2nd Asia-Pacific Regional Education Minister's Conference (APREMC-II)
🗓️ 5 to 7 June 2022 | By invitation only
📍 Shangri-la Hotel
Bangkok, Thailand (Hybrid Type)
OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
AGENDA
SPEAKERS
PARTNERS
THEMES
2022 BANGKOK STATEMENT
CSO STATEMENT
YOUTH STATEMENT
MINISTERIAL ROUNDTABLE
POLICY BRIEFS
TECHNICAL PAPERS
RESOURCES
PHOTO GALLERY
EXHIBITION
SIDE EVENTS
INFORMATION NOTE
FAQs
APREMC-II IN THE MEDIA
OVERVIEW
The COVID-19 pandemic caused an unprecedented disruption to education globally and regionally and severely impacted education delivery, learning outcomes, student engagement and their health and well-being. This resulted in a significant setback in progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the region, in particular SDG 4. Countries in the Asia and Pacific region were the first impacted by COVID-19, which disrupted access to education for 760 million children at the initial peak of the pandemic in 2020[i]. While the situation varies between countries, schools were closed for an extended period in many cases. The impact of school closures on learning loss and recovery will be dramatic. Early estimates suggest that the proportion of children around the world who cannot read or write a simple text by the age of ten, will increase from 53% in 2019 to 63% in 2021[1]. The World Bank projected that the interruptions in school participation and learning may result in losses valued at $15 trillion in terms of affected children’s future earnings, and in long-lasting consequences in terms of wellbeing and life prospects of this generation, in particular for the most disadvantaged learners[2].
The 5-Year Progress Review of SDG 4 – Education 2030 in Asia-Pacific released in September 2021 by UNESCO and UNICEF, shows that despite overall progress, most countries surveyed were not on track to achieving SDG 4 and that the Asia-Pacific region was facing a learning crisis well before the COVID-19 pandemic, one that has since been alarmingly exacerbated by the broader impact of COVID on societies and economies. The shocking headlines are that: 27 million children and adolescents in the region remain illiterate, 95% of who are in South Asia; and that in many of the region’s countries, 50% of children are unable to read and understand a simple sentence by age 10, despite completing their early grades.
To mitigate the effects of the pandemic, countries implemented diverse remote and on-line education modalities to ensure the continuity of learning. However, not all children and youth were equally reached by these measures, and the most vulnerable groups were the most affected due to a deep digital divide. In addition, there were significant challenges such as the inadequate quality of distance learning programmes, reduced learning content and insufficient teacher preparedness and support to effectively deliver online learning and support their students. Consequently, it is expected that the learning loss will be extensive, putting millions of children and adolescents at risk of not returning to school and thus compromising their future. Furthermore, there is evidence that extended school closures are impacting learner’s health and wellbeing, especially the most vulnerable children.
Overall, while the situation varies between and within countries of the region, the pandemic not only exacerbated pre-existing deep inequities in access to education and learning achievements, it has also exposed important weaknesses in terms of the quality and relevance of education and the overall fragility of current education systems.
The pandemic also revealed the urgent need to strengthen and prepare education systems for future crises. The risk of decreased funding in education, rather than the increases required to attain SDG4 targets, has also demonstrated the urgent need to rethink, innovate, and transform education systems so that they become more equitable, inclusive, relevant, responsive and resilient. While governments and donors must reprioritise education funding, innovative financing may also be required to address existing gaps.
The pre-existing weaknesses of current education systems, exposed by the pandemic on the one hand and creative responses to the crisis on the other, have also revealed the need to reimagine education in future. Concerted, innovative efforts are required to strengthen the resilience and effectiveness of education systems across all levels of education. This should be done through sector-wide responses that ensure sustainable education recovery as well as the transformation required beyond COVID-19 to accelerate progress towards SDG4. Addressing the learning crisis and ensuring the right of learning for all must be at the heart of education recovery and transformation in the Asia-Pacific region. The need for curriculum review and flexible learning for adolescents, so that they have the skills required to thrive and contribute to socio-economic recovery is also urgent. Flexible pathways can also be a key means to enabling the realisation of lifelong learning in practice.
