(introduction...)
41. The world community has a well-established record of
cooperation in education and development. However, international funding for
education stagnated during the early 1980s; at the same time, many countries
have been handicapped by growing debt burdens and economic relationships that
channel their financial and human resources to wealthier countries. Because
concern about the issues in basic education is shared by industrialised and
developing countries alike, international cooperation can provide valuable
support for national efforts and regional actions to implement the expanded
vision of basic Education for All. Time, energy, and funding directed to basic
education are perhaps the most profound investment in people and in the future
of a country which can be made; there is a clear need and strong moral and
economic argument for international solidarity to provide technical cooperation
and financial assistance to countries that lack the resources to meet the basic
learning needs of their
populations.