THE EDUCATOR

A Publication of

The International Council for Education of
People with Visual Impairment

Message from the President

This relatively quiet period between the Christmas and New Years holiday provides a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the achievements of the past year and to look at the many exciting challenges that face us in the year ahead.

Certainly, 2006 has been a busy and productive year for ICEVI with our 12th World Conference coming right at the midpoint. There is always an extra dose of frenzy during the years when a world conference is scheduled; and this year was no exception. However, all of the extra effort paid off with a conference that broke all previous attendance records both for the number of participants (Over 1000) and the number of countries (96) represented. We were also pleased to
see that among those participating were a record number of blind and low vision
persons.

I believe that everyone who attended agrees that our Malaysian hosts did a splendid job; in fact so splendid that they may have scared away some countries who were thinking of bidding for the 2010 World Conference; we hope that will not be the case.

However, 2006 will go down in our record book for another reason. It is the year that ICEVI and its partner the World Blind Union embarked on a journey that we hope will dramatically increase school enrollment for children with visual impairment in the under-resourced countries of the world in the years. Already 10 international non-government organization along with UNICEF and UNESCO are actively involved in helping to move the Global Campaign forward.

There has been much talk in past issues of The Educator of this "pending" campaign. Well, we can dispense with the word "pending". The global campaign is now a reality and for this reason we have decided to devote this issue of The Educator to helping all of you to better understand this initiative.

We hope that this issue will not only help you understand the Global Campaign but will motivate you to become actively involved. We know that the only way we can achieve our goal of educational equity for all children with visual impairment is if each and every one of us stands up in solidarity with children, parents and teachers in the developing world to make it clear that the current status quo is totally unacceptable and one that we will change.

I hope that you will make a personal commitment to helping us to reach the goal of educational equity for every child with a visual impairment. Become a member of ICEVI, encourage your school or agency to become a member and write to your regional chairperson to find out how you can get involved on a personal level.

Message from the Editor

Dear colleagues:

In a letter six years ago I had the privilege to introduce a new format of The Educator. Among the novelties were a new layout, a thematic approach and standing columns. We can still see this structure in the issues published in 2006. There is however a noticeable difference between the journals of 2001 and 2006.

The 2001 issue looks today to me as a piece of rock brought directly from the mine. During the last quadrennium the rock has been polished into a glittering diamond by the editor Steve McCall and his Publications Committee supported by the production team in India led by Secretary General M.N.G. Mani.

Back on the arena I feel like a high jumper preparing to pass the qualification height in the Olympic Games. I hear thousands of people shout of joy. The tall Brit from Birmingham has just passed the bar with a wide margin.

I'm next. Will I manage the height? I know that I'm not alone. Today neither athletes nor editors are lone wolfs. Behind them there is a hard working team. As the new editor of The Educator and Second Vice President responsible for the publications portfolio I will have the support of a small but highly qualified team. Later more people may be appointed as permanent members of the team or on an ad-hoc basis.

I'm happy to inform you that Cay Holbrook and Peter Rodney have accepted to become members of the Publications Committee together with Secretary General Mani and me. Cay is an internationally recognized specialist in literacy and professor at the University of British Columbia, Canada. Peter, employed by the Institute for the Blind and Partially Sighted in Denmark, is a psychologist and educational consultant. Cay and Peter are well connected with ICEVI through their involvement in our regional work in North America/Caribbean and Europe.

When the Principal Officers met in late 2006 we spent considerable time discussing the budget and how to use our resources in the best possible way. Looking at our expenses it is clear that The Educator represents a major commitment. We can not afford to publish a journal that looks like a newsletter. News is important, but ICEVI E-News and our website are better channels than The Educator for this kind of information.

Each issue of The Educator must have a much longer useful life than a newsletter. The thematic approach was one step in this direction. We have decided to take a further step. In the future we will invite a guest editor to take responsibility for a major part of the journal. We are moving from a thematic to a monograph type of journal.

As there are readers who do not have access to E-mail or the Internet we will continue to use approximately one quarter of the journal for ICEVI news and information from our
partners. The remaining space will be the monograph section, a section that hopefully can be used as a part of textbook for a number of years.

In the next issue of The Educator you will meet Dr Jill Keeffe as the guest editor of an issue devoted to low vision.

The issue you now have in your hand is something between a thematic and a monograph issue. This time the focus is on the global campaign Education for all Children with Visual Impairment (EFA-VI). The content is prepared by Dr. M.N.G. Mani, the Secretary General of ICEVI and the
Executive Director of the campaign.

Sincerely,

Harry Svensson

The 12th World Conference - Lasting Impressions

The 12th World Conference of ICEVI was held from 16 to 21 July 2006 at the Putra World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The title of the conference 'Achieving Equality in Education: New Challenges and Strategies for Change' encompassed four major aims. These were:

• To promote dialogue at the highest level on the international issues reflecting the key issues of the theme of the conference
• To facilitate an exchange of perceptions, experiences, practice and research during
  formal and informal interactions.
• To provide a current international overview of the equality of access to education and rehabilitation for children and young people with a visual impairment.
• To enable participants to hear, question and work alongside respected international experts in the field of visual impairment as they respond to the conference theme.The above aims were addressed through
• high quality plenary speakers using different formats each day;
• stimulating papers, interactive workshops, new video and CD ROM materials as part of the 6 concurrent sessions in 17 different rooms/halls;
• regional selected papers
• two regional meetings
• a choice of 17 half-day focus day workshops;
• poster sessions on 2 separate days;
• 3 x 2 day post conference workshops

Inaugural Session

The highly impressive inaugural session was graced by Y.B. Dato' Sri Hishammuddin Bin Tun Hussein, the Hon. Minister of Education, Government of Malaysia. Prof. Ismail Sallah, President, Malaysian Association for the Blind welcomed the international gathering and Larry Campbell, President, ICEVI delivered the presidential address. In his address, he appreciated the partnership between ICEVI and the World Blind Union and stressed the importance to stay together to expand educational services for children with visual impairment throughout the world.

Following the inaugural session, three visually impaired children of Malaysia and
the Minister of Education launched the global campaign in the presence of Larry Campbell, President, ICEVI, William Rowland, President, World Blind Union and over 1000 participants representing 96 countries.

