China, UNESCO set up $8m Fund to support education development in Africa

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and China have signed an agreement establishing an $8 million Funds-in-Trust to support educational development in Africa over four years, with a special focus on teachers.

The agreement was signed on March 2, 2012 by Hao Ping, Vice-Minister of Education and UNESCO’s Director-General, Irina Bokova, according to a statement issued by UNESCO.

“These Funds-in-Trust will support Education for All, our top priority, and concentrate on teacher development in Africa. This is where the greatest challenges rest and I know that jointly we can make a difference,” said UNESCO’s Irina Bokova.

The statement quoted the Chinese Vice- Education Minister Hao Ping as saying “These Funds-in-Trust are just a beginning and we wish that their establishment will also set a good example for the Organization.”

The Funds-in-Trust, the first ever established with the People’s Republic of China, were first discussed when the Director-General met with President Hu Jintao in Shenzhen in August 2011, the statement indicated.

By Ekow Quandzie