Literacy is a goal pursued by all societies. What is the real reason that moved the whole world towards achieving this goal?
”..Literacy empowers individuals and it expands people’s capabilities and freedom of choice.” Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO Director General. [7]
Every human being on the face of the globe has the right to learn and read, in his home, by his parents and family first, and proceeding to school and then university. A life-long right, with no time limits and no ultimate goal. Although the learning process goes hand in hand with our daily life, for one reason or another, many human beings are deprived of this right.
In 1966, UNESCO declared September 8 as International Literacy Day to emphasize the importance of reading and learning and to push individuals and communities alike to pursue it. The idea of the International Literacy Day was the result of the events of the World Conference of Ministers of Education, which was held for literacy on September 18 and 19, 1965 in Tehran, the capital of Iran.
In addition, the issue of literacy is a key goal of the Sustainable Development Goals. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) promote access to quality, equitable and inclusive education for all and promote lifelong learning opportunities, and it’s the Fourth of their goals. [1]
Education is the key to the improvement and economic and social development of the individual. Despite the available means and facilities, about 260 million children were still out of school in 2018 — nearly one-fifth of the global population in that age group. And more than half of all children and adolescents worldwide are not meeting minimum proficiency standards in reading and mathematics. [2]
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected education; as it has revealed the disparities and shortcomings that exist in the educational systems of each society, as well as other economic and social aspects.
While some developed countries have adapted to the closure of schools by resorting to distance education. [1]
About 6.1 billion children and young people have dropped out of school by 2020 [2], so their learning journey has been disrupted. This is a result of the digital divide and other inequalities between countries, such as the lack of permanent availability of electricity or internet connection, as well as the inability to have access to electronic devices or even the ability to use them. [1]
To ensure that children have access to continuous learning, UNESCO launched the COVID-19 Global Education Coalition in March 2020. It is a multisectoral partnership between the United Nations family, civil society organizations, the media, and Information Technology Partners. Its objective is to design or deploy innovative solutions as well as address communication gaps and facilitate learning opportunities and the return of students to school when it reopens to avoid an upsurge in dropout rates. [2]
First of all, it is worth mentioning that UNESCO has been at the forefront of the issue of literacy since 1946. To promote literacy, UNESCO is taking the following steps to promote literacy:
UNESCO has also created a strategy for youth and adult literacy (2020-2025) that includes four strategic priority areas:
The UNESCO International Literacy Prizes have been awarded since 1967. In order to honor the contributions made by institutions, organizations, or individuals in the framework of literacy. [1]
Through these awards, also seek to support effective literacy practices and encourage the advancement of dynamic literacy communities.
There are currently two International Literacy Awards, namely:
-The UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize (3 awards): Established in 1989, with the support and funding of the government of the Republic of Korea. This award gives special consideration to mother language-based literacy development.
-The UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy (3 awards): Established in 2005, with the support of the government of the People’s Republic of China. This award gives special consideration to functional literacy, leveraging technological environments, in support of adults in rural areas and out-of-school youth.
Each winner of one of these two prizes will receive a medal, a certificate, and prize money (20 thousand US dollars for the winner of the King Sejong prize, and 30 thousand US dollars for the winner of the Confucius Prize.). [5]
Syria has always strived to work on literacy, in 1972 it passed the literacy law. Thus, the illiteracy rate has decreased significantly, as statistics indicate in the past few years that this percentage has decreased from 19% in 2004 to 14.2% in 2007, although this percentage was more than 50% in the late sixties. The governorates of Quneitra, Suwayda, and Tartus were also declared illiteracy-free governorates in 2008.
Many official parties have contributed and continue to contribute to literacy, including the Directorate of adult education and cultural development at the Ministry of culture. In addition to a number of popular organizations such as the women’s Union, the Revolutionary Youth Union, and others. [6]
In conclusion, we would like to point out that based on the goals of our initiative to achieve equality and the advancement of women and their education, we see great importance on this day.
We call on everyone to follow their learning path, not give up and lose hope no matter what happens. There are no limits to what you can achieve.
♀️ Uplifting Syrian Women Initiative aims at sustainable peace building in Syria through targeting women and providing them with free online courses, workshops, discussion sessions and trainings, with a view to achieving the goals of Gender Equality, Quality Education and Decent Work and Economic Growth, which all fall into the interest of society as a whole and serve the purpose of rebuilding it.
References:
[1] UN Observances
[2] UN Education
[3] UNESCO Themes
[4] UNESDOC
[5] UNESCO
[6] Alnnour
[7] UNESCO Articles