UIS Launches Education in Africa Portal for ADEA Triennale

More than any other region, sub-Saharan Africa is facing an uphill challenge in efforts to get all children and youth in school and learning by 2030. High quality regional and county level data will be critical as countries lay the groundwork to meet the ambitious targets of Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) and the Education 2030 agenda.

The UIS is the official data source for SDG 4 monitoring. As such, the Education in Africa platform offers users a range of data and statistical products – from quick access to the latest available cross-nationally comparable indicators disaggregated by sex, to a selection of analytical publications, and a new series of country profiles presenting key indicators for each target of the global education goal. 

In addition to SDG 4 data, the portal presents a unique series of indicators to reflect the schooling conditions across the region, such as access to clean water, electricity, textbooks and separate toilets for girls and boys. The UIS developed these indicators in consultation with national representatives to meet the regional need for more detailed information.

The platform also offers access to a series of UIS-led initiatives to improve the availability and quality of data from countries across the region. For example, the UIS is leading pilot projects in four sub-Saharan African countries, as part of UNESCO’s Capacity Development for Education (CapED), to help develop action plans to improve the quality and use of data to monitor SDG 4 at the national, regional and global levels.

To help provide a regional overview at a glance, the portal presents UNESCO atlases on policy themes, including Education 2030,  teachers, literacy, out-of-school children and gender disparities. Users can drill down into the data for Africa and beyond through a series of interactive maps and charts that are easy to customise and embed on third party sites or in reports. Another interactive tool, Left Behind, specifically focuses on the education situation facing girls and women across the region.

The Education in Africa portal is an indispensable one-stop data platform to support wider efforts to meet the educational needs of children and youth across region.