MP calls on Hull schools to help achieve 'Education For All'

Hull North MP Diana Johnson today called for all schools, teachers and pupils in Hull to back the 'Education For All' initiative to ensure that every child in the world has the opportunity to go to school.

The 'Education For All' initiative was launched yesterday (10 April) by Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown MP, International Development Secretary Hilary Benn MP and Nelson Mandela.

In 2005 'Make Poverty History' forced Governments to make promises on aid. 'Education For All' is an initiative to turn those promises into reality and that over the coming 10 years, country by country, school by school, child by child education for all is secured.

The UK Government will spend at least £8.5 billion, or $15 billion, on investment for education over the next ten years: four times larger than over the last 10 years.

For the first time Britain will enter into 10 year agreements with poor countries to finance 10 year education plans locking in the long-term commitment vital to delivering high quality education for all.

The Department for International Developmement (DFID) will support countries in developing and expanding their 10 year education plans.

In Washington next week, rich countries will be asked to take immediate action to plug the World Bank education for all funding gap.

Education for all will be on the agenda of the G8 Finance and Heads of Government meetings in Russia in June and July.

There will also be more money to encourage schools, teachers and pupils to get involved, with a doubling of investment to £7.5 million over three years in the DFID's Global Schools Partnerships (GSP) Programme with the aim of getting a further 1,500 schools to benefit from links with schools in Africa and developing countries by 2009.

In addition 'Comic Relief' has announced that education for all will be the major feature of 'Red Nose Day' next March and they will be mailing over 25,000 schools about the importance of education for all and plans for activities that will start in September to help schools around the world work together to get every child into school.

Diana Johnson MP said: "Today over 100 million children do not go to school. They are denied one of the most basic rights of all - the right to an education. In Africa alone, two thirds of children never complete a primary education. Statistics show that for every additional year of a child's education in the poorest countries, average earnings rise by 11 per cent. For each additional year of a mother's education, childhood mortality is reduced by 8 per cent.

"Yet £10 billion a year which works out to £7.50 a year, or 2p a day for each of us in the richest countries - could provide primary education for every child in every continent. This would help meet the 2015 Millennium Development Goal to ensure that every child in the world has the opportunity to go to school."

"In welcoming the announcement by Gordon Brown and Hilary Benn, I call on our local schools, teachers and pupils in Hull to get involved and link up with schools across Africa. Together we can raise awareness and speak up for children who don't get to go to school."

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