The educational challenge in Africa is a challenge for the entire planet, as this continent represents the future: by 2050, one in four people will be African. Yet, 98 million children in sub-Saharan Africa are not enrolled at school, and nearly 86 percent struggle to achieve basic literacy by age 10.
To work toward closing this gap, the African Union declared 2024 the "Year of Education," and at the end of its summit, held on February 17 and 18 in Addis Ababa, released a set of guidelines and recommendations on education in the 21st century. These priorities will be announced for the first time in Italy, to inaugurate the year of the Italian presidency of the G7, during the event "Education, a common emergency" organized by Global Partnership for Education, as part of Civil 7, in collaboration with the Italian Coordination of Diasporas for International Cooperation (CIDCI), AVSI, Save The Children, Global Campaign for Education, Global Compact on Education, and the Community of Sant'Egidio.
Education is not a topic just for development cooperation or global investment funds. Education is linked to the development of us all, to the most debated and divisive issues of today, from the climate crisis to migration, from economic instability to the proliferation of wars.
Giampaolo Silvestri, AVSI Secretary General
Building on the Italy-Africa Summit, the event aims to highlight how Africa and the G7 can increasingly work together to face this historic educational challenge.
"Education, a joint emergency": the event program
February 22, 2024 | 1:30 PM to 3:30 PM UTC | Hotel Nazionale (Sala cristallo), piazza Montecitorio, Rome, Italy
Africa's priorities on education
- Laura Frigenti, CEO of Global Partnership for Education
- Ruth Kagia, Education advisor of the Global Partnership of Education to the African Union
- Francine Niyomuhoza, Youth Education African Leader
- Ezio Lorenzo Bono, Vatican Global Compact on Education, "Cultura per l'Educazione" Foundation
The contribution of the Italian G7 presidency on education
- Stefano Gatti, General Director for Development Cooperation
- Serena Lippi, Sherpa G7 of the Italian Ministry of Education
- Members of the Italian Parliament active on the theme of education
Recommendations from Italian civil society involved in education in Africa
- Mani Ndongbou Bertrand Honore, President of the Italian Coordination of Diasporas for International Cooperation
- Giampaolo Silvestri, AVSI Secretary General
- Daniela Fatarella, Save the Children
- Evelina Martelli, School of Peace, Community of Sant'Egidio
- Emanuele Russo, Coordinator of the Italian coalition of the Global Campaign for Education
- Riccardo Moro, C7 Chair
Moderator: Luca Liverani, Journalist of the Italian newspaper Avvenire
How to participate
Write to Elisabetta Galgani for accreditations egalgani@globalpartnership.org
