Asia Pacific Dialogue on Equitable, Inclusive, and Gender-Responsive Financing of Education
The Asia South Pacific Association for Basic and Adult Education (ASPBAE) invites you to the virtual “Asia Pacific Dialogue on Equitable, Inclusive, and Gender-Responsive Financing of Education” as part of this year’s Global Action Week for Education (GAWE) Campaign of the Global Campaign for Education (GCE).
The theme for GAWE 2026 is education financing, with urgent calls to governments and the international community to “Hold the Flame High!” for education and rally support for the full financing of SDG 4 to guarantee accessible, inclusive, and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all.
The figures released by the Global Education Monitoring Report (GEMR) in June 2025 under its Policy Paper (#50) indicate that aid to education is projected to fall by a quarter between 2023 and 2027. With less than five years remaining for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, it has been estimated that the annual financing gap for low- and lower-middle-income countries to achieve their national SDG 4 targets would have been at least USD 97 billion.
Recognising the criticality of education financing in the achievement of SDG4, the Fortaleza Declaration issued by governments during the Global Education Meeting (GEM) held on 31 October to 1 November 2024 in Fortaleza, Brazil, emphasised the need to expand the domestic revenue base through progressive tax reforms, equitable taxation of the wealthy and multinational companies, combating tax evasion and illicit financial flows, and taxation of harmful activities and products. It called for raising the tax-to-GDP ratio to the 15% considered necessary to finance basic state functions and social service delivery, and allocating at least 4-6% of GDP and/or at least 15-20% of total public expenditure to education. It also promoted equity-based financing policies targeting marginalised and disadvantaged learners and communities at all educational levels.
The ASPBAE Asia-Pacific Dialogue on Equitable, Inclusive, and Gender-Responsive Financing of Education will help foster a collective understanding of education financing as it contributes to gender equality, social inclusion and lasting peace, and deepen the analysis of sustainable financing initiatives that are rights-based, transparent and participatory. The Dialogue will also aim to identify critical actions for governments to commit to mobilising domestic resources for education and for donor countries to reaffirm their commitment to and increase their development assistance for education, including support to the Global Partnership for Education (GPE).