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www.unesco.org
Funding gap for education growing, according to new figures released by UNESCO
Study also proposes ways to close
New calculations by UNESCO’s Education for All Global Monitoring Report reveal that the $16 billion annual external funding gap to achieve basic education (1) in low-income countries by the 2015 target date has widened to $26 billion over the last three years. This gap chiefly affects the achievement of universal primary education, the second Millennium Development Goal.
The data is published in a policy paper released ahead of a decisive global consultation on education in the post-2015 development agenda in Dakar, Senegal (18-19 March).
The paper, Making Education for All Affordable by 2015 and beyond, says that stagnating aid to basic education in low-income countries, which runs at an average of $3 billion annually, is the main reason for the $10 billion increase in the funding gap.
Although domestic spending on education has increased by $3 billion annually in low-income countries in recent years, it still only amounts to half the amount required to achieve basic education for all.
The study shows that filling the funding gap is possible if governments and donors prioritize education and target those most in need.  -
Click on the graphic to see the full details
There is widespread support in the international community for extending the education goal to include lower secondary school. The funding gap would increase from $26 billion to $38 billion each year if this more ambitious goal is endorsed. The study states that this gap could be reduced from $38 to $7.6 billion if governments and donors were to prioritize basic and lower education in their budgets.
A number of options are outlined to fill the remaining gap. Allocating five per cent of the proposed International Financial Transaction Tax to education would raise $2.4 billion. The donor base could also be widened by increasing aid contributions from the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) that currently give an estimated $163 million to basic education in low-income countries. As their economies grow, they will have potential for financing more ambitious goals after 2015. The private sector represents another source of additional financing: its contribution to basic education in developing countries still remains minimal.
For Pauline Rose, Director of the Education for All Global Monitoring Report, the lesson is clear: “After 2015 we cannot take it for granted that resources will be available to meet international commitments. Our key recommendation for those who are setting goals is that they must include a new, time-bound, measurable financing target to hold donor and recipient governments to account for ensuring that all countries provide everyone with a good quality education.” UNESCO’s paper is a contribution to the global discussion on education leading up to the 2015 deadline for achieving the Education for All goals.
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