We Can’t Succeed in Anything Unless We Succeed in Education
Julia Gillard is a fan of Camfed’s alumnae model. Fiona Mavhinga (right) now leads on the development of the CAMA network.
In his insightful and riveting Q&A with international education expert Julia Gillard (former Australian Prime Minister and now Board Chair for the Global Partnership for Education) Jordan Shapiro of Forbes asks the big questions about education and development.
Why is education not THE international development priority when with 124 million out-of-school children the world cannot hope to tackle poverty, injustice and climate change? Why do so many well-meaning global education projects fall short?
When you look at an organization like Camfed…they seem to have a great system for matching financial capital with regional and indigenous cultural capital. There’s a real commitment there to inclusivity, even when the solutions are technological. Just consider Camfed’s recent partnership with World Reader. They not only distribute eReaders to schools in Africa, they also make sure that the content of those eBooks is meaningful within local contexts.
Jordan Shapiro, Forbes
Shapiro and Gillard discuss Camfed’s model of investment in girls’ education, and in young women and their communities, leading the charge for the next generation. They speak about maintaining a respect for local identities while providing the quality education that prepares children to tackle the issues their communities and nations are facing.
I’m a very big fan of Camfed. I think their model does build on local community capital and the alumnae model means the girls that have benefited go on to invest in the education of other girls. It’s just a wonderful model from the point of view of growth and sustainability.
Julia Gillard, Board Chair for the Global Partnership for Education
With world leaders just having committed to the 17 Global Goals for sustainable development, one thing is clear: We need locally tailored solutions, respectful of context and building on local resources, which build up not only access, but the quality of education. If we do not succeed in education, we will not succeed in any of the other goals by 2030.
Read the Q&A with Julia Gillard: Education Is The Key To All Global Development Goals
Other articles by Jordan Shapiro, featuring Camfed:
To Fix U.S. Schools, Consider Camfed’s Work In Sub-Saharan Africa
Education Technology Makes The Most Impact In The Least Recognized Places