Ensuring universal primary education for children

Providing universal child schooling
Ensuring poor have access to primary education
Ensuring primary school enrolment
Beginning young children's education

Description

Ensuring universal primary education for children involves implementing policies and programs that guarantee free, accessible, and quality schooling for all children, regardless of gender, location, or socioeconomic status. This strategy addresses barriers such as poverty, discrimination, inadequate infrastructure, and teacher shortages by mobilizing resources, improving school facilities, training educators, and promoting community engagement. Its practical intent is to eliminate educational exclusion, reduce child labor, and lay the foundation for lifelong learning and social development.

Context

This strategy features in the framework of Agenda 21 as formulated at UNCED (Rio de Janeiro, 1992), now coordinated by the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development and implemented through national and local authorities.

Implementation

Industrialized countries provide near or completely universal primary education for children.

In 2001, the Sialkot district of Pakistan announced it was the first in Asia to achieve 100% enrolment of 5-7 years olds in schools. This is complementary to the various steps the government has taken for elimination of child labour from country's industrial sector.