UNESCO has warned of years of lost learning due to a lack of pandemic stimulus spending on education.
Research made available to The National from the UN body shows that education received just 0.8 per cent of the global economic packages designed to mitigate the pandemic.
It also shows that two-thirds of the world’s poorest countries reduced their first post-Covid education budget, compared to one-third of the world's richest countries.
UNESCO is now warning of a $2 billion drop in resources into 2022 and that it could be six years before 2018 spending levels are reached again.
Even within the wealthiest G20 nations the share of the extra spending for education was just 2 per cent across 13 of the countries, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.
Its study found that a quarter of all school days had been lost across three lockdown periods from May 2020 to February 2021.
The lack of internet access in low-income countries is particularly crippling, rendering attempts to roll-out distance learning futile.
Disadvantages varied across countries. Just 7 per cent of the poorest fifth of households in Ethiopia had access to a radio.
In Ecuador, 23 per cent of children without a connection at home were doing zero school work, the organisation found. Across South America just 45 per cent had access to a computer.
“However many governments around the world are trying to introduce good solutions such as [online] learning, they are not the perfect substitute for time in the classroom,” said Manos Antoninis, director of the Global Education Monitoring Report team at UNESCO.
“Furthermore, hundreds of millions of young people in low and middle-income countries simply don't have any access to [the internet].
"At best, they have some radio and TV programmes; in practice, they haven't got anything but their own motivation to continue learning using textbooks.”
The Covid lockdown effect is also being felt in high-income countries such as the UK and Germany where surveys have discovered accelerating education inequalities during the pandemic.
A National Foundation for Education Research survey of 200 schools in the UK found that 11 per cent of the most disadvantaged were six months behind in their studies.
The lack of education prioritisation marks a setback for generally improving trends seen over the last two decades.
Between 1999 and 2015 average government education spending doubled in real terms. As a share of GDP the rise is less stellar, up from 4.6 per cent to 4.7 per cent.
And global disparities remain marked. Prior to the pandemic, high-income countries were spending annually the equivalent of $8,501 for every child’s education compared to just $48 in low-income countries.
Low- and lower-middle-income countries already face a widening financing gap and UNESCO has estimated these costs could wrench open the gap by as much as $45 million - or a third.
If this were to transpire, then significant pressure would be placed upon the attainment of Sustainable Development Goal 4 which aims to ensure that by 2030 “all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes.”
UAE climbs into ranks of top 10 global education donors
Development aid filled some of the gap and prior to the pandemic had grown to reach $15.6 billion globally in 2018, the highest amount ever recorded for basic education.
Much of the later years' increase came from the UAE and Saudi Arabia as the two countries moved into the ranks of the top 10 donors, giving a combined $627 million in 2018.
"The UAE has appeared on the surface of the aid agenda when some of the world's richest countries are moving away," Mr Antoninis told The National.
Prior to the crisis researchers had already detected a decline in the priority for education in the Official Development Assistance (ODA) benchmark set by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
UNESCO has now issued a clarion call demanding an increased prioritisation of education. RISE research programme has calculated the effects on children’s education should Covid mitigation follow one of the three scenarios.
The concern is that if education continues to languish behind other fiscal and aid priorities, then pre-existing inequalities will mushroom.
“We have inequalities at different levels, we have inequalities between the richest countries and the poorest countries,” said Mr Antoninis.
...the richest are twice as likely to achieve the minimum skills of literacy and numeracy
“88 per cent of youth in high-income countries completed secondary school, while only 15 per cent did the same in low-income countries.”
Mr Antoninis cites education inequalities that exist within national borders. “The richest households in low and middle-income countries are three times as likely to complete secondary school as the poorest,” he said.
“And even among those who complete secondary school, the richest are twice as likely to achieve the minimum skills of literacy and numeracy.”
The UK schools survey found that in March and April last year, the learning gap between rich and poor pupils increased by almost a half.
In Germany, asked whether their child was learning much less, 72 per cent of parents of low achieving children agreed, while the figure for high achievers was 58 per cent.
The knock-on consequences are not limited to missed development opportunities for those deprived of an education.
“When you have poorer countries not progressing enough in education then immediately it impacts on a range of development outcomes that ultimately also affect the rest of the world,” said Mr Antoninis.
“The obvious one is population growth … less educated women end up having more children.
“This is a collective problem because these countries struggle to find the jobs for these people, harming economic and development prospects.”
Resource strains in Africa are likely to stem from over population. “It's projected that by 2050, Africa will be adding more people to the labour force each year than all the other regions put together,” he added.
Successful spending initiatives must be replicated globally
While UNESCO’s research found that targeted measures to reduce the gap are rare, it did turn the spotlight on some initiatives.
The UK government was highlighted for praise for its school grants for internet access, its provision of adaptation costs, and its tutorial programmes. Child support grants in South Africa were also singled out as helpful measures.
Across the board spending increases are needed to make up lost ground.
With economic growth forecast to drop drastically, UNESCO is projecting that it could take six years for aid to education to return to 2018 levels.
Mr Antoninis fears the pressures of the economic downturn will exacerbate short-term policy-making.
“[Governments] prefer to not think about the future,” he said. “And that's a big mistake because if young people simply cannot receive the education they need to be able to earn tomorrow, then that is going to come back to haunt [governments] in terms of lower growth for their societies.
