Rich urged on child education aid

By Andrew Walker
BBC correspondent in Washington

Funding must quadruple for the targets to be met

Rich countries of the G8 are being pressed to provide funding needed to achieve an objective of ensuring that every child has an education.

Finance and development ministers have been warned that efforts to achieve a number of other objectives for tackling poverty are not on track.

The meeting of the joint World Bank and International Monetary Fund committee is being held in Washington.

A World Bank report says aid funding for education must increase.

Pressure

One of the agreed international objectives known as the "Millennium Development Goals" is that by 2015 every child should have, at least, a primary education.

A report to the finance and development ministers meeting here at the World Bank in Washington warns them that the target is likely to be missed on current trends.

The rich countries, especially the large economies of the G8, are being pressed to provide more resources for the effort by poor countries and by some smaller aid donor nations as well.

We can if we set our priorities right offer every child on earth access to basic education, irrespective of where she lives and how poor she is Hilde Johnson Norwegian Development Minister

Norwegian Development Minister Hilde Johnson says rich countries can make education for all possible.

"We have a choice. We can if we set our priorities right offer every child on earth access to basic education, irrespective of where she lives and how poor she is," Ms Johnson said.

"It's up to us and we just have to deliver on our promises and not let her and her friends down."

She says there are a number of developing countries with realistic plans for expanding primary education that lack only funding from aid donor countries.

According to a World Bank report, aid funding for education needs to increase almost four fold if the target is to be achieved.