1. Reaching the Unreached: Meeting of Southeast Asian Countries to Meet the EFA Goals by Sept Bangkok, Thailand

2. Why focus on the unreached and the under-served target groups for EFA?
UIS-AIMS Unit, UNESCO Bangkok
UNESCO
INSTITUTE for STATISTICS
Pprepared by Ko-Chih Tung

3. Education for All Goals
1. Expand and improve comprehensive early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children.
2. Ensure that by 2015 all children, particularly girls, children in difficult circumstances and those belonging to ethnic minorities, have access to and complete free and compulsory primary education of good quality.
3. Ensure that the learning needs of all young people and adults are met through equitable access to appropriate learning and life skills programmes.
4. Achieve a 50% improvement in levels of adult literacy by 2015, especially for women, and equitable access to basic and continuing education for all adults.
5. Eliminate gender disparities in primary and secondary education by 2005, and achieve gender equality in education by 2015.
6. Improve all aspects of the quality of education and ensure excellence of all so that recognized and measurable learning outcomes are achieved by all, especially in literacy, numeracy and essential life skills.
Education as a basic human right is recognized in Article 26 of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Education for All (EFA) initiative was first launched in Jomtien, Thailand in March 1990 at the World Conference on Education for All (EFA): Meeting Basic Learning Needs
The current six EFA goals were agreed to in Dakar, Senegal in April 2000 at the World Education Forum

4. EFA Mid-Decade Assessment Objectives
Build national capacity to undertake M&E, MDA & Mid- Term Policy Reviews
Assess progress and gaps in the achievement of the national and global targets of EFA
Identify and locate the remaining gaps in terms of quality and equity sub-nationally, with a focus on the disadvantaged and excluded populations
Review, identify and locate problems, issues, policies, strategies, actions and critical factors of success/failure
Use results of the assessment to sharpen the focus and update policies and strategies for attaining the EFA goals and the MDGs by 2015

5. EFA Mid-Decade Assessment Framework
Framework for the Assessment: Inclusive Education
in a Lifelong Perspective
a focus on the diversity of learning needs of sub-populations (e.g., the disabled, linguistic and ethnic minorities, girls and women, disadvantaged groups)
provision of quality education for all learners
The MDA aims to answer:
Which children are not in school/learning centres?
What inhibits their full participation?
Who should be targeted as a priority?
How can we improve quality and equality?
How do we cost, budget and finance EFA?
Countries are encouraged to tap alternative sources of data on un-reached groups

6. Who are the “unreached”?
the lowest range on indicators of education participation (e.g., enrolment rate) and performance (e.g., completion rate, level of education)
may be in school, but their learning achievement scores are significantly lower than the average for the nation, e.g. the bottom quartile
greatest distance to reach the EFA Goals and Targets
The “unreached” groups are those who occupy the lowest range on indicators of education participation (e.g., enrolment rate) and performance (e.g., completion rate, level of education). Their average scores are significantly lower than the average for the nation as a whole, say below the bottom quartile, on the standard indicators of learning achievement. Therefore, the “unreached” have the greatest distance to reach the EFA Goals and Targets.  
The term “underserved” refers to the groups’ relative lack of educational opportunities and access to educational services, materials and facilities. For whatever reasons -- geographical, financial, political, linguistic, legal, socio-cultural, etc. -- the underserved are those who have the least access to the distributed educational resources, as compared to the national average, as measured by such indicators as budgetary allocation, number of schools, qualified teachers, textbooks, etc. relative to the school-age population.

