2011 Annual Ministerial Review

The 2011 AMR was held during the High-level Segment (HLS) of the substantive session of the ECOSOC in July at Les Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. It focused on "Implementing the internationally agreed goals and commitments in regard to education".  There has been tremendous progress towards universal primary education (UPE) during the past decade, especially in developing countries. Limited access to education, high drop-out rates and grade repetition, and poor quality of education, however, remain important challenges to the full achievement of this goal. At least 72 million children of school age are still denied the right to education due to financial, social or other challenges, including high fertility rates, HIV/AIDS and armed conflict.

The 2011 AMR provided an opportunity for ECOSOC to:
 

• Assess the state of implementation of the United Nations Development Agenda with a focus on its education-related goals and objectives;
• Analyze key challenges affecting the achievement of the internationally agreed goals and commitments related to education;
• Consider recommendations and proposals for action, including new initiatives and partnerships to accelerate the implementation of education-related objectives at all levels;
• Promote broad-based engagement by encouraging input from a broad-range of stakeholders.

The Secretary-General’s Report on the 2011 AMR provided the basis for the discussion.

The AMR session also featured keynote addresses on education-related issues with the participation of Ministers of Education, Development Cooperation, Economics, Finance, Foreign Affairs, Executive Heads of UN Agencies, Funds and Programmes, and representatives of civil society, private sector and academia.

Eleven countries - Bangladesh, Republic of Belarus, Germany, Malawi, Mauritius, Pakistan, State of Qatar, Senegal, Turkey, and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela – made National Voluntary Presentations (NVPs) during the 2011 AMR session. The NVPs focused on progress made at the national level in implementing the Internationally Agreed Development Goals (IADGs), including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Several other activities took place at the national, regional and global levels in preparation for the 2011 AMR.

• Regional Preparatory Meeting on “Key Education Challenges in Latin America and the Caribbean: Teachers, Quality, and Equity”, 12-13 May 2011, Argentina
• Global Preparatory Meeting, 28 April 2011, New York
• Regional Preparatory Meeting on “The right to Education for All in Africa: Reinforcing quality and equity”, 12 April 2011, Togo
• Regional Preparatory Meeting for Asia and the Pacific, 24 March 2011, Bangkok, Thailand
• Philanthropy meeting on “partnering with the philanthropic community to promote education for all”, 28 February 2011, New York
• National workshops in preparation for the NVPs
• E-discussion on Education: Closing the Gap, 1 February - 4 March 2011
• Regional Preparatory Meeting for the Arab Region, 9 December 2010 Doha, Qatar
• Expert review of draft reports of the Secretary-General for the 2011 ECOSOC High-Level Segment on education

Outcome: Ministerial Declaration on "Implementing the internationally agreed goals and commitments in regard to education".