TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION CAN HELP EXPAND EDUCATION FOR ALL – UN OFFICIAL

Making use of the latest information and communication technology (ICT) and innovation can help countries expand educational opportunities for all in a way that also advances development, a senior United Nations official said today.

"Technology and innovation are keys to accelerating progress towards the ;MDGs, particularly in countries that are falling behind," Sha Zukang, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs told the Global Forum on ICT and innovation for Education, referring to the eight anti-poverty targets with a 2015 deadline.

The latest update on the MDGs shows that progress has so far been mixed, he noted at the event in the Mexican city of Monterrey.

With some six years remaining before 2015, some goals are on target. For example, enrolment in primary education has risen from 83 per cent in 2000 to 88 per cent in 2007, and child mortality is steadily decreasing.

At the same time, the current global downturn risks reversing some of the positive trends, he added, noting that an estimated 55 to 90 million more people will fall below the poverty line.

"Education is the foundation of a modern and thriving economy," Mr. Sha stated. "It empowers poor and marginalized communities and enables them to contribute to economic and social development.

"ICT and innovation can open up new opportunities for both expanding the reach and improving the quality of education in developing regions, by providing practical and enabling solutions to current problems."

He said the advent of universally accessible information, the rapid development of next generation networks and multi-lingual software, low-cost hardware, new mobile platforms and other innovations "all present a real opportunity to developing countries to employ ICT to lift the quality of education and make it universally accessible."

The key to putting ICT to use in schools and colleges – where the main obstacles are the high cost of connectivity and computers and the lack of qualified teachers – is affordable connectivity, low-cost computing devices and applications that can be used for education and other services, he said, adding that training of instructors should go hand in hand with advances in access and connectivity.
________________

HEALTH, EDUCATION EFFORTS IN REPUBLIC OF CONGO RECEIVE $500,000 BOOST FROM UN

The Republic of Congo has received a $500,000 influx from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) to boost health, nutrition and education initiatives to help ease the impact of the global economic crisis on the country's most vulnerable people.

The nation is recovering from two civil wars that uprooted over 1 million people, and despite strides made since the 2003 peace agreement, over half the population of nearly 4 million currently lives below the poverty line.

"Women and children are the most affected by poverty," UNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman said in the capital, Brazzaville, today.

One in eight children die before they turn five, largely from preventable causes, she said, adding that the country also has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the region.

While in Brazzaville, Ms. Veneman visited the Life Savers national initiative which promotes 12 simple, easy-to-practice household behaviours, including breastfeeding exclusively for six months, sleeping under an insecticide-treated mosquito bednet, and washing hands with soap.

Life Savers also runs a 24-hour telephone hotline, which parents and caregivers can call when their children are sick.

In talks with Prime Minister Isidore Mvouba and other top officials, the UNICEF head commended the Government's efforts to improve access to social services and raised the issue of the treatment of indigenous people, or pygmies, especially the children who are marginalized and often face discrimination.
________________

Human Rights Watch Weekly Digest

Israel: Investigate 'White Flag' Shootings of Gaza Civilians Internal Israeli Military Investigations Inadequate During Israel's recent Gaza offensive, Israeli soldiers unlawfully shot and killed 11 Palestinian civilians, including five women and four children, who were in groups waving white flags to convey their civilian status.

US: Students With Disabilities Face Corporal Punishment at Higher Rates ACLU and Human Rights Watch Seek Ban on Physical Discipline at School. Students with disabilities face corporal punishment in public schools at disproportionately high rates. The physical discipline, which often includes beatings, can worsen these students' medical conditions and undermine their education.

UN Security Council: Create Senior Post on Women and War. The UN Security Council should urgently establish a high-level post to fill a leadership gap relating to women and armed conflict. A special representative of the secretary-general assigned to this issue would be able to push for protection against sexual violence and to promote equal participation by women in peace talks.

Karzai has made an unthinkable deal to sell Afghan women out in return for the support of fundamentalists in the August 20 election. So much for any credentials he claimed as a moderate on women's issues.

Burma: Aung San Suu Kyi Verdict 'Reprehensible' This trial was a farce, a brutal distortion of the legal process. By silencing prominent opponents through bogus trials, the generals are clearly showing why the elections they have been touting for next year won't bring change.

