UNICEF Global Thematic Education SP 2022-2025

The Goal Area 2 Global Annual Results Report 2023: The Narrative Report for year 2023 present the following results for year 2023. Result Area 1: Equitable and inclusive access to learning opportunities, including in humanitarian and fragile contexts. - In 2023, 37.7 million out-of-school children accessed education though UNICEF-supported interventions. UNICEF has already achieved its Strategic Plan target of reaching cumulatively 114 million children by 2025. - Gross enrolment ratio (GER) in preprimary education has stagnated. It decreased from 59% in 2021 to 57% in 2023. It will be difficult to achieve the 2025 target milestone of 77% and 2030 target of 100%. - Out-of-school rate for girls and boys of primary and lower secondary school age is not improving very much. For primary education it stagnated for females (12% in 2021 and 12% in 2023) and got worse for male (9% in 2021 to 11% in 2023). For lower secondary education it improved for both females (20% in 2021 to 18% in 2023) and male (21% in 2021 to 19% in 2023). It will be difficult to achieve the 2025 target milestone (PE female 7%/male 5%, and LSE female 11%/male 12%) and the 2030 target of 0%. - To address the needs of out-of.school children, UNICEF focused on access to non-formal education (NFE) and catch-up programmes. - In 2023, UNICEF enabled 2.4 million children to access pre-primary education. In 2023, 57% of 130 reporting countries met the criteria for having progressed towards a more inclusive and gender-equitable system for access to learning opportunities, in part due to UNICEF support. - In 2023, 55% of all reporting countries reported developing disability-inclusive education systems. Result Area 2: Improved learning, skills, participation and engagement for all children and adolescents. - In 2023, 30% of 76 reporting countries had an effective teacher development system while 52% of 64 reporting countries had an effective learning assessment system. Both require acceleration to meet the UNICEF Strategic Plan targets for 2025. - The percentage of countries with more than 60% of children reaching the minimum proficiency in reading and mathematics remains low in early grades, end of primary and end of lower secondary education (e.g., less than 10% in the end of lower secondary education). It will be difficult to achieve the 2025 target milestone of 54% and 2030 target of 100%. - In 2023, UNICEF worked with governments, civil society and the private sector in 86 countries to strengthen national education systems and alternative pathways to learning for adolescents, preparing them for re-enrolment in education and the world of work. This included strengthening curricula to ensure the full range of skills are integrated (including technical and vocational education and training TVET) supporting learning-to-earning programmes that enable young people to engage in decent work or start their own enterprises and supporting community-based skills-development programmes for adolescents. - In 2023, 35% of UNICEF-supported countries reported institutionalizing holistic skills development for adolescents and youth, up 12% points from the previous year, exceeding the 2023 milestone and on track to achieve UNICEFs Strategic Plan target of 42%. - The percentage of countries with gender-responsive systems for learning and skills development decreased in 2023 to 36% compared to 41% in 2022. It will be difficult to achieve the target of 78% in 2025. - In 2023, UNICEF worked across 87 countries to strengthen education policies, strategies, and national plans to promote and safeguard the mental health and psychosocial well-being of children and educators in schools. Digital Learning: - In 2023, UNICEF continued advancing the Call to Action on Quality Public Digital Learning for All. UNICEF data from 100 reporting countries shows that the proportion of countries with effective systems for digital learning solutions measured by quality of solutions as well as the availability of devices, connectivity, and youth engagement increased from 16% in 2022 to 22% in 2023. - UNICEF provided support to 17.8 million children (half of them girls) with access to education through digital platforms, bringing the cumulative total to 95 million children since 2021. This figure falls short of the planned milestone of 106 million. - To advance digital learning as a public good, through UNICEF and UNESCOs Gateways to Public Digital Learning initiative, a network of 9 countries was established. The initiative is dedicated to promoting and strengthening high-quality, inclusive national digital learning platforms and content. - Launched in 2018, the Learning Passport, UNICEFs flagship digital learning programme, seeks to democratize access to quality education resources by introducing a highly flexible and portable digital education platform. In 2023, the programme expanded to 38 countries, with registered users more than doubling, from 2.8 million in 2022, and 13,529 courses offered. Compared to 2022, the number of trained users more than quadrupled to 2.73 million, and course completions also saw a significant increase, rising nearly fivefold to 2.49 million. Climate education: - In 2023, UNICEF supported governments to mainstream climate education by upskilling teachers, formulating and rolling out curricular frameworks for climate action and improving the availability of quality learning materials focused on climate action and green skills for the benefit of millions of students. - In 8 countries around the globe, UNICEF used co-curricular approaches and training programmes to support adolescents to develop the green skills they need for green jobs and to drive climate adaptation in their communities. - UNICEF has worked with partners to advocate greater investment in strengthening the climate resilience of education systems and to improve access to green skills and climate education for marginalized children and youth. UNICEF continues to support the Greening Education Partnership. - UNICEF also partnered with the Early Childhood Development Action Networks, using evidence to jointly advocate integration of climate education in early learning. Youth participation: - UNICEF work to strengthen local and national systems for youth participation. In 