Countries in the region will face similar challenges in adapting their education systems, policies and practices to these new challenges. Learning more from each other as members of the Asia-Pacific community will help improve and expedite their responses.
[1] https://documents.worldbank.org/en/publication/documents-reports/documentdetail/232501603286799234/learning-poverty-measures-and-simulations
[2] See World Education Blog, 5 October 2021, There will be no recovery without empowered, motivated and effective teachers | World Education Blog (wpcomstaging.com)
[i] UNESCO and UNICEF. (2021) Situation Analysis on the Effects of and Responses to COVID-19 on the Education Sector in Asia: Regional Synthesis Report. Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/rosa/media/16436/file/Regional%20Situation%20Analysis%20Report.pdf
INTRODUCTION
High-level regional policy dialogues and exchanges are key opportunities to share good practices and deliberate on how to address common challenges. They are also an opportunity to commit to collective and coordinated efforts and expanding partnerships, as the COVID impact revealed that education is not only a domestic affair, but digital/online/distance education can be accessed beyond national boundaries and cross-border learning, student/teacher mobility can be facilitated. Such dialogues will effectively inform and facilitate educational transformations and policy reform, and support the acceleration of progress towards SDG4.
Therefore, UNESCO Bangkok, in collaboration with UNICEF EAPRO and UNICEF ROSA, will organize the second Asia-Pacific Ministerial Education Ministers’ Conference (APREMC II), which is co-hosted by the Ministry of Education of Thailand and organized with the kind collaboration of the Ministry of Education, Cultures, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan. The meeting will be convened under the umbrella of the Asia-Pacific Learning and Education 2030+ (LE2030+) Network Group in June 2022. The meeting follows the 2014 high-level Asia-Pacific Education Conference (APREC) which discussed issues, challenges and priorities for education beyond 2015 from an Asia-Pacific perspective and developed a set of regional recommendations for the post-2015 global education agenda.
APREMC II is also partly positioned as a follow-up to the Global Education Meeting (GEM) 2021 debates, of which the July session’s outcome document invited UNESCO to strengthen the “linkages in the global-regional-country levels of coordination within the GCM and to take forward the commitments made in the Paris Declaration: Call for Action at the regional level”.
APREMC II will provide a platform for ministers of the 46 Member States of the region and other education stakeholders to take stock and analyse progress made in the region towards SDG4, against the backdrop of the impact and responses to COVID 19. It will identify, discuss and agree on priority actions and strategies for effective education/learning recovery and system transformation, for the acceleration of progress towards SDG4 in the region and generate recommendations for action. Its outcomes will also be one of the regional contribution to the SDG4 High-level Steering Committee (HLSC), which will be convened in July 2022.
AGENDA
Saturday, 4 June 2022 (DAY 0) | Venue | |
14:00 – 18:00 | Registration | Shangri-la Wing In front of Grand Ballroom, Lobby-level |
Technical Segment (5 June 2022) |
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Sunday, 5 June 2022 (DAY 1) | Venue | |
08:00 – 09:00 | Registration/Coffee | Outer Foyer
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09:00 – 09:15 | OPENING SESSION
| Ballroom 1-2
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09:15 – 09:40
| PLENARY I
| Ballroom 1-2
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09:40 – 09:55 | Coffee break |
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10:00 – 12:00
| PARALLEL SESSION I |
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Session 1 – Learning Recovery and Addressing the Learning Crisis | Ballroom 1-2 | |
Session 2 – Equity, Inclusion and Gender Equality | Ballroom 3 | |
Session 3 – Digital Transformation | Next 2 Chao Phraya | |
Session 4 – Higher Education and Adult Learning | Corundum | |
Session 5 – Financing and Governance | The Study | |
12:00 – 12:30
| PLENARY II Moderator: Ms Mitsue Uemura, Regional Education Advisor, UNICEF EAPRO Report of recommendations of the break-out sessions to plenary (30’) | Ballroom 1-2
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12:30 – 14:00 | Lunch break and side events |
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14:00 – 16:00
| PARALLEL SESSIONS II |
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Session 6 – Transformative Education (ESD, GCED, Health and Wellbeing) | Ballroom 1-2 | |
Session 7 – Early Childhood Care and Education | Ballroom 3 | |
Session 8 – Adolescents and Youth Learning and Skills Development | Next 2 Chao Phraya | |
Session 9 – Teachers | Corundum | |
Session 10 – Data and Monitoring | The Study | |
16:00 – 16:15 | Coffee break |
