WRITTEN QUESTION E-3546/00

by Glenys Kinnock (PSE) to the Commission

(15 November 2000)

Subject: Education

The final declaration of the World Education Forum commits the international community to ensuring that no countries seriously committed to education for all will be thwarted in their achievement of this goal by a lack of resources.

As one of the world's major donors to the education sector, how does the Commission plan to work with southern governments, and other bilateral and multilateral donors, to agree procedures for financing national Education Action Plans?

Does the Commission agree that a specific sign off process needs to be developed for agreeing to fund National Plans, and how will it contribute to ensuring that such a process is developed?

Does the Commission agree that the EU budget should include increased earmarked funds for aid to education, on an annual basis, to demonstrate that the EU will deliver on its commitments? In addition, will the Commission propose such an increase to the budgetary authorities in the future?

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(22 January 2001)

The Commission is committed to the overall principle contained in the final declaration of the WEF concerning aid to countries seriously committed to education for all.

It has to be stated that under the current regulations development aid from the Commission is allocated according to country strategies, National Indicative Programmes and the guidelines adopted for the programming process.

Bearing this in mind, the Commission is ready to support national education action plans aimed at achieving the post-Dakar targets. As decided in the Framework for Action adopted at Dakar, the Commission looks forward to monitoring with partner countries, and all donors, progress towards the 2015 targets and intermediary objectives. It will work with the United Nations organisations, with non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and with partner countries to advocate and promote the objectives laid down by the Forum.

More specifically, the Commission intends to strengthen co-operation with southern countries and other donors, particularly with Member States, in order to assist in developing National Action Plans (NAPs). Such co-operation will take place at central level through enhanced complementarity and co-ordination in the framework of the new development programming. Accordingly, the Commission recently organised a meeting with the experts in education from the Member States, aiming at better co-ordination of their positions on the implementation of the Dakar Framework for Action. The group will be further strengthened in the future so as to participate more actively in the Education for All process.

In the same context, the Commission has participated recently in the first meeting of the Working Group set up by Unesco to implement the Dakar Framework for Action. With this purpose in mind, it coordinated its position with the Member States regarding the objectives and content of the group.

At country level the Commission intends to co-operate with governments in developing, when comparative advantage is evident, agreed procedures based on a sector-wide approach, on participation of civil society and in close coordination with all donors.

The Commission considers that new sign off processes do not need to be developed when a financing process already exists for the whole education sector or a sub-sector and is considered as valid, even if it is not specifically defined as a National Action Plan (NAP). Nevertheless, in particular cases, the need for a specific funding process for a NAP should be recognised, but always in the framework of national development and sectoral policies and planning.

No commitment has been made by the Community to set up a mechanism to mobilise resources towards the Education For All objectives. Notwithstanding, in their joint Declaration of 10 November 2000, the Council and Commission stressed that continuous support to social sectors is consistent with the approach developed in the Poverty Reduction Strategy Programmes (PRSPs). Therefore, basic education remains a priority for the Commission in programming and implementing its aid to developing countries.

Within this context, the Commission is willing to examine a contribution to any initiative taken by the World Bank for the benefit of developing countries involving monitoring or implementation of national plans in support of basic education.

A certain flexibility is needed to react to recipients' priorities and to work in a complementarity manner with other donors. This being said, the Commission is ready to report, ex-post, on how commitments and disbursements have developed in line with broad community priorities.