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The Global Conference on ‘Promoting literacy for a world in transition: Building the foundation for sustainable and peaceful societies’ was organized by UNESCO on 8 September at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France on the occasion of International Literacy Day (ILD) 2023. It brought together nearly 180 participants, and about 150 people connected online, including the Ministers of Education from Bangladesh, Benin, Ecuador, and Senegal, as well as representatives of other governments, partners, and stakeholders. Held at the mid-point of the journey towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), participants explored not only how to accelerate progress but also required changes in our thinking, approaches and action if we are to promote literacy towards more sustainable and peaceful societies. Perceiving literacy learning as lifelong learning processes, panelists and participants shared their knowledge and experiences regarding system, governance and financing, as well as concrete programmes and teaching and learning practices.

‘Literacy is a passport for greater freedoms’, said Ms. Stefania Giannini, Assistant Director-General for Education in the Opening Session. H.E. Ms. Dipu Moni, Minister of Education, Bangladesh also highlighted the critical role of literacy for empowerment, social transformation and making ourselves human. H.E. Mr. Kouaro Yves Chabi, Minister of Secondary, Technical and Vocational Education, Benin, shared Benin’s flagship programmes, calling for attention to the programme content and global partnerships. For transformation, H.E. Ms. Maria Brown Perez, Minister of Education, Ecuador stressed the centrality of literacy and education for its ability to enable people to be the agents of transformation, while H.E. Mr. Cheikh Oumar Anne, Minister of National Education, Senegal, highlighted the importance of quality lifelong learning and inclusive education systems. Mr. Laeek Siddiqui, SDG4 Youth Network representative reminded us that sustainable and peaceful societies can be achieved only through meaningful engagement of youth in the collective journey.

Subsequently, Mr Timothy Denis Ireland, Professor, Federal University of Paraiba, Brazil and Chairholder of UNESCO Chair in Youth and Adult Education delivered a keynote speech. He highlighted the transformative potential of literacy which enables people to go beyond mere reading of ‘words’ to read a ‘world’. In the face of global challenges, such as climate change, we need ‘a transition from an anthropocentric vision of the world to a biocentric vision of the world’, in which humans are integral part of the planet and the nature. This transition should embrace diverse knowledge and ways of knowing – as Freire put forward, ‘an all-embracing epistemology’. To transform education and our future worlds through a new social contract, he stressed the need for a bottom-up approach, facilitating dialogue and negotiation between policy-makers, civil society, and other stakeholders. 

The Global Conference continued with three panel discussions that explored how to enhance and transform systems, governance, financing, programmes and practice for promoting literacy towards more sustainable and peaceful societies. 

The Award Ceremony of the UNESCO International Literacy Prizes was part of the global ILD2023 celebration, followed by a panel discussion with the six laureates from Bangladesh, Dominican Republic, Finland, Pakistan, South Africa, and Uganda. 

At the Award Ceremony of the UNESCO International Literacy Prizes, six outstanding programmes received the prizes. The UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy were given to the ‘Empowering remote and climate vulnerable communities with digital literacy’ programme by Friendship from Bangladesh, the ‘My Very Own Library: Cultivating a culture of reading in the homes of children in the Dominican Republic’ programme by Dominican Republic Education and Mentoring from The Dominican Republic, and the ‘Peaceful Communities’ programme by Uganda National Self-Advocacy Initiative from Uganda.

The UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize were given to the GraphoGame programme by the GraphoGame organization from Finland, the Himalayan Literacy Network from Pakistan, and the ‘Africa e-Library project’ by Snapplify from South Africa.

International Literacy Day was celebrated in many countries globally, including in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Chile, Congo, Egypt, Gambia, Ghana, Haiti, Mozambique, Senegal, Thailand, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. UNESCO acknowledged their unwavering commitment and endeavors in orchestrating national festivities dedicated to fostering literacy and lifelong learning.

As the ceremony came to an end, Mr. Borhene Chakroun, Director of the Division of Policies and Lifelong Learning Systems at UNESCO, echoing the prevailing sense of hope and enthusiasm, shared an inspiring message, “let us carry the knowledge and inspiration gained here back to our respective corners of the world and let us work tirelessly to create societies that are not just literate, but also sustainable and peaceful”.

• International Literacy Day (ILD) 2023
• UNESCO International Literacy Prizes
• UNESCO’s work to advance literacy