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16:15– 17:30 | PLENARY III Moderator: Mr Peter de Vries, Regional Education Advisor, UNICEF ROSA Report of recommendations of the break-out sessions to plenary (25’) Plenary discussion | Ballroom 1-2
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17:30 – 17:35 | Wrap-up of the Thematic Segment | Ballroom 1-2 |
17:35 – 19:30 | Registration | Outer Foyer |
18:00 – 19:00 | Side events |
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High-level Segment (6-7 June 2022) |
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Monday, 6 June 2022 (DAY 2) | Venue | |
7:00 – 8:00 | Registration | Outer Foyer |
8:00 | All participants to be seated in the Ballroom |
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9:00 – 10:15
| High-Level Opening Ceremony
| Ballroom 1–2-3
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10:15 – 10:40 | Opening of the on-site Exhibition by HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn |
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10:40 – 11:00 | Coffee break |
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11:00 – 12:30
| PLENARY IV
Moderator: Mr Akihiro Fushimi, Education Specialist, UNICEF EAPRO
· Presentation of the outcomes of thematic discussions (30’)
· Presentation of the sub-regional consultations (15’)
| Ballroom 1–2-3
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12:30 – 14:00 | Lunch break and side events |
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14:00– 14:45
| PLENARY V
Moderator: Ms Maki Katsuno-Hayashikawa, Director, Division for Education 2030. UNESCO
| Ballroom 1-2-3
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14:45 – 15:00 | Coffee break |
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15:00 – 17:15 | Ministerial Roundtable Transforming education for our future in Asia and the Pacific
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Two parallel break-out sessions (in-person – hybrid) (120’) Policy dialogue on:
1. Learning Recovery and Addressing the Learning Crisis Moderator: Ms Debora Comini, Director, UNICEF EAPRO
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Ballroom 1
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2. Transforming Education and its Systems Moderator: Mr Shigeru Aoyagi, Director, UNESCO Bangkok
| Ballroom 2-3
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19:30 – 21.30 | Dinner hosted by the Ministry of Education Thailand | Ballroom 1-2-3 |
Tuesday, 7 June 2022 (DAY 3) | Venue | |
09:00 – 09:20
| PLENARY VII Presentation of the recommendations from the ministerial roundtables
Moderator: Ms Mitsue Uemura, Regional Education Advisor, UNICEF EAPRO
| Ballroom 1-2-3
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09:20 – 09:35 | Coffee break |
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09:35 – 11:00 | PLENARY VIII
Moderator: Mr Shigeru Aoyagi, Director, UNESCO Bangkok
| Ballroom 1-2-3
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11:00– 12:00
| PLENARY IX
Moderator: Mr Shigeru Aoyagi, Director, UNESCO Bangkok
Towards the Transforming Education Summit (TES) (30’)
The Way Forward – Follow-up to APREMC II (20’) Co-chairs of the LE2030+ Networking Group
CLOSING SESSION
| Ballroom 1-2-3
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12:00– 13:30 | Lunch |
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End of the 2nd Asia-Pacific Regional Education Minister’s Conference (APREMC II) |
Back-to-back Meetings | ||
Tuesday, 7 June 2022 (DAY 3) | Venue | |
13:30 – 15:00
| Regional launch of 2021/2 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report-Non-state actors in Education: Who chooses? Who loses? | Ballroom 3
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14:00 – 18:00 | Asia-Pacific Regional Consultation Meeting in preparation for the 2nd World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education (WCECCE) | Next 2 Chao Phraya
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Wednesday, 8 June 2022 |
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09:00 – 17:00 | The 4th Meeting of the Regional Network of the SDG 4 National Coordinators
| Ballroom 3
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SPEAKERS
H.E. Ms Treenuch Thienthong, Minister of Education, Thailand
H.E. Ms Thienthong currently serves as Thailand 55th Minister of Education. Prior to this, she served five terms as a Member of Parliament of Sa Kaeo province. She was also a Spokesperson for the Standing Committee on Tourism, a Deputy Spokesperson of the Ministry of Culture, and a Treasurer for the Executive Directors of the Thai National Group to the Asian-Pacific Parliamentarians’ Union (APPU). She also held a position as an Advisor to former Minister Agriculture and Cooperatives, former Minister of Social Development and Human Security, and former Deputy Minister of Education. In addition, she was appointed as Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Commerce and Vice Chairperson of the Steering Committee on Foreign Affairs. Between 2002-2008, H.E. Ms Thienthong was awarded two Knight Grand Cordon (Special Class) and two Knight Grand Cross (First Class) for her outstanding services to the Kingdom of Thailand.
