APO Group, leading pan-African communication and business consultancy, announced it has joined the UNESCO Global Education Coalition for COVID-19 Response.
The announcement was made on Monday.
Some 1.2 billion students and young people across the planet are affected by school and university closures due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
In response, UNESCO launched the Global Covid-19 Education Coalition, with the private sector, multilateral organization, and civil society in order to facilitate synergies and leverage partners’ capacities to help countries deploy remote learning systems so as to minimize educational disruptions and maintain social contact with learners.
Under the motto of the Global Covid-19 Education Coalition, ‘Learning Never Stops,’ UNESCO said it had developed a social media pack around the initiative.
As a private sector partner, APO is expected to donate resources and expertise, increasing the visibility of the Global Education Coalition launched by UNESCO.
On April 9, it launched the APO Group Coronavirus Initiative for Africa, donating “resources and expertise” to support African governments, institutions and official organizations in the fight against COVID-19.
“We believe that education, and especially girls’ education, is a critical investment in the future. When girls go to school, every development goal set by the international community becomes achievable,” said APO Group Founder and Chairman Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard.
“Today, we are proud to team up with UNESCO and with some of the largest companies in the world to make sure that children everywhere can continue their education, with special care to the most vulnerable and disadvantaged communities.”
Over 250 million students are still affected by school closures in Africa and the longer they last, the greater the risk of educational exclusion, the organization added on Monday.
Speaking in a similar vein, Stefania Giannini, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Education, said, “We cannot let this happen.
Education represents the future, it is the most powerful development driver for societies. We need to join forces to bridge huge connectivity gaps, increase resilience and ensure that education serves all the continent’s children and youth.
“I am confident that by joining UNESCO’s Global Education Coalition, the APO Group will contribute to raising visibility for inclusive quality education and support transformative approaches.”
