On 17 and 18 February, the IPU and the United Nations, represented by the President of the General Assembly, will bring together close to 200 parliamentarians from over 60 countries, as well as diplomats, representatives from civil society, and experts for the IPU Annual Parliamentary Hearing at the United Nations in New York.
This year’s hearing will focus on education and the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4, “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”.
Despite the considerable progress on education access over the past years, 262 million children and youth aged 6 to 17 were still out of school in 2017 according to the UN. Rapid technological changes present opportunities but teacher capacities and the quality of education have not kept pace. The correlation between strong democracies and well-educated citizens is widely documented.
At the hearing, MPs from all over the world will exchange best practice from their countries on how to improve access to education and continuous learning for citizens of all ages, especially for women, girls and marginalized people. The hearing is also an opportunity to call for greater political resolve, from the executive to the legislative, to ensure that SDG 4 is fully realized by 2030.
The IPU Annual Parliamentary Hearing is a forum for debate on global issues between parliamentarians, the UN and other stakeholders. The Hearing’s conclusions and recommendations feed into the work of the UN. Its objective is to help MPs better understand UN decision-making and negotiation processes, as well as give them a space to bring national perspectives to global governance.
