Education systems around the world need "more, not less money" the
Secretary-General António Guterres, speaking alongside his Special Envoy for
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, 2/3 of countries have cut their education budgets.But education is the building block for peaceful, prosperous, stable societies.- @antonioguterres at Joint Press Stakeout with @GordonBrown @TransformingEduWatch: https://t.co/hLSCGVnCi5--
He reminded that the "world is experiencing multiple crises", and governments, businesses and families everywhere are feeling the financial strain.
Moreover, since the COVID-19 pandemic began, two-thirds of countries have cut their education budgets.
"But education is the building block for peaceful, prosperous, stable societies," he stressed.
"Reducing investment virtually guarantees more serious crises further down the line".
Education support needed 'urgently'
The top
He argued that while wealthy countries can increase funding from domestic sources, many developing nations are being hit by the cost-of-living crisis.
"They urgently need support for education,"
Resource mechanism
He then spotlighted the role of the International Finance Facility for Education to get financing to lower-middle-income countries - home to 700 million children who are out of school - and to the majority of the world's displaced and refugee children.
The
"In time, we expect it to grow into a
"It will complement and work alongside existing tools, like the
The Secretary-General congratulated his Special Envoy and all the countries and institutions involved in getting the facility off the ground.
"I urge all international donors and philanthropic organizations to back it," he said.
Taking steps forward
Earlier today Deputy Secretary-General
"But loud and clear, we need more and better financing," she stressed. "We can't do this with fresh air, it has to be fueled".
She described education as "a huge ecosystem" that supports many other lofty goals and called for "a sense of urgency" in scaling up projects.
"No more pilot projects, we know exactly what to do" she said. "It's all about taking steps forward".
Building a future
The three-day Transforming Education Summit kicked off yesterday at
It began with a day of youth-led mobilization, which included contributions from the Secretary-General, his deputy, and the President of the 77th
Tomorrow, the
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