Shigeru Aoyagi, Director, Asia-Pacific Regional Bureau for Education in Bangkok
Mr Aoyagi has been associated with UNESCO since 1984 through educational and cultural programmes of the Asia-Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO in Tokyo. He joined UNESCO in 2002 as Chief of the Literacy and Non-Formal Education in Paris. Mr Aoyagi was Director of the UNESCO Office in Kabul and Representative to Afghanistan. He initiated the largest literacy project in the history of UNESCO, “Empowerment of Literacy in Afghanistan” in 2006. In 2012, Mr Aoyagi took up the post of Director of the UNESCO Office in New Delhi, and Representative to India, Bhutan, Maldives and Sri Lanka. He led the development of SAARC Framework for Action for SDG4: Education 2030.
Debora Comini, Director, UNICEF East Asia and the Pacific Regional Office (EAPRO)
Joining EAPRO in November 2021, Ms Comini is responsible for programme coherence and advocacy for UNICEF across the 14 country offices in the East Asia and the Pacific region. Ms Comini started her UNICEF career in 1991 in UNICEF Headquarter, New York, and held several senior positions including UNICEF Representative in Indonesia, UNICEF Representative in Cambodia, UNICEF Deputy Regional Director for Latin America & Caribbean, UNICEF Representative in Nicaragua, UNICEF Representative in North Macedonia, UNICEF Representative in Venezuela, and Regional Chief of Planning for Latin America & Caribbean. On secondment to the Resident Coordinator system, she also held the UNRC and UNDP Resident Representative position in Mongolia.
H.E. Mr Shinsuke Suematsu, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan
Mr Suematsu is a Japanese politician and current member of the House of Councillors in the Diet of Japan. He has represented the Hyogo at-large district as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party since 2004. Before entering politics in 1983, Mr Suematsu graduated from the School of Law and Politics, Kwansei Gakuin University in 1979 and worked for All Nippon Airways. He is Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and Minister in charge of Education Rebuilding (Kishida Cabinet) since October 2021.
Ms Jayathma Wickramanayake, UN Secretary-General Envoy on Youth
Ms Wickramanayake was appointed as the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth in June 2017 at the age of 26. In this role, she works to expand the UN’s youth engagement and advocacy efforts across all four pillars of work – sustainable development, human rights, peace and security and humanitarian action – and serves as a representative of and advisor to the Secretary-General. Originally from Sri Lanka, Ms Wickramanayake has worked extensively on youth development and participation, and has played a key role in transforming the youth development sector in her home country. Prior to taking up her post, Ms Wickramanayake was instrumental in creating the movement for civic and political engagement of young people, especially young women in Sri Lanka named “Hashtag Generation”. Previously, she advocated for global youth development on an international level including as the first ever Sri Lankan Youth Delegate to the UN and as the youth lead negotiator and member of the International Youth Task Force of the World Conference on Youth 2014.
Ms Stefania Gianini, Assistant Director-General for Education, UNESCO
Ms Giannini was appointed UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Education in 2018. She provides strategic vision and leadership in coordinating and monitoring the Education 2030 Agenda, encompassed in Sustainable Development Goal 4. During her term, she has given fresh impetus to multilateral and bilateral partnerships; increased global focus on education’s ethical role in providing learners with the skills to respond to 21st century challenges and heightened attention to the responsibility of universities in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. She affirmed UNESCO’s leadership in the COVID-19 response through global evidence, guidance, policy dialogue and collaboration with public and private partners, including through the Global Education Coalition. With a background in the Humanities, Ms Giannini has served as Rector of the University for Foreigners of Perugia (2004 – 2012); Senator of the Republic of Italy (2013 – 2018) and Minister of Education, Universities and Research (2014 – 2016).
