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UNESCO LAUNCHES MAJOR INITIATIVE TO HALVE ILLITERACY IN WORST-AFFECTED COUNTRIES |
| New York,
Oct 6 2005 12:00PM The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) today announced the launch of a major programme aimed at halving illiteracy rates by 2015 in more than 30 countries where the problem is most severe. ˇ§The important thing is to bring new resources and fresh energy to address the literacy challenge, and for everyone to work together towards the same end, namely the progressive eradication of illiteracy,ˇ¨ UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura said today at the organizationˇ¦s General Conference in Paris. The Literacy Initiative for Empowerment (LIFE) will focus on 34 countries where more than 50 per cent of the population and/or over 10 million people cannot read and write. Bangladesh, Egypt, Haiti, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal and Yemen will be targeted in 2006, followed by two more groups of States in 2008 and 2010. Two-thirds of illiterate people are women, while the largest group of those without access to education are women and out-of-school girls, according to UNESCO. LIFE will target them and focus on rural areas, often home to the poorest and most marginalized members of society. 2005-10-06 00:00:00.000 |