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The full report is available the UNICEF web site at:
http://www.unicef.org/scwc99/
Contents
Foreword by Kofi A. Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations
Chapter I
Education for All: Making the right a reality
The State of the World's Children 1999 reports on the efforts of the
international community to ensure that all its children enjoy their
human right to a high-quality education - efforts that are resulting
in an 'education revolution'. The goal of this worldwide movement:
Education for All.
Towards the end, the work of governments, non-governmental
organisations, educators, communities, parents and children is
informed by a definition of education that includes, but goes far
beyond, schooling. Within this definition, education is an essential
human rights, a force for social change - and the single most vital
element in combating poverty, empowering women, safeguarding children
from exploitative and hazardous labour and sexual exploitation,
promoting human rights and democracy, protecting the environment and
controlling population growth. Education is a path towards
international peace and security.
This chapter includes examples of initiatives that meet the child's
right to education at the international, regional, national and local
levels. It is divided into three sections.
The Right to Education: This section explores the historical context
in which children's right to education has been repeatedly affirmed,
for example, in the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the
1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child, the 1990 World Summit for
Children and the 1990 World Conference on Education for All, held in
Jomtien (Thailand).
The Education Revolution: As the world's commitment to the principle
of Education for All is put into practice at the local level, certain
elements have emerged as necessary for its success: Schooling should
provide the foundation for learning for life; it needs to be
accessible, of high quality and flexible; it must be gender sensitive
and emphasize girl's education; the State need to be a key partner;
and it should begin with care for the young child.
Investing in Human Rights: Despite the progress of the last decade,
the education revolution seems in danger of being cut short by an
apparent dearth of resources and growing indebtedness in the
developing world. This section argues that, despite all these
obstacles, education is one of the best investments a country can
make in order to prosper. It calls for the political will necessary
to make the vision of Education for All a global reality.
Chapter II
Statistical Tables
Education is a multilinked variable in a country's statistical
profile - connected not only to the obvious measure of literacy but
also to a range of other indices including mortality, fertility and
life expectancy rates, population growth, nutritional status and
economic progress. The eight tables in this report profile 193
countries listed alphabetically. The countries are measured by basic
indicators, nutritional status, health status, education levels,
demographics, economic indicators, the status of women and the rate
of progress on major indicators since 1960. Countries are shown on
page 93 in descending order of their estimated 1997 under-five
mortality rates, which is also the first basic indicator in all
tables.