Technical Sessions

The participants of the conference had the opportunity to

• attend 4 plenary sessions with representatives from each ICEVI regions with a good gender and disability representation;
• choose from over 100 concurrent sessions on 19 different topics - many of the presentations given by eminent international people;
• examine and question 90 poster presenters;
• take part in a half-day focus workshop led by international experts.

Four of the rooms had interpretation into English, Spanish, Chinese and Japanese.

Poster Presentations

They were mostly of an adequate quality and presenters were pleased with the contact they made with the participants of the conference. It was pleasing that both the concurrent and poster sessions attracted participation from all regions of the ICEVI - many of the presenters having received sponsorship to enable their participation.

Focus Workshops

The Wednesday half day Focus Workshops enabled delegates to work alongside international experts. Workshop co-ordinators had been chosen well in excess of 18 months previously and had diligently prepared an interactive workshop of high quality. Most of them had co-opted colleagues from other ICEVI regions to make a contribution so that there was a good balance of experience and perspectives. The range of topics available was exciting and
offered a wonderful opportunity for delegates to learn new skills or improve knowledge.

ICEVI Awards

Individual Awards:

Larry Campbell
North America and Caribbean Region

Heather Mason
Europe Region

Lucia Piccione
Latin America Region

K. Piyasena
West Asia Region

Organisation Awards:

ICEVI also recognised Bill Brohier, the Immediate Past-President, Steve McCall, Vice-President, and Grace Chan, J. P., Treasurer of ICEVI for their dedicated services to ICEVI.

Presentation of Marga Schulze Award

The first Marga-Schulze Award for the promotion of higher education among blind girls was presented to Mr. J.L. Kaul, General Secretary, All India Confederation of the Blind (AICB), New Delhi, India during the world conference. The Marga-Schulze Foundation is also encouraging organisations to organise intensive training programs to develop skills of blind girls. ICEVI thanks the Marga-Schulze Foundation for promoting higher education of blind girls and hopes the Foundation will play an important role in the EFA-VI campaign.

Conference Materials

Each participant also received a CD-ROM containing most of the full presentations plus a comprehensive programme book and separate abstracts book.

Social Programmes

In addition to the 'formal' programme, the conference centre facilities and social programme arranged by the Malaysian Hosts enabled plenty of informal interaction and networking.

Post Conference Workshops

The following three post-conference workshops were organised for the benefit of selected participants from the developing countries:

1. Early Childhood Intervention by Lea Hyvarinen
2. MDVI by Nandini Rawal
3. Low Vision by Jill Keeffe

Office Bearers for the Quadrennium

Mr. Larry Campbell, USA was re-elected international President of ICEVI for the
period 2006-2010. Also elected were First Vice President, Dr. Jill Keeffe, Australia, Second Vice-President Mr. Harry Svensson, Sweden, Treasurer, Mrs. Nandini Rawal, India. ICEVI functions through seven regions, each headed by a Regional Chairperson, Deputy
Regional Chairperson(s) and a regional committee. For the quadrennium 2006-2010 ICEVI's Regional Chairpersons are Mr. Wilfred Maina, Africa; Prof. Dr. Ismail Salleh, East Asia; Mr. Hans Welling, Europe; Mrs. Lucia Piccionne, Latin America, Dr. Kathy Huebner, North America/Caribbean; Mrs. Frances Gentle, Pacific and Dr. Bhushan Punani, West Asia.

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

On 13 December 2006 the United Nations General Assembly unanimously adopted the
8th Human Rights instrument named The Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities.

This is the greatest moment in the history of persons with disabilities, who have suffered from exclusion, marginalization, neglect, murder and denial, since mankind started to write history!

Being a Human Rights Convention, the new convention will ensure persons with disabilities full and equal human rights, fundamental freedom and non-discrimination. As such the convention will become an international law which States must follow after the ratification.

After the ratification States must enact national laws and take other measures to guarantee
full human rights and fundamental freedom for persons with disabilities. States must also
abolish legislation, customs and practices that discriminate against persons with disabilities.

The negotiations took five years. It is thereby the most rapid negotiated international law in the history of the UN!

The convention will be open for signature and ratification on 30 March 2007, and will enter into force once it has been ratified by 20 countries.

The target group of this convention is the 650 million people living with disabilities in the world. 160 million of them are blind or partially sighted.

The convention is very much needed because of the well-known fact that there is a strong link between blindness and poverty. Blind people tend to be amongst the poorest in all societies.

Blind people generally face exclusion and isolation. This is sometimes the result of an
explicit policy to keep us hidden, but it can also be the result of architectural, physical, social, legal and attitudinal barriers, which make it impossible for us to participate as equal citizens in the society we belong to.

This attitude and exclusion result in denial of blind persons to attend schools for instance. Without any education and social inclusion, we are deemed to poverty and exclusion.

To rectify a situation like this, we have to start a campaign on education. The target is various stakeholders, such as governments, decision makers and the general public. Until the
attitudes are changed, it will be difficult to bring all blind and partially sighted people to school, despite any international law or convention.

We need this convention, which constitute an international law, as a "weapon" in our fight for human rights, equality, non-discrimination and equal opportunities. We need the convention as a tool for educating the society on our rights as human beings.
The basis for the new convention is to stress what is already formulated in the United
Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights from 1948, Article 26:1: "Everyone has the right to education".

We all know that the reality of the right to education is different from what is stated in many existing UN documents and conventions. It is currently estimated that the average rate of literacy skills among persons with disabilities is about 3 per cent among persons with disabilities in developing countries.

In 2000 the UN General Assembly unanimously agreed on a goal of access to education for all children by 2015 - Education for All (EFA). UNESCO got the authority to implement this goal.

Despite the adoption of EFA goals in 2000 not much has happened to persons with disabilities in the field of education since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted. If we should continue with this slow speed, we may not be able to live up to the agreement of 1948 and the EFA goals in 700 years from now!

The purpose of the new convention is to put an end to exclusion of persons with disabilities that exists worldwide, both as obstacles in the educational system and as lack of real political will among Governments and authorities.

