This event opened a series of global meetings concerning the advancement of Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4), inclusive of the Transforming Education Summit Stocktake called for by the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Antonio Guterras, for the High-Level Political Forum in July, in addition to the upcoming Summit of the Future (SoF) in September, and the Global Education Meeting in October.
The event was attended by high-level individuals, such as the UN Deputy Secretary General, Amina J. Mohammed and the President of Chile, Gabriel Boric, who is the current Co-Chair of the Education2030+ High-Level Steering Committee (HLSC). Amina Mohammed spoke at the opening of the event, specifically on the relevance of the Stocktake to the upcoming SoF and messages concerning education financing, saying: “Education is the glue that can hold our societies together as we navigate unprecedented challenges and transformations. It must be valued, prioritized and transformed accordingly.”
Gabriel Boric, a former student politician from the Federación de Estudiantes de la Universidad de Chile (Federation of Chilean Students) prior to his engagement in politics, stated: “We have an urgent responsibility, we must mobilize and break down barriers to ensure that every child, young person and adult, whether male or female, has access to inclusive, equitable and quality education.”
The day began with the closed HLSC meeting between the Heads of State, who discussed current activities to support the work of Functional Area 3 on an upcoming campaign concerning financing education. They also discussed preparations for the Global Education Meeting to be held in Brazil in October.
Ellen Dixon, the GSF representative to the SDG4 Youth & Student Network, who sits as the student representative on the HLSC Sherpa Group, was in attendance at this closed meeting. She says: “There is a significant focus on multistakeholderism in terms of education financing, and an emerging conversation on what solutions to debt look like for the future of education and various other sectors. There is a rethink concerning what societal vision we have for mobilising resources for education among the members of the HLSC. From the student perspective, the key components of mobilisation are clear: continue to include our voices in country-level, regional-level and global policy and financing discussions concerning education and citizenship. This is especially poignant when we are considering the future of education financing.”
The Stocktake was hosted by Christina Williams, former President of the Jamaican Union of Tertiary Students and currently elected representative for Advocacy on the Commonwealth Students Association . She says: “I remain humbled by the opportunity to contribute to the event in this manner and to bear witness to the efforts of young people, governments and international organizations to truly transform education. However, while many strides have been made, much more still needs to be done and all stakeholders must endeavour to be even more ambitious if we want to turn the tide on the various issues plaguing our education sector.”
In attendance at the event was Louis Ryz, current Academic and International Officer at the Fédération des Associations Générales Etudiantes (Federation of French Student Associations). He says: “It has been a great opportunity to take part in the TES Stocktake event in Paris, especially in the multiple reflections on what is the future of education, and what is the impact of education. I think that students could be more involved in the event, but actually the student representatives who were present gave really good speeches, so I hope that there will be a lot of students next time!”
The proceedings of this event were followed up on at the Special Event on Transforming Education convened by the UN Secretary-General in collaboration with the President of the General Assembly and the President of the Economic and Social Council in New York in July 2024. This event was attended by the GSF Executive Director, Jacob Blasius, and Christina Williams, who was invited to speak at this event.
