MEPUA), the Ministry of Technical Education, Vocational Training and Employment (METFPE) and the Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation (MESRSI) are organizing a regional workshop on the deployment of the new funding model of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) in collaboration with UNICEF and GPE.
This workshop brings together the Republic of Guinea, Mali and the Central African Republic, which face similar educational, political and socio-economic challenges. They are classified as fragile countries in the field of education.
The out-of-school rate for children of primary school age is slightly lower (34%) than the average for comparator countries (39.9%). The average learning poverty rate in the region is 88%; this means that only 12% of children in school can read and understand an age-appropriate passage at the end of primary school. The proportion of young women married at 18 is higher (56%) than the average for the comparator countries (48.4%).
The workshop’s objective is to bring together governments, partners and key players in the education sector to collectively lead a discussion to support priority reforms so that every child can have access to quality education.
“The Government led by Dr. Bernard GOUMOU under the foresight of President Mamadi DOUMBOUYA, Head of State, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, is convinced that education remains the lever for the sustainable development of our country. To this end, improving the quality of education through the professionalization of our teachers remains a priority for our government that we intend to promote with the support of development partners, particularly those working in this field. This is why the objectives of the Global Partnership for Education are noble and in line with the current policy of the Guinean government," declared Alpha Bacar BARRY, Minister of Technical Education, Vocational Training and employment.
Education is a fundamental right for every child. However, some children do not have access to education for reasons related to gender, disability, poverty, ethnic origin, language, displacement from their place of origin or because of a humanitarian emergency.
Moreover, schooling is not synonymous with quality education and learning. The lack of trained teachers and appropriate teaching materials, makeshift classrooms and poor sanitation facilities prevent many children from learning in good conditions. Others are too hungry, too sick or too exhausted from work or domestic chores to take advantage of education services offered.
“The learning crisis poses a major challenge for preparing children and adolescents for adult life, the world of work and civic participation. Without the skills necessary for lifelong learning, children have a harder time earning a decent income and securing employment as adults. They are more likely to experience negative health outcomes, and less likely to participate in decisions that affect them, threatening their ability to build a better future for themselves and their community. All children have the right to go to school and learn, regardless of their identity, where they live and their family's income,” said Félix ACKEBO, UNICEF Representative in Guinea.
The workshop is an opportunity to develop a collective understanding of the new Global Partnership for Education 2025 model in the three countries facing similar challenges and to leverage peer-to-peer exchanges as a way to steer countries towards dialogue on priority reforms based on data and evidence.
"The Global Partnership for Education has been supporting Guinea, Mali and the Central African Republic for several years so that more children can go to school and receive a quality education," said Jo Bourne, Technical Director at GPE. "Through this workshop, the three countries are showing their determination to fight more effectively against the education crisis that has hit the whole world even harder since the COVID-19 pandemic, and to identify the priority reforms that will help transform their education systems.”
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Note to Editors
About UNICEF
UNICEF promotes the rights and well-being of every child, in everything we do. We work in 190 countries and territories around the world with our partners to make this commitment a reality, with a special effort to reach the most vulnerable and marginalized children, for the benefit of all children, everywhere.
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About the Global Partnership for Education (GPE)
GPE is a shared commitment to end the global learning crisis. We mobilize partners and funds to help nearly 90 lower-income countries transform their education systems, so that every child can receive the quality education they need to unlock their potential and help build a better world.
www.globalpartnership.org
Media contacts
- Mamadou Alpha Assiatou Baldé, Lead for communications at the Ministry of Technical Education, Vocational Training and Employment
+224 622 68 00 41 - @email - Sibylle Catherine Desjardins, Communications Lead, UNICEF Guinea
+224 624 93 18 14 - @email - Tamara Kummer, Communitions Lead, GPE.
+ 33 7 82 26 07 18, @email