A World at School - June Mobilisation for Day of the African Child

On June 16 - the Day of the African Child - the world will once again stand up in support of every child’s human right to a safe, quality education.

The recent kidnapping of more than 270 girls from a school in northern Nigeria has astounded the international community. On the Day of the African Child we will be joined by A World at School Global Youth Ambassadors and thousands of young advocates for education from across the globe in raising support for the girls abducted in Nigeria and demanding the right to education for all.

The Day of the African Child is observed each year on June 16 to honour the memory of students who were massacred in Soweto in 1976 for protesting against education injustice and inequality in Apartheid South Africa. This year, there will be over 100 youth-led activities around the world to mark the date. From Jordan to Colombia, Norway to Rwanda, Pakistan to Malawi, young people are organising their communities to stand up for safe access to quality education. Through this movement, and with the support of A World at School and the United Nations Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, our global community of Youth Ambassadors are continuing the fight for the right to education in the memory of the students from Soweto.

Youth-led events ranging from Zero Exclusion in Nigeria to an education rally with 500 marginalised youth in Bangladesh  will be headed by a flagship event in Ethiopia - a Youth Takeover of the African Union in Addis Ababa.

 Inspired by the momentous occasion of Malala Day in 2013, when young people took over the United Nations Headquarters in New York and demanded the passing of a Youth Resolution to secure the safety of education, the Youth Takeover of the African Union will be held in solidarity with the abducted schoolgirls from Chibok Village in Nigeria. In collaboration with major organisations in the education community, we will call for a renewed commitment from world leaders to the right to education for every boy and girl.

Zero Exclusion is an event organised in Nigeria by Global Youth Ambassador Nina Mbah in collaboration with Ambassadors for Development Network (ADN) and Future Generex Organisation Federal University of Technology Minna Chapter and her Media partners; Kaanem, Streets of Naija and Aspire Magazine.

 Zero Exclusion is a grass root youth led advocacy workshop promoting total and quality education for every Nigerian child by the end of 2015. 

At a time when attacks on education are becoming ever more frequent and marginalised groups are still denied their right to learn, international aid to education in Africa is decreasing. We must elevate these concerns to the top of the agenda for decision makers. The Day of the African Child will be an important opportunity to highlight the struggle for quality education across Africa and for young people around the world.

I urge young people and all those who support the basic human right to education to join us in raising our voices on June 16. Visit the A World at School website (aworldatschool.org) for information on how to organise a unique event in support of education or get involved with an existing one.

Now is a critical time not only for rescuing the Nigerian schoolgirls of Chibok Village but for securing the right to education and safety of students and their communities everywhere – by mobilising on June 16 we have the power to make these issues a global priority and make our voices heard!

  

Nina Mbah

A World at School Global Youth Ambassador

A World at School is a digital mobilisation initiative working towards achieving global education. Our focus is the children who miss out on education and learning, and our goal is to help each of them realise their full potential through quality schooling.

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