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Education in Iraq April 2010
Net enrolment ratio in primary education (%)
89
77
87
82
92
66
85
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
95
100
1990 2007 2015
Net Enrolment Ratio in Primary Education (%)
Urban
Rural
Male
Female
Best Governorate
Worst Governorate
National Value
Target (Linear)
Linear (National Value)
Enrolment ratio females to males in primary education (%)
99
84
110
79
94
70
75
80
85
90
95
100
105
110
1990 2007 2015
Enrolment Ratio Females to Males in Primary Education (%)
Urban
Rural
Best Governorate
Worst Governorate
National Value
Target (Linear)
Linear (National Value)
Education and Development in Iraq Education is a fundamental human right which should be directed to the full devel-opment of the human personality.1 Under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the second Millennium Development Goal (MDG) and the second Education for All (EFA) goal, the Government of Iraq is com-mitted to ensuring that, by 2015, children everywhere in Iraq, all boys and girls alike, are able to complete a full course of primary schooling.2 In addition, through the other EFA goals and targets under MDG Two, the Government is committed to promoting quality education and learning as a life-long experience from the pre-primary level through to the end of the secondary level and onwards into continuous adult learning. 1 United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948, Article 26 (www.un.org/en/documents/udhr) 2 UN site for MDG Two: www.un.org/millenniumgoals/educ -tion; EFA Goals: www.unesco.org/en/efa/the-efa-movement/efa-goals; UNESCO, Education for All: Global Monitoring Report 2010 – Reaching the Marginalized (2010) www.unesco.org/en/efareport/reports/2010-marginalization and the CRC http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/crc.htm
The Government of Iraq has therefore iden-tified education as one of its main priorities, reflected by the increase of total govern-ment expenditure allocated for education from 7.2% in 2008 to 9.9% in 2009.3
Improved education levels will provide a critical contribution to Iraq’s efforts to meet all eight MDG targets. Improved education will boost skill levels in the Iraqi labour force and increase economic productivity, con-tributing to the alleviation of poverty under MDG One. A quarter (23%) of the population lives in poverty, spending less than ID77,000 per month (less than US$2.2 per day).4 In particular, improved school enrolment and education levels among women will assist in fulfilling Iraq’s commitment to promoting gender equality and empowering women (MDG Three and EFA Goal Five). Increased literacy (EFA Goal Four) and numeracy skills – particularly among women – will raise awareness and understanding of health and
3 Government of Iraq Ministry of Finance/Geopolicity4 World Bank/COSIT/KRSO Iraq Household Socio-Economic Survey 2007
environmental issues among the popula-tion, instrumental to assist key behaviour change to improve child and maternal mor-tality (MDGs Four and Five) and facilitate in-creased environmental sustainability (MDG Seven). Improved literacy levels will also en-courage use of new technologies, which will contribute to more productive and inclusive partnerships for development (MDG Eight).
Overall, Iraqis’ perceptions of education have deteriorated during the past few years. In 2004-2005, over 70% of Iraqis had a positive perception of local schools. This dropped considerably to 43% by March 2007, but had risen once again to 63% by February 2009.
Iraq’s progress towards educa-tion goalsFollowing the drop in net primary school enrolment5 rates from 91% in 1990 to 85% in 2007, Iraq faces challenges in its efforts to
5 The net primary enrolment ratio is the percentage of children aged between six and 11 years old that are enrolled in primary school.
