RESULTS Elected to GPE Board!

Yesterday at the Global Campaign for Education World Assembly in Johannesburg, South Africa, RESULTS Education for All Campaign Manager Tony Baker was elected to represent International/Northern Civil Society Organizations on the Global Partnership for Education Board of Directors!

Tony's election is an exciting opportunity for RESULTS to play a stronger role navigating the next stage of the Global Partnership. This is a critical time in the partnership's evolution, particularly as it undertakes its next strategic planning process which will help guide the partnership through critical operational decisions. This period will also be important in addressing overall organizational challenges such as increasing regular inclusion of civil society in planning at the national level in developing countries, determining the right kind of modalities through which the partnership delivers aid, and mobilizing funds to fill the gap left by donors after the last year's pledging conference.

At the same time, the Global Partnership is confronting issues faced by the entire education sector globally. We have failed to achieve the education Millennium Development Goal and are currently determining the next education goals, targets, and indicators that will be part of the next post-2015 development agenda. There is an increasingly urgent need to protect education as a public good and to ensure progress on free, public education is maintained and strengthened. And we must expand access to quality education upwards and downwards, particularly early childhood education for the most marginalized children.

As a representative of International and Northern Civil Society Organizations, Tony will work with the constituency to develop a strategy and push for needed reforms that will strengthen the partnership as it confronts these challenges. He will serve a two-year term, serving alongside our colleague David Archer from ActionAid. Tony will also work closely with our colleagues from the Developing Country Civil Society Organization and Teacher Profession constituencies to ensure civil society is strongly represented on the Global Partnership for Education Board of Directors. (That's Tony in the photo up top, with David Archer on the right and Cheikh Mbow, National Coordinator of the education for all coalition in Senegal and board represenatative for the Developing Country constituency.)

Congratulations, Tony!!