Interesting and important report from the World Bank on education in the Arab world…
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It said that although education was becoming more accessible and the gender gap was being reduced, the region had not witnessed the positive changes seen in Asia and Latin America, particularly in literacy rates and enrolments in secondary schools and universities.
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The report said unemployment in the Arab world averaged 14%, which is higher than other areas in the world, except Sub-Saharan Africa, with the Palestinian territories coming highest with nearly 26% percent.
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The report concluded that Jordan and Kuwait were the top educational reformers in the region, while Djibouti, Yemen, Iraq and Morocco ranked lowest in terms of access, efficiency and quality of education.
Another study carried out in January by the Tunis-based Arab League Educational Cultural and Scientific Organisation found that 30% of the approximately 300 million people in the Arab World were illiterate.
[Full Report: World Bank Report]
[Source: BBC News]
I think it’s obvious that education should be the number one priority on every Arab country’s agenda, because without it, we’re really going nowhere.
How accessible education is and how many people make it into schools is very important of course, but it’s only the first step, the even bigger step is to have quality: a well built and structured curriculum, a highly qualified teaching staff, well-equipped schools and classrooms, more resources for the students …etc.
I think that in many Arab countries we’ve made big strides in reducing illiteracy and putting the necessary laws and procedures in place to get children to schools, but we still have a lot of work to do on pedagogy, curriculums, environment and more.
Our whole future lies in how well educated our future generations are; That’s how important education is.
[Via: The Black Iris]