Education. , Forum. e International Consultative Forum on Education for Ali. A Report to the EFA Forum Steering Committee

Transcription

1 Education, Forum * Dakar, Senega Apri zooo e Internationa Consutative Forum on Education for Ai A Report to the EFA Forum Steering Committee

2 The Internationa Consutative Forum on Education for A An Evauation A Report to the Forum s Steering Committee BY Angea Litte and Erro Mier March 2000

3 List of Contents 1.0 The Study 1.1 Purpose of the Study 1.2 Terms of Reference 1.3 Evauators 1.4 Methods 2.0 The Idea of an Internationa Consutative Forum Origina Intentions Background: the Jomtien Conference 4 Participants and Sponsors 5 The Foow-up to Jomtien 6 The Transition from IAC Secretariat to Forum Secretariat 8 The Roe of the Forum and Idea of a Forum Steering Committee 8 Activities of the Forum Steering Committee and Forum Secretariat 9 The Forum Structure 10 From Master to Servant Current and Changing Conceptions of the Forum Achievements and Shortfas 3.1 Forum Activities The Paris Meeting The New Dehi Meeting The Amman Meeting The End-of-Decade Assessment The End-of-Decade Regiona Consutations EFA Pubications EFA Website EFA and the UN Deveopment Agenda 3.3 The Forum as Patform ii

4 3.4 Sponsors and their Responsibiities Funding Constraints Funding Contributions The Sponsors, the Jomtien Vision and the Forum Membership and Partnership of the Forum Membership Representation Partnership Partners Not Continuing to Participate at the Goba Leve Partnership at the Regiona Leve Partnership at the Country Leve EFA and the Forum in Sri Lanka Biatera Agencies and NGOs Biatera Agencies Non-Governmenta Organizations The Roe of the Steering Committee The Steering Committee as Mini-Forum Learning from Amman Stabiity Quaity of Guidance Given to the Secretariat Disagreement and its Handing The Content of the Steering Committee Agenda Main Probems and Limitations of the Secretariat Options for the Way Forward 4.1 The Way Forward 4.2 What the Forum Has Been 4.3 Unresoved Issues Functions Authority Membership Funding

5 4.4 New Deveopments The UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) Information and Communications Technoogy Options for the Way Forward Discontinue the Forum and Disband the Steering Committee and Secretariat Continue the Forum, its Steering Committee and its Secretariat as is Integrate the Forum, its Steering Committee and Secretariat within UNESCO Estabish the Forum as a Separate and Autonomous Organization A Modified and Restructured Consutative Forum Regionaizing the Consutative Forum Recommendations Additiona Guideines 58 iv

6 TABLES AND BOXES LIST OF TABLES Tabe 1 Financia Contributions to the Forum s Goba Account Tabe 2 Restricted and Expanded Vision of Basic Education 29 Tabe 3 Membership Category and Meeting Attendance 30 LIST OF BOXES Box 1 Box 2 The Foow-up to Jomtien Perceptions of the Forum s Purpose 6 13 Box 3 EFA and the Forum in Sri Lanka 37

7 LIST OF ACRONYMS AALAE AAU ACCU ADB ADB ADEA AFESD BRAC CARICOM CCA CDF CEC COL CONFEMEN DFID EDC ELL ESCAP EU GTAG ICEA IDB IDB IDRC IGO INGO ISESCO ESCWA EFA FA0 FEMNET IAC IIEP MLA NGO OAU OECD RTAG SAARC SEAMES Sida UIE UIS UN African Association for Literacy and Adut Education Association of Arab Universities Asia/Pacific Cutura Centre for UNESCO Asian Deveopment Bank African Deveopment Bank Association for the Deveopment of Education in Africa Arab Fund for Economic and Socia Deveopment Bangadesh Rura Advancement Committee Caribbean Community Secretariat Common country assessment Comprehensive deveopment framework Commission of the European Communities Commonweath of Learning Conference des Ministres de 1 Education des Pays ayant e Francais en Partage Department for Internationa Deveopment (UK) Export Deveopment Corporation Essentia eves of earning United Nations Economic and Socia Commission for Asia and the Pacific European Union Goba Technica Advisory Group Internationa Community Education Association Inter-American Deveopment Bank Isamic Deveopment Bank Internationa Deveopment Research Centre Inter-Governmenta Organization Internationa Non Governmenta Organisation Isamic Educationa, Scientific and Cutura Organisation Economic and Socia Commission for Western Asia Education for A Food and Agricuture Organisation African Women Deveopment and Communication Network Inter-Agency Commission for the Word Conference on Education for A Internationa Institute for Educationa Panning Minimum eves of earning Non-Governmenta Organization Organization of African Unity Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Deveopment Regiona Technica Advisory Group South Asia Association for Regiona Co-operation South East Asian Ministers of Education Secretariat Swedish Internationa Deveopment Co-operation Agency UNESCO Institute for Education UNESCO Institute for Statistics United Nations vi

8 UNESCO UNDAF UNDP UNEP UNHCR UNICEF UNFPA UNU USAID WB WCEFA WFP WHO YWCA United Nations Educationa, Scientific and Cutura Organization United Nations Deveopment Assistance Forum United Nations Deveopment Programme United Nations Environment Programme United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees United Nations Chidren s Fund United Nations Popuation Fund United Nations University The US Agency for Internationa Deveopment Word Bank Word Conference on Education for A Word Food Programme Word Heath Organization Young Women s Christian Association vii

