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Martin S. EdwardsAssociate Professor
• Were they met? Recapping the MDG Goal 2 Experience
• Do they matter? Thinking beyond targets and indicators
• Implications for SDG4?
Agenda:
• Theoretical importance:
• We need better answers to the question “How do goals matter?”
• Policy importance:
• Developing better ways to talk about the goals is key to effective advocacy
So what?
• MDG 2 had one target:
• Universal primary education by 2015
• And three indicators:
• Net enrollment ratio in primary education
• Proportion of pupils starting grade 1 who reach grade 5
• Literacy rate of 15-24 year-olds
Recapping the MDG Goal 2 Experience
• Measured as primary school enrollment as a percentage of population
• Globally: Improved from 84% in 1999 to 91% in 2013
• SSA: Improved from 59% in 1999 to 79% in 2013
• More than triple the global rate of improvement!
1) Net enrollment
• Measured as the proportion of the primary school cohort that continues in the system
• Globally: Unchanged from 75% in 1999 to 2013
• SSA: Also largely unchanged from 59% in 1999 to 57% in 2013
• Improving retention is a global challenge!
2) Primary Completion
• Measured as a percentage of population for ages 15-24
• Globally: Improved from 87% in 1999 to 91% in 2013
• SSA: Slight improvement from 68% in 1999 to 71% in 2013 • Northern Africa improved by 10% (to
91%) over the same timeframe
• As with other goals, regional variations are important!
3) Youth Literacy Rate
• The focus on targets &indicators is a strength of the goals
• But these should not be the sole yardsticks that we focus on to assess their impact
Are we asking the right questions?
• Focusing solely whether targets have been met overlooks other transformations that have occurred because of the goals
• Improvements in transparency and state capacity
• Endorsement of data disaggregation
From “meeting targets” to broader impact
• The number of countries reporting education spending as a percentage of total government expenditure to the World Bank has increased from 1 in 1995 to 120 in 2010• SSA: 70% of countries in the region
reported this data in 2010
• We would not be able to discuss the post-2015 data architecture without greater transparency
More transparency
• More countries are conducting educational assessments than ever before
• UNESCO is benchmarking national level assessment capabilities
• Without creating national level assessments, progress on SDG4 would be impossible
More state capacity
• Data on the three indicators noted previously are disaggregated by gender.
• We would never get to “No One Left Behind” without states accepting a need for disaggregating data in the first place
More disaggregated data
• Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all• Among the nine targets:
– Ensure all boys and girls have access to pre-primary education
– Ensure all boys and girls complete primary and secondary education
– Ensure all men and women have access to vocational and university education
SDG 4: Education
• Target 4.1: completion linked to relevant & effective learning outcomes
• Target 4.4: relevant technical & vocational skills
• Target 4.6: numeracy & literacy
• Target 4.7: ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development
From Access to Content
• The goals have created stronger and more capable states
• But at the same time, the SDG education goals have become more demanding
• Can countries keep pace with these new demands?
The BIG Question