meet the 2015 target of 100% net primary enrolment. Equal enrolment rates for girls and boys (MDG Three, EFA Goal Five) have nearly been achieved in urban areas (99% girls-to-boys net primary enrolment ratio), but in rural areas the already-low enrolment rate of 77% drops to 70% among girls.6 The proportion of children starting 1st grade who eventually continue to 5th grade has risen from 76% to 95% between 1990 and 2006,7 but just 44% of children finish prima-ry education at the standard age (11 years old).8 The poor state of primary education leads to a high drop-off in enrolment rates going into intermediate and secondary edu-cation. The net intermediate enrolment ra-tio is 37%, while the ratio at secondary level is even lower at 21%.9 Gender parity (MDG 6 1990 data from the Directorate of Social and Educational St -tistics; 2007 data from World Bank/COSIT/KRSO Iraq Household Socio-Economic Survey 20077 1990 data from COSIT, Millennium Development Goal Report 2007; 2006 data from UNICEF/COSIT/KRSO/MoH Multiple Indi-cator Cluster Survey 20068 2006 data for net primary school completion from UNICEF/COSIT/KRSO/MoH Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 20069 World Bank/COSIT/KRSO Iraq Household Socio-Economic Survey 2007
Literacy rate of segment of population aged 15-24 years
69% - 71%72% - 77%78% - 83%84% - 87%88% - 94%
Best Governorate: AnbarWorst Governorate: Missan
Data Source: IHSES 2007Basemap: HIC Iraq 2003NB: The boundaries and names shown and the designations used on this map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the United Nations.
Achieving the EFA goals will contribute to meeting Iraq’s in-ternational obligations under:
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR,1976)
International Covenant on Economic,Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR,1976)
International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD,1970)
Convention on the Elimination of Discrimina-tion against Women (CEDAW, 1986)
Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC, 1994)
Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labor (No.182. Adopted by ILO)
Three and EFA Goal Five) will be difficult to achieve in rural areas, where boys outnum-ber girls by around two-to- one at both lev-els.10 Given Iraq’s history of relatively high primary enrolment, the Government of Iraq has also committed to increasing net inter-mediate and secondary enrolment among males and females to 100% by 2015.
One in five Iraqis aged over 15 years is illiter-ate. Illiteracy rates among women (28%) are over double those among men (12%).11 Just 1% of those aged over 15 are enrolled in lit-eracy classes.12 Girls make up just a quarter of participants in accelerated learning class-es aimed at out-of-school children and ado-
10 World Bank/COSIT/KRSO Iraq Household Socio-Economic Survey 200711 World Bank/COSIT/KRSO Iraq Household Socio-Economic Survey 200712 World Bank/COSIT/KRSO Iraq Household Socio-Economic Survey 2007
lescents.13 Iraq will therefore have to exert considerable effort to improve adult literacy by 50% by 2015 (EFA Goal Four). The drop in primary school enrolment also means that Iraq will have difficulties in meeting the target of 100% literacy among Iraq’s youth by 2015 as part of MDG Two. Literacy rates among 15-24 year olds have shown a slight improvement from 79% in 1990 to 84% in 2007, but further progress is still required. The lowest rates are to be found in the northern and southern governorates, and young women aged 15-24 (20% of whom are illiterate) suffer more than their male counterparts.14
These issues highlight the need to improve early childhood development and the qual-
13 Government of Iraq Ministry of Education14 World Bank/COSIT/KRSO Iraq Household Socio-Economic Survey 2007
ity of education. Early childhood develop-ment (EFA Goal One) is essential to provid-ing the most basic literacy and numeracy skills for children as they commence their primary school education. Preschool enrol-ment among 3-5 year olds is just 3%.15 While teachers are universally trained,16 the qual-ity of education (EFA Goal Six) is hampered by poor learning environments – caused by poor quality infrastructure and overcrowd-ing – and a curriculum that does not ade-quately prepare youth for the labour market optimize learning and requires moderniza-tion in order optimize learning.