9 SECTION 1 THE STUDY 1.1 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY The purpose of this study is to evauate the Internationa Consutative Forum on Education for A (EFA), referred to hereafter as the Forum. The Forum was set up by the Convenors of the Word Conference on Education for A (Jomtien, Thaiand, 1990) in 1991, with a mandate to serve nationa foow-up action and support it effectivey and seek to maintain the spirit of cooperation amongst countries, mutiatera and biatera agencies, as we as NGOs, which has been the hamark of the Word Conference. Ten years after the WCEFA, and in preparation for the Word Education Forum, Dakar, Apri 2000, the Forum Steering Committee commissioned an evauation of this structure, in order to guide decision-making concerning a possibe revised mandate. 1.2 TERMS OF REFERENCE The overa objective of the study is to examine criticay the purpose, roe and functions of the Forum as originay perceived and its achievements in promoting and monitoring progress towards EFA goas. In the conduct of the evauation, answers to the foowing were to be sought: 4 b) c> 4 e> f) g> h) What were the origina intentions in setting up the Forum? What was the background, before and during the Jomtien conference, incuding the debate between the main partners at the time? How cosey has the EFA agenda been inked up with deveopment agenda? other facets of the UN How has EFA been conceived by the EFA Forum partners, and especiay by the Convenors, during the period since 1990? Has the Forum constituted an appropriate patform for the tasks entrusted in it? How have the sponsors assumed their respective responsibiities? To what extent has the Forum contributed to enhancing the spirit of partnership at internationa, regiona and nationa eves? What have been the criteria for membership? What main actors have not participated and why? What has been earned from the Midterm review? To what extent have these essons been appied in practice? What has been the roe of biatera and civi society organizations? What has been the roe of the Steering Committee and to what extent has it reay provided guidance and resources to the Secretariat in discharging its duties? What have been the main probems and imitations of the Secretariat? 1

10 i) What activities have been conducted by the Forum and what are the effects? Are there better ways of carrying out these activities? j) What options are there for internationa co-ordination structures in future? 1.3 EVALUATORS The Steering Committee appointed two persons to carry out the study. The criteria specified by the Steering Committee for seecting the evauators were that both shoud be education speciaists with internationa recognition, ong experience and exceent anaytica skis. One evauator shoud be a member of the EFA Forum. He/she shoud have participated in the movement since the Jomtien conference and possess an insider s knowedge of the processes eading up to Jomtien and of the foow-up work during the decade. The other evauator shoud not be a member of Forum. He/she shoud have an extensive knowedge of the issues at stake prior to the Jomtien Conference and of the major educationa deveopments at internationa, regiona and nationa eves during the decade. Using these criteria the Steering Committee appointed Professor Angea Litte of the Institute of Education of London University, as the outsider, and Professor Erro Mier of the Institute of Education, University of the West Indies as the insider. 1.4 METHOD The four main sources of evidence used by the evauators were: 1. Documents on the formation of the Consutative Forum, its estabishment and its operations since Interviews (face to face, teephone, e-mai, etter, fax) with persons famiiar with the formation and subsequent activity of the Forum. These incuded interviews with members of the convening agencies, participants in the Forum meetings (Paris, Dehi, Amman), present and past members and observers of the Forum Steering Committee, ministers, EFA Assessment Coordinators, persons with responsibiity for EFA in agencies and some countries, and present and past members of the Forum Secretariat. Discussion with a nationa group, comprising present and past ministry officias, agency staff and others invoved in EFA work since Jomtien. 3. Questionnaire survey of persons attending the three meetings of the Consutative Forum, 4. Observation of EFA activities incuding meetings of the Steering Committee, Management Committee, regiona workshops and regiona consutations. The outsider interviewed present members and observers of the Steering Committee whie the insider interviewed former members. The insider interviewed persons with responsibiity for EFA in agencies ocated in North America; the outsider interviewed persons with responsibiity for EFA in agencies ocated in Europe. Both attended regiona consutations, interviewed 2

11 m.embers of the Secretariat (separatey) and examined documents. Through the respective Ministry of Education, and with the assistance of UNICEF, the outsider convened a meeting of nationas and agency staff who had been invoved in EFA work in one country The insider and outsider worked independenty unti the point of synthesis of evidence and report writing. Synthesis and report writing was achieved via emai communication. Consistent with the design of having one outsider and one insider, we did not exchange data or opinions unti each had drafted her/his tentative inferences and concusions. Agreement at the outset to arrive at a common concusion provided the framework within which differences of interpretation were resoved. The study has a number of imitations: The Forum is but one of five inter-inked sets of foow-up action envisaged at Jomtien. The other four were (i) needs assessment at the country eve and identification of resource requirements, (ii) effective co-ordination by agencies (mutiatera, biatera and NGOs) at country-eve, (iii) regiona and sub-regiona consutations to share mutua concerns and knowedge of how mutiatera, biatera and NGOs can best assist countries, (iv) increased support to basic education by the WCEFA sponsors, and annua meetings to co-ordinate activities in the fied. A comprehensive evauation of the Forum s effectiveness, shoud, in principe, embrace evauations of these four. Ceary this broader evauation fas we beyond the scope of the present study. The evauation was conducted within a restricted time frame and budget, amounting to two person-months between October 1999 and February This restricted the assessment of the Forum s work across different countries. Some items of the terms of reference acked carity. The evauators acknowedge that they shoud have spent more time anaysing the terms of reference with the drafters and with members of the Steering Committee before they embarked on their work. It was not possibe to interview some who payed a key roe in the formation of the Forum, whie some persons contacted did not respond. It was not possibe to trace a persons who participated in the three Forum meetings through records. The response rate of those contacted was ow. Members of the Forum Secretariat, Forum Steering Committee, Nationa Ministries of Education and Agencies engaged in fu and frank discussion. The response rate to e-mai contact with the Steering Committee was very good. Despite the imitations mentioned above, we fee abe to make some informed judgements on the questions posed in the terms of reference.

