UNESCO CONFINTEA Bulletin September - December 2016

Posted December 24, 2016 - 10:46

Here is the September-December 2016 issue of UNESCO's CONFINTEA Bulletin:

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FOREWORD

The Third Global Report on Adult Learning and Education (GRALE III) was launched at UNESCO HQ in Paris on International Literacy Day, 8 September 2016. Since then, the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) has organized launches for the following regions: Africa (Ouagadougou), the Arab States (Amman), Europe and North America (Brussels), and Asia Pacific (Bangkok). More launches are scheduled in 2017 for the Latin America and the Caribbean and Africa regions, as well as for the Caribbean sub-region. The main partners of UIL are the regional and national UNESCO offices, the International Council for Adult Education (ICAE) and its regional branches, and DVV International.
In addition to the regional launches, UIL, in collaboration with UNESCO’s regional offices, civil society organizations and other partners, is planning the CONFINTEA VI Mid-Term Review, which will take place in the second half of 2017. Five regional reports on the development of adult learning and education policies from the five UNESCO world regions will serve as a starting point for the discussions and, ultimately, the recommendations that will pave the way forward to CONFINTEA VII in 2021. It is expected that the participants will re-position adult learning and education policies in the context of 2030 Agenda, focus on the Sustainable Development Goals and create a strong commitment to the further implementation of the regional action plans for the Belem Framework for Action.

Arne Carlsen Director
UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning

Translating principles into effective policies through UIL’s CONFINTEA Fellowship Programme

The UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL), through the CONFINTEA Fellowship Programme, seeks to build capacities of government officials in the field of adult learning and education (ALE). Global leaders agree that ALE empowers individuals and brings lasting benefits to societies, which is why they have committed to improve their countries’ ALE policies and practices in a series of international declarations since 2009, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
UIL launched the CONFINTEA Fellowship Programme in 2011; since then, it has hosted thirty-two Fellows from twenty-eight countries. In October 2016, UIL brought together senior government officials and NGO representatives from ten countries for an intense one-month programme overseen by UIL experts with support from Professor Kjell Rubenson (University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada).

Advocating for Adult Learning and Education in sub-Saharan Africa

The third Global Report on Adult Learning and Education (GRALE III) was launched in sub-Saharan Africa at a meeting held on 14 November 2016 in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Launching the report, experts from the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) presented analyses and recommendations on adult learning and education (ALE) in the region.

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Shedding Light on Adult Learning and Education in the Asia-Pacific Region

In a special Thai celebration to launch the third Global Report on Adult Learning and Education (GRALE III) in the Asia-Pacific region, participants lit candles to symbolize the light shed by the report on the important issue of adult learning and education (ALE). The launch event, which took place from 24 to 26 November 2016, in Bangkok in Thailand, was part of a Policy Forum on Youth and Adult Learning and Education, co-organized by International Council for Adult Education (ICAE), the Asia South Pacific Association for Basic and Adult Education (ASPBAE), the Institute for International Cooperation of the German Adult Education Association (DVV International), UNESCO Bangkok and the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL). More than 100 participants representing governments, civil society organizations, donor agencies and other stakeholders from 26 countries took part in the launch.

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GRALE III: Adult learning and education in the Arab States

The first Arab States regional launch of the third Global Report on Adult Learning and Education (GRALE III) took place on 1st to 4th October 2016 in Amman, Jordan, during a seminar entitled ‘Adult Education: Readings in the Failure and the Prospects for Renewal in the Arab World’. The seminar was attended by representatives of the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) as well as governmental and civil society organizations (CSOs) in the region. Over the course of the three-day meeting, participants discussed challenges currently facing adult learning and education (ALE) in the Arab States and identified ways of tackling these challenges. Participants stressed their commitment to realizing Sustainable Development Goal 4 by advocating for the recognition of ALE as a human right and a public good. They also emphasized the urgent need for quality education and the importance of achieving gender equality throughout the education system.

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Fresh momentum for adult learning and education in Europe

Adult learning and education (ALE) has a crucial role to play in helping Europe tackle diverse challenges, such as integrating migrants and responding to population ageing. On 13 October 2016, Mr Arne Carlsen, Director of the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL), visited Brussels to present UIL’s latest analysis, data, case examples and policy recommendations on the state of ALE in Europe. Mr Carlsen’s presentation was part of a series of launch events for UIL’s third Global Report on Adult Learning and Education (GRALE III). The Report draws on a monitoring survey of 139 countries, including 33 from Europe.

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GRALE III monitoring survey data for research purposes

The UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) is pleased to avail data on the third Global Report on Adult Learning and Education (GRALE III) to scholars and practitioners for research purposes. It hopes these data will prove useful in furthering our collective understanding of adult learning and education.

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