For Advertorial: National Pledge Event -- Wednesday, Nov. 30,

For Advertorial: National Pledge Event -- Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2005

National Pledge for achieving EFA and MDGs goals in Indonesia

Indonesia is expected to achieve Education for All (EFA) and Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) objectives following the signing the National Pledge Event.

Organized by the Centre for Betterment of Education (CBE) with the support of UNESCO, Jakarta, the National Pledge was signed by at least 30 representatives from various different parties in Jakarta on Nov. 24, 2005.

The signatories included representatives from the Ministry of National Education, international agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), teachers and elementary students.

The signing ceremony was opened by Hasnah Gagim, representative of the Indonesian National Commission for UNESCO, and Riswan Lapagu, director of CBE. The event was closed by Alisher Umarov, Education Officer of UNESCO Jakarta.

The signing of the National Pledge Event has demonstrated strong public commitment to looking over the implementation of the EFA goals especially No. 2 and 5, which are to ensure that by the year 2015 all people, young and old, can achieve primary education level, and MDGs goals, especially No. 2 and 3, which aim to achieve gender-equal education by the year 2015 in Indonesia.

Under the National Pledge Event, the signatories agreed among other things to accelerate the attainment of EFA and MDGs goals, synchronize and coordinate their efforts on behalf of EFA attainment, while at the same time respecting the specific competencies and capacities of all participating agencies.

They also pledged to implement integrated strategies for gender equality in education that recognize the need for changes in attitudes, values and practices and participate in monitoring the progress toward EFA goals, strategies and the national educational program in Indonesia.

Established in 2000, CBE is an NGO with focus on education for elementary and junior high school level.

Since 2003, CBE, the national partner of the Worldwide Global Campaign supported by UNESCO, has been active in promoting EFA and MDGs in Indonesia.

"Education to End Poverty" is this year's EFA and MDGs campaign theme. And in parallel with the theme, CBE has been engaged in a series of activities since April of this year, with the signing of the National Pledge Event as the peak of the activities.

In line with EFA and MDGs goals, CBE has focused its activities on organizing group discussions with education stakeholders; inviting politicians and influential figures to visit schools and communities through "Go Back to School" activities and asking school children to write about their friends who are not in school for different reasons. CBE also distributes solidarity card "cut-out friends' that were also signed by the Pledge participants as their solidarity symbol for illiterate young children.

To help achieve the goal, CBE prepares and distributes EFA & MDGs campaign materials, such as posters, leaflets, brochures, and banners to the schools and communities in different provinces of Indonesia, including Aceh.

CBE has identified at least 300 elementary school drop-outs from 13 schools in Jakarta, Bogor and Depok.

Indonesia is one of the countries that signed the Dakar Framework for Action in 2000. Under the framework, Indonesia along with other world leaders are committed to continuing to support the efforts of developing countries in the implementation of the Education for All Initiative, including with enhanced resources of all types in support of country-led national educational plans.

However, millions of young children remain illiterate, with the gender-gap in basic and secondary education remaining wide.

No doubt, the National Pledge Event is important given its role in establishing solidarity networks between the government and other stakeholders in order to achieve the EFA and MDGs goals.