12 SECTION 2 THE IDEA OF AN INTERNATIONAL CONSULTATIVE FORUM What were the origina intentions in setting up the Forum? What was the background before and during the Jomtien conference, incuding the debate between the main partners at the time? 2.1 ORIGINAL INTENTIONS The idea of an internationa consutative forum arose at the Word Conference on Education for A (WCEFA) hed in Jomtien in March It was seen to be part of the foow-up action to the Decaration and Framework for Action endorsed at Jomtien Background: The Jomtien Conference The Fina Report of the Word Conference on Education for A sets out the background to the EFA initiative, the context, the process of consensus buiding, the purpose, vision and requirements for EFA and the ca for action. The document provides an exceent source of reference for those now participating in the Forum and preparing for Dakar. In February 1989 the executive heads of UNICEF, UNDP, UNESCO and the Word Bank formay agreed to the proposa of Mr James Grant, Administrator of UNICEF, to jointy convene and sponsor the WCEFA. Schedued to coincide with Internationa Literacy Year, WCEFA was intended to renew a wordwide commitment to meeting the earning needs of chidren, youth and aduts. These four agencies estabished and funded an Inter-Agency Commission (IAC), with an Executive Committee and a sma Executive Secretariat. The Secretariat was ocated at UNICEF, New York and its roe was to prepare and organize the conference in Jomtien. Wadi Haddad (Word Bank) headed the executive secretariat and was assisted in his work by N.Coetta, N.Fisher, (UNICEF) M.Lakin (UNESCO) and Hida Paqui (UNDP), with cerica staff drawn aso from the four sponsors. Prior to Jomtien, the IAC Executive Secretariat consuted with governments, major NGOs and others and organized a series of nine regiona consutations. An Internationa Steering Committee, comprising sponsors, co-sponsors, associate sponsors, the host country representative, nongovernmenta and intergovernmenta organizations and regiona participants advised the IAC.. This basic structure of an Inter-Agency Commission advised by an Internationa Steering Committee, a sma Executive Committee of the Commission and a sma Executive Secretariat, set up to aunch WCEFA is important for understanding the composition and structure of the Internationa Consutative Forum, its Secretariat and its Steering Committee which were estabished after Jomtien.

13 2.1.2 Participants and Sponsors Participants at WCEFA, Jomtien were of four kinds: Deegates from member states of the UN system (155). Deegations varied in size from 4-6 members. Some deegations brought observers. (The deegation from Benin for exampe comprised 4 members. The head of the deegation was S.E, M Germain Kadja, Ministre de I Enseignement de Base, Mme. Prudencia Aimee Zinsou, Directeur, Etudes et Panification, M. Marc Agonsanou, Secretaire, Commission Nationae des Ressources Humaines, and M. Ayouba Babio, Secretaire Genera, Commission Nationae pour I UNESCO). Deegates from intergovernmenta organizations (33). These incuded deegates and observers from UN organizations such as the UN, ESCAP, ESCWA, FAO, IIEP, UNHCR, UNICEF, UNDP, UNESCO, UNEP, UNFPA, UIE, UNFPA, UNU, Word Bank, WHO, WFP, and other inter-governmenta organizations such as the African Deveopment Bank, the Asian Deveopment Bank, AFESD, CARICOM, CEC, COL, CONFEMEN, the Inter- American Deveopment Bank (IDB), ISESCO, Isamic Deveopment Bank (IDB), OECD, OAU, Organization of American States, Organization of the Isamic Conference, South East Asian Ministers of Education Secretariat (SEAMES). Deegatesfrom non-governmenta organizations and institutions (125) incuding groups such as AALAE, FEMNET, ACCU, BRAC, AAU, EDC, ICEA, IDRC, YWCA. Other Jomtien participants, not members of deegations, were the roundtabe chairpersons and presenters; exhibit managers; conference secretariat; and the WCEFA Internationa Steering Group. The Sponsors of Jomtien were of three kinds: Main Sponsors, Co-Sponsors and Associate Sponsors. The four Main Sponsors were UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF and the Word Bank. As the initiative became known, 18 governments and organizations joined in supporting it as cosponsors and associate sponsors by contributing financia, materia and inteectua support. The Co-Sponsors were: The Asian Deveopment Bank, Denmark, Finand, the Isamic Educationa, Scientific and Cutura Organization (ISESCO), Japan, Norway, Sweden, UNFPA and USAID. The Associate Sponsors were: Austraia, CIDA, theounited Nations Economic and Socia Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), IDRC, Itay, Switzerand, Bernard van Leer Foundation and WHO. As a Joint Organizer of Regiona Activities in Latin America and the Caribbean, the Inter- American Deveopment Bank was a specia sponsor. 5

