U.N. Sets Goal to Improve Attendance Rate at Primary Schools

By MARY HUI

Published: September 30, 2012, The New York Times

U.N. sets goal to improve primary school attendance

As world leaders met in New York for the opening of the U.N. General Assembly, the secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, took the opportunity to introduce the Education First initiative, the United Nations said last week.

“This is the first time that a United Nations secretary general has made education a priority. It is a historic decision,” Irina Bokova,Unesco’s director general, said on the organization’s Web site.

Only 2 percent of humanitarian aid goes to education, according to a Unesco report published last year.

At the core of Education First are three goals: putting every child in school, improving the quality of learning and fostering global citizenship. There are 61 million children of primary school age not enrolled in schools, according to a Unesco report due to be released Oct. 16.

“We cannot stop until every child, youth and adult has the opportunity to go to school, learn and contribute to society,” Mr. Ban said in the statement.

According to the U.N., businesses have already committed $1.5 billion to the initiative, which will work toward achieving universal primary education by a 2015 target date. — MARY HUI