Guterres: End discriminatory laws that block access to education

The Secretary General of the UN sends his own message on the occasion of the International Day of Education Antonio Guterres. “Now is the time to put an end to discriminatory laws and practices that prevent access to education,” he declares.

“THE education it is a fundamental human right, it is the foundation of societies, economies and the potential of every individual” he emphasizes and urges civil society and youth to continue to demand more and better investment in quality education.

“Let’s keep the flame of change burning. Let’s create education systems that can support equal societiesdynamic economies and the boundless dreams of every student in the world,” he notes.

However, he is quick to stress that without adequate investment, these possibilities will be lost, stating that it is always shocking to him that education is given such a low priority in many government policies and tools of international cooperation.

In this context, Antonio Guterres proposes that “we must invest in people and give priority to education”.

In particular, Mr UN secretary general underlines that investments are vital to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4 for Quality Education”. Addressing last year’s Summit on Transforming Education to redefine education systems so that every student has access to the knowledge and skills needed to succeed, Antonio Guterres notes that more than 130 countries have pledged to ensure that universal quality education will become a central pillar of public policies and investments.

“A call to action on investment in education and the creation of the international financing mechanism for education created a new impetus for domestic and international funding,” he notes according to the Athens News Agency.

It also recalls that the Summit launched a series of global initiatives to strengthen support for education in crisis environments, girls’ education, elementary education, teaching transformation, digital tools and green education systems.

In this direction, the UN Secretary General declares that it is time for all countries to translate their commitments at the Summit into concrete actions that create supportive and inclusive learning environments for all students. “Now is also the time to put an end to all discriminatory laws and practices that prevent access to education” he emphasizes and calls on the Taliban in Afghanistan in particular to “reverse the outrageous and self-destructive ban on girls’ access to secondary and higher education ». It also encourages countries to put education at the heart of preparations for the Sustainable Development Goals summit in 2023 and the Future Summit in 2024.