14 2.1.3 The Foow-up to Jomtien A stafement on foow-up action was endorsed by WCEFA on 9 March It appears as Appendix 3, in the Fina Report of the Word Conference on Education for A: Meeting Basic Learning Needs (WCEFA). Box 1 reproduces this Appendix. The proposa for a consutative forum is advanced in the text. The ideas ying behind it are ighighted in itaics.the idea of a mechanism at internationa eve to serve foow-up action by countries and agencies, to maintain a spirit of co-operation among countries, and to invove participation by nationa representatives, mutiatera and biatera agencies and NGOs is advanced. So too is the idea that this mechanism shoud rey on existing mechanisms, and on appropriate services offered by UNESCO. Box 1 The Foqw-Up to Jomtien The Framework for Action to Meet Basic Learning Needs can be.seen providing a consensus ~ view of the main tasks which need to be undertaken after the Word Conference. These foow-up tasks concern countries, NGOs and the internationa community. The principa foow-up wi be at the- country eve. One of the first foow-up steps may, therefore, be for countries to conduct a needs assessment to ascertain what resources are required to reach their goas. With regard to externa resources, mutiatera, biatera agencies and NGOs for their part shoud endeavour to co-ordinate their actions at country-eve more effectivey. Opportunities shoud be provided within the existing structures for a process of consutation among countries in regiona or sub-regiona settings to share mutua concerns and to discuss how mutiatera and biatera agencies and NGOs can best assist them. Whatever foow-up mechanism may, at the same time, be estabished at internationa eve, it shoud serve nationa foow-up action and support it effectivey. Foow-up action at the internationa eve woud seek to maintain the spirit of co-operation amongst countries, mutiatera and biatera agencies, as we as NGOs, which has been the hamark of the Word Conference. UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF and the Word Bank have agreed to increase support to basic education within each of their own panning frameworks, structures and resource aocation mechanisms. To this end, they have decided to meet annuay to co-ordinate their own activities in the educationa fied. As a consequence of the momentum generated by the Word Conference, it is expected that nationa representatives, mutiatera and biatera agencies and NGOs woud wish to be part of a consutative forum which wi aim at promoting the EFA goas. Internationa foow-up action wi rey on existing mechanisms. UNESCO has offered to provide appropriate services to faciitate the foow-up. Source: Word Conference on Education for A - Meeting Basic Learning Needs, Fina Report, Annendix March Jomtien, Thaiand. 6

15 The Forum was seen as part of a wider set of foow-up actions comprising: Needs assessment at the country eve and identification of resource requirements; More effective co-ordination by agencies (mutiatera, biatera and NGOs) at countryeve; Consutation at regiona and sub-regiona eve to share mutua concerns and knowedge of how mutiatera, biatera and NGOs can best assist countries; Increased support to basic education by the Main Sponsors of WCEFA and annua meetings to co-ordinate activities in the educationa fied. Thus, as noted in Section 1, our evauation of the Forum shoud, in principe, have embraced an assessment of the extent to which these other actions have been taken. This broader review fas we beyond the scope of the present study. The statement presented in Box 1 did not emerge easiy. At east two representatives of biatera agencies, one member of an inter-governmenta organization and one member of the Executive Secretariat of the WCEFA Inter-Agency Commission recaed that the statement emerged out of side meetings at Jomtien and was a compromise of severa agenda. The biateras payed an important roe in these meetings and indicated that they wished to have a voice in guiding the foow-up, aongside the voice of the main sponsors of Jomtien. There was aso a perception that the Word Bank had a cear vision of how the foow-up action shoud proceed: each country shoud deveop a pan; the Bank coud pay a roe in the co-ordination of the pan deveopment; it coud end resources to meet resource gaps. The Nordic biateras, the EU and UNESCO, among others, resisted this strategy, viewing it as too top-down. The specific roe of UNESCO in the foow-up process was probematic. On the one hand, UNESCO hed the UN mandate in the fied of education. On the other hand, UNESCO s reputation as an effective UN organization, was, at that time, weak. Moreover, the US spokesman who attended the side-meetings objected bunty to the suggestion that UNESCO shoud pay a eading roe in the foow-up action. The US had recenty withdrawn its membership of UNESCO. Tension over UNESCO s roe was refected in the discussions about the siting of the foow-up office/secretariat. The executive secretariat for the Jomtien conference had been ocated at UNICEF, at its headquarters in New York. To those who attended the side-meetings at Jomtien, it appeared that the Word Bank and UNICEF wanted the foow-up secretariat to be sited on their side of the Atantic. UNESCO fet it had the mandate for EFA and that the office shoud be sited in Paris. The compromise was that the foow-up secretariat woud be sited at and serviced by UNESCO, but it was not part of UNESCO. The Forum was set up to preserve and project into the future the coaition that had given rise to Jomtien, which was then a rea novety, and generay perceived as the key to the success of Jomtien.... That this coaition woud need a secretariat was obvious, but that it woud be entrusted to UNESCO was a matter of arduous battes behind the scenes. 7