Education for persons with disabilities is unfortunately not seen as a part of the general educational system. Many States do not refer the responsibility to the Ministry of Education, but to the Ministry of Social Affairs or the Ministry of Health.

The responsibility for providing education to all is in this convention put firmly on the States Parties, not on persons with disabilities or charity organizations. Education of persons with disabilities must be under the supervision of the Ministry of Education and be a part of the
general curriculum and school system in the country.

In the introduction of article 24 on Education it is stated that:
1. States Parties recognize the right of persons with disabilities to education. With a view to realizing this right without discrimination and on the basis of equal opportunity, States Parties shall ensure an inclusive education system at all levels and life-long learning, directed to:
a) The full development of human potential and sense of dignity and self-worth, and the strengthening of respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms and human diversity;

This text refers to the fact that, no matter the cause of disability or the time for the onset of the disability, the person should be provided with appropriate education in order to achieve her human rights.

Furthermore it puts the responsibility for providing education, on the States Parties, not on the person herself.

Equal opportunities should be provided to each person regardless of her status, gender and financial situation in society.

Paragraph 2 states:
2. In realizing this right, States Parties shall ensure that:
a) Persons with disabilities are not excluded from the general education system on the
basis of disability, and that children with disabilities are not excluded from free and compulsory primary education, or from secondary education, on the basis of disability;
b) Persons with disabilities can access an inclusive, quality and free primary education and secondary education on an equal basis with others in the communities in which they live;
c) Reasonable accommodation of the individual's requirements is provided;

This second paragraph is more specific with regard to the education as such. It stresses the right for persons with disabilities to obtain free and compulsory primary education and secondary education of good quality on the basis of equal opportunities with others.

Paragraph 3 is the result of the strong advocacy of the World Blind Union. We have been really successful in including the right to Braille. This is in the first time in history that Braille is recognised as a right for blind, deafblind or visually impaired persons, and it is an
international law which States have to follow!

3. States Parties shall enable persons with disabilities to learn life and social development skills to facilitate their full and equal participation in education and as members of the community. To this end, States Parties shall take appropriate measures, including:
a) Facilitating the learning of Braille, alternative script, augmentative and alternative modes, means and formats of communication and orientation and mobility skills, and facilitating peer support and mentoring;
c) Ensuring that the education of persons, and in particular children, who are blind, deaf or deafblind, is delivered in the most appropriate languages and modes and means of communication for the individual, in environments which maximize academic and social development.

Paragraph 4 is directed to teachers:
4. In order to help ensure the realization of this right, States Parties shall take appropriate measures to employ teachers, including teachers with disabilities, who are qualified in sign language and/or Braille, and to train professionals and staff who work at all levels of education. Such training shall incorporate disability awareness and the use of appropriate augmentative and alternative modes, means and formats of communication, educational techniques and materials to support persons with disabilities.

This paragraph ensures that States Parties make provision of education of teachers with special skills who are able to teach blind, deaf and deafblind students.

It is only in article 24 on Education that the need of a particular disability group is mentioned. In all other articles, specific needs are drafted in a neutral language without any specific references to a particular group!

Article 24 Education, is a shining star in this good convention!

Note from the editor :
The full text of the convention is available on: www.un.org/disabilities/convention/conventionfull.shtml

Global Campaign on

EDUCATION FOR ALL CHILDREN WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT (EFA-VI) Launched

The Education for All Children with Visual Impairment (EFA-VI) is a global campaign and program of the International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment (ICEVI) acting in partnership with the World Blind Union (WBU) and endorsed by the UNESCO and UNICEF to ensure that girls and boys with blindness and low vision enjoy the right to education. The campaign was formally launched by Y.B. Dato' Sri Hishammuddin Bin Tun Hussein, the Hon. Minister of Education, Government of Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, on July 16, 2006. The Honorable Minister was assisted by three children with visual impairment and the Presidents of ICEVI and The World Blind Union.

The campaign is being implemented at two levels. A Global Task Force (GTF), chaired by the President of ICEVI has developed the overall framework for the campaign including its guiding principles and a business plan. Currently the following organizations are members of the Global Task Force:

• Christoffel Blindenmission
• Deafblind International
• Hilton-Perkins International Program
• International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness
• International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment
• Light for the World
• Norwegian Association of the Blind and Partially Sighted
• Royal Visio International
• The National Organization of the Spanish Blind (ONCE)
• Sightsavers International
• World Blind Union

"EFA-VI GLOBAL CAMPAIGN - A SHARED CHALLENGE"ACHIEVING EDUCATIONAL ACCESS FOR ALL
CHILDREN WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT

Larry Campbell, President, ICEVI

The current situation of the estimated 6 million children with a disabling visual impairment is disturbing. Eighty percent of these children, or 4.8 million live, in a developing country. On average less than 10% of these children currently have access to education. This means that today there are an estimated 4.4 million preschool and school-aged children who live without access to a basic human right, the right to education. Time and again research has shown the link between poverty and illiteracy. For these 4.4 million children this cycle of poverty and illiteracy is likely to repeat itself unless some dramatic interventions are made immediately.

In 1990, Ministers of Education from throughout the world gathered for a global summit in Jomtien, Thailand. Out of this summit came the UN and World Bank supported Education for All program. The document that emerged from this EFA summit called for universal enrollment in primary education for all the world's children by the year 2015. EFA has become a household word in the field of development and one of the eight United Nations Millenium Development Goals.

However, from the outset, the needs of children with disabilities were barely acknowledged. Had it not been for the tireless work of Bill Brohier, then President of ICEVI, and Lal Advani, then regional president of the World Blind Union there would have been no reference to persons with disabilities in the final EFA summit document. In the end, there was one fleeting reference to the needs of disabled persons; and since then the term "fleeting reference" aptly describes the situation since 1990.

The Education for All program of UNICEF, UNESCO and The World Bank has had some impressive results for non-disabled children. School enrollment and literacy rates have risen in almost all countries. Today, some 24 countries are part of what is referred to as the Fast Track Initiative (FTI). Countries included in the FTI have agreed that in return for debt relief they will put work intensively in achieving universal primary education enrollment. In these countries large investment in technical and financial support are stimulating accelerated effort toward this objective. So, for non-disabled children the picture is looking brighter.

