KEETMANSHOOP – The education ministry is holding regional discussions to gather insights from all corners in preparation for the Transforming Education Summit, slated for September 2022 in New York. 

Education minister Anna Nghipondoka earlier this week asked participants at a consultative workshop in Keetmanshoop to engage critically to ensure responsiveness to current circumstances, in addition reimaging the future of education globally. 

She said the purpose of facilitating regional consultations is to harness and discuss education transformation as well as elaborate on initial content for the summit. 

“The idea is to come up with a comprehensive country report and as a ministry to ensure that all the constituencies have a voice in compiling the final report,” the politician explained.

Nghipondoka said the summit could not have come at a better time as the world is experiencing a global crisis that is depriving millions of children of quality education. 

“It is, therefore, critical to share progress on the assessment of achievements based on recommendations,” she said. The just-completed comprehensive curriculum reform (2015-2021) will also have the aim to improve education-involved restructuring of school phases and the reintroduction of pre-vocational technical subjects.  

//Kharas governor Aletha Frederick, for her part, reasoned that given the impact of Covid-19, education systems across the world are under pressure. 

“Therefore, this platform is ideal to find shared solutions and mobilise political support for the achievement of education-related sustainable development goals,” she emphasised.

Johan van Wyk, deputy director in the education ministry’s information technology department, said they are consulting regional directorates to solicit input in the process to assist the ministry to formulate strategies for the upcoming summit. 

“Through this, we have picked up challenges at grassroots level in terms of current processes to improve and harmonise them accordingly,” he noted. 

As part of the countdown to the Transforming Education Summit, it was indicated that after the Engagement Day slated for 28 June 2022, a pre-summit will take place in Paris from 29-30 June 2022, with the concluding summit in New York on a still-to-be confirmed date in September 2022.