The Education for All movement is a global commitment to provide quality basic education for all children, youth and adults. The movement was launched at the World Conference on Education for All in 1990 by UNESCO, UNDP, UNICEF and the World Bank.
In 2000, six goals were formalized at the World Education Forum in Dakar, with the aim to promote education as a fundamental human right. A deadline to reach those targets of 2015 was set.
In 2005, the International Association of Universities (IAU) set out to investigate how universities could contribute to achieving these targets through collaboration. The HEEFA project was born – Higher Education for Education for All.
At the same time the United Nations has been mobilizing the world to define the post-2015 development agenda. In this process a wide array of stakeholders have been working together to reflect on education beyond 2015.
Higher Education has, however, so far played a minor role in UNESCO’s efforts towards Education for All – a fact that makes the efforts of IAU and the establishment of HEEFA crucial. Under the HEEFA framework, a series of workshops on Higher Education and Education for All has been organized, with the aim to “think outside the box.”
As a IAU member organisation The Association of Swedish Higher Education (SUHF) felt a wish to contribute to the work of HEEFA. Early 2014, SUHF took the initiative by investigating the interest among a number of Swedish Universities. A very positive response led to the establishment of an international steering committee, in October 2014. At the same time it was decided that a good way forward would be to take advantage of, and strengthen, the many well-established Swedish–African partnerships that existed among the interested universities.
During the last couple of months Swedish and African university partners, brought together by common interests, have been merged in intensive collaboration around the four themes of the conference. The result – eight workshops – will constitute the core of the conference, a long side a range of interesting keynotes.
Participants will be able to learn from forward-thinking research, establish new collaborations, and at the same time play a role in an event that will influence and advance the future of Education for All beyond 2015.
Goals
- Identify factors for success for advancing Education for All through Higher Education and research
- Improve the awareness of and involvement in Education for All among Higher Education representatives
- Promote mutual learning between Swedish and African partner universities
- Establish new collaborations and strengthen already existing collaborations
- Forward conclusions and suggestions to the UNESCO World Education Forum in Korea, May 2015