Dubai, June 13, 2011: Following an invitation from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation,(UNESCO), the Chairman of GEMS Education, Sunny Varkey, has joined a High Level Panel which focuses on advancing the rights of Women and Girls to receive an education.

Other Panel members include; His Highness the Aga Khan; the Prime Minister of Mali; Mc. Cisse Mariam Sidibe; the Prime Minister of Bangladesh; Sheikh Hasina; Ms. Rosabeth Kanter; Professor at Harvard Business School and Ms. Melanne Verveer, US Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's issues.

Sunny Varkey said it was unacceptable that 39 million girls of lower secondary age are currently not enrolled in either primary or secondary education globally, while two thirds of the world's 796 million illiterate adults are women. Only about one third of countries have achieved gender parity at secondary level.

Mr. Varkey said, "There is compelling evidence to show that countries which invest in girls and women's education will reap the benefits because education has a direct impact on improving livelihoods, as well as reducing infant mortality and preventing HIV and AIDS." 

On May 26, UNESCO, in collaboration with political and corporate leaders, launched a major new Global Partnership for Girl's and Women's Education during a High-Level Forum held at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. UNESCO Director-General, Irina Bokova, said the Partnership aimed to galvanize support from the private and public sectors to make quality education available for girls and women everywhere.

The High-Level Panel established at the Forum, which includes Sunny Varkey, will complement these efforts by stepping up global advocacy, and acting as a 'global conscience' for the advancement of girls and women.

The Varkey GEMS Foundation, which also focuses on the issue of gender equality in education, shares many synergies with UNESCO's objectives. The CEO of the Varkey GEMS Foundation, Vikas Pota also attended.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, one of the key note speakers at the forum said that, "investing in girls and women must lie at the heart of the global development agenda. Education sends a message of confidence and hope, it tells children 'you have a future, what you think matters'. But although education is a right, it is not a reality for all too many girls."

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton spoke of her commitment to UNESCO's ideals and achievements. The Secretary of State announced that the U.S. will support UNESCO's work in collating data on gender and education, saying that "more data will help target investment where it will have the greatest impact." She also stressed the potential of

partnerships, notably with the private sector, to raise funds and, equally importantly, to find creative new ways for more effective action."

The Global Partnership for Girl's and Women's education will focus mainly on secondary education and adult literacy, especially in Africa and Asia.

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About GEMS Education:
GEMS Education has a global network of world class international schools. With 50 years of experience in education, GEMS provides high quality holistic education to over 100,000 students from 150 countries. It employs over 9,000 education professionals, specialists and staff from around the world. The GEMS approach to learning focuses not only on academic excellence, but also in helping students develop their character and creativity so that they achieve their full potential as human beings.  The GEMS Education school model is unique in the world because it offers a broad range of curricula across a range of tuition fees making private education more accessible to the broader community. GEMS Education also supports Governments' education reform agenda by working with Ministries of Education to lift school performance and improve the standards and expertise of government schools across the globe. GEMS Education has offices in the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, India and Singapore.

For more information, please contact:
Margaret Flanagan/ Chandan Belani
ASDA'A Burson-Marsteller
Tel: (+971) 4 33 44550
Email: m.flanagan@asdaa.com / c.belani@asdaa.com

© Press Release 2011