Ahead Of GPE Financing Conference, Civil Society Organisations Adopt Joint Statement On Education Financing

Approximately 250 civil society members from 40 countries around the world met to adopt a joint statement about education financing and the role of civil society in the replenishment process. The event, held on January 31st in Dakar, Senegal, was jointly organized by the Global Campaign for Education (GCE), the Africa Network Campaign on Education For All (ANCEFA) and Coalition des Organisations en SYnergie pour la Défense de l’Education Publique (COSYDEP), ahead of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) Financing Conference.

On the statement, GCE president, Camilla Croso said:

This is the voice of civil society. It’s important we had an opportunity to convene, engage and now take our perspective forward to both the member states and GPE partners at the Replenishment Conference

What became evident through the day’s proceedings is that civil society will have a vitally active role in ensuring pledges made at this year’s Replenishment Conference are implemented equitably and effectively over the period to come. Now, more than ever, bold and credible pledges towards education financing must be made to ensure the SDG4/Education2030 agenda is met within its timeframe.

Recent projections show at the current rate of education financing, this agenda will be off track by at least 50 years. Civil society demands #EducationNow and adequate, sustainable and equitable funding to achieve this. Civil society is ready to hold states accountable for promises made to funding education.

The joint statement asserts the following:

• Public quality education is a human right – one that must be financed sustainably and comprehensively. To achieve the right to education for all, states must ensure that education budgets should be at least 6% of national GDP or 20% of national budgets.
• With respects to education budgets, the following four concerns must be examined: the size of the budget overall; the share of budget towards education; sensitivity of the budget towards equity and inclusivity, as well as scrutiny of the budget (by civil society actors) to ensure effective spending.
• Tax justice is required to ensure states have a large enough tax base to finance education domestically.