16 2.1.4 The Transition from IAC Secretariat to Forum Secretariat The IAC and its secretariat continued to function for a few months after Jomtien. The first meeting of the Heads of Agencies after Jomtien was hed at UNICEF on 23 Juy It was chaired by Mr Mayor, the UNESCO Director-Genera and attended by the other agency heads. At the meeting the agency heads acknowedged the considerabe voume of resources depoyed by the agencies for EFA, the variety of actions aready undertaken and panned and the compementarity of the work of the four agencies. At this meeting it was agreed that the Executive Secretariat of the IAC woud be wound up at the end of Juy 1990 and that henceforth a Forum secretariat woud function from UNESCO. The Executive Secretary of the Secretariat woud be Michae Lakin The Roe of the Forum and Idea of a Forum Steering Committee At the Heads of Agency meeting of 23 Juy 1990 it was aso suggested that the first meeting of an Internationa Consutative Forum be convened in March 1991, one year after Jomtien. However, it soon became cear that the meeting woud need to be hed ater in the year. It woud eventuay be hed in December There was aso some discussion about the composition of the Forum. It shoud incude the head of one of the UN Economic Commissions, a major donors, a few prominent personaities from the private sector, a baanced representation of NGOs from South and North and not imited to those having some officia recognition. (IAC record of meeting 23 Juy 1990). Significanty, and despite Appendix 3 to the Jomtien conference report, there was no suggestion at this stage that the Forum shoud incude representation of impementing agencies at the nationa and sub-nationa eve (athough meetings hed subsequenty in Paris, Dehi and Amman incuded many paces for this a-important constituency). At this and subsequent meetings of the heads of agencies the genera feeing among the agencies was that The rea foow-up action woud be carried out by each agency in its own stye and with its own aies, but that a sma unit at UNESCO coud serve as a kind of ow key, foca point for foow-up consutations and EFA promotiona activities at goba eve. The four woud contribute operating funds in equa shares and UNESCO set up a specia account to receive the funds from the other IGOs, and ater from the biatera agencies as we. (Interview, Executive Secretary, Forum Secretariat, October 1999) At the same time the heads of agencies aso recognised that the rea foow-up must be at country eve and agreed to the suggestion that a sma inter-agency working group shoud meet before the end of the year to formuate proposas for co-operation (IAC meeting records Juy 1990). The concern about action and co-operation in the deveoping countries was to be noted severa times during the meetings hed during 1991, though few concrete proposas for how this might come 8

17 about were made. The first meeting of the Forum, hed eventuay in Paris in December 1991, was seen as one important mechanism. The roe of the Forum was further carified during that meeting by an ad hoc working group. Reporting on behaf of the working group Ms. Edi Sutherand-Addy (Deputy Minister of Education, Ghana and Head of the Ghanaian deegation at Jomtien) noted that there was genera agreement that the Forum shoud be an advisory and consutative body and that it shoud monitor and anayse progress towards EFA: The Forum shoud hep keep basic education high on the word s agenda, that it can serve as a goba catayst and stimuus for action by governments, organizations and other partners invoved in EFA but - and this is a big BUT - it was fet that action itsef must be undertaken by these other entities i.e. governments and organizations. The Forum can provide genera guidance to the internationa community by identifying successfu and promising new approaches and by focussing attention on key issues of widespread concern. (EFA Forum Meeting, Paris, December Conference record). The idea of a Steering Committee for the Forum emerged at the Forum meeting. The Steering Committee was set up by the main sponsors and incuded themseves, a representative from another internationa governmenta organization, severa biateras and a representative of a group of NGOs committed to EFA. The other intergovernmenta srganization to be inv ited to join the Steering Committee was UNFPA. In 1998, UNFPA was invited to become a Convenor. The Secretariat s Executive Secretary recas that out of this expanded group came the idea of having extended programme initiatives sponsored by two or more Steering Committee member organizations but carried out under the auspices of the EFA Forum, with minima or no hep needed from the Secretariat, which woud continue to have its own activities, essentiay information and advocacy, pus organizing meetings of the Steering Committee and the biennia goba meetings of the Forum. (Interview, October 1999) Activities of the Forum Steering Committee and Forum Secretariat The activities of the Forum Steering Committee and the Forum Secretariat were conceived initiay as being one and the same, with the Steering Committee steering the Secretariat in its work. Eary in 1992 the Secretariat put forward a draft work pan for the work of the Steering Committee and the Secretariat for the period eading up to the second meeting of the Forum (Dehi 1993). The work pan had three main aims: To monitor progress by countries and organizations in impementing the Framework for Action. To maintain basic education on the word deveopment agenda (advocacy). To promote diaogue and co-operation among EFA partners. 9

18 The core programme of work comprised six activities designed to meet these aims. The activities were to Organize the second meeting of the Forum Organize three meetings of the Steering Committee Draft and send etters to heads of governments Pubish the WCEFA monographs Pubish the EFA 2000 Buetin Create an EFA database and produce EFA status reports The Forum Structure By 1992, three important eements in the EFA Forum structure had been estabished. These were: The Forum, conceived of as a series of goba meetings for EFA partners to discuss progress towards EFA and issues of mutua concern. The Forum Secretariat, housed in UNESCO, but operating separatey from it, with a brief to provide information about EFA, engage in advocacy for EFA and organize the goba meetings and the Steering Committee meetings. The Forum Steering Committee, cosey inked with the work of the Secretariat, without a separate terms of reference. It is important to distinguish these three carefuy in discussion. Our interviews suggested that for some, these three bodies of peope were distinct, with the Forum synonymous ony with the Forum goba meetings. For others, the notion of a Forum embraced a three, but with the above three eements ceary distinguishabe. For sti others the Forum was synonymous with the Forum Steering Committee or the Forum Secretariat. On one issue there was a cear consensus. The Forum, its Secretariat and Steering Committee shoud not become a new bureaucracy. They shoud buid from and use existing mechanisms. Simutaneousy these three were charged with maintaining the momentum of Jomtien, of supporting the impementation of EFA, and of engaging in advocacy for EFA. To the evauators it seems cear that the three eements had and have inked but distinct roes and resource needs, and that the apparent absence of consensus over what these were and are has compromised the effectiveness of a three. Their effectiveness has aso been compromised by the absence of widespread discussion of how they are thought to ink in practice with the other four Jomtien foow-up mechanisms, described in Section Though charged with serving nationa foow action and maintaining a spirit of co-operation amongst countries, mutiatera and biatera agencies, as we as NGOs what these have meant in practice has not been the subject of critica refection. 10