H.E. Ms Tamara Rastovac Siamashvili (Serbia), Chairperson of UNESCO’s Executive Board
The Executive Board of UNESCO elected Ambassador Rastovac Siamashivili as its Chairperson in November 2021, for a two-year mandate. Since March 2019 she has been Ambassador, Permanent Delegate to the Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Serbia to UNESCO. Prior to this posting, she was Deputy Assistant Minister for Bilateral Relations. During her diplomatic career, she has also been Head of the Department for Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and Council of Europe and Deputy Head of the Task Force OSCE Chairmanship of Serbia, both posts within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Serbia. She has held posts in her government’s missions in Brussels, Strasbourg and New York.
Margarete Sachs-Israel, Chief of Section for Inclusive Quality Education, UNESCO Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education (moderator of the panel segment)
Ms Sachs-Israel has over 30 years of experience in education and international development. Before joining UNESCO Bangkok, she was the UNICEF Regional Education Advisor for Latin American and Caribbean. Prior to that, she held the position of Chief Programme Coordinator, UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning; and was the UNESCO focal point for the development of the United Nations Education 2030 Agenda at UNESCO Headquarters. In her current capacity, she oversees the SDG4-Education 2030 regional coordination, education policy, planning and management, quality of education, inclusive education, multilingual and mother tongue education, ECCE, as well as health education and well-being. She also serves as the co-chair of the UN networking group “Learning and Education 2030+” with UNICEF EAPRO and ROSA.
Ethel Agnes P. Valenzuela, Director, SEAMEO Secretariat (moderator of the discussion segment)
Dr Valenzuela is the first woman director since the establishment of SEAMEO in 1965. She is a member of the UNESCO SDG Global Steering Committee and co-chair of ICT and Distance Education of the UNESCO International Teacher Task Force. She serves as a Technical Advisory Board member of the UNESCO Institute of Lifelong Learning and a member of the Global Alliance for Monitoring Learning. She is also a technical advisory panel of the International Standards Classification of Teacher Training Programmes of UNESCO and UIS. She is a member of the ASEAN TVET Council and an ex-officio member of the ASEAN University Network. She has also served as Professorial Lecturer at the University of the Philippines Diliman, College of Education since 2006.
Rukmini Banerji, Chief Executive Officer, Pratham Education Foundation, India
Dr Banerji has extensive field experience working directly with rural and urban communities as well as in designing and implementing large scale partnerships with governments for improving the learning of elementary school-aged children. From 2005 to 2014, she led Pratham’s research and assessment efforts including the well-known ASER initiative (Annual Status of Education Report). Rukmini is the 2021 recipient of the Yidan Prize for education development.
Roger Chao Jr., Assistant Director & Head of Education, Youth and Sports Division, ASEAN Secretariat
Since 2013, Dr Chao has been engaged in the international education development sector, including with UNESCO, UNICEF, the European Commission, DAAD and the British Council. He holds a Ph.D in Asian and International Studies, a European Masters in Lifelong Learning: Policy and Management and a master’s in education (Mathematics). His latest publications include higher education in the Philippines, comparative and international education in East and Southeast Asia, Intra-ASEAN student mobility: overview, challenges & opportunities, and mobility, mutual recognition and ASEAN community-building: the road for sustainable ASEAN integration.
Baela Jamil, Chief Executive Officer, Idara e Taleem O Aahgi (ITA), Pakistan
As CEO of ITA, Dr Jamil heads the citizen-led assessment ASER Pakistan. She founded the Children’s Literature Festival in Pakistan and has been leading the COVID-19 response effort spearheading innovations in girls’ education and EdTech. She serves on multiple National/Provincial Government and private boards. Globally, she is the Commissioner to the International Commission on Financing Global Education Opportunity. She served as the Chair of the Global Alliance to Monitor Learning SDG 4.2 at the UNESCO Institute of Statistics and is the advisory member at the Global Business Coalition for Education and the Rise on Improving Systems of Education (RISE) Delivery Board.