[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 92 (Wednesday, May 26, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3507-S3508]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SENATE RESOLUTION 240--AFFIRMING THE ROLE OF THE UNITED STATES IN 
 IMPROVING ACCESS TO QUALITY, INCLUSIVE PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMPROVED 
LEARNING OUTCOMES FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS, PARTICULARLY FOR GIRLS, 
 IN THE POOREST COUNTRIES THROUGH THE GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP FOR EDUCATION

  Mr. BOOKER (for himself and Mr. Rubio) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 240

       Whereas access to quality education reduces poverty, 
     advances economic prosperity, improves peace and security, 
     and strengthens public health;
       Whereas the United Nations reported that 1,600,000,000 
     learners in more than 190 countries were affected by the 
     closure of educational institutions at the peak of the COVID-
     19 pandemic;
       Whereas prior to the COVID crisis, the 2020 Global 
     Education Monitoring Report, an annual accountability tool on 
     the status of education internationally, found that an 
     estimated 258,000,000 children and adolescents are out of 
     school worldwide, with girls and children with disabilities 
     more likely to be out of school in most of the developing 
     world;
       Whereas a 2019 UNICEF Report found that only one in every 
     five children in low-income countries has access to 
     preprimary education;
       Whereas a 2019 World Bank Report found that more than half 
     of all children in low- and middle-income countries cannot 
     read a simple story by age 10;
       Whereas a 2020 UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report 
     found that children and adolescents with a sensory, physical, 
     or intellectual disability are two and a half times more 
     likely to have never been in school than their peers without 
     disabilities;
       Whereas a 2018 UNICEF Report found that one in three 
     children and adolescents are out of school in countries 
     affected by conflict or disaster;
       Whereas a 2020 UNHCR Report found that almost half of 
     school-age refugee children are out of school and, of the 
     refugee children who do start primary school, less than half 
     make it to secondary school;
       Whereas a 2018 World Bank Report found that 12 years of 
     quality education for every girl would boost economies by as 
     much as $30 trillion in increased lifetime earnings and that 
     each year of secondary education for girls reduces the 
     likelihood of marriage before the age of 18 by five 
     percentage points or more;
       Whereas the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) was 
     founded in 2002 as the only public-private global partnership 
     exclusively dedicated to education in the world's poorest 
     countries;
       Whereas GPE-eligible countries are home to more than 
     1,000,000,000 children and adolescents, which represent 82 
     percent of out-of-school children;
       Whereas GPE focuses on improving education at a systems 
     level, aligning partners behind each government's education 
     sector plan, to leverage the profound transformations 
     required to deliver at least one year of preschool and 12 
     years of quality education for every child;
       Whereas GPE works in the countries with the greatest need, 
     targets the hardest to reach children, and can respond 
     quickly to emergencies;
       Whereas educational continuity helps partners keep their 
     education systems functioning through wars, displacement 
     crises, climate disasters and health emergencies, including 
     the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic;
       Whereas GPE is a proven and effective aid delivery 
     mechanism that complements the United States Government's 
     bilateral basic education programs by fostering coordination 
     among all key partners, supporting the development and 
     implementation of strong national education sector plans, and 
     building on the commitment of developing country governments 
     to expand quality educational opportunities for children in 
     an equitable manner;
       Whereas the United States is among the leading supporters 
     of GPE, is represented on the GPE Board of Directors, and 
     currently serves the critical role of Coordinating Agent in 
     eight GPE partner countries;
       Whereas United States Government Strategy on Basic 
     Education, Fiscal Years 2019 through 2023, resolves to 
     leverage GPE to advance its goal of achieving a world where 
     education systems in partner countries enable all individuals 
     to acquire the education and skills needed to be productive 
     members of society;
       Whereas GPE is working with Education Cannot Wait, at 
     global and country level, to develop optimized approaches to 
     advance UN Sustainable Development Goal 4 and provide 
     inclusive and equitable quality education for all, especially 
     the most marginalized children in crisis situations;
       Whereas primary enrollment for girls has increased by 65 
     percent and almost three-quarters of partner countries have 
     achieved gender parity in school completion;
       Whereas in 40 percent of partner countries, GPE's 
     partnership supports one or more activities relating to 
     children with disabilities;
       Whereas GPE is the largest provider of education grants in 
     the global COVID-19 response, mobilizing over $500,000,000 to 
     ensure continued learning, school reopenings, and recovery;
       Whereas GPE support incentivized governments to save more 
     than $6,000,000,000 through more efficient education 
     spending, freeing up more funds to invest in education for 
     the most marginalized;
       Whereas more than 60 percent of GPE's spending is in 
     countries affected by conflict or fragility, and GPE helped 
     these countries to increase their primary school completion 
     rates from 58 percent in 2002 to 68 percent in 2018;
       Whereas GPE's 5-year strategic plan calls for leveraging 
     and further developing innovative finance mechanisms to get 
     every child

[[Page S3508]]

     learning, and extends a strong commitment to gender equality 
     and inclusion across all workings of the partnership, 
     including a new funding window that will raise an additional 
     $250,000,000 for girls' education; and
       Whereas with support from donors, GPE will enable 
     175,000,000 primary-age children to learn, reach 140,000,000 
     students with professionally trained teachers, get 88,000,000 
     more children in school, more than half of them girls, and 
     save $16,000,000,000 through more efficient spending: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) affirms the leadership and commitment of the United 
     States Government to improving access to quality, inclusive 
     public education and improved learning outcomes for the 
     poorest and most marginalized children and adolescents 
     worldwide, which promotes global stability, economic 
     prosperity, and poverty elimination;
       (2) supports the vision, mission, and goals of GPE 2025 to 
     appropriately mobilize partnerships and investments that 
     transform education systems in developing countries, leaving 
     no one behind;
       (3) recognizes that United States Government investments in 
     bilateral basic education are complemented by GPE's education 
     systems-level approach and partnership building;
       (4) calls on the United States to engage in multiyear 
     pledges to allow GPE to maximize its impact in supporting 
     governments to provide quality, inclusive public education to 
     children around the world and to leverage contributions from 
     other countries and donors; and
       (5) calls on the Secretary of State and the Administrator 
     of the United States Agency for International Development to 
     commit to promoting children and adolescents attending school 
     and learning throughout the world in accordance with the 2021 
     to 2025 GPE strategic period.

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