1st Asia-Pacific Meeting on Education 2030 (APMED2030)

25-27 November 2015
Anantara Sathorn - Bangkok Hotel 
Bangkok, Thailand

On 21 May 2015, the Incheon Declaration was adopted at the World Education Forum 2015 (WEF 2015) by 120 ministers, heads and members of Government delegations from 160 countries and development partners.

The Incheon Declaration reaffirms the vision of the worldwide movement for Education for All (EFA), initiated in Jomtien in 1990 and reiterated in Dakar in 2000. Countries and the global education community committed to a single, renewed education agenda that is holistic, ambitious and aspirational, and leaves no-one behind. This new education agenda, 'Education 2030' is fully captured in the Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) and its corresponding targets which aims to, "Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote life-long learning opportunities for all". The Declaration represents a collective commitment of the education community to implement the Education 2030 agenda. It affirms the principles of education as a public good, as a fundamental human right, as a basis for guaranteeing the realization of other rights, and inspires bold and innovative action.

On 25 September 2015, 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was formally adopted at the 70th United Nations General Assembly in New York City. At the gist of this new agenda lie the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which include SDG 4 on education that succeed the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Following the adoption of the SDGs, the Framework for Action Education 2030: Towards inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning for all will be adopted at a high-level meeting at the 38th session of the General Conference of UNESCO in November 2015. The Education 2030 Framework for Action (FFA) serves as the overall guiding framework for the implementation of Education 2030 and outlines how to translate the global commitment into practice at the global, regional and national levels. It aims to support all countries to realize their own vision and ambitions for education within the framework of SDG 4 and its targets and proposes ways of implementing, coordinating, financing and monitoring Education 2030 to ensure equal education opportunities for all.

As we enter the next phase of collective action towards the achievement of Education 2030 (SDG 4), the Asia-Pacific Meeting on Education 2030 (APMED2030) will be the first step towards building a common understanding of Education 2030 and preparing for its implementation at the regional and national levels. The deliberations at the meeting will attempt to unpack, through an Asia-Pacific lens, the various aspects of the FFA including the implementation modalities and develop a regional strategy to achieve Education 2030. As part of Asia-Pacific's preparation for the new education agenda, a regional assessment of the EFA architecture is underway and its findings will inform this particular discussion at the meeting. The monitoring, reporting and evaluation of SDG 4 requires better and further disaggregated data and more robust processes, and thus, orientation and capacity development in this area are also needed. This meeting will thus identify the capacity development needs of Member States for the successful implementation of Education 2030, including for monitoring and reporting.

Overarching objective

To prepare Member States for the implementation of Education 2030 in the Asia-Pacific region.

Objectives

• To build a common understanding among Member States of Education 2030, SDG 4 and its corresponding targets, and the Framework for Action;
• To orient Member States on the proposed global indicators and corresponding data needs, and to explore additional indicators for a more comprehensive and disaggregated analysis of equity and quality from a lifelong learning perspective; ·
• To discuss the regional and national coordination, partnerships, monitoring and follow-up mechanisms for Education 2030, building on existing mechanisms, frameworks and strategies to support the implementation of Education 2030 at the national level; and
• To review the current national education planning processes and discuss capacity development needs for integration of Education 2030 in national education sector plans.

The meeting is co-organized by UNESCO Bangkok – Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education, the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), the UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Regional Office (EAPRO) and the UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia (ROSA), and with support from the Japanese Funds-in-Trust (JFIT). It will gather relevant technical-level officials of the ministries of education, the WEF 2015 co-convenors, development partners, and donors in the region.