São Paulo – Brazil and Egypt are among the countries that are working in tandem to reduce illiteracy rates among youths and adults. They are members of the E9, a group of nine countries which are home to over half the world’s population and over 70% illiterate adults worldwide. Apart from Egypt and Brazil, the bloc comprises China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Under the technical coordination of the United Nations Scientific, Educational and Cultural Organization (Unesco), delegates from the member countries meet regularly since 1993, when the group was established, to exchange information and help one another implement programs designed to lower illiteracy rates among youths and adults. The group was created based on 1993 data and works based on an annual plan.
The coordinator for Education at Unesco Brazil, Maria Rebeca Otero Gomes, reports that there are 13.2 million illiterate youths and adults in Brazil, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Most of the adults are over 19 years old and 50% live in the Northeast. Brazil has a population of 200 million.
In Brazil, the issue is taken care of through the Brasil Alfabetizado (Literate Brazil) program, targeting youths and adults – a decentralized initiative whereby states and municipalities partner up with organizations to teach people in these age brackets to read and write. The program renders accounts to the Ministry of Education, which centralizes and controls the subjects’ data and progress.
Gomes explains that the program needs restructuring, because several municipalities struggle to find partners, for instance. According to the coordinator, the program is being implemented, but very slowly so, and is not widespread, which she deems would be important in a country with 13 million illiterate adults. Over the years, at the E9, Brazil has shared local experiences such as Brasil Alfabetizado.
The E9’s work is also based on an overarching initiative named Education for All. The initiative was launched in 2000, at a Unesco World Education Forum in Dakar (Senegal), and sets targets to be met by 2015. In March next year, a new forum will take place in Korea to adjust the targets, because most haven’t been achieved, says Unesco Brazil’s Education coordinator.
An E9 meeting will be held in November in Pakistan, and suggestions will be given for the forum in Korea. Brazil will also present an overview report of the advances and challenges in education, at a meeting with other Latin American countries in Lima, Peru, next October. According to Gomes, the main challenges for the country remain teaching young people and grown-ups to read and write, improving educational quality and valuing teachers.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
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