Bridging the Arab States Education Strategy to SDG 4

UNESCO Bureau for Education in the Arab States in Beirut, Lebanon has been working closely with the UIS on establishing benchmarks for the Arab region.

This process began with preparatory meetings at the end of 2020, which was then followed by the TCG 7th Meeting in October 2021.

In early 2021, UNESCO Beirut held a consultation with regional stakeholders and a series of one-to-one meetings with representatives of Ministries of Education from across the region. Member states of the Arab region have confirmed their commitment to the benchmarking process and proposed benchmarks for the region have been shared for member state feedback.  

The benchmarking process in the Arab region is built on a consultative process with all stakeholders and ownership of the Member States. In order to achieve this, UNESCO Beirut has worked closely with regional organizations such as Arab Bureau of Education for the Gulf States (ABEGS), a member of the SDG 4 steering committee and with the Regional Center for Educational Planning (RCEP), a UNESCO Category-II centre in the region. In addition, UNESCO Beirut has ensured effective communication and consultation with sister agencies and partner international organisations.

UNESCO Beirut is aiming to facilitate agreement by all the Member States in the region for the regional benchmark by July 2021, that would also contribute in establishing national level benchmarks by the end of 2021.

The region is currently reviewing the proposed benchmarks before moving to the next step of incorporating inputs and adopting the benchmarks at a high level ministerial meeting in July 2021.