REMINDER: Education for All Civil Society Sign-On Letter to President-Elect Obama--deadline tomorrow!

[Guest guest]

Dear

Colleagues -

The

US Chapter of the Global Campaign for Education has drafted a sign-on letter to

President-Elect Obama in an effort to demonstrate the existing broad support of

U.S. civil society for achieving universal quality basic education around the

world. We would like to invite your organization to join us in congratulating

President-Elect Obama on his commitment to supporting passage of the Education

for All Act and to establishing a $2 billion Global Fund for Education. We are

also encouraging his Administration to include $2 billion in the Presidential

budget for 2010 as a signal that the U.S. is willing to take bold action to

achieve Education for All and fill the annual financing gap so that 75 million

out-of school children are finally given the chance to go to school.

Please

respond to Beardmore at sbeardmore@...

by close of business on December 18th indicating whether you would like to include

your organization in this letter.

The

text of the letter is below and attached.

Kind

regards,

Stefanie

Stefanie

Ostfeld

Senior

Policy Officer

Global

AIDS Alliance

1121

14 Street NW, Suite 200

Washington,

DC 20005

202.789.0432

ext 216

sostfeld@...

December

xx, 2008

Dear

President-Elect Obama,

We,

the U.S. community of global education advocates, applaud the dedication you

have shown to providing every child with a quality basic education. We are

heartened by your public commitment to supporting the Education for All Act and

to providing $2 billion to a Global Fund for Education to eliminate the global

education deficit. By recognizing that the world's economy, health and

security are intimately linked with education, you have shown the will to

address the root causes of poverty, disease and war by investing in Education

for All. We fully support your drive to give children around the world the

chance to learn by making Education for All a priority for your Administration

during your first term.

At

this time of fiscal crises, it is even more imperative that we provide the

safety net of knowledge to the world's poorest children and save them from

paying with their lives for our financial mistakes. In Africa, the chance of a

child living beyond age five increases by 40 percent if the mother received

five years of primary education. Education also improves the health of families

and reduces vulnerability to HIV-if all children had a seat in a classroom,

700,000 new HIV infections could be prevented each year.

Investments

in education also leverage huge long-term dividends that are critical for

economic growth and stability. We have seen that a single year of primary

school increases the wages people earn later in life by 5-15% for boys and even

more for girls, and that increasing the number of women in secondary school

boosts per capita income growth in a nation. We also know that literate women

are more likely to participate in political meetings and to send their children

to school. Economic and political stability depend on educational attainment,

and it is the foundation of a peaceful society-a gift which America has the

power and influence to give to the world's poorest children and to future

generations.

By

investing $2 billion in FY2010 in order to begin meeting the annual financing

levels called for in the Education for All Act, America will signal its

reengagement with the world and its dedication to sustainable development, soft

power and most importantly to the right of children to complete a quality basic

education. This investment will put the U.S. back on track for committing $3

billion to universal education by 2012. We stand with you in this endeavor and

look forward to working with you throughout your administration to achieve

Education for All.

Sincerely,

[list

in formation]

Schechtman

Senior

Policy Officer

Global

AIDS Alliance

+1.202.789.0432

ext 203

lschechtman@...

Skype:

lisa.schechtman

www.globalaidsalliance.org

***NOTE

NEW ADDRESS:

1121

14th Street NW, 2nd Floor

Washington,

DC 20005***