Mr. Speaker, this is Global Action Week for education.
Some 774 million adults around the world cannot read and 75 million children are denied the chance to learn to read and write. According to the World Bank, education is one of the most powerful instruments for reducing poverty and inequality.
UNESCO's Education for All campaign has helped to provide a pathway out of poverty for 23 million children.
In 2000, Canada committed to ensure that everyone realizes the human right to education by 2015. Initially, Canada and other donors rose to that challenge and increased their aid to help another 40 million children go to school. However, recently aid levels have plateaued and the government is showing signs of faltering on that commitment. Currently, Canada provides less than half of its fair share of the global requirement to meet these goals.
In honour of Global Action Week, we call upon the Conservative government to honour its commitment to the Education for All goals by contributing Canada's fair share and increasing Canadian funding to the full Education for All agenda.
Education is a key route out of poverty. Canada must do its share.