United Nations

General Assembly

A/C.2/74/L.48/Rev.1
Distr.: Limited
20 November 2019
Original: English

Seventy-fourth session

Second Committee
Agenda item 19 (h)Sustainable development: education forsustainable development
Japan and State of Palestine:* revised draft resolution

Education for sustainable development in the framework of the2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
The General Assembly,
Recalling its resolution 72/222 of 20 December 2017 and other previous
resolutions on education for sustainable development,
Reaffirming its resolution 70/1 of 25 September 2015, entitled “Transforming
our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, in which it adopted acomprehensive, far-reaching and people-centred set of universal and transformative
Sustainable Development Goals and targets, its commitment to working tirelessly forthe full implementation of the Agenda by 2030, its recognition that eradicating
poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty, is the greatest
global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development, itscommitment to achieving sustainable development in its three dimensions –economic, social and environmental – in a balanced and integrated manner, and tobuilding upon the achievements of the Millennium Development Goals and seeking
to address their unfinished business,Reaffirming also its resolution 71/243 of 21 December 2016 on the quadrennial
comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development of the United
Nations system and its general guidelines and principles, as well as its resolution
72/279 of 31 May 2018 and Economic and Social Council resolution 2019/15 of8 July 2019, and welcoming the efforts of the Secretary-General to better position theUnited Nations operational activities for development to support countries in theirefforts to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,
Reaffirming further the commitment made in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote
lifelong learning opportunities for all,Noting with concern that, despite the considerable progress on education accessand participation over the past years, 262 million children and youth aged 6 to 17* On behalf of the States that are members of the Group of 77 and China, taking into account also
the provisions of General Assembly resolution 73/5 of 16 October 2018.

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were still out of school in 2017, more than half of children and adolescents are notmeeting minimum proficiency standards in reading and mathematics and, while rapid
technological changes present opportunities and challenges, the learning
environment, the capacities of teachers and the quality of education have not kept
pace, and refocused efforts are needed to improve learning outcomes for the full life
cycle, especially for women, girls and people in vulnerable situations, 1
Reaffirming the commitment made in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development to ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed topromote sustainable development, including through education for sustai nable
development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality and theempowerment of all women and girls, promotion of a culture of peace andnon-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture ’s
contribution to sustainable development,
Reaffirming also its resolution 69/313 of 27 July 2015 on the Addis Ababa
Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development,
which is an integral part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, supportsand complements it, helps to contextualize its means of implementation targets withconcrete policies and actions, and reaffirms the strong political commitment toaddress the challenge of financing and creating an enabling environment at all levels
for sustainable development in the spirit of global partnership and solidarity,
Acknowledging the importance for achieving sustainable development ofdelivering quality education to all girls and boys, which will require reaching children
living in extreme poverty and rural areas, children with disabilities, migrant andrefugee children and those in conflict and post-conflict situations, indigenous peopleand children in vulnerable situations and providing safe, non-violent, inclusive andeffective learning environments for all, and recognizing the importance of scaling up
investments and international cooperation to allow all children to complete free,equitable, inclusive and quality early childhood, primary and secondary education
leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes, including by scaling up andstrengthening initiatives, such as the Global Partnership for Education, and by
upgrading education facilities that are child-, disability- and gender-sensitive andincreasing the percentage of qualified teachers in developing countries, including
through international cooperation, especially in the least developed countries,
landlocked developing countries, small island developing States and middle-income
countries,
Recognizing that, despite gains in providing access to education, girls are still
more likely than boys to remain excluded from education due to gendered barriers,
Acknowledging the importance of ensuring that all children, youth and adults
achieve literacy and numeracy skills by 2030,
Acknowledging also the importance of adopting science, technology andinnovation strategies as integral elements of national sustainable development
strategies to help to strengthen knowledge-sharing and collaboration and theimportance of scaling up investments in science, technology, engineering, digital
literacy and mathematics education and enhancing technical, vocational and tertiary
education, distance education and training and of ensuring equal access for womenand girls and encouraging their participation therein,__________________
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Report of the Secretary-General on SDG Progress 2019 Special Edition on the trends withregards to the implementation of SDG4: “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education andpromote lifelong learning opportunities for all”.
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Acknowledging further the importance of education for achieving sustainable
development, including in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, adopted on 25 September 2015 by the General Assembly at its
seventieth session, and building on the Millennium Development Goals, Agenda 21, 2
the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development(Johannesburg Plan of Implementation), 3 the United Nations Conference on
Sustainable Development, the World Conference on Education for Sustainable
Development, organized by the Government of Japan and the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from10 to 12 November 2014, the World Education Forum 2015, held in Incheon, Republicof Korea, from 19 to 22 May 2015, and the Education 2030 Framework for Action,
adopted on 4 November 2015 by the General Conference of the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization during its thirty-eighth session,
Recalling the Global Action Programme on Education for Sustainable
Development as follow-up to the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable
Development after 2014, 4 the Aichi-Nagoya Declaration on Education for Sustainable
Development, adopted at the World Conference on Education for Sustainable
Development, 5 and the Incheon Declaration of the World Education Forum 2015, 6Noting that the Global Action Programme made good progress through the GAP
Key Partner Network of 97 stakeholders, with 26 million learners in formal andnon-formal settings having been exposed to Education for Sustainable Development
curricula and special projects designed to instil knowledge and inspire action in theircommunities, furthermore, with the partners having supported the training of2 million educators on Education for Sustainable Development and adapted materialand resources to meet their needs,
Taking note of the framework entitled “Education for Sustainable Development:
towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals” (ESD for 2030), endorsed by
the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization during its fortieth session,
Reaffirming its resolution 73/25 of 3 December 2018, by which it proclaimed
24 January the International Day of Education,
Recognizing the importance of promoting a holistic approach to education forsustainable development and of encouraging the reinforcement of theinterdisciplinary linkages of the three pillars of sustainable development, economic,social and environmental, including different branches of knowledge,Recognizing also the role of education for sustainable development inpromoting and enhancing public awareness of the eradication of poverty, ofsustainable consumption and production, of combating climate change, of conserving
biodiversity and ecosystems, of building disaster-resilient communities and ofpromoting a culture of peace and non-violence, among other things,__________________

