What does education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world mean?

Mandela Day reminds us of the 67 years of service of the life that Dr. Nelson Mandela devoted to serving humanity. The 18 of July is a time when South Africans and the international community are called upon to commit to serving, and making a difference to the lives of those less fortunate than we are. The year 2019 marks ten years since the introduction of Mandela day to keep the spirit of the man affectionately known as “Tata” alive by making every day a Mandela Day.

In honor of Dr. Mandela’s values and his dedication to the service to humanity, the rights of children and the love of children, we at Future Africa dedicated a portion of the day to spending it with learners from N’wa-Vangani School. This is in line with President Cyril Ramaphosa’s call in his 2019 State of the Nation Address, where he said that he wants to see all South African children receive at least two years of Early Childhood Development (ECD) before they begin Grade 1.

We would like to pass our sincere appreciation to the following people and centers that partnered with us to make this day a possibility;

·         Dr. Raita Steyn, Art Education Lecturer at the Department of Humanities Education together with her students

·         Ms. Puleng Tsie, Manager of Sci-Enza Science center, and her team.

·         Ms. Susan Scheepers, and Mike Information Specialist at Medical Library, Faculty of Health Sciences

·         FABI students and staff

·         Future Africa staff and residents.

·         Mr. Rassie Erasmus, Manager Bookmark, University of Pretoria

·         Dr. Eugene Machimana and Gernia van Niekerk, Community Engagement

·         Collin Stier and Brett Fischer TuksSport

School girls in Sana’a gather for their lesson / Clinton Doggett, USAID

As Nelson Mandela says, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

Education is the key to eliminating gender inequality, to reducing poverty, to creating a sustainable planet, to preventing needless deaths and illness, and to fostering peace. And in a knowledge economy, education is the new currency by which nations maintain economic competitiveness and global prosperity.

Education is an investment, and one of the most critical investments we can make. This is true not only for the United States, but for countries around the world.

Arne Duncan serves as U.S. Secretary of Education

The UN’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of providing universal primary education to all and eliminating gender inequities, has propelled many nations and multi-governmental organizations to boost educational spending. But the work is not easy, and many countries are falling short of achieving these goals, particularly the 2015 target date that was set when the goals were adopted in 2000.

Today, around the globe, an estimated 61 million primary-aged children are out of school, almost half of them in conflict-affected poor countries. Too often, even those students who do go to school finish without basic literacy and numeracy skills: it is estimated that 250 million children cannot read, write or count well.

Expanding educational access for girls is not just an urgent economic and social need. In many cases, it is literally a matter of life and death. A mother who can read can better protect her children from chronic illnesses, from AIDS, and from dying young. A child born to a mother who can read is 50 percent more likely to survive past age five. And in Africa’s poorest states, UNESCO projects that the lives of 1.8 million children could have been saved if their mothers had at least a secondary education.

In announcing his Global Education First initiative, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon reminded us that, “We cannot afford to waste the talents of a generation.” He related this to his own experience growing up in the Republic of Korea as it recovered from war. “People today often ask about my country’s transformation from poverty to prosperity. Without hesitation, I answer that education was the key.”

USAID supports the Haitian Government’s plan to get 1.5 million students in school by 2016, improve curricula, train teachers, and set standards for schools / Kendra Helmer, USAID

The Global Education First initiative, along with the Learning for All Ministerial event in Washington, D.C. last week with the UN, World Bank, the Global Partnership for Education, USAID and others, are building momentum around the global movement for education: to put every child in school, to improve the quality of learning, and to foster global citizenship. With roughly 1,000 days to the 2015 MDG deadline, the pressure is on to accelerate progress to expand access, improve equity and boost student achievement.

Education is the foundation of peace and prosperity. I can’t imagine a better world without a global commitment to providing better education for women and youth and I urge all of us to reinvigorate our efforts to accelerate progress in improving access, quality and student achievement worldwide.

Related Links

• Explore USAID’s work supporting Education around the world
• Read how we’re putting girls in the ‘Front Row’ of Yemen’s new education drive
• Check out our Grand Challenge: All Children Reading
• Follow @USAIDEducation

How can we use education to change the world?

Who is the person who says that education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world?

Is education the most powerful tool to make the world a better place?

When did Nelson Mandela say education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world?