However, to date, the same cannot be said for children with disabilities. Despite the numerous meetings and declarations that have followed over the past 16 years progress has certainly not matched intent. However, there are, at last some encouraging signs.

In 2004 The World Bank convened a meeting on "disability and development". At that meeting, then World Bank president James Wolfensjn frankly admitted that the World Bank had come to the table very late in addressing the needs of persons with disabilities within its mainstream development initiatives. He also conceded that with an estimated 600 million disabled persons worldwide, achievement of the UN millennium development goals could not be met unless the needs of persons with disabilities were more effectively addressed. He pledged that The World Bank would from this point on take the issue of disability more seriously, a promise the World Bank seems to be keeping. Over the past two years we have noted that The World Bank is taking this issue more seriously at both the central and country levels. The recent appointment of a dynamic South African lawyer who is herself disabled as The World Bank's Advisor on Disability is a step in the right direction and ICEVI and WBU are trying to capi talize on these changes. Recently I had the opportunity to present the ICEVI-WBU global campaign to a group of high level officials at The World Bank. One of these officials summarized these changes. He said most governments had moved from a position of ignoring the issue to developing a more "want to" attitude. He explained that the time is now right to help governments
with the "how to" of assuring that all children with disabilities enjoy the same basic right to education as do non-disabled children. The ICEVI-WBU Global Campaign on Education for All Children with Visual Impairment is just that type of a "how to" initiative.

The global campaign launched by ICEVI in partnership with the World Blind Union in July of this year evolved over a three-year period beginning in 2003. The campaign grew out of the frustration that many organizations active within ICEVI were experiencing. While there has been some success with pilot programs in a number of developing countries there has b een a general failure in scaling up these programs to reach large numbers of children in a sustainable manner. Often governments have been only marginally involved leaving the bulk of responsibility to non-government organizations as a charitable initiative rather than as a rights based program. It became clear to all involved in this dialog that unless a bold new strategy was devised we were likely to see only small incremental progress in addressing the needs of these "forgotten children". As ICEVI and WBU and our respective constituencies were grappling with this challenge we were witnessing the results of a very successful global campaign led by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness which was making significant strides in reducing avoidable blindness in the developing world.

This led the ICEVI Executive Committee to wonder whether a similar global initiative in the field of education could be that bold step that was needed to result in significant impact on the current situation of blind and low vision children in the developing world.

Over a three-year period, which included much consultation with our regions and our international partners, the Global Campaign on Education for Children with Visual Impairment emerged. The framework for the global campaign has been shaped by a Global Task Force consisting of representatives of ICEVI, WBU and most of the major international
non-government organizations working on matters concerning blindness and low vision.

The global campaign that has emerged is built upon a rights- based foundation, recognizing that every child has a basic human right to education. The campaign addresses three of the UN Millenium Development Goals, namely:

COUNTRY SELECTION FOR THE FIRST PHASE
OF THE EFA-VI CAMPAIGN

During the first phase of the campaign (2006-2010), 14 countries will get focussed attention. These countries will be spread throughout the developing regions and the final list will be decided in consultation with the regional committees of ICEVI. In order to assist the regional chairs and their committees to make a decision on two countries that can be selected for each region during the first phase, the Global Task Force of the EFA-VI campaign has developed the following nine criteria as the most important to be considered in the selection of countries.

- Presence of a functioning organisation(s) of the blind
- Programs for EFA already in place
- Availability of facilities for human resource development (such as teacher training)
- Evidence of Government's commitment to fulfil the Millennium Development Goals
- Presence of Non-Government Development Organisations (NGDOs) actively working
in the country in the area of education (local and International Non-Government
Organisations)
- Existing capacity to support the education of children with visual impairment (such as braille production centres)
- Focus on inclusive education in respect to Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper
- Implementing Blindness Prevention Programs (such as the Vision 2020 program)
- Potential to make impact on other countries within the region

Though two countries will be the focus in each region, it does not mean that other countries within the region will not be involved in EFA-VI. The regional chairs along with the country representatives will plan activities that would promote educational opportunities for children with visual impairment in those countries. There are some countries, which are already active in implementing services for children with visual impairment and ICEVI and WBU will work with these countries to strengthen the efforts of the national bodies. In some other countries, assistance may be necessary for organising capacity building programmes, technical support, etc. Therefore, the global campaign activities will be carried out in as many countries as possible, whereas intensive activities will be planned in the 14 countries, which come under the first phase implementation.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GLOBAL CAMPAIGN:
GUIDELINES FOR COUNTRIES

GUIDING PRINCIPLES
The EFA-VI campaign will be guided by the following fundamental principles:
1. There is a need to create a demand for education for children with visual impairment
2. The campaign will work within the general framework of education and special education of countries selected for implementation.
3. Girls and boys with visual impairment should be included in the general education system with appropriate support
4. Alternative educational approaches are also necessary considering that some children with specialised needs such as those who are deafblind and multiple disabilities require specialised services.

The country level task forces will be oriented to take stock of the existing situation in each country before projecting a national plan for implementation.

COMPOSITION OF EFA-VI NATIONAL TASK FORCES AND TERMS OF REFERENCE
The National Task Forces are the most vital units in the implementation of the EFA-VI campaign and programme. They should consist of all stakeholders of special needs education who have their contribution directly or indirectly to the development and implementation of national plans. The National Task Force may comprise the following:

• Government Ministries of Education and other Ministries concerned for the overall Education For All campaign
• Organizations of Persons with Visual Impairment and parent organisations where exist
• National and international Non-Governmental Organizations working in the area of visual impairment and EFA
• UN Specialized Agencies concerned at the national level.
• Special teachers and other professionals working in the area of visual impairment
• Professionals in the eye-health care/Vision 2020 programme
• Teacher Preparation Institutes including universities, which train teachers for regular schools and for children with visual impairment

The Terms of Reference of the National Task Force should include:

• Working within the overall framework of existing national education plans to ensure that the educational issues of girls and boys with visual impairment including those who are deafblind and multiply disabled are adequately addressed
• Making situation analysis and collecting data at the national level
• Developing long-term and short-term goal-oriented strategic plans for implementing educational services for all visually impaired children
• Suggesting legislations and regulations for adoption, where not existing, and ensuring that any existing discriminatory clauses are eliminated
• Establishing linkages for the purpose of networking and advocacy
• Suggesting development of appropriate curricula
• Mobilizing and sharing of resources towards convergence of services in order to achieve the EFA goal.

