Author Description

Primary schooling is critically important for the achievement of national development, and access to it has been formally accepted as a human right for almost half a century. But it is still far from being universally available. In fact, only about three-quarters of the eligible children attend primary schools in developing countries. Furthermore, many schools offer an education of a very poor quality. Those out of school amount to about 130 million children, the majority of whom are girls.This book explores why such high levels of under-enrolment persist, and how the trend could be reversed. It demonstrates that schooling for all could be attained, world-wide, by the turn of the century. Nevertheless, the set of national reforms to educational and economic policies which this would require is demanding. Furthermore, in more than thirty countries, such reforms even if fully implemented in a timely fashion would not be sufficient to generate all the necessary resources. Sharp and sustained increases in financial aid - mainly for the poorest countries of Africa and Asia - will also be required. This book identifies the policies which must be followed by the countries of both the North and the South, if schooling for all children is to be achieved.