The Deputy Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain and UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova awarded the 2015 UNESCO-King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa Prize for the Use of Information and Communication Technologies in Education to the Omar Dengo Foundation’s National Programme of Educational Informatics in Costa Rica and the Open Source Physics project developed by Singapore’s Ministry of Education during a ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters on 13 January 2015.
“This ceremony is an opportunity for us to celebrate together the vision at the heart of the Prize, which seeks to promote more inclusive quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all,” said the Director-General. Recalling that 2015 was a turning point for education marked by the Incheon Declaration and 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Ms Bokova highlighted the scope of the challenge ahead, with some 57 million children still out of primary school and 781 million illiterate adults. “Education is a fundamental human right and powerful development multiplier. This is why we must make the most of every driver for enhanced access and quality. Information and communication technologies have a special role to play here.” She noted that the Education 2030 Framework for Action sets an ambitious agenda that calls on Governments and partners to harness the full potential of ICTs for equity and quality. “We know ICTs cannot be bolted onto learning, they must be built in from the outsets, and this is why this education of the Prize focuses on pedagogical innovation in the use of ICTs in teaching and learning,” she said, warmly thanking the Deputy Prime Minister for Bahrain’s generous support to the Prize.
More information is available at the UNESCO website.