The State of the World's Children 1999

Carol Bellamy, Executive Director, United Nations Children's Fund

Contents

Foreword by Kofi A. Annan, Secretary-General of the United
Nations

Chapter I

Education For All: Making the right a reality

The State of the World's Children 1999 reports on the
efforts of the international community to ensure that all
its children enjoy their human right to a high-quality
education -- efforts that are resulting in an 'education
revolution'. The goal of this worldwide movement: Education
For All.

Towards that end, the work of governments, non-governmental
organizations, educators, communities, parents and children
is informed by a definition of education that includes, but
goes far beyond, schooling. Within this definition,
education is an essential human right, a force for social
change -- and the single most vital element in combating
poverty, empowering women, safeguarding children from
exploitative and hazardous labour and sexual exploitation,
promoting human rights and democracy, protecting the
environment and controlling population growth. Education is
a path towards international peace and security.

This chapter includes examples of initiatives that meet the
child's right to education at the international, regional,
national and local levels. It is divided into three
sections. 

The right to education: This section explores the historical
context in which children's right to education has been
repeatedly affirmed in the 1948 Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the
Child, the 1990 World Summit for Children and the 1990 World
Conference on Education for All, held in Jomtien (Thailand). 

The education revolution: As the world's commitment to the
principle of Education For All is put into practice at the
local level, certain elements have emerged as necessary for 
its success: Schooling should provide the foundation for
learning for life; it needs to be accessible, of high
quality and flexible; it must be gender sensitive and
emphasize girls' education; the State needs to be a key
partner; and it should begin with care for the young child.

Investing in human rights: Despite the progress of the last
decade, the education revolution seems in danger of being
cut short by an apparent dearth of resources and growing
indebtedness in the developing world. This section argues
that, despite these obstacles, education is one of the best
investments a country can make in order to prosper. It calls
for the political will necessary to make the vision of
Education For All a global reality.


Chapter II

Statistical tables
Education is a multilinked variable in a country's statistical profile
-- connected not only to the obvious measure of literacy but also to a
range of other indices including mortality, fertility and life expectancy
rates, population growth, nutritional status and economic progress.
The eight tables in this report profile 193 countries listed
alphabetically. The countries are measured by basic indicators,
nutritional status, health status, educational levels, demographics,
economic indicators, the status of women and the rate of progress on
major indicators since 1960. Countries are shown on page 93 in descending
order of their estimated 1997 under-five mortality rates, which is also
the first basic indicator in all tables.

General note on the data
Explanation of symbols
Under-five mortality rankings
Regional summaries country list

Tables
1  Basic indicators
2  Nutrition 
3  Health
4  Education
5  Demographic indicators
6  Economic indicators
7  Women
8  The rate of progress

Panels

 1   Education in free fall: A region in the midst of
     transition
 2   What children understand: The Monitoring Learning       
     Achievement project
 3   Beyond the ruler: Competency-based learning in Tunisia
 4   Second-hand computer, first-class vision: Thailand's    
     CHILD project
 5   A Tanzanian school welcomes the disabled
 6   The floating classroom: School clusters in Cambodia
 7   Joyful learning: Empowering India's teachers
 8   Which language for education?
 9   A new beginning: Education in emergencies
10   In India: Helping the poor choose school
11   Egypt's community schools: A model for the education of
     girls
12   The macho problem: Where boys are underachieving
13   Women educators push the limits for girls in Africa
14   Parent education: Supporting children's first teachers

Spotlights

Sub-Saharan Africa
Middle East and North Africa
South Asia
East Asia and the Pacific
Latin America and the Caribbean
Central and Eastern Europe, the Commonwealth of Independent
States, and the Baltic States
Industrialized countries

Text figures

Fig.  1  Children out of school
Fig.  2  Net primary enrolment, by region (around 1995)
Fig.  3  Reaching grade five, by region (around 1995)
Fig.  4  International milestones for education
Fig.  5  Net primary enrolment, by region (1960-2000)
Fig.  6  AIDS orphans: A looming education crisis in         
         Sub-Saharan Africa
Fig.  7  Primary enrolment: Where the boys and girls are
Fig.  8  Education's impact on child mortality
Fig.  9  At a glance: The gender gap in primary education    
         and related indicators
Fig. 10  Generational impact of educating girls
Fig. 11  Who benefits from public spending on education?
Fig. 12  School mapping
Fig. 13  MEENA: An animated advocate for girls' rights
Fig. 14  Cost of education for all by the year 2010

References

Glossary

Foreword

Education is a human right with immense power to transform.
On its foundation rest the cornerstones of freedom,
democracy and sustainable human development.

Yet, as The State of the World's Children 1999 report points
out, 130 million children in the developing world are denied
this right -- almost two thirds of them girls. Nearly 1
billion people, or a sixth of the world's population, are
illiterate -- the majority of them women. This is a
violation of rights and a loss of potential and productivity
that the world can no longer tolerate.

Half a century ago, the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights spelled out a global vision for peace and prosperity
that included the right to education. The Convention on the
Rights of the Child -- the most widely ratified human rights
treaty in history -- enshrines the right of all children to
a primary education that will give them the skills they need
to continue learning throughout life.

This report demonstrates that the right to education is
guiding classroom practice, shaping curricula and finding
practical expression in schools around the world. It is
establishing schools as oases of respect and encouragement
for children. It is giving us classrooms where the
principles of democracy are upheld and embraced. It is
contributing to enhanced retention rates and reduced
drop-out rates.

Motivated students leave school more prepared to take up the
reins of the future; they are better empowered to improve
their own lives and, later, the lives of their children.
When the right to education is assured, the whole world
gains. There is no instant solution to the violations of
that right, but it begins with a simple proposition: that on
the eve of the 21st century, there is no higher priority, no
mission more important, than that of Education For All.
 
Kofi A. Annan
Secretary-General of the United Nations