Former UK prime minister Gordon Brown has urged governments across the world against cutting education budgets and deepening an "unparalleled funding crisis".
Mr Brown issued the plea on the final day of the Rewired global education summit at Expo 2020 Dubai on Tuesday.
He said the Covid-19 pandemic had caused significant disruption to the education sector, forcing tens of millions of pupils out of schools.
The veteran politician, now a United Nations special envoy for global education, said more investment was required to support the next generation, not less.
But two thirds of countries were slashing education budgets at a time of such need, he said.
“We now know the scale of the damage that has been inflicted by the pandemic, that there are not just 260 million children out of school as before the pandemic but 300 million," Mr Brown said.
"Millions of pupils' learning time has been lost and the expenditure required to meet the sustainable development goals is not now just $148 billion a year but $200bn.
“Yet two thirds of countries are cutting their education budgets and aid has been cut by $2bn.
"Instead of 72 per cent of countries failing to meet the recommended benchmark for education spending as a share of their economy, we should declare worldwide a new golden rule from now on – educational spending will be treated in budgetary arithmetic, not as current expenditure, but as an investment, the investment it really is."
Whether it was connectivity or classroom teaching, he said changes needed in education could not be made without additional financing.
“We are creating an unparalleled crisis in the funding of global education, which urgent and innovative measures must now address,” said the former UK leader.
Mr Brown said countries must treat education as indispensable to future prosperity and that the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank should waive any costs and educational spending from debt restructuring programmes imposed on countries.
Major funding boost announced
On Tuesday, the Global Partnership for Education and the Arab Co-ordination Group announced an education investment scheme worth $500 million.
The Smart Education Financing Initiative will be used by countries to support learning needs over the next five years.
Dr Jakaya Kikwete, chairman of the Global Partnership for Education board and former president of Tanzania, and Amer Bukvic, director general for product development and partnerships at Islamic Development Bank, launched the strategy.
“The funding generated through this initiative will help governments tackle the learning crises at their doorstep, providing additional funding on better terms and making sure these resources are invested in effective, sustainable education programmes,” Dr Kikwete said.
The money will be used to finance education for 37 countries of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation, where 28 million children are out of school, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Niger, Pakistan, Egypt, Mali, Maldives, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Yemen.
Governments will be able to use the money to meet their particular education needs be it in sanitation, building digital learning tools, food and nutrition or girls' education among others.
The GPE wants every country to allocate a minimum of 20 per cent of their national budget towards education.
Charles North, deputy chief executive at the GPE, said the pandemic was not over and education worldwide had been staggering under its effects.
"While some countries are getting back to school, we have lost a lot of learning opportunity, the children have been out of school, in some cases for a year or more. That loss of learning is critical in terms of where we need to be focusing on ensuring that we're addressing their needs, so that they can catch up," he said.
"If we don't address that gap ... that loss learning will stay with those children for their lifetimes.
"The children of today are going to be the doctors of tomorrow, who will be addressing the next pandemic.
"It is critical that we give attention to education now, addressing the needs and making sure that every child has the opportunity."