External factors such as malnutrition, child labour and early marriage also inhibit child and youth education and development. 15 UNICEF/COSIT/KRSO/MoH Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 200616 UNESCO, Education For All: Mid-Term Review for the Arab States (2008)
Chronic malnutrition, which affects one in five Iraqi children below the age of five, is undermining cognitive development, caus-ing irreversible losses in opportunities for learning.17 In rural areas, 10% of children aged 5-14 work, with little difference be-tween genders, while 5% of boys in cities are employed. In addition, one in five young women currently aged between 15 and 19 is married but with greater prevalence in the south of Iraq. There is little difference between rates in urban and rural areas.18
The UN’s ResponseThe UN’s responses to the education needs of all parts of Iraqi society are extensive and varied. 17 UNESCO, Education For All: Global Monitoring Report 2010 – Reaching the marginalized (2010)18 UNICEF/COSIT/KRSO/MoH Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2006
UNDG ITF - Education Sector Activities As of December 2009
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12Governorate
W Capacity Building
E Community-based Services
¬(DL Distance Learning
¬(EN Educational Networking
L Rehabilitation of schools
d Strengthening Education
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National Projects
Sector Activities
Total Project: 26Total Activity: 167
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Disclaimer:The designations employed and the presentation of material on this map do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat ofthe United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or
* In addition to the Sector activitiesthere are 11 National Project
UNDG ITF - Education Sector Activities (As of December 2009)
To support education sector governance, an education management information system has been set up with support from UNESCO and UNICEF to assist the Ministry and Directorates of Education in monitoring progress in education. Both agencies in col-laboration with the World Bank are support-ing the government in the development of a national education strategy to improve education policies and institutional capaci-ty. In preparation for this, 137 governmental staff have been trained in strategic planning and sector diagnosis since 2009. UNESCO is meanwhile working with national partners to develop a non-formal education strategy within the framework of the Literacy Initia-tive for Empowerment.
UNICEF and UN-HABITAT have invested over US$30 million nationwide – benefit-ting over 4.7 million children – in providing learning materials and school bags for pri-mary school children, improving infrastruc-ture, developing teaching practices and increasing parental engagement. As part of a US$34 million investment programme starting in 2007, UNICEF continues to pro-vide learning opportunities to out-of-school children and adolescents through its Alter-native Learning Programme, which now has 47,000 pupils enrolled. UNESCO has invest-ed more than US$50 million in Iraq’s educa-tion sector since 2003, including assistance with the distribution of 18 million textbooks (benefitting 11 million school children),
the rehabilitation of science laboratories in secondary schools and universities and improvement of technical and vocational training nationwide. In 2008-2009, WHO worked with the MoE and Ministry of Health to reactivate and strengthen the “health-promoting school” approach, addressing in-adequacies in health education and school health, water and sanitation. UNICEF has supported the Ministry of Education (MoE) in enhancing early childhood development (ECD) services through the establishment of an ECD national resource centre, distribu-tion of ECD materials to 2,000 kindergartens, nurseries and primary schools, and training of 514 caretakers and ECD teachers. UNICEF is currently supporting the MoE with the development of an ECD framework and the revision of the ECD curriculum.
The UN has identified increased access to quality essential services as a priority for the UN Development Assistance Framework 2011-2014. Increases in primary completion rates and net enrolment at all levels of edu-cation are a key element of the education outcomes, contributing to the attainment of MDGs Two and Three and all EFA Goals. An increase in adult literacy from 80% to 90% by 2014 is being targeted, contributing to the achievement of MDG Two and EFA Goal Four. To achieve this, UNICEF and UNESCO are tar-geting a wide range of projects at children who are out-of-school, those who are IDPs and refugees inside and outside of Iraq, and
those who have disabilities or special needs, using classroom teaching and new media. UNICEF and Qatari-funded UNESCO proj-ects focusing on curriculum development, rehabilitation of higher education, literacy and teacher training will further contribute to address the issue of quality education in Iraq. The World Bank also recognizes the im-portance of the alignment of poverty goals with the MDGs and EFA Goals in its Poverty Reduction Strategy.19
By 2014, the UN aims for an increase in the proportion of schools with a child-friendly learning environment from 2.5% to 30% (EFA Goal 6). Aimed at continuing enhance-ments in school infrastructure, UNICEF and UN-HABITAT’s “child-friendly schools” model will provide an inclusive, participatory, aca-demically effective, healthy and safe learn-ing environment. The model will be imple-mented in 21 schools in eight governorates in preparation for further expansion.
Education is an essential service and funda-mental human right which will continue to influence all aspects of Iraq’s development. The UN with the Government of Iraq and its partners will continue to provide its full sup-port and commitment to increase access to quality education as a lifelong experience in accordance with Iraq’s development goals.
19 http://siteresources.worldbank.org/IRFFI/R -sources/IraqPovertyReductionStrategyPressRe-leaseEnglishandArabi.pdf
