Some 1.7 million teachers needed to achieve MDG2

Some 1.7 million more teachers are needed to achieve universal primary education by 2015, the second of the eight anti-poverty Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the heads of various United Nations agencies said on Friday, in a joint statement marking World Teachers' Day. “On this day, we call for the creation of supportive teaching environments, adequate teacher training and safeguards for the rights of teachers,” the agency chiefs said, calling on governments to provide required training and fair salaries reflecting the importance of the profession while teachers, in turn, must be accountable to their students and communities. “We must break the vicious cycle of declining professional conditions for teachers in order to improve the quality of learning for all,” they added. “The world expects a lot from teachers – they, in turn, are right to expect as much from us.” The October 5th World Teachers' Day was instituted in 1994 by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to celebrate the essential role of teachers in providing quality education at all levels, and to recognize their rights. The statement was issued by UNESCO, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), the UN Development Programme's (UNDP), the UN International Labour Organization (ILO) and Education International, which represents teachers' organizations across the globe.
According to UNESCO, teacher shortages remain a major obstacle for countries to achieve the goal of universal primary education, with a quality education offering hope and the promise of a better standard of living, while also noting that there can be no quality education without competent and motivated teachers. The slogan for this year's observance was 'Take a stand for teachers!' which, according to UNESCO, relates to the need to provide adequate training, ongoing professional development, and protection for teachers' rights.
In a separate message for the Oct. 5th World Teachers’ Day, UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon urged the world to ensure the recognition and support that these ‘custodians of learning’ deserve. “No education system is better than its teachers,” Ban said. “Teachers are the custodians of learning; they impart knowledge, values and skills; at their best, they tap into the hopes and talents of young people and help them to grow into productive citizens,” Ban said. He paid tribute to the millions of teachers around the world who, he said, are working with passion and skill to nurture their students and whose influence on our world is potentially profound.