7. Who are the “under-served”?
The “underserved” groups are those who
Lack educational opportunities and access to educational services, materials and facilities.
Lack access to the distributed educational resources, as compared to the national average, e.g.., budgetary allocation, number of schools, qualified teachers, textbooks, etc. relative to the school-age population
For reasons of geographical, financial, political, linguistic, legal, socio-cultural, etc.
The “unreached” groups are those who occupy the lowest range on indicators of education participation (e.g., enrolment rate) and performance (e.g., completion rate, level of education). Their average scores are significantly lower than the average for the nation as a whole, say below the bottom quartile, on the standard indicators of learning achievement. Therefore, the “unreached” have the greatest distance to reach the EFA Goals and Targets.  
The term “underserved” refers to the groups’ relative lack of educational opportunities and access to educational services, materials and facilities. For whatever reasons -- geographical, financial, political, linguistic, legal, socio-cultural, etc. -- the underserved are those who have the least access to the distributed educational resources, as compared to the national average, as measured by such indicators as budgetary allocation, number of schools, qualified teachers, textbooks, etc. relative to the school-age population.

8. Who are the unreached and underserved
Who are the unreached and underserved? How shall we effectively include them in EFA?
Learners from remote and rural communities, including isolated
Learners from linguistic and ethnic minorities/indigenous peoples, minority religious groups, etc.
Girls and women, especially from rural, ethnic minorities (pregnant girls)
Underperforming boys, boys at risk of dropping out, male dropouts
Children from migrant families, refugees, stateless children
Learners with disabilities/special needs
Children in difficult circumstances (affected by armed conflict, disaster, children in prison or who are with their parent(s) in prison)
Learners from very poor families (urban poor, poor families in remote areas) Child labourers/ street children/ trafficked children/abused children
Children affected or infected by HIV and AIDS
Orphans and abandoned children
Learners from remote and rural communities, including isolated
Learners from linguistic and ethnic minorities/indigenous peoples, minority religious groups, etc.
Girls and women, especially from rural, ethnic minorities (pregnant girls)
Underperforming boys, boys at risk of dropping out, male dropouts
Children from migrant families, refugees, stateless children
Learners with disabilities/special needs
Children in difficult circumstances (affected by armed conflict, disaster, children in prison or who are with their parent(s) in prison)
Learners from very poor families (urban poor, poor families in remote areas) Child labourers/ street children/ trafficked children/abused children
Children affected or infected by HIV and AIDS
Orphans and abandoned children

9. Individual attributes
What inhibits their full participation? E.g. Low enrolment rate among children of migrant workers
Conditioning factors: policy affected
Legal requirement Compulsory/noncompulsory primary education
Budgetary allocation for migrant workers/ non-citizens
Availability of schools, teachers and places
Absence of clear authoritative directive
language of instruction
Laws on citizenship, registration, work permit, resident permit
Immediate factors
Individual attributes
Birth certification
Citizenship
Residence permit
Work permit (parents)
Legal ID card
Poverty – household income
Fear of deportation
Language barrier

10. MDA: Where do we stand now?
National EFA MDA reports finalised:
Indonesia and Myanmar
National EFA MDA reports being finalised:
Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam
Sub-Regional EFA MDA reports now being printed
Insular Southeast Asia: Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines
Mekong: Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam

11. EFA MDA and Policy Review
Results of national and sub-regional EFA MDA and the 2008 Global Monitoring Report used for policy reviews
Recommendations for adjustments in terms of:
Target-setting, with specific references to priority target groups
Strategies for attaining the unattained and reaching the un-reached
A schedule of milestones to be attained over the remaining period
Sub-Regional EFA Mid-Term Policy Reviews to be conducted in Asia-Pacific (the first held in Southeast Asia in February)

12. Policy and Strategy Recommendations: South-East Asia EFA Policy Review
Identified specific target groups; in particular, unreached and disadvantaged populations
Defined “Inclusive Education” and “Quality” of education
Identified critical issues / major challenges using a lifelong learning approach
Recommended policies and strategies on how to address these issues
Identified good practices and innovative ideas
Participants from SEAMEO Member countries, except Timor Leste, were represented at the Conference held from February in Jomtien, Thailand
Working Groups on:
Inclusive Education and Access
Gender and social equity
Quality of Education
Literacy, mother tongue and language policies
EFA Monitoring and Evaluation
Financing and Governance
Youth’s role in achieving EFA (the youth both as a target group but also as playing a key role in achieving EFA)

