As much as we all may have complained about having to wake up early to catch the school bus, or staying up late to finish papers and projects, we still had the privilege to go to school. But for many others, receiving an education is still one of the most widely and systematically violated of all human rights.
Forty percent (40%) of children in Africa receive no education. Another 150 million children start primary school but drop out before they have completed four years of education, the vast majority before they have acquired basic literacy skills.
In 2000 many communities around the world responded to The United Nations' call to "Education for All," and the United Nations' "Millennium Development Goals" document includes a goal to achieve universal primary education by 2015.
Because of our commitment to education, The United Methodist Church calls on the United States, the European Union, China, Japan, Brazil, Argentina, India, and other rich nations as well as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to deliver on their promises to the world's children by providing substantial and sustained increases in aid for basic education in poor countries, and create a Global Fund for Education.
Learn more about why The United Methodist Church believes in the right of all to quality education.