In a press release issued by the Chinese Ministry of Education, UNESCO’s 42nd session of the General Conference has adopted a resolution to establish the UNESCO International Institute for STEM Education (IISTEM) as a UNESCO Category 1 Institute in Shanghai, China.
This Institute will be the first of its kind to be established in China. The institute’s main functions include promoting inclusive, equitable, relevant, and quality STEM education for all from early childhood to adulthood and serving as an information exchange centre, a network hub, a resource base, and a capacity-building focal point in the field of STEM education. The Institute will cater to UNESCO’s strategies and the needs of member states, aiming to contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Agenda as well as world peace and development.
Chinese Education Minister and Head of Chinese Delegation Huai Jinpeng delivered a speech following the adoption of the resolution. He said that the resolution represented members’ great vision and willingness to work together on issues concerning the future. He noted that the establishment of the Institute would have a positive impact on UNESCO’s leadership, the realization of its mission and the facilitation of a global education reform.
This centre will now be UNESCO’s tenth centre globally. Of these, seven (now eight) are education-related, these are:
- International Bureau of Education (IBE);
- International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP);
- UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL);
- Institute for Information Technologies in Education (IITE);
- UNESCO International Institute for Higher Education in Latin America and the Caribbean (IESALC);
- International Institute for Capacity Building in Africa (IICBA);
- Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP);
- UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS);
- The Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP).
The release can be seen here.