19 2.1.8 From Master to Servant The notion of service contained a basic contradiction. The Forum had been created out of Jomtien. Jomtien was a creature of four powerfu inter-governmenta organizations. The first meeting of the Forum created the Forum Steering Committee and its Secretariat. The Main Sponsors of Jomtien became the Convenors of the Forum. The Forum was intended to serve nationa foow-up action and serve it effectivey. From their pro-active roe as initiators and mobiisers, the Convenors now set in pace mechanisms intended to be re-active and supportive of an internationa process in which nationa agencies were expected to pay a pro-active roe. But nationa agencies had neither payed, nor were about to pay, a strong roe in the internationa process. The transition from master to servant, in a situation where the new master (nationa foow-up action) was, in many contexts, very weak, was ikey to ead to ambiguities of roes, authorities and responsibiities. 2.2 CURRENT AND CHANGING CONCEPTIONS OF THE FORUM If these were the officia and initia intentions of the Forum, how are they now construed? Do peope reca the initia intentions in ways that deviate from the origina? And how do those who have joined the Forum ony recenty perceive its purpose? Interview extracts presented in Box 2 provide insight on the perceived purpose by members of the EFA Steering Committee. They aso provide a usefu checkist for discussion of what the Forum coud be in the future. The origina three purposes - monitoring, advocacy and promoting partnerships - are recaed we by members of the convening agencies and the Forum Secretariat. At the same time, some perceived a wider brief for the Forum. At east one member of a convening agency saw mobiization of resources for EFA as one of the main functions of the Forum, a view that contrasts markedy with that expressed by a member of a biatera agency. For the atter, neither the Forum nor its Steering Committee was set up to raise funds, a point thought to have been discussed and raised to a matter of principe. The comment on the tite of the Forum - the Internationa Consutative Forum - is thought provoking. Who is consuting whom and on what within the Forum? How consutative is advocacy? How consutative is monitoring? How consutative is partnership-buiding? Was it the intention that nationa governments and others at nationa/oca eve shoud be abe to consut and seek advice from a goba Forum? Or was the Forum intended to operate ony at a goba eve with internationa organizations consuting with each other? And who was to be monitored and by whom? The member from the South ceary sees the monitoring function directed towards the origina conveners. Members of the convening agencies, by contrast, were more ikey to see the monitoring function directed towards nationa governments. Was it the intention that the Forum shoud, as a member of one of the convening agencies, assist countries in the deveopment and impementation of country action pans? Certainy the 11

20 deveopment of country action pans was seen as part of the genera foow-up (cf. Box 1). But what was thought to be the roe of the Forum when nationa and other organizations did not initiate pans and actions? The statement of the Forum s purpose at the 1991 Forum meeting in Paris by the ad hoc working group, headed by an African government minister, impies that the Forum s roe was not to intervene in panning and action (cj the BIG BUT), but to confine itsef to providing genera guidance to the internationa community by identifying successfu and promising new approaches and by focussing attention on key issues of widespread concern. The Forum, the Forum Secretariat and the Forum Steering Committee were created in response to concerns raised with respect to mechanisms that were needed to foow-up on the Word Conference. Jomtien was not to be an event but the initiation of an ongoing process. From the above anaysis it is cear that the operations and interreations of these mechanisms were not anticipated in fine detai. Terms of reference for each, and in reation to each other, were not worked through. A three began ife as oosey organized coaitions of interests of different EFA stakehoders, with the interests of conveners predominant. Mandates were uncear. Tensions and contradictions were inevitabe. 12

21 Box 2 Perceptions of the Forum s Purpose Convenors and Forum Secretariat The main functions of the Forum are monitoring, advocacy and partnership buiding. The Forum was set up to preserve and project into the future the coaition that had given rise to Jomtien which was then a novety and generay perceived as the key to the success of Jomtien. The Forum was estabished to a deveop and foow up the outcomes of Jomtien 0 assure documentation of the foow-up assist in the mobiization of interest assist in the mobiization of resources for EFA 0 assist impementation of country action pans The Forum s main tasks have been grouped in three custers or axes (i) advocacy and information (ii) monitoring EFA, and (iii) promoting diaogue and partnerships between the stakehoders. Athough the specific activities within each custer have evoved somewhat over the decade, the three axes of its programme have been there throughout. The main work of the Forum is advocacy and being a kind of watchdog. The purpose of the Forum is advocacy, monitoring and networking at a goba eve. Biatera Agencies The Forum is a oose mechanism, ess concerned with driving an agenda than with keeping track of progress and the sharing of essons earned. The fu tite of the Forum, Internationa Consutative Forum, shoud in itsef be seen as an indication of its purpose. Presumaby, the basic idea was that nationa ministries, NGOs and others at the oca/nationa eve shoud be abe to seek advice and guidance through consutation with the Forum, defined as an internationay composed body. The impact and effectiveness of the Forum shoud be assessed in that context. It has.... aways been cear within the Forum, and even more so in the Steering Committee, that they were not set up for the purpose of pedging for fund raising to support education in the deveoping countries. It is my persona feeing that this has been a matter of principe to which a members have readiy agreed. (Steering Committee member) South The origina intention was to keep pushing the Jomtien message around the word, but mainy to keep the Word Bank and donors aware of these goas. I I 13