“It's a very hard message to convey because resources are limited in some countries, but education does deserve a targeted share of these additional resources.
“It's not a call we're making in vain. It's really important.”
Nelson Mandela called education “the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” His words have not resounded in the coronavirus crisis.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Bharat
Director: Ali Abbas Zafar
Starring: Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Sunil Grover
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
Ziina users can donate to relief efforts in Beirut
Ziina users will be able to use the app to help relief efforts in Beirut, which has been left reeling after an August blast caused an estimated $15 billion in damage and left thousands homeless. Ziina has partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to raise money for the Lebanese capital, co-founder Faisal Toukan says. “As of October 1, the UNHCR has the first certified badge on Ziina and is automatically part of user's top friends' list during this campaign. Users can now donate any amount to the Beirut relief with two clicks. The money raised will go towards rebuilding houses for the families that were impacted by the explosion.”
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
You may remember …
Robbie Keane (Atletico de Kolkata) The Irish striker is, along with his former Spurs teammate Dimitar Berbatov, the headline figure in this season’s ISL, having joined defending champions ATK. His grand entrance after arrival from Major League Soccer in the US will be delayed by three games, though, due to a knee injury.
Dimitar Berbatov (Kerala Blasters) Word has it that Rene Meulensteen, the Kerala manager, plans to deploy his Bulgarian star in central midfield. The idea of Berbatov as an all-action, box-to-box midfielder, might jar with Spurs and Manchester United supporters, who more likely recall an always-languid, often-lazy striker.
Wes Brown (Kerala Blasters) Revived his playing career last season to help out at Blackburn Rovers, where he was also a coach. Since then, the 23-cap England centre back, who is now 38, has been reunited with the former Manchester United assistant coach Meulensteen, after signing for Kerala.
Andre Bikey (Jamshedpur) The Cameroonian defender is onto the 17th club of a career has taken him to Spain, Portugal, Russia, the UK, Greece, and now India. He is still only 32, so there is plenty of time to add to that tally, too. Scored goals against Liverpool and Chelsea during his time with Reading in England.
Emiliano Alfaro (Pune City) The Uruguayan striker has played for Liverpool – the Montevideo one, rather than the better-known side in England – and Lazio in Italy. He was prolific for a season at Al Wasl in the Arabian Gulf League in 2012/13. He returned for one season with Fujairah, whom he left to join Pune.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
RESULT
Los Angeles Galaxy 2 Manchester United 5
Galaxy: Dos Santos (79', 88')
United: Rashford (2', 20'), Fellaini (26'), Mkhitaryan (67'), Martial (72')
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
yallacompare profile
Date of launch: 2014
Founder: Jon Richards, founder and chief executive; Samer Chebab, co-founder and chief operating officer, and Jonathan Rawlings, co-founder and chief financial officer
Based: Media City, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: 120 employees
Investors: 2014: $500,000 in a seed round led by Mulverhill Associates; 2015: $3m in Series A funding led by STC Ventures (managed by Iris Capital), Wamda and Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority; 2019: $8m in Series B funding with the same investors as Series A along with Precinct Partners, Saned and Argo Ventures (the VC arm of multinational insurer Argo Group)
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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Afghanistan fixtures
- v Australia, today
- v Sri Lanka, Tuesday
- v New Zealand, Saturday,
- v South Africa, June 15
- v England, June 18
- v India, June 22
- v Bangladesh, June 24
- v Pakistan, June 29
- v West Indies, July 4
The biog
Place of birth: Kalba
Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren
Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken
Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah
Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”
The team
Videographer: Jear Velasquez
Photography: Romeo Perez
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory
Models: Meti and Clinton at MMG
Video assistant: Zanong Maget
Social media: Fatima Al Mahmoud
Read more about the coronavirus
Tips for SMEs to cope
- Adapt your business model. Make changes that are future-proof to the new normal
- Make sure you have an online presence
- Open communication with suppliers, especially if they are international. Look for local suppliers to avoid delivery delays
- Open communication with customers to see how they are coping and be flexible about extending terms, etc
Courtesy: Craig Moore, founder and CEO of Beehive, which provides term finance and working capital finance to SMEs. Only SMEs that have been trading for two years are eligible for funding from Beehive.
Types of fraud
Phishing: Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
Smishing: The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
Vishing: The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
SIM swap: Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
Identity theft: Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
Prize scams: Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
* Nada El Sawy
MATCH INFO
Inter Milan 2 (Vecino 65', Barella 83')
Verona 1 (Verre 19' pen)
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Abu Dhabi traffic facts
Drivers in Abu Dhabi spend 10 per cent longer in congested conditions than they would on a free-flowing road
The highest volume of traffic on the roads is found between 7am and 8am on a Sunday.
Travelling before 7am on a Sunday could save up to four hours per year on a 30-minute commute.
The day was the least congestion in Abu Dhabi in 2019 was Tuesday, August 13.
The highest levels of traffic were found on Sunday, November 10.
Drivers in Abu Dhabi lost 41 hours spent in traffic jams in rush hour during 2019
Arabian Gulf Cup FINAL
Al Nasr 2
(Negredo 1, Tozo 50)
Shabab Al Ahli 1
(Jaber 13)
