A joint vision for Secondary and Higher Education for All in Europe

BRUSSELS – Together, Education International (EI), the Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions (OBESSU), and the European Students’ Union (ESU) are targeting their members and partners through a joint action programme aimed at advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted last year by the United Nations.

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets make up the most ambitious development agenda the world has ever seen. Composed much broader than the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the SDGs address the eradication of poverty and inequality in all areas of social, economic and environmental development, and act as a guide to actions not only in the Global South, but in each of the world’s 193 countries.

Education has been included as Goal 4 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which aims to “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all“. While the MDGs were centred on primary education, there are now explicit commitments to secondary and tertiary education.

The Action Plan sets out eight priorities for equitable quality secondary and tertiary education in Europe. Each priority is accompanied by two demands and one specific policy recommendation, which we hope will inspire the development of joint actions at national level.

Equal access to quality education at all levels in Europe has yet to be achieved. European governments must take action to make this a reality by 2030. That is why our three organisations call upon affiliates, partners, policy makers and civil society to join our vision and take up our demands, to remind European governments of their commitments, while proactively contributing to make equitable access to and the completion of secondary and higher education possible across Europe over the next 15 years.

 
We know that if stakeholders at the European and national levels take up this joint action programme and apply these visions and demands to implement Goal 4, that many regions around the world are bound to follow their lead.

For further information:
The publication is available in English, Spanish and French and can be accessed here:
A joint vision for Secondary and Higher Education for All in Europe