The National Task Force should meet at least twice a year to review the implementation of the EFA campaign and assess its progress for suggesting mid-term refinement, if any. The existing infrastructure of regional meetings of ICEVI and WBU may be used as forums for the National Task Forces to report the progress of the campaign at the national level.

The following tasks need to be taken up by the NTFs in the process of implementation of the campaign.

1. Making a situation analysis: The countries should make a situation analysis to determine the availability of legislation / policies, statistical information on children to be served, human resource development programmes, material production centres, evaluation mechanisms, etc., which will steer the work of the NTF.

2. Development of national plans: Following the situation analysis, it is essential for the NTF to develop a national plan which will serve as a blueprint in the implementation of the campaign and programme. The national plan should mention how the strategy adopted by the National Task Force will create a demand for the education of girls and boys with visual impairment.

3. Strengthening human resource development: In implementing this important campaign, many stakeholders such as the policy makers, teacher educators, teachers, educational administrations, parents, and so many other persons are involved and therefore short-term and long-term training programmes have to be planned and conducted regularly. The NTF is expected to list the types of training programmes required in the country to make the EFA-VI successful.

4. Maintaining enrolment data: The NTF needs to keep a record of the student enrolment data and also information on how many teachers are serving, inservice programmes conducted, etc., for keeping track of the success of the programme. Necessary formats have to be developed by the NTF of the country for coding this information.

The work plan of the countries may be reviewed once in two years to suggest necessary refinements on the basis of experiences gained.

CAMPAIGN CENTRES OF EXCELLENCE (CCE)
As the National Task Force is just a committee, it needs assistance from some organisations at the local / regional level where these activities can be organised. Therefore, certain organisations working in the countries / regions may be identified as centres of excellence. University departments involved in special education teacher preparation, organisations involved in production of assistive devices, etc., may be ideal locations for these centres of excellence. While building centres of excellence would incur huge capital expenses, it is preferred to upgrade existing institutes to serve as the Campaign Centres of Excellence. There may be a need for one or two centres of excellence in large countries whereas there may be regional centre of excellence in regions which include a large number of small countries.

TARGETS TO BE ACHIEVED
The NTF should project the targets to be achieved during the first phase of the campaign beginning 2007.

BUDGET FOR THE NATIONAL LEVEL CAMPAIGN
The local Governments, which have a mandate to provide universal primary education are the main stakeholders in the EFA campaign at the country level. The local voluntary/non-governmental organizations, International service organizations like the Lions Clubs International Foundation, Rotary International, etc., International Non-Governmental Development Organizations, corporate houses and public sector industries have to be involved at the country level for supporting the EFA campaign. The Task Forces for the country need to draw a budget for each country keeping in mind the long-term sustainability.

The budget estimate for each region will be prepared as per the following classifications:

The budget under each category should have clear description of the projected item of expenses and how much funds are likely to be raised locally.

ASSESSMENT OF THE SUCCESS
The success of the EFAVI campaign may be measured against the following four major parameters.

• Have education enrolment rates of children with visual impairment increased?
• Have drop-out rates among children with visual impairment decreased?
• Do children with visual impairment have access to the support services and learning materials they need (in the appropriate format) to allow them to compete on an equal basis with their sighted peers.
• Is the performance of children with visual impairment on par with those of non-visually impaired children?

The GTF will develop formats for documenting the above indicators of success. The Research Committee of ICEVI will also carry out research to find out the efficacy of the implementation of programmes at the country level.

IMPLEMENTING EFA-VI CAMPAIGN: MATERIALS BEING DEVELOPED

The global task force of the campaign has suggested that campaign materials may be prepared for five types of target audiences as per the following objectives and key communication approaches:

The EFA-VI Secretariat has already started preparing general campaign materials which will be available soon for circulation and will also be posted on the ICEVI website.

EDUCATION FOR ALL - FAST TRACK INITIATIVES

The Global Task Force of the EFA-VI campaign has suggested that the countries covered under the Fast Track Initiatives of the World Bank may be considered for inclusion in the first phase of the EFA-VI campaign in order to achieve faster results. The write-up below describes the concept of the FTI and how it can be used effectively at the country level by the National Task Forces of EFA-VI to augment services for children with visual impairment.

What is EFA-FTI?
The Education For All - Fast Track Initiative is a global partnership between developing countries and international donors in order to ensure universal completion of quality primary education by 2015. Though the term disability is not mentioned in the objectives, the word 'equity' is mentioned in the EFA-FTI, which includes children with disabilities too. Therefore, the EFA-VI campaign can work well with the EFA-FTI as both function with the common ideology of increasing educational opportunities.

Target group
The FTI document states that more than 100 million children are out of school of which 58 million are girls. The EFA-VI document states that approximately 6 million children with visual impairment are not having access to education of which 4.5 million are from developing nations. As the target projected by the EFA-VI is 6% of the target of the EFA-FTI, there is ample scope for collaboration between these two initiatives. Both the initiatives have laid special emphasis on education of girl children.

Key indicators of success
While international donors and a few governments raise resources for the EFA-FTI campaign, the partner countries are expected to develop good education programmes and demonstrate results on performance indicators, which are similar to the EFA-VI campaign. Government spending on education, pupil-teacher ratio, average repetition rate, and annual hours of instruction are listed as some of the key indicators of the EFA-FTI campaign whereas
the EFA-VI campaign lists increased enrolment, provision of support, reduction of dropout rate and academic performance as the main indicators of success.

National level agency
The EFA-FTI is suggesting nomination of a Coordinating agency at the national level to coordinate with the Ministry of education and other government agencies, which is similar to the concept of a National Task Force (NTF) suggested by the EFA-VI campaign. The EFA-FTI expects that the country has prepared a poverty reduction strategy and an education sector plan whereas the EFA-VI campaign suggests nine criteria for a country to qualify for the implementation of the campaign. Therefore, both initiatives follow similar strategies for country selection.

