The world is experiencing a global learning crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic pushed 1.6 billion children out of school. But even before the pandemic, 90% of children in low-income countries could not read and understand a simple story by their 10th birthday.
In 2021, investment in the Global Partnership for Education was crucial. It could help ensure that 175 million children across 87 lower-income countries could access high-quality education. It could help get 88 million more children into the classroom. To ensure world leaders understood what was at stake, we partnered with GPE and Save the Children to create the Lost Potential Tracker. It showed the true impact of a lost education. ONE Activists also handed petitions to politicians in the UK, France, US, Kenya, and Mali.
Impact
US$4 billion to support education systems in 90 countries and territories
What we did
- 85,000+ people signed our petition, took our quiz, showed support on social media, and sent letters and messages to ask governments to invest in education.
- We joined more than 80 civil society organizations, 14 MPs, six artists, and 43 individuals across Africa to ask African heads of state to protect domestic public financing of education with an open letter.
- Our UK Activists visited Westminster to deliver our petition to key policymakers, our French Activists met with President Emmanuel Macron and other MPs, and our US Activists met with members of Congress.
- We highlighted stories of children and teachers around the world affected by the education crisis, with blogs and a “Learning in Lockdown” video series.
Inspired?
See some of our ongoing campaigns and learn more about how you can lend your voice to fight against extreme poverty.