1. ASIA & PACIFIC CONFINTEA VI PREPARATORY CONFERENCE Seoul, Rep of Korea, Oct 2008
Highlights from Contextual Review
&
Recommendations for Action to Promote Adult Learning and Education

2. Review Highlights 1. Broader Development Issues 2. Adult Learning Issue

3. Review: Broader Development Issues
Over 60% (4 billion people) of world population; 2/3 of all illiterates
Great diversity (e.g over 3,500 languages spoken)
Disparities within countries
Poverty
Unemployment
Exclusion
Cross-border migration
Environmental degradation
Participation in democratic processes based on human rights, social justice…
AL is central to addressing the developmental challenges in the region 3

4. Education for All Dakar Goals and Millennium Development Goals
EFA Goals
MDGs
Expand and improve comprehensive early childhood care and education
Universal primary education by 2015
Learning and life skills programmes for youth and adults
50% increase in adult literacy rates by 2015
Gender parity by 2005 and gender equality by 2015
Improving quality of education
Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
Achieve universal primary education
Promote gender equality and empower women
Reduce child mortality, and other health goals
AL can contribute to the achievement of these goals

5. Review: Adult Learning Issues
Uneven development in AL. Many countries have a long way to go in providing learning opportunities for adults; in a few countries the need is to deepen the gains
Low priority and low investment in AL
Poor access to high quality AL opportunities especially for women
Poor/inappropriate organizational structure
Low level of professionalization of AL facilitators and limited involvement of HE institutions
Poor coordination and weak linkages among stakeholders
Lack of data, poor monitoring and evaluation 5

6. Recommendations Address 5 areas: 1. policy 2. Financing 3. Quality
4. Participation and Inclusion
5. Monitoring and Evaluation 6

7. Policy Create conditions for exercising the right to education for all
Cast AL within an overarching Lifelong Learning Framework using a sector-wide approach and integrated with EFA, MDGs PRSPs and NDPs; 7

8. Achieving EFA within a Lifelong Learning Framework
CE /AL through all modes within a
LLL framework
Continuing Education
(mainly non-formal & informal)
Age
Learning is fundamental for humans of all ages. Learning starts from womb to tomb- throughout life. Lifelong learning is an integrated scope of education, which covers formal, non-formal and informal education.
Blue color is enrolment rate in formal school. At the primary school aged children, the enrolment rate is less than 100% in many countries in the region. About 17 million children do not go to school in South Asia and 3 million in East and Pacific region. The enrolment rate is decreasing in secondary education to higher education. The dark green color shows that there is still a number of children is non-enrolled in school and drop out from school.
Adult illiteracy rate is high in 9 countries in Asia and the Pacific and remain below world average in South and West Asia which is home to half of the world’s illiterate adults. Since formal school cannot cater all children to school, there is a need to have another channel of learning for them in order to achieve EFA goal which is through NFE as highlighted in light green. NFE and informal education should be available for disadvantaged youth and adults to acquire literacy skills and lifelong learning. .
Non-formal basic education
School/formal Education
Population (%)

9. Financing View AL as an investment
Recommit to CONFINTEA V agreement to allocate 6% of Education budget to AL
Liberate new resources for AL and literacy through better management of Education budget
Decentralize resource allocation powers within education to sub-national levels
Include within FTI AL & education provision including through non-formal mode 9

10. Quality Build knowledge base on AL
Strengthen professional capacity of AL facilitators
Strengthen institutional capacity and AL networks
Develop Equivalency Programme frameworks through national quality accreditation and quality standards setting 10

11. Participation and Inclusion
Establish affirmative action strategies to address inequalities
Form national high-level oversight bodies to mobilize and coordinate work of AL stakeholders
Strengthen partnerships between government and NGOs/community-based organizations
Establish networks of multi-purpose community-based learning centres to form a base for AL
Provide free assessment services and labour market information
Include and apply local knowledge/wisdom in AL 11

12. Monitoring and Evaluation
Strengthen data collection & information management system on AL at local and national levels
Coordinate mapping of AL and generate disaggregated information & learning needs & appropriate approaches to reach the neediest and most disadvantaged
Develop monitoring and quality assurance at regional and /or global levels using qualitative and quantitative indicators (UNESCO / UIL to develop these indicators to check progress in meeting CONFINTEA VI targets).
Form an Asia –Pacific Commission to monitor progress in AL in the region
A mid-term review be conducted by 2015 to coincide with EFA MDG timelines to report on national implementation of CONFINTEA VI 12

13. Next Steps…including linking with National EFA Processes
Implementation of recommendations within the global Belem Framework of Action to be adopted at the International Adult Education Conference (CONFINTEA VI) in Brazil in May 2009.
Translating/contextualizing the recommendations to suit the national contexts
Incorporating AL actions within the EFA national action plan and into the EFA implementation and monitoring processes … 13

14. UNLD Draft Strategic Framework for the Remaining Years of the Decade
See separate document. P refer to draft strategies for the Asia Pacific region.
Throughout Asia, illiteracy is largely concentrated in populations that are marginalized from the mainstream. Reaching these disadvantaged groups is the overarching challenge for increasing literacy levels in Asia. 14 14