Resource mobilisation
Once the resource-requirements of the countries are known in the EFA-FTI initiatives, the donor agencies will mobilise resources. The EFA-VI campaign is also adopting the same strategies. The EFA-FTI emphasises adequacy of the knowledge base, strategy towards achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, ownership by the stakeholders, and financial sustainability, which are similar to the EFA-VI approach. The EFA-FTI contemplates on identification of key areas for capacity building, strategies for monitoring and evaluation, etc., which are similar to the EFA-VI campaign. Therefore, both initiatives adopt similar strategies for identifying key areas, major performance indicators, etc., and therefore, the EFA-VI campaign can make use of the EFA-FTI initiative wherever it is present.

Catalytic Fund
In addition to resources generated from the donors present in the country of implementation and inviting new donors to join the initiative, the EFA-FTI also has a Catalytic Fund, which is a multi donor trust fund operated by the World Bank. This fund is used for providing grants to countries where donor presence is limited. Many countries from Europe have pledged for the catalytic fund, which amounts to nearly 680 million US dollars. There are plenty of opportunities for EFA-VI campaign to work with the EFA-FTI in specific areas such as research, creation of centres of excellence, local production of assistive devices, etc. Proposals may also be sent through the National Task Forces for specific grants under these categories.

Countries covered under Fast Track Initiatives:
Many countries in the developing world are included under the Fast Track Initiatives. The following countries have endorsed programmes with education sector plans.

1. Burkina Faso
2. Djibouti
3. Ethiopia
4. Gambia
5. Ghana
6. Guinea
7. Guyana
8. Honduras
9. Kenya
10. Lesotho
11. Madagascar
12. Mauritania
13. Moldova
14. Mozambique
15. Nicaragua
16. Niger
17. Tajikistan
18. Timor Leste
19. Vietnam
20. Yemen

Countries expected to have endorsed plans in 2006
1. Albania
2. Benin
3. Bhutan
4. Burundi
5. Cambodia
6. Cameroon
7. Mali
8. Mongolia
9. Rwanda
10. Sao Tome and Principe
11. Senegal

Expected to endorse plans in 2007
1. Angola
2. Bangladesh
3. Chad
4. Congo (DRC)
5. Congo, Republic
6. Georgia
7. Guinea-Bissau
8. Haiti
9. Kiribati
10. Kyrgyz Rep
11. Sierra Leone
12. Solomon Islands
13. Vanuatu
14. Zambia

Countries whose dates of endorsements are yet to be made
1. Bolivia
2. Central African Republic
3. Eritrea
4. India
5. Indonesia
6. Lao PDR
7. Liberia
8. Malawi
9. Nigeria
10. Pakistan
11. Sri Lanka
12. Tanzania
13. Uganda
14. Togo

Therefore, 59 countries are likely to be brought under the Fast Track countries within two years and the EFA-VI campaign can make use of the EFA-FTI initiatives in these countries. Using EFA-FTI programme is going to be beneficial for the EFA-VI programme in terms of capacity building, resource mobilisation, achieving the indicators of success, emulating examples, and research.

UNESCO's EFA Global Monitoring Report 2007 FACTS AND SUGGESTIONS

The summary of the EFA Global Monitoring Report 2007 published by UNESCO starts with the following statement: "Time is running out to meet the EFA goals set in 2000. Despite continued overall global progress at the primary level, including for girls, too many children are not in school, drop out early or do not reach minimal learning standards. By neglecting the connections among early childhood, primary and secondary education, and adult literacy, countries are missing opportunities to improve basic education across the board - and, in the process, the prospects of children, youth and adults everywhere."

The report by title, "Strong Foundations: Early childhood care and education" reviews the progress of EFA goals adopted in Dakar in 2000. The first goal "Expanding and improving comprehensive early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children" has been dealt with in detail and the report clearly points out measures to be undertaken by Governments and stakeholders to address the goals in order to achieve the desired results.

The following extracts from the Global Monitoring Report 2007 help us to understand the status of general EFA and how the future campaign should proceed:

EFA-VI News

EFAVI meeting in Delhi
The EFA-VI orientation meeting was held in Delhi, India on 9 October 2006. The meeting was hosted by Rehabilitation Council of India, a government body. Representatives of Government, CBM, SSI and voluntary organisations attended the meeting. The radio network programme of the "Eyeway" run by George Abraham will be effectively used for demand creation in the campaign. The group will prepare a country plan for implementing EFA-VI activities.

UNESCO Meeting
Larry Campbell, President and Mani, M.N.G., Secretary General, ICEVI met with Dr. Kenneth Eklindh, Head of the Division dealing with inclusive education at UNESCO on 20 October 2006 to brief him on the EFA-VI campaign and seek UNESCO support. Following is a summary of the discussions.

• UNESCO is happy to be involved in the campaign
• It recognises specific initiatives such as EFA-VI under the general EFA framework
• UNESCO's support for the campaign may be mentioned in EFA-VI documents
• UNESCO hopes to attend future meetings of the Global Task Force
• Formal endorsement of UNESCO allowing the campaign to use the UNESCO logo needs to be pursued and ICEVI will follow-up on this matter.

Meeting with the World Bank
Larry Campbell met with Ms. Charlotte McClain Nhlapo, Bob Prouty and Raisa Venalainen at the World Bank on 6 November 2006 and discussed the ICEVI global campaign activities. The meeting raised hopes for the ICEVI-WBU initiative to work closely with the colleagues at The Bank. It is good to know that in some countries where ICEVI-WBU will be initiating the program it may be possible to access support from the Catalytic Fund for areas such as research/data collection, capacity building and materials development.

ICEVI has taken particular note of the fact that providing Braille is something that is of real concern to so many. Perhaps one of the issues the EFA-VI campaign can address is the development of some materials that will help countries to understand and be better able to deal with such issues and to make them seem a bit less formidable. ICEVI also wants to work closely with the World Bank on this issue.