22 SECTION 3 ACHIEVEMENTS AND SHORTFALLS What activities have been conducted by the Forum and what are the effects? 3.1 FORUM ACTIVITIES As noted in Section 2.1.8, by the end of the decade, there were many notions of what and who the Forum was and comprised. The most incusive use of the term embraces a that has happened in a structured way since Jomtien and therefore incudes the work of the Consutative Forum meetings, the Steering Committee, the Management Committee (formed some time ater), and the Secretariat. The more restrictive meaning is the three meetings hed in Paris in 1991, New Dehi in 1993 and Amman in It is the more incusive use of the term Forum that wi be adopted here in addressing the question of what activities have been conducted by the Forum and what have been their effects. The activities of the Forum over the past decade have been substantia. In summary these have consisted of Internationa meetings convened in Paris (1991) New Dehi ( 1993), Amman (1996) and, shorty, in Dakar (Apri 2000). Regiona and sub-regiona meetings which have preceded the above. The estabishment and deveopment of a Forum Steering Committee, and subsequenty a Management Committee. The pubications programme of the Forum secretariat. The EFA assessment exercises in preparation for Amman, and now Dakar. A series of consutation and review processes at internationa and regiona eve to generate the Dakar Decaration and Framework for Action The Paris Meeting The Paris meeting in 1991 focussed on the nature of the internationa arrangements to be put in pace. Whie some respondents fet that this meeting was not very productive it resuted in a consensus about the roe of the Forum, whose fu tite was the Internationa Consutative Forum on Education for A. Future Forum meetings were to give genera guidance and direction to the EFA activities. A representative sampe of countries, agencies, non-governmenta organizations and other interested parties were to be invited. It was considered impossibe to incude a 14

23 countries in every Forum meeting. Hence, the attendance of representatives from different countries in each major region woud rotate. The mandate of the Forum was to: Monitor progress Co-ordinate EFA activities Share and exchange information and ideas Foster coaboration To support the work of the Forum a Secretariat woud be estabished guided by a Steering Committee. It is important to note the shifts in direction that took pace between that envisaged in the Jomtien Framework for Action and that agreed at the Paris Forum. In Paris, advocacy for EFA and the encouragement of new partners were not expicity mentioned, whie co-ordination and progress monitoring were expicity incuded. The Forum was to take responsibiity for monitoring progress in circumstances in which it had no in-buit capacity to perform this function. It was aso to co-ordinate EFA activities, without authority over sovereign countries or autonomous agencies. Structuray, the Consutative Forum was better paced to share and exchange information and ideas and to foster coaboration than to monitor and co-ordinate EFA activities The New Dehi Meeting The New Dehi Meeting in 1993 brought together the nine most popuous deveoping countries of the word, pus a few others, aong with donor countries and agencies. The end resut was the creation of the E-9 initiative: The idea was born in the EFA Secretariat with UNESCO, UNICEF and UNFPA as the chief promoters. The basic concept of the E-9 initiative was to bring together, and estabish a working aiance of deveoping countries with popuations of over 100 miion. Together, these have approximatey haf of the tota word popuation, some two-thirds of the iiterate aduts, and face the greatest chaenges in meeting the EFA objectives. From a strategic perspective this initiative has to be highy commended with respect to its potentia for impacting EFA targets. By fostering coaboration, sharing of information, ideas and best practices and by being motivated by the actions of others in simiar circumstances, the E-9 initiative has much to recommend it. Of interest, but probaby not anticipated, was the speed with which the E-9 countries took contro of the initiative. As a resut, they have their own Secretariat directed by the Ministers of Education of the nine countries who meet annuay to review progress. Of equa importance is the fact that recenty the Word Heath Organisation (WHO), adopted this mode by estabishing their Ten Largest Countries initiative in promoting Heath for A. Further, inks have recenty been estabished between these two initiatives in Education and Heath that essentiay target the same countries The Amman Meeting The preparation for the Amman Forum in 1996 took account of the Indicative Phasing of Impementation for the 1990s set out in the Jomtien Framework for Action that had suggested 15

24 that a mid-decade review be undertaken between 1995 and Regiona Meetings of modest size and attempts at data gathering therefore preceded the Amman Meeting. In addition, Amman was arger and more representative of countries than either of the two previous Forum meetings. Amman raised four important issues that have persisted to the end of the decade EFA was increasingy being interpreted in terms of years of schooing. The genius of Jomtien was the compromise and baance it effected between the concepts of schooing and earning, evident in its tite and sub-tite: Education for AIZ: Meeting Basic Learning Needs. Amman sought to reinstate the baance by stating its concerns about quaity and earning. The EFA voice had not been sufficienty heard at the country and regiona eves. Some momentum for EFA had been ost at the country and regiona eves since Jomtien. The quaity of data presented at the Forum was questionabe. Severa countries and agencies stated their concerns about the accuracy and vaidity of the data presented. The work and voice of organizations of civi society invoved in EFA were not being sufficienty recognized and heeded The End-of-decade Assessment Mindfu of the fact that the Framework for Action suggested that governments, organizations and deveopment agencies evauate achievements at the end of decade and mindfu aso of the sharp criticisms of the data presented at Amman, the Steering Committee and Secretariat began to pan for the EFA 2000 Assessment shorty after Amman. Accordingy the Assessment has: b b been panned and executed over a period of amost three years; incuded capacity buiding exercises that have extended to the country eve;incuded the estabishment of Regiona Technica Advisory Groups, (RTAG) which have co-ordinated and supported the country exercises. invoved functiona coaboration between the Secretariat and mutiatera and biatera agencies supporting EFA in the use and appication of both technica and financia resources. The Assessment has been the Forum s most extensive and coaborative activity since Jomtien. It incudes nationa assessments of EFA progress, thematic studies, and evauations of earning achievement. The assessment has gone further in reviving interest, renewing commitment and reinvigorating action towards the target dimensions of the Framework for Action than any other EFA activity undertaken over the decade. A senior officia of an African ministry of education commented that the assessment had been of inestimabe vaue. Simiar expressions have been made in the Caribbean. The main thrust of the EFA 2000 assessment has been to measure the progress achieved by governments and countries. It has aso incuded an evauation of the financia contributions of funding agencies to EFA. 16

