Ramaphosa urges global education funding overhaul at UNESCO

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa concluded a three-day official visit to France on Friday, July 10, 2026, centered on advancing global education reform and strengthening bilateral ties. The visit featured a high-level diplomatic meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron and a key leadership role at a United Nations education summit in Paris.

Ramaphosa co-chaired the leaders meeting of the UNESCO High-Level Steering Committee on Sustainable Development Goal 4, which aims to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education for all by 2030. In his address, he warned that interconnected global challenges, including conflict, pandemics, poverty, inequality, and climate change, make transforming education systems more urgent than ever. He described education as the bedrock for achieving all other Sustainable Development Goals and called for a fundamental overhaul of global education financing.

The president outlined three priorities for action: strengthening foundational and lifelong learning, supporting the teaching profession, and advancing inclusive digital transformation. He argued that education must remain a public good, safeguarded against commodification and...