UNESCO celebrates International Literacy Day

Every year, on September 8th, UNESCO raises the flag for literacy as a human right, as a force for dignity, and as a foundation for cohesive societies and sustainable development, AVA Diplomatic reports.

The theme for 2015 is “Literacy and Sustainable Societies”. This year’s celebration of International Literacy Day, was therefore dedicated to exploring critical links and synergy between literacy and the future Sustainable Development Goals which will be adopted during the 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

In Iran, the UNESCO Tehran Cluster Office participated in two different events to mark the importance of literacy for sustainable development.

On 7 September, the ICH Center seized the occasion of the International Literacy Day to organize a one-day workshop on the “Role of Media in Raising Awareness on Intangible Cultural Heritage”.

During his opening speech, Mr. Parmoun, Director of the ICH Center talked about the activities of the Center and the importance of literacy or “awareness” in a broad sense.

Ms. Kuisch Laroche, Director and Representative of the UNESCO Tehran Cluster Office spoke about the importance of literacy for sustainable development and the role of culture in literacy practices. She also underscored the crucial role of the media in promoting literacy and raising awareness of intangible cultural heritage, including indigenous knowledge.

On the 8th of September, the UNESCO Tehran Cluster Office together with the Literacy Movement Organization and the Iranian National Commission for UNESCO organized a national meeting on the “Role of Literacy and Adult Continuing Education in Creating Sustainable Societies”. The meeting was presided by H.E. Dr. Bagherzadeh, Vice Minister of Education and Head of the Literacy Movement Organization in I.R. Iran, and the participants included a wide spectrum of education specialists from the Ministry of Education, NGOs and civil society.

 “Literacy is a human rights, the basis for lifelong learning, and a key driver for sustainable development”, said Ms. Kuisch Laroche during her opening speech.

The opening ceremony was followed by three working sessions. The first session focused on “Literacy, Adult Education and Sustainable Development” and the panel speakers focused on the status of literacy and adult continuing education in the 2030 Education Agenda.

The theme of the second session was “Improving the Quality of Literacy and Adult Education”. During that session the participants discussed the role and status of literacy learning materials in sustainable development and talked about effective methods for improving the quality of adult education.

The final working session was about “Strengthening Inter-Sectoral Cooperation and Participation”, in which the participation of local communities was highlighted as an important element for improving adult education.

The meeting was concluded by a closing ceremony in which H.E. Dr. Bagherzadeh summarized the main findings and outcomes of the discussions.