Development of Education

Fact Sheet

“There can be no economic or social development without education – that is clear.”

VLADIMIR PUTIN, March 1, 2006

Context

An estimated 860 million adults – 13 percent of the world’s population – are illiterate. Two-thirds of them are women. And more than 115 million children ages six to 11 can’t attend school; 55 percent of them are girls, United Nations statistics reveal.

Only about 10 percent of the world’s population uses the Internet worldwide. Seventy percent haven’t even heard of the Web, according to the G8.

Recognition of professional skills and comparison of national education systems are a major challenge today. The problem intensifies as the world economy develops and the labor market continues to go global, the G8 says.

Education at the G8

President Putin chose “Development of Education” among the strategic priority issues of Russia’s presidency of the G8. Russia will pursue opportunities to present its perspectives on improving global education and training. It also wants the G8 to concentrate on upgrading the quality of basic education and creating mechanisms for assessing the quality of basic education in developing nations.

As more people use the Internet, Russia sees the need for common approaches to the use of information technologies in education. This especially will help trainees receive professional and other training via distance learning.

Russia seeks an international system for comparing professional competence. This includes evaluating the quality of professional training. This effort will promote free movement of skilled personnel, a major condition of global economic development.

Russia has proposed that G8 members discuss a number of measures to help migrants adjust to new environments via education. Migration is indispensable today for a steady economic growth of both developed and developing nations.

With its successful experience in several key education areas, including an effective primary-education system, a successful experience of social and educational policies in a multi-ethnic and multireligious environment, and solid traditions of fundamental education, Russia believes that the G8 summit may generate a number of major decisions on the education front that will promote development of the global economy.

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