The report contains information based on the country presentation papers submitted by the 31 countries for the 1981 United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDCs). It is intended as a background document for the Unesco meeting of experts from the LDCs on "needs and priorities in regard to education" to be held at…

Stresses national concern with rural education which is viewed as the key factor in future economic development. Points out that 80 percent of the population lives in the countryside, and findings show that they are disadvantaged in both basic education and technical training. Author provides specific policies to institute change. (NL)

Formal education has traditionally played the conservative role of transmitting values, culture, skills, and knowledge from one generation to the next. Its role has become dysfunctional in societies such as those in Asia and the Pacific that are characterized by rapid change. In societies such as these, the need now is for education for…

Historical developments in rural India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and China are the empirical basis of this study which offers a theory of rural development for all Asia keyed to fundamental humanistic values rather than narrower techno-economic considerations. Previous efforts have often been "top-down" processes tending to serve…

The 1974 volume of the World Book of Education expresses the extreme imbalance in welfare levels and the educational gap between urban and rural populations. The enormous problems involved range from essential "transformationist" viewpoints to more "gradualist" orientations. The interrelationship of technology, research,…

The primary objective of the workshop was to provide opportunity for participating Member States (Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Iran) to develop technical cooperation among themselves through exchange of experiences of their key personnel in the field of education for rural development. Presented in this report are:…

More than half of the world's population, and more than 70 percent of the world's poor live in rural areas where hunger, illiteracy, and low school achievement are common. Education in rural areas is crucial for achieving sustainable development. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations and UNESCO's International Institute…

Adult education and the economic development of the countries of Asia and the Pacific was discussed at a UNESCO conference held in Bangkok in November-December, 1980. The conference was opened by Raja Roy Singh, who emphasized the crucial significance of adult education in national development. He said that development is no longer construed only…