PRESS INVITATION

Four years after major summit, UNESCO convenes global leaders to tackle the education financing crisis

Four years after the landmark Transforming Education Summit convened by the UN Secretary-General, UNESCO will bring together education leaders in Paris on 10 July to examine global progress and challenges in education. Participants will include President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa, more than 30 education ministers, economist Vera Songwe, and Grammy-nominated recording artist and songwriter Audrey Nuna (singing voice of Mira from Kpop Demon Hunters). On this occasion, UNESCO will present new data on the decline of global aid to education, as well as its flagship debt-for-education swap guide, as aid cuts and crises threaten progress in the sector.

Global education financing is in crisis, with declining aid flows, rising debt burdens, and growing fiscal pressures. Today, 113 countries – home to 6.1 billion people – spend more on debt servicing than on education, perpetuating a cycle of underinvestment, inequality, and stalled development. To help countries navigate these challenges, UNESCO will launch on 10 July a comprehensive technical guide for governments to implement debt-for-education swaps, which can contribute to breaking the debt trap and generating additional resources to invest in education.

UNESCO’s new series of resources on innovative education financing solutions will be launched during the Transforming Education Summit +4 at UNESCO’s Headquarters in Paris. This Summit is a key milestone ahead of the 2030 deadline for the Sustainable Development Goal 4 on Education.

The Summit will also examine how artificial intelligence and other new technologies are reshaping education, contributing to UNESCO’s ongoing efforts to ensure AI improves learning outcomes, particularly in developing countries, without undermining human agency. With a focus on building resilience in education systems, the impact of climate change and ongoing crises will also be part of the Summit’s agenda.

Journalists are invited to an online press briefing ahead of the event, during which UNESCO’s debt-for-education swap guide and its call for innovative education financing solutions will be presented, along with new data on the decline of global aid to education, under embargo.

More information:

Transforming Education Summit + 4: System transformation and resilience for SDG 4 | #LeadingSDG4 | Education2030