East Asia - Meeting with key leaders from China
The ICEVI world conference in Malaysia had a strong contingent from China including its Director of Special Education Mr. Xie. The President of ICEVI met with Mr. Xie, Director of Special Education, MOE China, Ms. Tang,Vice-President of China Disabled Peoples Federation, and Ms. Peng, Deputy Director for Special Education, China National Institute for Educational Research who is also the new ICEVI Deputy Regional Chairperson for East Asia and stressed the need for strengthening ICEVI activities in China during the current quadrennium. In continuation of that meeting, the Principal officers of ICEVI meet with the officials in Beijing, China on 2-3 December 2006 and further discussed the strategies. The ICEVI China chapter is proposing to conduct a situational analysis highlighting what needs are to be addressed in the country in terms of inclusive strategies, human resources development, curriculum, etc., to expand educational services for children with visual impairment who do not have acce ss at
present.

The meeting of the Principal officers of ICEVI was also held in Beijing during the same time to prepare specific strategies for the quadrennium. On 4 December 2006, Larry Campbell and Mani attended the workshop organized in Tianjin, China for the teachers from special schools who are involved in teaching technology and mathematics to children with visual impairment. ICEVI is happy that China, which has significant population of children with visual impairment is moving forward to realize the goals of education for all these children. More information on the initiatives of China will be reported in the subsequent issues of The Educator.

Use of Africa Forum
The Africa Forum to be held in Nairobi from 6-11 May 2007 will be used as a platform to launch EFA-VI in the Africa region. Although a few countries have been suggested by the regional committee of the Africa region for inclusion in the EFA-VI campaign the final country selection for the first phase of the campaign will be made in consultation with the country representatives at the Africa Forum. ICEVI is now working with the organizers of the Africa Forum and the ICEVI regional committee of specific presentations and activities that can be built into the program of the Forum or through pre or post-Forum activities.

Perkins's assistance to EFA-VI campaign
Perkins is interested in finding ways to integrate some of its efforts in both the area of Brailler maintenance and repair and in publications into the EFA-VI. Perkins is working on a number of publications that may either in current or adapted form be of use to the campaign.

Meeting with the Officials from Pakistan
A meeting to discuss the forthcoming regional conference of ICEVI West Asia region in Pakistan and also to explore the possibilities of implementing EFA-VI campaign in Pakistan was held at the Blind People's Association, Ahmedabad, India on 29 December 2006. Mr. Naeem Khan, Federal Secretary, Ministry of Social Welfare and Special Education, Government of Pakistan, Mr. Khalid Naeem, Director of Special Education and Inclusive Education, Dr. Bhushan Punani, Regional Chairperson of ICEVI West Asia Region, Mrs. Nandini Rawal, Treasurer, ICEVI and Dr. Mani, Secretary General, ICEVI attended the meeting. Pakistan is going to host the West Asia regional conference in Islamabad, Pakistan during the
last week of November/first week of December 2007. The exact dates with the first notification of the conference will be released soon and the information will also be posted on ICEVI's
website. Pakistan is also keen to use that opportunity as a launching pad for its EFA-VI activities.

Origin of Education For All

The EFA-VI campaign will work within the overall framework of Education For All movement. Though the focus of EFA-VI campaign is children with visual impairment, it is echoing the global principles of fundamental human rights, human resources development, etc. The following sections provide summaries of historical documents at the international level that talk about the EFA movement. We believe these will be valuable resources for professionals and policy makers who venture into EFA in general and education for all children with disabilities in particular.

THE JOMTIEN CONFERENCE
The Education For All movement originated from Jomtien, Thailand in 1990. Since then Governments and international organisations have reiterated the need for providing universal primary education in various forums. Though new classes and categories emerged, the basic document on Education For All remains the same. The ten articles of the declaration are as follows:

ARTICLE I
MEETING BASIC LEARNING NEEDS

1. Every person - child, youth and adult - shall be able to benefit from educational opportunities designed to meet their basic learning needs. These needs comprise both essential learning tools (such as literacy, oral expression, numeracy, and problem solving) and the basic learning content (such as knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes) required by human beings to be able to survive, to develop their full capacities, to live and work in dignity, to participate fully in development, to improve the quality of their lives, to make informed decisions, and to continue learning. The scope of basic learning needs and how they should be met varies with individual countries and cultures, and inevitably, changes with the passage of time.

2. The satisfaction of these needs empowers individuals in any society and confers upon them a responsibility to respect and build upon their collective cultural, linguistic and spiritual heritage, to promote the education of others, to further the cause of social justice, to achieve environmental protection, to be tolerant towards social, political and religious systems which differ from their own, ensuring that commonly accepted humanistic values and
human rights are upheld, and to work for international peace and solidarity in an interdependent world.

3. Another and no less fundamental aim of educational development is the transmission and enrichment of common cultural and moral values. It is in these values that the individual and society find their identity and worth.

4. Basic education is more than an end in itself. It is the foundation for lifelong learning and
human development on which countries may build, systematically, further levels and types of education and training.

EDUCATION FOR ALL: AN EXPANDED VISION AND A RENEWED COMMITMENT

ARTICLE II
SHAPING THE VISION

To serve the basic learning needs of all requires more than a recommitment to basic education as it now exists. What is needed is an "expanded vision" that surpasses present resource levels, institutional structures, curricula, and conventional delivery systems while building on the best in current practices. New possibilities exist today which result from the convergence of the increase in information and the unprecedented capacity to communicate. We must seize them with creativity and a determination for increased effectiveness.

As elaborated in Articles III-VII, the expanded vision encompasses:

• Universalizing access and promoting equity;
• Focussing on learning;
• Broadening the means and scope of basic education;
• Enhancing the environment for learning;
• Strengthening partnerships.

The realization of an enormous potential for human progress and empowerment is contingent upon whether people can be enabled to acquire the education and the start needed to tap into the
ever-expanding pool of relevant knowledge and the new means for sharing this knowledge.

ARTICLE III
UNIVERSALIZING ACCESS AND PROMOTING EQUITY

1. Basic education should be provided to all children, youth and adults. To this end, basic education services of quality should be expanded and consistent measures must be
taken to reduce disparities.

2. For basic education to be equitable, all children, youth and adults must be given the opportunity to achieve and maintain an acceptable level of learning.