DRC: Clinton Should Highlight Rape and Justice IssuesKillings and brutal sexual violence against women, girls and also men have massively increased in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo since the start of military operations in January 2009.

Russia: Ensure Independent Inquiry Into Activists' KillingsThis is a ghastly crime, and its authors must be brought to justice. These killings, less than a month after the murder of Natalia Estemirova, make it absolutely clear that anyone trying to help the people of Chechnya is in mortal danger.

Mexico: Calderon Denies Military Impunity. The claim by President Felipe Calderón of Mexico today that army abuse cases are effectively prosecuted in Mexico flies in the face of all available evidence.

UK/Iraq: UK War Inquiry Should Cover Rights Investigate Allegations of Serious Abuses Committed Against Civilians, DetaineesThe British Government's Inquiry into its Iraq War policies should include human rights abuses as part of its investigation.

Saudi Arabia: Counterterrorism Efforts Violate RightsIndefinite Detention, Inappropriate Reeducation, and Flawed Trials Saudi Arabia's response to terrorism for years has been to lock up thousands of suspects and throw away the key. The authorities made believe that religious counseling could replace trials, and now they are pretending that convictions after secret trials can legitimize continued detention.

CHILDREN’S SCHOOLING UNDER THREAT FROM DEEPENING POVERTY, WARNS UN OFFICIAL

Poverty is the biggest threat to the educational development of children around the world, a senior United Nations official today warned hundreds of students gathered for the start of the first ever Global Model UN (GMUN) conference.

"Poverty, like conflict, today continues to deprive young people of the opportunity and right to be educated," UN Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information Kiyo Akasaka told over 500 student delegates meeting at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

Some "72 million children are out of school, denied the right to education," despite passing the mid-way point for reaching the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), a series of targets set by world leaders – including the slashing of poverty and the achievement of universal primary education – by 2015, noted Mr. Akasaka.

He said that any progress in the eradication of hunger had been reversed largely due to last year's hike in food and fuel prices, and that an estimated 55 to 90 million more people were forced into extreme poverty in 2009 – a forecast calculated before the current economic crisis took hold.

With more than 1 billion people around the world trapped in poverty, many nations in Africa and Asia are not on track to achieve the MDGs, said Mr. Akasaka. "The global financial and economic crises are hitting the poorest and the most vulnerable hardest of all.

"Poverty is the number one enemy of children," Mr. Akasaka stressed in his address to the students, who represent 120 of the 192 UN Member States. "Poverty is the number one enemy of a decent society. We must stand up and fight against poverty."

The Under-Secretary-General said that the challenges faced in achieving the MDGs are "great, daunting and humbling," and that it would take enormous multilateral efforts to solve them.

"That is why governments are taking collective action to address them, including through the United Nations, the world's only truly universal organization," he said.

"Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has repeatedly urged nations not to lose sight of the Goals," said Mr. Akasaka, highlighting the Secretary-General's call "to accelerate progress towards the MDGs and to strengthen the global partnership for development."

Mr. Akasaka said that civil society also plays a critical role in these efforts and young people are making important contributions around the world to the achievement of the MDGs.

"Many campaigns that raise awareness and focus on reaching specific Millennium Development Goals have been initiated by young people. At a time when young people are often the ones hardest hit by poverty, there is no one better to speak on behalf of youth people than the young themselves."

Mr. Akasaka reminded delegates that efforts to achieve the MDGs are closely connected to those combating global warming. "Climate change is the challenge of our – and your – generation," he said. "In tackling the climate challenge, we will find solutions for economic recovery, food security for the poor, and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals."

Encouraging delegates to join the UN campaign pressing governments to "seal the deal" on a "fair, balanced and effective agreement on climate change" when they meet at the UN Conference on Climate Change in Copenhagen in December, Mr. Akasaka said that as "pioneers of GMUN, you are living history and you will become legends. We would not be here without the help of so many."

Delegates at the inaugural three-day GMUN conference, organized by the UN Department of Public Information (DPI) with partial funding from Switzerland, were chosen from regional model UN programmes.
________________