UNESCO. General Conference; 30th; Records ... - unesdoc - Unesco

26.6 At the very inception of this worthy Organization, UNESCO, the “minds of men” – the minds of
persons – was our immediate focus. More recently, in preparation – through the Delors Commission – for
education in the twenty-first century, we identified the four pillars of the education structure for our time:
learning to know, to be, to do and, very importantly, to live together.
26.7 Madam President, as we celebrate the strength of our Organization, which has survived and grown
significantly over these past 52 years, as we mark the transition to new executive direction and move towards that
twenty-first century, I urge that we make education the central and pre-eminent focus of our forward thrust. Let
the minds of men, women, youth and children be our critical intervention points.
26.8 I remind the distinguished delegates that this call is consistent with the programme called “Focus on the
Caribbean” which is now before us. This is essentially a programme for the accelerated growth, quality
enhancement and expansion of education within the subregion. We have placed it on the agenda not out of
insular concern but because we see the Caribbean as a microcosm of the challenges and opportunities of the
larger world. We have faced many challenges in the subregion. We still have many rivers to cross. But we also
have much to share. Focus on the Caribbean provides an opportunity for interventions that allow us to innovate,
evaluate and replicate, and to observe and report on the success stories of racial and cultural integration and
harmonization. Beyond that, there is the opportunity to provide models of successful application of education and
training systems to the retooling process which permits effective participation in the world economy. As
important is the creation and strengthening of personal and national self-confidence and relations of mutual
respect.
26.9 There are, as I said, no single solutions. But I urge UNESCO’s focus on education, reflected in
supporting literacy, basic education and the adaptation and strategic use of modern technology to permit its
effective use in information and education generally.
26.10 Madam President, I am not unaware of the significant initiatives which have been pursued so far. The
comments I make now are in the interests of allowing us to respond in a more dynamic manner to the imperatives
of the present and the future. On behalf of the Caribbean, and as the representative of the Government of
Jamaica, I urge three things.
26.11 Firstly, a strategic shift of programme resources towards the effective retooling of the world’s education
systems both to level the playing-field and to make it a more effective platform for social and economic growth.
This would mean among other things a restructuring of the Organization itself and the scaling down or out of
some of the peripheral activities for the next three or four biennia, beginning, of course, with the next one, not the
present one. It would mean establishing and sustaining a stronger role for National Commissions to ensure a
more strategic and efficient use of the Organization’s resources. If Member States are being asked in every
sphere of governance and management to prioritize and sharpen focus, to be efficient, to be performance-oriented
and results-oriented, we must demand no less of our Organization, UNESCO.
26.12 Secondly, a stronger role for UNESCO in building partnerships at national, regional and international
levels to increase the flow of funding into education and training for the Member States and communities that
need it most. Of course, it is expected that individual States must as a precondition establish their own resource
base for education and we have been doing that as much as we can. However, it is also the case that equalizing
opportunities within States, and creating social justice generally, requires some supplementary, compensatory
intervention which is often precluded by the debt burden. UNESCO’s brokering role could be of very significant
value in this area in the years ahead.
26.13 Finally, in support of its thrust to make an impact on the minds of men, the intensification of efforts by
UNESCO to engage the major players in the information and communication technology economy in expanding
educational opportunities for both the adult population and the formal system. There are three important aspects
of this. One is to give the broad masses of people an ear and another is to give them a voice. It is important not
only to access and receive other people’s information. People all want an opportunity to tell their own story as
well. And thirdly, to the extent that all our countries, rich and poor, have wide access to technology, to that extent
will each of our peoples have opportunities to participate in the creation of new knowledge, new products and the
shaping of the new technology as well. Ignorance, Madam President, is a great divider. The information and the
information technology divide must be bridged.
26.14 Madam President, Jamaica and the Caribbean remain committed to the principles on which UNESCO is
founded. We have the will, we have the people, we have the experience and we have the structures. We look
forward to the opportunities to make a difference as we move to build a new social order in this brave new world
which can be ours if we both wish and work to make it so. I thank you.
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