Intervention by the Permanent Representative of the Argentine Republic, Amb. Martín García Moritán

January 24

Good morning colleagues and friends,

I am honored to welcome you to the launch of the Group of Friends for Education and Lifelong learning that Argentina co-chairs together with the Czech Republic, Japan and Kenya. Today we are also celebrating for the first time the International Day of Education, which was proclaimed by the General Assembly last December.

I believe it was high time that we organized a specific platform to foster and advocate the full implementation of all education related SDGs and targets. This Group of Friends will allow us to exchange best practices and experiences as well as to identify different contexts in which we can push for the advancement of inclusive quality education for all.

Full access to education is a condition for achieving sustainable development. We think of the SDG 4 as the engine to achieve many other SDGs, just to name a few through education we will achieve decent work, gender equality, health, end inequalities, fight against all forms of discrimination and mainly the eradication of poverty in all its forms. Education can act as the foundation to empower our citizens and transform them in actors of change.

Education and lifelong learning is a priority for Argentina. An example of the importance that we give to it is that during our G20 Chairmanship we organized the first Ministerial meeting on Education.

Also, we hosted the First Meeting of Ministers of Education of Latin America and the Caribbean in 2017.

We also believe that through education we can expand the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development beyond the United Nations and allow people from around the world to know and work together in the implementation of the SDGs. In this vein we have developed specific curricula to allow students to access and be familiar with the objectives that we set for the international community in 2015.

As you can see, Argentina is committed in work towards achieving SDG 4 at the international, regional and national levels.

I look forward in working together in this Group of Friends and I hope that we’ll be able to build momentum in order to make clear progress in ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all.

Thank you