‘Sky Is the Limit’ for Youths When Resources Paired with Effective Education Policy | Division for Inclusive Social Development (DISD)

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s video message for the international launch of the Education for All Global Monitoring Report:

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, UNESCO’s (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Education for All Global Monitoring Report has been tracking global progress since 2002.

Today’s report concludes that we have much work ahead. Only a third of countries have met their education goals. Only half have achieved universal primary education.

Yet the report also details many stories of success. Fifty million more children are in primary school today than would otherwise have been if previous trends had continued. The number of children and adolescents out of school has been cut by almost half.

A number of countries have seen dramatic improvements in primary enrolment — including in the priority area of girls education as well as pre-primary education.

We know progress is possible when effective policy is matched with resources and will.

This is a crucially important lesson as we shape the post-2015 development agenda — and work to advance the goals of our Global Education First Initiative to get every child to school, ensure quality education and promote global citizenship.

We know when we work together and invest in the future, the sky is the limit for young people. Let us harness the power of education to build a better future for all.