Skip to main content

UNESCO report says adult education vital to community’s well-being

Image
By


New York – A new report by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) said that adult learning and education could improve health and well-being, employment opportunities and develop local communities.

The report, which was released by the UNESCO Director-Genera, Irina Bokova, was launched to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the International Literacy Day.

The report stated that “adult learning and education will help policy-makers to find high quality evidence to support policies, strategies and budgets.

“Stakeholders will find compelling arguments on how adult learning and education promotes sustainable development, healthier societies, better jobs and more active citizenship.”

The third Global Report on Adult Learning and Education (grale III) was produced by UNESCO’s Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL).

It took stock of countries’ progress in implementing commitments to adult learning and education (ALE) made at the 2009 International Conference on Adult Education.

Drawing on 139 countries’ response to the GRALE III survey, the report showed that most states made progress in ALE policy development, governance, financing, quality and reach since 2009.

Furthermore, 124 countries consider that ALE has had a strong impact on health and well-being, active citizenship, social cohesion, diversity and tolerance.

GRALE III also makes a case for the major contribution that ALE could bring to meeting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The UIL Director, Arne Carlsen, said “countries increasingly see ALE as an integral part of lifelong learning policies and part of a holistic, inter-sectoral sustainable development agenda to offer multiple benefits and have a lasting impact.

“However, better data is required on participation in non-formal ALE and its results.”

According to the report, 75 per cent of the countries registered a substantial improvement in their adult learning and education legislation, thanks to greater awareness of the potential of ALE since 2009.

It added that 60 per cent of countries reported overall increases in ALE participation rates over the same period.

Also, poor literacy was obstacle for progress in ALE as 758 million adults, including 115 million young people aged 15 to 24, around the world could still not read and write a simple sentence.

Sixty-five per cent of the countries surveyed identified lack of literacy as the main factor preventing adult learning and education from having a greater positive impact on health and well-being.

According to the report, 66 per cent of countries said literacy programmes helped develop democratic values, peaceful coexistence and solidarity.

“The gender gap is another challenge that needs to be overcome,” the report said.
“Social and community development is heavily dependent on women’s participation, but they don’t have equal access to literacy education or ALE.

“Yet they still account for 63 per cent of all adults with low literacy skills.

“It is however, encouraging to note that in 44 per cent of countries surveyed, women participated more in ALE than men,” the report said.

With examples from different parts of the world, GRALE III showed that ALE could help empower poor and disadvantaged populations.

It showed that it can improve their social connections, networks and communication skills but that often these were the very groups that were excluded from adult education.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Post

Buhari tells Nigerians to change for a better future

By
President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday set out his vision for a better Nigeria, imagining an incorruptible paradise where drivers don’t run red lights and internet scams are a thing of the past. In Buhari’s Nigeria, police turn down bribes from rich men driving SUVs, militants in the oil-rich Niger delta lay down their arms, rubbish is thrown in bins, not the street, and workers are on time. “I won’t sell my body for marks,” a student is quoted as saying in a promotional video to launch the initiative before a gathering of high-profile politicians in the presidential villa in Abuja. “I no go do yahoo yahoo or 419 again,” says another in pidgin English, referring to the online scams originating from Nigeria that have snared victims around the world. The “re-orientation campaign” conjures up images of social engineering and Big Brother-style state control but Buhari maintained it was first and foremost about a change in “mindset”. “We must resist the temptation to fall bac...
Post a Comment
Read more

Eating a combination of chilli and ginger could help prevent cancer

By
Past studies have suggested that capsaicin (an active component of chili peppers) may cause cancer. But in a new evidence by scientists, it was observed that the spicy compound in ginger, 6-gingerol, could counter the harmful effects of capsaicin. Researchers at the American Chemical Society, Washington DC, USA found out that eating chilli and ginger together could help prevent cancer. The compounds in ginger and chilli – capsaicin and 6-gingerol –bind to the same receptor on cells. They fed mice prone to lung cancer either capsaicin or 6-gingerol, or a combination of the two compounds. Mice fed with just capsaicin alone developed lung tumours, while those fed with 6-gingerol also had the disease. Interestingly, a large part of mice fed with both capsaicin and 6-gingerol didn’t develop lung cancer. Scientists are, however, optimistic that future studies will focus more on how exactly the compounds interact to help reduce cancer risk.
Post a Comment
Read more

Meet Ime Archibong; the Nigerian who runs things @Facebook

By
Looking at Facebook’s Director of Strategic Partnerships, Ime Archibong, one sees the figure of a Hollywood honcho; the type who keeps you glued to the tube in a box office thriller-crime movie. With his huge, tall frame sitting on a well built macho body, Archibong could have passed for another Arnold Schwarzenegger or Sylvester Stallion of Rambo fame. The difference, however, is that Archibong plies his trade in Silicon Valley and not in Hollywood. He directs activities at Facebook and not on a movie set. He leads the team focused on accelerating Facebook’s product strategy by establishing partnerships, driving product integrations and unlocking new business opportunities with leading companies across multiple industries and sectors. Call him Zuckerberg’s deputy and you would not be far from the truth, because they seem to be Siamese twins in fashioning new ideas that have transformed Facebook into something much more than a social media initiative. The fact that they are ...
Post a Comment
Read more