The Republic of Zambia officially launched the End Learning Poverty for All in Africa (ELPAf) Campaign in Lusaka.  The country becomes the first to launch this continental campaign, focusing on the urgent need for political leaders, policymakers, development partners, and communities to take action to address the issue of ending learning poverty among school-going children in Africa. The campaign aims to increase the number of children who can read, write, and perform basic math by the age of 10, ensuring that every child in Africa has access to quality foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) skills by 2035.

Officially launched at the African Union Conference on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) in September 2024, in partnership with UNICEF, under the theme “Read, Write, Count Foundation4Life”, the ELPAf campaign is a continent-wide initiative to mobilise resources, expertise, and political will to tackle the learning crisis by enhancing the foundational learning provision across Africa. The campaign is also contributing to achieving the objective of the Continental Education Strategy for Africa (CESA), which aims to expand cost-effective approaches to improve early childhood education and foundational learning, leading to quality basic education.

Speaking on behalf of the President of the Republic of Zambia, His Excellency Hakainde Hichilema, Hon. Douglas Syakalima, Minister of Education of the Republic of Zambia, highlighted that, “For Zambia, the launch of the end learning poverty campaign signifies the importance we place as a country on foundational learning and our commitment to recovering and accelerating education.  This new campaign we are launching is aimed at spotlighting deficits in literacy and spurring action to ensure that all children acquire literacy, numeracy and social and emotional skills.”

Speaking on behalf of the AU Commission, Prof. Saidou Madougou, Director of the African Union's Department of Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation (ESTI), emphasised that “this is not just an educational crisis — it is a crisis that impacts all aspects of development. Although significant progress has been made in supporting children's access to education, many remain not learning. Recent reports indicate that over 90% of 10-year-olds in the region are unable to read simple texts or perform basic mathematical tasks. This prevents children and young people from accessing their human right to education, and undermines their capacity to serve as active citizens, or to be economically active in their communities”.

On behalf of UNICEF, Dr. Nejmudin Bilal, Deputy Representative of UNICEF Zambia, added that “The launch of the ELPAf campaign comes at a time when the world is increasingly recognising the importance of foundational learning. By addressing learning poverty today, we lay the foundation for a brighter future for our children and our nation. Education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty, and foundational learning is the first step on this journey.”

Speaking during the launch, Mr. Albert Nsengiyumva, Executive Secretary of the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) recognized the launch of the ELPAf campaign as a crucial step towards eliminating learning poverty by 2035. Emphasizing the importance of foundational learning, ADEA highlighted the urgent challenge of children struggling to read and understand a simple text by age 10. The organization commended Zambia’s leadership and commitment to improving education through collaboration with the African Union and UNICEF, stressing the need for early childhood education, teacher training, community engagement, quality learning materials, and technology-driven solutions. ADEA reaffirmed its full support by announcing an initiative with Zambia’s Ministry of Education under the Education Skills Data Project to enhance education data collection, analysis, and reporting. Additionally, it committed to facilitating knowledge sharing, providing technical expertise, and monitoring progress in foundational learning across the continent. The speech concluded with a call for collective action and determination to eradicate learning poverty and secure a better future for Zambia’s children.

The first phase of the ELPAf campaign is set to launch in 25 countries across Africa over a 24-month period, aiming for key outcomes, including an improved understanding of learning poverty in the region. It also seeks to strengthen institutions at the continental, regional, and national levels to advocate for and lobby increased government investments in foundational learning, as well as to scale up existing impactful pedagogical teaching practices among participating countries.

The ELPAF campaign will rally a wide range of education stakeholders in AU member States and at regional and continental levels around various activities, including expert conferences, High-level policy dialogues, capacity-building workshops for teachers, South-South and triangular cooperation, and school competitions.

For further information, please contact:

1. Mr. Maqhawe Freedom Thwala | Digital Communications Officer | Department of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation | African Union Commission| E-mail: ThwalaM@africa-union.org| Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
2. Mr. Gamal Eldin Ahmed A. Karrar | Senior Communication Officer | Information and Communication Directorate, African Union Commission | E-mail: GamalK@africa-union.org

Information and Communication Directorate, African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org
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