Report of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio de Janeiro,
3−14 June 1992, vol. I, Resolutions Adopted by the Conference (United Nations publication,
Sales No. E.93.I.8 and corrigendum), resolution 1, annex II.
3
Report of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg, South Africa,
26 August–4 September 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.03.II.A.1 andcorrigendum), chap. I, resolution 2, annex.
4
See A/69/76.
5
A/70/228, annex.
6Incheon Declaration: Education 2030 – towards inclusive and equitable quality education andlifelong learning for all.
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Reiterating the pledge that no one will be left behind, reaffirming therecognition that the dignity of the human person is fundamental, and the wish to see
the Goals and targets met for all nations and peoples and for all segments of society,and recommitting to endeavour to reach the furthest behind first,
Deeply concerned about the risk of education being underfunded and the impact
of disrupted educational services during humanitarian emergencies on efforts toensure inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities
for all, and recognizing the need to support early childhood education, as well as topromote tertiary education, skills training and vocational education in conflict andcrisis situations, where higher education serves as a powerful driver for change,
shelters and protects a critical group of young men and women by maintaining theirhopes for the future, fosters inclusion and non-discrimination and acts as a catalyst
for the recovery and rebuilding of post-conflict countries,
1.
Takes note of the report of the Director General of the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization on the implementation of education
for sustainable development, 7 which provided an overview of education forsustainable development in the framework of the Global Action Programme onEducation for Sustainable Development and of the framework entitled “Education for
Sustainable Development: towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals ”(ESD for 2030);
2.
Reaffirms education for sustainable development as a vital means ofimplementation for sustainable development, as outlined in the Aichi -Nagoya
Declaration on Education for Sustainable Development, 5 and as an integral elementof the Sustainable Development Goal on quality education and a key enabler of all
the other Goals, and welcomes the increased international recognition of education
for sustainable development in quality education and lifelong learning;3.
Calls upon the international community to provide inclusive and equitable
quality education at all levels – early childhood, primary, secondary, tertiary anddistance education, including technical and vocational training – so that all people,
irrespective of sex, age, race or ethnicity, and persons with disabilities, migrants,indigenous people, children and youth, especially those in vulnerable situations, may
have access to lifelong learning opportunities that help them to acquire the knowledge
and skills needed to exploit opportunities to participate fully in society and contributeto sustainable development;
4.
Reaffirms the commitment at the very heart of the 2030 Agenda to leave
no one behind, and commit to taking more tangible steps to support people invulnerable situations and the most vulnerable countries and to reach the furthest
behind first;
5.
Encourages Governments and other stakeholders concerned to scale up
education for sustainable development action through the implementation ofEducation for Sustainable Development: towards achieving the Sustainable
Development Goals (ESD for 2030) as follow-up to the Global Action Programme on
Education for Sustainable Development after 2014; 46.
Takes note that the international launch conference for the proposed
framework entitled “Education for Sustainable Development: towards achieving theSustainable Development Goals (ESD for 2030)” will be hosted by the Governmentof Germany and will take place in June 2020 in Berlin;
7.
Encourages Governments to increase efforts to systemically integrate andinstitutionalize education for sustainable development in the education sector and__________________
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A/74/258.
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other relevant sectors, as appropriate, including through, inter alia, the provision offinancial resources, the inclusion of education for sustainable development in relevant
policies and the development of the capacities of policymakers, institutional leadersand educators, as well as through the strengthening of research and innovation, andmonitoring and evaluation on education for sustainable development in order tosupport the scaling up of good practices;8.
Encourages all countries, intergovernmental bodies, organizations of theUnited Nations system, relevant non-governmental organizations and all otherrelevant stakeholders to enhance international cooperation in supporting the efforts
of developing countries towards the realization of the full potential of education forsustainable development;
9.
Emphasizes the importance of further developing and implementing
educational and public awareness programmes, training scientific, technical andmanagerial personnel, fostering access to information and promoting public
participation in addressing climate change challenges;
10. Decides to continue to give consideration, as appropriate, to thecontribution of education for sustainable development in the follow-up and review
framework of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; 8
11. Invites the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization, as the specialized United Nations agency for education, to continue its
mandated role to lead and coordinate the Education 2030 agenda, in particular throughthe Sustainable Development Goal Education 2030 Steering Committee, as aninclusive global multi-stakeholder consultation and coordination mechanism foreducation in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in accordance with the2030 Agenda follow-up and review process;12. Also invites the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization, as the lead agency for education for sustainable development, toprovide coordination for the implementation of the proposed framework entitled“Education for Sustainable Development: towards achieving the Sustainable
Development Goals (ESD for 2030)”, in cooperation with Governments, United
Nations organizations, funds and programmes, non-governmental organizations andother stakeholders, and to continue to advocate the importance of ensuring adequate
resources for education for sustainable development, and calls upon the United
Nations system to increase efforts to mainstream a gender perspective into theimplementation of the framework entitled “Education for Sustainable Development:
towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (ESD for 2030)”;
13. Invites the organizations of the United Nations system, in particular theUnited Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, to provide supportand assist States, upon their request, in developing their national capacities to promote
education for sustainable development, including through knowledge-sharing andstandard-setting, youth empowerment and mobilization, the exchange of bestpractices, data collection, research and study;
14. Invites the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization and other relevant United Nations bodies to continue to assess, inconsultation with Member States, progress towards the achievement of education forsustainable development;
15. Encourages all countries, relevant intergovernmental bodies,organizations of the United Nations system, relevant non-governmental organizations
and all other relevant stakeholders to give due consideration to the contribution of__________________
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Resolution 70/1.
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education to the achievement of sustainable development in the formulation ofnational, regional and international development policies and international
cooperation instruments;
16. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to the General Assembly at its
seventy-sixth session an action-oriented report on the implementation of the present
resolution, and decides to include in the provisional agenda of its seventy -sixthsession, under the item entitled “Sustainable development”, the sub-item entitled“Education for sustainable development”.

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