BRIEFLY: Let’s find new ways of funding inclusive education

“More innovative forms of financing – at both the domestic and the international level – must be found if Education for All is to become a reality,” argues Nicholas Burnett, former Director of the Education for All Global Monitoring Report,  in an article in Global magazine. “A key first step should be to establish a high-level international task force on education finance, following the successful example of the health sector, to raise the profile of education and education finance and to consider alternative ways of funding inclusive education.” Burnett, formerly Assistant Director-General for Education at UNESCO, leads the education group at the Results for Development Institute, where he is a principal and managing director.

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3 comments

  1. education is fundamental to empower poor people.t educate all should be the vicarious responsibility of all govts.when you do any thing ‘for’ others. it involves consumerism and control.the new millennium dev goal should be
    ” education of all”. think of 24/7 schools. free education with components of livelihood. any needy can come at any time and get educated.not shops open and shut.

  2. The article states that… “More innovative forms of financing – at both the domestic and the international level – must be found if Education for All is to become a reality,”

    I have worked in international education for almost 20 years and must say that the issue that never goes away is that “everything takes money.” When dealing with learners that do not have the ability to pay but need the new education the most I have often grown tired of waiting for the process of attaining funding from people who are not familiar with the culture or specific content that I deal with so have relied almost entirely on what some call “friend raising”, i.e. soliciting help from those whom I know well and who know me well and know what I (and our organization are doing). The flip side I have discovered too is that with funding comes at least some expectation of control which often does not work well. I will applaud the ones who come up with money up front, quick turnover, realistic expectations and the willingness to become a knowledgeable partner in the endeavors.
    David

  3. The most common slogan today the world over is that inclusive education/education for all. This remains a slogan because there is more talking than action and commitment. At international and national levels, talk of high percentages of budgets earmarked for education sector is prominent, but actual expenditures are inadequate. Innovative ways of financing education should be sought and adopted, partly through sharing of good practices as in health and other parts of the world. Targeting the most disadvantaged groups/minorities in financing education also offers better results and impact in the short term than continued uniformity in resource allocations. While soliciting for additional resources is key, utilisation of available resources should be based on priorities in education that have been clearly identified and ranked for greater impact.

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