5 October 2010 - The Afghan Ministry of Education, with the technical support of UNESCO and financial support from the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida), organized the first National Conference on Inclusive and Child-Friendly Education.

More than 120 delegates from Ministry of Education, other government ministries, Universities, NGOs, the donor community and UN agencies reaffirmed their commitment to promote the right to education for all children regardless on their gender, abilities, disabilities, health conditions and circumstances.

The Ministry of Education adopted the Afghanistan Declaration on Inclusive and Child-Friendly Education developed by the delegates, stressing the importance of promoting non-discrimination in education and providing future generations with values, basic literacy skills and life skills. Inclusive and child-friendly education should be seen as an educational and developmental approach that seeks to address the learning needs of all children and youth, with special focus on those who are most vulnerable to exclusion from and within the education system. As stated in the Afghanistan Declaration “The education system should contribute to the peaceful development of Afghanistan, enabling children, families and communities to develop”.

The UNESCO representative reiterated that “the role of the education system in combating poverty and social exclusion is pivotal for successful development, and that we will not be able to reach the Education for All (EFA) goals unless all schools become inclusive to all children”.

On 5th October, the national conference was also an opportunity to celebrate the World Teacher Day 2010 under the slogan “Recovery begins with teachers” and to pay homage to all Afghan teachers. In countries affected by conflict, teachers are instrumental to reconstruction and peace-building. On this occasion, the Ministry of Education honored the children and teachers from their inclusive pilot schools, supported by MACCA, UNESCO and UNICEF.

During the closing ceremony of the conference, the Deputy Minister for Academic Affairs, Mr. Mohammad Sediq Patman, requested all national and international partners to work towards one common goal: providing quality education for boys and girls all over Afghanistan.