13. Going to scale: develop capacity for implementation and sustainability
source: FTI CD Guidelines

14. Challenges in getting information on un-reached groups in Southeast Asia
UIS-AIMS Unit, UNESCO Bangkok
UNESCO
INSTITUTE for STATISTICS
Pprepared by Nyi Nyi THAUNG

15. Availability of data on unreached groups
Reaching the unreached: the major theme for EFAMDA
Findings from the EFA MDA
Most country reports tried to present the situation of unreached groups in relation to the provision and quality of education and other relevant aspects. Reports have sections on:
Identifying the unreached groups
Relevant policies and interventions
Implementation of programmes, activities
Difficulties and challenges in implementing the programmes
Results and achievements
Initially attached at Paris HQ
She used to be a Director General of Statistics Office at UK

16. Data Collection and Reporting
Not all countries disaggregate the data into rural/remote
Focus is on gender disaggregation
Best-practice: Lao divided regions into poorest, poor, non-poor and provides data on ethnic groups
Time series provide the means of observing narrowing or widening of gaps (applied in some countries as Cambodia, Viet Nam, Philippines and others)
Efforts are made in collecting data on pupils with disabilities
Data on Children in difficult circumstances, child labourers/ street children/ trafficked children/abused children, children affected or infected by HIV and AIDS, orphans and abandoned children is rare
Myanmar and the Philippines provide some information on these groups

17. Examples of data mentioned in MDA reports
Indonesia has very low participation of children with disabilities in ECCE (2% GER in 2005)
The number of working children has declined from 670,000 in 2004 to 516,000 in 2005 (Indonesia)
Significant differences in transition rate from primary to secondary exist across the provinces, varying from 77% in Sulawesi Utara to 43% in Kalimantan Tengah. (Indonesia)
Participation of children from indigenous groups in ECCE almost tripled from 2000 to 2005, from 10,726 to 29,723 (Malaysia)
71.2% of children from rural areas and disadvantaged students exhibit lower literacy skills (Malaysia)
NER in rural areas improved from 78% in 2002 to 87.1% in 2005 while that for urban areas decreased from 85.7% to 77.6% during the same period (Philippines)
Initially attached at Paris HQ
She used to be a Director General of Statistics Office at UK

18. Examples from the MDA reports
In the past half-decade, the number of students from the main ethnic group declined by 8%, while the number of students from other ethnic groups rose considerably (Lao PDR)
In 2002/03, 12.9% of children enrolled in ECCE were ethnic minorities; by 2005/06, the figure rose to 13.8%,:
Initially attached at Paris HQ
She used to be a Director General of Statistics Office at UK

19. Examples of data use in the MDA reports
Initially attached at Paris HQ
She used to be a Director General of Statistics Office at UK

20. Challenges Limited availability of data: only partial or incomplete
Data are never collected
Data are collected but not as part of the routine channels
Ad-hoc, one-time, case specific
Data exists but there is no information on where and how to get the data
Quality of data is beyond the acceptable, publishable level
Initially attached at Paris HQ
She used to be a Director General of Statistics Office at UK

21. Challenges Organization of available data Capacity
Information is available
from various institutions (difficulty in compilation)
in various forms, formats, medias (difficulty in transforming into interpretable format)
based on different concepts, definitions and methodologies (difficulty in consolidating and comparing)
Capacity
Lack of skills, capacity and interest
Lack of financial resources
Lack of institutional mandate
to collect, compile and analyze the information
Initially attached at Paris HQ
She used to be a Director General of Statistics Office at UK

22. Discussion points
Getting information for the reaching the un-reached group
What to collect
In which detail – disaggregation
How to collect
Who should collect
Who should consolidate, maintain, distribute
How to coordinate
How to build the capacity to do the above
Initially attached at Paris HQ
She used to be a Director General of Statistics Office at UK

23. Next Steps
One proposed action for the countries is to consider a Mapping Study on availability of data on reaching the unreached
Who are collecting the data, who are the data users
How are data collected
What are the data-related issues
Where can data be accessed/collected
Initially attached at Paris HQ
She used to be a Director General of Statistics Office at UK