25 3.1.5 The End-of-Decade Regiona Consutations The Indicative Phasing aso suggested that government, organizations and deveopment agencies undertake comprehensive poicy reviews at the regiona and goba eves in 2000/2001. The Steering Committee therefore schedued 10 Sub-regiona Consutations and five regiona consutations eading to the goba conference to be hed in Dakar, Senega, in Apri The assessment activities are feeding into the sub-regiona and regiona consutations and appear to have generated new momentum. Whie the excitement and expectations of WCEFA in 1990 can probaby not be matched or surpassed, the end-of-decade EFA activities have generated a new vigour and vitaity for EFA EFA Pubications The Forum aunched a series of pubications after Jomtien. The first significant pubications were three monographs synthesizing 48 Jomtien roundtabes, pubished in Engish, French, Spanish and Arabic. The fina reports of the Forum Meetings in Paris, (on universa primary education), New Dehi (on quaity basic education) and Amman (the mid-decade review) were pubished in Engish, French and Spanish. Other important pubications have been the Status and Trends Reports, the EFA 2000 Buetin and Posters. Poster and essay competitions have been hed internationay. Attractive and exceent in their physica quaity, some doubts have been expressed about the quaity of data incuded in some of the pubications, especiay those derived from the Amman meeting. Good contacts with networks of journaists have aso maintained the profie of EFA in the internationa press. So too have the three regiona networks of journaists committed to the work of EFA, initiated by the Forum, in coaboration with the Word Association of Newspapers. The participating journaists contributed to an occasiona network newsetter and used it and their own artices to give better coverage of EFA issues. In 1998, the Word Association of Newspapers contributed to Media and Education Workshops jointy with the Forum and contributing a sum of $26,000 for this purpose. The pubications programme has reied amost entirey on the production of print materia. Some videos of educationa innovations have been produced. One respondent suggested that advocacy and dissemination might have been more widespread and effective had more use been made of short inputs on internationa TV networks such as CNN or BBC Word. This is one option for the future EFA Web Site The Secretariat has estabished and maintained a web site that has disseminated information concerning EFA activities and achievements. With approximatey 4,000 hits per month, the site is beginning to attract an audience and has the potentia to be a very important too in the EFA arsena. 17

26 3.2 EFA AND THE UN DEVELOPMENT AGENDA How cosey??as the EFA agenda hew inked up with othw jacets of the UN deveopment agenda? Actions to ink the EFA agenda with other facets of the deveopment agenda had started very shorty after Jomtien. if not at Jomtien itsef. At the first post-jomtien meeting of the heads of the agencies, the Director-Genera of UNESCO noted the timeiness of the present meeting, occurring as it did after the pubication of major reports on the human dimensions of deveopment. (23 Juy 1990). A few of our respondents were we acquainted with the subsequent history of inks between the EFA agenda and other facets of the UN deveopment agenda, as expressed at conferences, in artices and resoutions. Interpretations of the documents vary. Some read them as a strong endorsement for EFA. Others, pointing to non-prominent references to EFA, fee that the endorsement for EFA has been weak. Strategicay, WCEFA was we paced with respect to the UN summits that foowed. Starting with the Word Summit for Chidren shorty after Jomtien, and foowed by the Conference on the Environment in Rio in 1992, the theme of EFA was integrated to an extent in the commitments of a major summits and conferences. The UN Genera Assemby endorsed a resoution on Education for A on 12 December The integration of the EFA agenda may not have been as great as it coud have been. Two observations are pertinent. First, the Word Summit on Socia Deveopment hed in Copenhagen, Denmark, in March 1995 was by far the argest of the Word Conferences and Summits hed in the 1990s. Over 14,000 persons attended the Summit. The argest gathering of word eaders, 117 heads of State or Government, attended the Summit. Commitment 6 of the Programme for Action incorporates a aspects of the target dimensions of the EFA Framework for Action and certainy endorses the spirit of the Word Decaration on EFA. However, the Copenhagen Decaration and Programme of Action makes no specific mention of EFA or the Word Conference on Education. Specific mention, however, is made of the Word Summit for Chidren, the Conference on Environment and Deveopment, the Word Conference on Human Rights, the Goba Conference on Sustainabe Deveopment of Sma Isand Deveoping States and the Internationa Conference on Popuation and Deveopment. Time did not aow us to determine the basis for the omission of the Word Conference on Education for A from this ist. but it may be due to the fact that the Jomtien Conference was not, stricty speaking, a UN conference nor even an inter-governmenta conference. Second, the Secretary Genera of the United Nations estabished a United Nations Deveopment Group about two years ago. Its primary task was to ensure the co-ordination of the impementation of deveopment programmes of UN funds and programmes at country eve. Recenty, WHO was invited to join the group. UNESCO, the host UN agency with respect to EFA, is not part of this group. The Forum Secretariat had been active in advocating the incusion of EFA goas in other UN 18