UNITED NATIONS – United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has urged the international community to prioritise education as a major political goal for the recovery and beyond.

"I urge everyone to rally around education as a public good and a top political goal for the recovery and beyond," the UN Secretary-General said in a video message for Monday's International Day of Education.

According to the Secretary-General, the Covid-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on schooling around the world.  "At the height of the pandemic, 1.6 billion school and college students had their studies disrupted - and it's not over yet." According to the reports, school closures continue to disturb the lives of over 31 million pupils, worsening a global learning crisis. "Unless we act now, the percentage of children leaving school in developing nations who are unable to read might rise from 53% to 70%," he said.

"Education is a prime public good and a key enabler for the entire 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development," Guterres said, adding that "the international community cannot afford to be agnostic about its provision, quality, or relevance." The International Day of Education, which was established on December 3, 2018, as a result of a UN General Assembly decision, is observed every year on January 24 to recognise the importance of education in promoting worldwide peace and development.

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