EDUCATION
Education for Rural People
The initiative seeks to address rural-urban disparities, which are a serious concern to governments and the international community as a whole. About 70 per cent of the poor live in rural areas. Despite the fact that education is a basic right in itself and an essential prerequisite for reducing poverty, improving the living conditions of rural people and building a food-secure world, children's access to education in rural areas is still much lower than in urban areas, adult illiteracy is much higher and quality of education is poorer.
Coordinators
FAO
Partners
FAO, UNESCO, ICRAF - World Agroforestry Centre of the CGIAR, IPGRI-International Plant Genetic Resources Institute, WFP, ILO, the Governments of Egypt and San Marino, Terre des Hommes, Italia and others.
Goals
Reducing the education gap among rural and urban populations.
Strategies
Placing education of rural people at the core of national EFA plans and strengthen institutional capacity to do so. Expand access to and increase attendance in and completion of schools in rural areas by promoting and supporting initiatives that aim at improving children’s nutrition and capacity to learn.
Activities and Achievements
National level: technical support to countries willing to address the basic educational needs of rural people by formulating specific plans of action as part of the national plans on EFA.
International level:
i) Advocacy and mobilization of partnerships for education of the rural people concentrating on strategic global, regional and international events, and encouraging the same within countries.
ii) Identification of capacities for different substantive components on education for rural people within partners institutions.
iii) Support for exchange of good practices and knowledge on education for rural people.
This Flagship Programme was launched in September 2002.