3. The most urgent priority is to ensure access to, and improve the quality of, education for girls and women, and to remove every obstacle that hampers their active participation. All gender stereotyping in education should be eliminated.

4. An active commitment must be made to removing educational disparities. Underserved groups: the poor; street and working children; rural and remote populations; nomads and
migrant workers; indigenous peoples; ethnic, racial, and linguistic minorities; refugees; those displaced by war; and people under occupation, should not suffer any discrimination in access to learning opportunities.

5. The learning needs of the disabled demand special attention. Steps need to be taken to provide equal access to education to every category of disabled persons as an integral part of the education system.

ARTICLE IV
FOCUSSING ON LEARNING

Whether or not expanded educational opportunities will translate into meaningful development - for an individual or for society - depends ultimately on whether people actually learn as a result of those opportunities, i.e., whether they incorporate useful knowledge, reasoning ability, skills, and values. The focus of basic education must, therefore, be on actual learning acquisition and outcome, rather than exclusively upon enrolment, continued participation in organized programmes and completion of certification requirements. Active and participatory approaches are particularly valuable in assuring learning acquisition and allowing learners to reach their fullest potential. It is, therefore, necessary to define acceptable levels of learning acquisition for educational programmes and to improve and apply systems of assessing learning achievement.

ARTICLE V
BROADENING THE MEANS AND SCOPE OF BASIC EDUCATION

The diversity, complexity, and changing nature of basic learning needs of children, youth and adults necessitates broadening and constantly redefining the scope of basic education to include the following components:

• Learning begins at birth. This calls for early childhood care and initial education . These can be provided through arrangements involving families, communities, or institutional programmes, as appropriate.
• The main delivery system for the basic education of children outside the family is primary schooling. Primary education must be universal, ensure that the basic learning needs of all children are satisfied, and take into account the culture, needs, and opportunities of the community. Supplementary alternative programmes can help meet the basic learning needs of children with limited or no access to formal schooling, provided that they share the same standards of learning applied to schools, and are adequately supported.
• The basic learning needs of youth and adults are diverse and should be met through a
  variety of delivery systems. Literacy programmes are indispensable because literacy is a necessary skill in itself and the foundation of other life skills. Literacy in the mother-tongue strengthens cultural identity and heritage. Other needs can be served by: skills training, apprenticeships, and formal and non-formal education programmes in health, nutrition,
  population, agricultural techniques, the environment, science, technology, family life, including fertility awareness, and other societal issues.
• All available instruments and channels of information, communications, and social
  action could be used to help convey essential knowledge and inform and educate people on social issues. In addition to the traditional means, libraries, television, radio and other media can be mobilized to realize their potential towards meeting basic education needs of all.

These components should constitute an integrated system - complementary, mutually reinforcing, and of comparable standards, and they should contribute to creating and developing possibilities for lifelong learning.

ARTICLE VI
ENHANCING THE ENVIRONMENT FOR LEARNING

Learning does not take place in isolation. Societies, therefore, must ensure that all learners receive the nutrition, health care, and general physical and emotional support they need in order to participate actively in and benefit from their education. Knowledge and skills that will enhance the learning environment of children should be integrated into community learning programmes for adults. The education of children and their parents or other caretakers is mutually supportive and this interaction should be used to create, for all, a learning environment of vibrancy and warmth.

ARTICLE VII
STRENGTHENING PARTNERSHIPS

National, regional, and local educational authorities have a unique obligation to
provide basic education for all, but they cannot be expected to supply every human, financial or organizational requirement for this task. New and revitalized partnerships at all levels will be necessary: Partnerships among all sub-sectors and forms of education, recognizing the special role of teachers and that of administrators and other educational personnel; partnerships between education and other government departments, including planning, finance, labour, communications, and other social sectors; partnerships between government and non-governmental organizations, the private sector, local communities, religious groups, and families. The recognition of the vital role of both families and teachers is particularly important. In this context, the terms and conditions of service of teachers and their status, which constitute a determining factor in the implementation of education for all, must be urgently improved in all countries in line with the joint ILO/UNESCO R ecommendation Con cerning the Status of Teachers (1966). Genuine partnerships contribute to the planning, implementing, managing and evaluating of basic education programmes. When we speak of "an expanded vision and a renewed commitment", partnerships are at the heart of it.

EDUCATION FOR ALL: THE REQUIREMENTS

ARTICLE VIII
DEVELOPING A SUPPORTIVE POLICY CONTEXT

1. Supportive policies in the social, cultural, and economic sectors are required in
order to realize the full provision and utitlization of basic education for individual and societal improvement. The provision of basic education for all depends on political commitment and political will backed by appropriate fiscal measures and reinforced by educational policy reforms and institutional strengthening. Suitable economic, trade, labour, employment and health policies will enhance learners' incentives and contributions to societal development.
2. Societies should also insure a strong intellectual and scientific environment for basic education. This implies improving higher education and developing scientific research. Close contact with contemporary technological and scientific knowledge should be possible at every level of education.

ARTICLE IX
MOBILIZING RESOURCES

1. If the basic learning needs of all are to be met through a much broader scope of
action than in the past, it will be essential to mobilize existing and new financial and human resources, public, private and voluntary. All of society has a contribution to make, recognizing that time, energy and funding directed to basic education are perhaps the most profound investment in people and in the future of a country which can be made.

2. Enlarged public-sector support means drawing on the resources of all the government agencies responsible for human development, through increased absolute and proportional allocations to basic education services with the clear recognition of competing claims on national resources of which education is an important one, but not the only one. Serious attention to improving the efficiency of existing educational resources and programmes will not only produce more, it can also be expected to attract new resources. The urgent task of meeting basic learning needs may require a reallocation between sectors, as, for example, a transfer from military to educational expenditure. Above all, special protection for basic education will be required in countries undergoing structural adjustment and facing severe external debt burdens. Today, more than ever, education must be seen as a fundamental dimension of any social, cultural, and economic design.

ARTICLE X
STRENGTHENING INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY

1. Meeting basic learning needs constitutes a common and universal human responsibility. It requires international solidarity and equitable and fair economic relations in
order to redress existing economic disparities. All nat