2023, 55 country offices (up from 46 in 2022) implemented specific policies and institutional mechanisms, and built capacities of adult stakeholders to support young peoples participation. A total of 53% of reporting countries met the criteria for having effective student and community participation within the education system. This reflects an increase from 2022 (49%). UNICEF is on track to reach its target for 2025. - In 2023, UNICEF promoted the rights of 21.8 million young people (more than half girls) to have their voices heard and views considered in decision making across 92 countries. Education in emergencies: - UNICEFs education in emergencies (EiE) response reached an estimated 17.7 million children (8.8 million girls) in 2023. In addition UNICEF supplied individual learning materials for 5.2 million children in humanitarian settings. - UNICEF and Save the Children continued their co-leadership of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee global education cluster (GEC). Education clusters and working groups were active in 33 contexts. - At the 2023 Global Refugee Forum, UNICEF and partners pledged to accelerate the transition and inclusion of refugee children into national education systems. - In 2023, UNICEF continued to assist governments to implement the Safe Schools Declaration and Guidelines for Protecting Schools and Universities from Military Use in Armed Conflict. To date, 119 states around the world have endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration. - In 2023, UNICEF worked to ensure that teachers were supported to continue teaching and receive needed training. These efforts equipped teachers with the necessary skills to better support learning continuity and the mental health and well-being of students. - In 2023, the resilience of education systems improved. 32% of programme countries reported having resilient education systems, an increase from 23% in 2022. - A core aspect of UNICEFs humanitarian response is the inter-sectoral work to address the multiple barriers affecting the realization of children rights. Using schools as an integrated service delivery platform, UNICEF education programmes collaborate closely with: health nutrition child protection mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) social policy and social protection disability and gender programmes. Systems strengthening: - Workforce. In 2023, UNICEF programmes strengthened the capacity of close to 112,000 school management committees (or similar bodies) in 63 countries. - Laws and policies. In 2023, 69% of all reporting countries (up from 63% in 2022) indicated that they have effective early-childhood education systems in place, critical for ensuring children have school-readiness skills and support when they enroll in primary education. Similarly, 55% of countries (compared with 47% in 2022) reported progress towards disability-inclusive education systems. - Social and behaviour change (SBC). In 2023, 70 country offices implemented education specific SBC programming to enhance education outcomes. - Data. In 2023, UNICEF supported 70 governments to implement evidence-based national education sector plans and strategies. - Digital learning. UNICEF data from 100 reporting countries shows that the proportion of countries with effective systems for digital learning solutions increased from 16 % in 2022 to 22 % in 2023. - To measure the long-term impact of strengthening education systems, UNICEF monitors 4 key indicators. Workforce (31% countries with effective teacher development systems in 2023), digital learning (22% countries with effective systems for digital learning solutions in 2023), data (58% countries with effective learning assessment systems in 2023) and laws and policies (65% countries implementing evidence-based education sector plans/strategies in 2023).

The strategic intent of Goal Area 2 (education) seeks to ensure that "Every Child, including adolescents, learns and aquires skills for the future". Goal area 2 will focus on achieving progress against two core result areas: 1) Equitable and inclusive access to quality learning opportunities, including in humanitarian and fragile contexts 2) Improved learning, skills, participation and engagement for all children and adolescents, including in humanitarian and fragile contexts. Result area-level (output) indicators - several education actors contribute to these: Result area 1: Equitable and inclusive access to learning opportunities, including in humanitarian and fragile contexts 2.1.1 Percentage of countries with inclusive and gender equitable system for access to learning opportunities 2.1.2. Percentage of countries with a resilient education system that can respond to humanitarian crises 2.1.3. Percentage of countries implementing evidence-based education sector plans/strategies addressing inequities and mainstreaming the Sustainable Development Goal indicators 2.1.4. Number of out-of-school children and adolescents who accessed education through UNICEF-supported programmes Result area 2: Improved learning, skills, participation and engagement for all children and adolescents, in development and humanitarian contexts 2.2.1. Percentage of countries with effective teacher development system 2.2.2. Percentage of countries with effective learning assessment system 2.2.3. Percentage of countries with effective student and community participation within the education system 2.2.4. Percentage of countries with effective system for digital learning solutions 2.2.5. Percentage of countries with gender-responsive systems for learning and skills development 2.2.6. Percentage of countries institutionalizing holistic skills development to support learning, personal empowerment, environmental sustainability, active citizenship, social cohesion and/or employability and entrepreneurship 2.2.7. Number of children provided with individual learning materials through UNICEF-supported programmes 2.2.8. Number of children who accessed education through digital platforms through UNICEF-supported programmes 2.2.9. Number of school management committees whose capacity was developed through UNICEF-supported programmes 2.2.10. Number of adolescents and young people who participate in or lead civic engagement initiatives through UNICEF-supported programmes