International Literacy Day, 2021
10 September 2021, 10:00 - 12:00 | Virtual: Register in advance for this meeting
Webinar
UNESCO, Regional Office of Southern Africa, is hosting International Literacy Day celebrations 2021 under the theme ‘Literacy for a human-centred recovery: Narrowing the digital divide’. The regional event will take place on Friday 10th September 2021 from 10:00 until 12:00.
This year’s celebrations are taking place amidst the new Youth and Adult Literacy strategy for the period 2020-2025. The main goal of the strategy is to guide UNESCO’s work towards supporting Member States in ‘ensuring that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy by 2030’, as captured in SDG Target 4.6. The strategy also intends to contribute indirectly to achieving other SDGs with four strategic priority areas,which are:
- Supporting Member States in developing national literacy policies and strategies;
- Addressing the learning needs of disadvantaged groups, particularly women and girls;
- Leveraging digital technologies to expand access and improve learning outcomes; and
- Monitoring progress and assessing literacy skills and programmes.
Objectives
The objectives of the regional webinar are to:
- share knowledge and experiences regarding equitable, inclusive and effective distance and digital literacy learning for youth and adults with no or low literacy skills
- explore the interplay between literacy and digital skills and the ways in which digital skills can be effectively integrated into literacy teaching and learning, and
- identify main issues to be addressed for reimagined distance and digital literacy learning that can contribute to fulfilling the right to literacy of all young people and adults in times of COVID-19 and beyond, and
- celebrate the winning of the 2021 UNESCO - King Sejong Literacy prize for mother language based literacy development in the Southern Africa region by Puku for Children’s Literature Foundation, South Africa.
Cost
FreeUpcoming events
Past events
Financing Models for Literacy and Non-Formal Education in West Africa
Theme: Financing Models for Literacy and Non-Formal Education in West Africa
Presenter: Ms. Eleonore Ouedraogo
Date: October 28, 2025
Time: 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM GMT (Mali and Togo Time)
Registration link: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/53IRrjpZRByIGMcMd4bmyw
Webinar: 'Exploring learning through culture: Leveraging the arts to empower cities'
You are warmly invited to the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities' Webinar: ‘Exploring learning through culture: Leveraging the arts to empower cities’ on 15 October 2025. This event is part of our global webinar series, ‘Unlocking the power of lifelong learning’, bringing together stakeholders from across the globe on the first and third Wednesday of every month.
This webinar will focus on culture and the arts as powerful vehicles for promoting lifelong learning in cities. Creative processes, whether they are related to the visual arts, music, dance or theatre, can foster new ways of thinking, personal growth and self-expression. These activities not only enhance cognitive abilities but also inspire individuals to see the world in a different way, encouraging innovative and outside-the-box thinking. Artistic interventions in urban spaces can transform city environments, offering opportunities to reconnect with local cultural heritage and forge stronger community bonds.
This webinar will delve into the potential of culture and artistic practices to shape urban learning experiences. Speakers will consider how cultural institutions and public art initiatives make culture-based learning accessible to diverse audiences. They will discuss strategies for integrating the arts into urban education policies. Participants will gain a deeper understanding of how cultural initiatives can be designed to enhance educational inclusion, engagement and empowerment across diverse communities.
Time
15 October 2025, 13:00 to 14:00 (CEST)