UNESCO COVID-19 Global Education Coalition

Zhan Tao

Director of the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education (IITE)

As COVID-19 continues to spread around the world, it poses serious threats to our health and our lives. With social distancing strategies being applied to slow the spread of the virus, schools and universities worldwide are closed, posing massive challenges to teaching and learning.

At this difficult time, UNESCO is supporting millions of teachers, students, and parents through coordination and partnerships. With many shared responsibilities and a great sense of solidarity, UNESCO’s Member States and the global education community as a whole have never been as united as they have become over the last few months.

“We need to come together, not only to address the immediate educational consequences of this unprecedented crisis, but also to build up the longer-term resilience of education systems,” as Mrs. Stefania Giannini, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Education, so rightly said.

The UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education (IITE) will work with tech giant Huawei — a member of the UNESCO COVID-19 Global Education Coalition — on a series of projects, including the webinar “Online Learning for Higher Education During the COVID-19 Outbreak”.

As an integral part of UNESCO, IITE is working closely with global partners under the initiative “Combat COVID-19: Keep learning. Together we are on the move!”, which focuses on collective efforts and sharing experiences and resources.

This is the time everyone needs ICT. This is the time we — an ICT team focused on education — can make a difference. We must contribute with the power of technology and the strength of our hearts. Let’s continue working together to support millions of students, teachers, and parents in need with passion, innovation, and collective strength.

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