Publication

This study assesses the educational progress of Egypt, especially in basic education and identifies the issues that still need to be addressed. At the level of basic education real progress has been made on narrowing regional and reducing gender disparities, reducing class size, eliminating multiple shifts, increasing class instructional time, and introducing technology in the classroom. While Egypt is to be lauded for its significant achievements, problems persist in the education sector. Of particular concern are the problems of the poor.

The objectives of this paper are: (i) to describe and quantify the role that education plays in determining poverty and (ii) to provide concrete policy recommendations for the government about how best to improve education for the poor in Guatemala. Current statistics show Guatemala is Poor: the World Bank's World Development Report (2000/2001) reported that 39.8 percent of Guatemala's population of about 11 million live on less than US$1.00 per day while 64.3 percent live on less than US$2.00 per day.

The paper highlights that the education of children, and youth merits the highest priority in a world afflicted by HIV/AIDS, specifically because a good basic education ranks among the most effective - and cost-effective - means of HIV prevention. It also merits priority because the very education system that supplies a nation's future, is being greatly threatened by the epidemic, particularly in areas of high, or rising HIV prevalence.

The report reviews the substantial progress Costa Rica made over the past decade in reducing poverty and improving social indicators. However, while economic growth certainly reduced poverty rates, the country's recent experience shows that relying on economic growth and increased public spending alone will not necessarily yield sufficient reductions in poverty. Moreover, the rising concern that fiscal pressure will limit possibilities of increasing social spending suggests further efficiency in the sector.

This report describes how tertiary education contributes to building up a country's capacity for participation in an increasingly knowledge-based world economy and investigates policy options for tertiary education that have the potential to enhance economic growth and reduce poverty. It examines the following questions: What is the importance of tertiary education for economic and social development? How should developing and transition countries position themselves to take full advantage of the potential contribution of tertiary education?

Two concepts lie at the core of this paper, internationalization and globalization of higher education. This paper demonstrates that the current globalization process has significant implications for the higher education sector in Colombia. Hence, higher education institutions in Colombia have come under pressure from foreign universities, who use the Internet as a tool to gain access to the Colombian market for higher education. Internationalization can happen through various channels.

The ability to create, distribute and exploit knowledge has become a major source of competitive advantage, wealth creation and improvements in the quality of life. These changes imply that science, technology and innovation (STI) are now key to improving economic performance and social well-being. However, if governments want to obtain the benefits from this transformation they will have to put the right policies in place.

Conflict's path of devastation and chaos has dramatically slowed the ability of war-torn countries to reach the Education for All (EFA) goals adopted in Dakar in April 2000. This paper sketches the situation confronting children, their families and governments in conflict countries and describes the challenges of reaching universal primary education. Far more could be done to support education in countries suffering from conflict. The most logical starting point lies in supporting emergency education where it exists and dramatically expanding access to education where it doesn't.

The study comprises two volumes on the use of public resources to provide educational services in Brazilian municipalities, by which the policy report (volume 1) presents recommendations, based on the research report (volume 2). This research outlines the policy context, objectives, and methodology practiced, to then focus on the extent to which municipalities benefited from efforts designed to provide additional resources for education.

The health care system in Brazil has established the important principle of universal coverage, yet, it faces several key challenges: its expenditure patterns favor the regions that are already better off, and healthier, and, needs to take into account diverse practices, and cultures, in addition to considerations for the weak referral system. The report focuses on the health care system, particularly on enhancing maternal and prenatal health, certain health care interventions, such as immunizations, oral rehydration therapy, and case management.