Oluwaseun Ikusika, in UNtoday (1 October) draws attention to the growing global crisis in education, where the number of children missing out on any schooling has increased by six million globally to 250 million total. And this doesn’t even take into account the rapid and sustained growth of privatization of education, where the public schools that serve the poor are often extremely crowded and underfunded. The education crisis is critically important for global population health, were lack of education is, by far, the most important contributing factor to child mortality. (Gakidou, et al, Lancet 2010).
Ikusika notes that the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) provides important data data and analysis to understand and address the growing education crisis. Her article summarizes the causes of the crisis (poverty, conflict, gender discrimination, educational quality, and economic barriers) and some of its consequences (health, social inequality, economic productivity, and global peace). She identifies key strategies, including increased government funding, policy reforms, leveraging innovation, and global cooperation). See the article at https://untoday.org/addressing-the-global-education-crisis/.