This month, at COP 28, Dubai Cares announced its launch of the Global Education Solutions Accelerator (GESA), with Aga Khan Foundation serving as their strategic partner.

This innovative initiative aims to accelerate education reform across ten countries, including Afghanistan, Brazil, India, Kenya, Pakistan, Portugal, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Uganda, and the Kyrgyz Republic.

In response to the United Nations’ fourth Sustainable Development Goal (SDG4), GESA looks to speed-up progress towards inclusive, equitable quality education, and lifelong learning opportunities for all by 2030.

The approach aims to equip learners not just with academic knowledge, but with values and skills that enable them to tackle current challenges, spur economic and social growth, and reach their full potential.

Working through local education systems, GESA will use the Aga Khan Foundation’s flagship initiative, Schools2030, to achieve these ambitious goals.

Says Michael Kocher, General Manager at AKF, “As a long-standing partner of Dubai Cares, we are excited to be invited as strategic partners for the launch of GESA. We are ready to work with learners, teachers, communities, youth, governments, and civil society organizations to co-create new pathways for educational transformation across schools, systems, and societies to deliver meaningful results for people and the planet by 2030 and beyond.”

Highlighting the gaps that the Accelerator program will address, H.E. Dr. Tariq Al Gurg, CEO and Vice-Chairman of Dubai Cares says, “The urgency of the climate crisis requires us to work at the speed of light to expedite the implementation of solutions like the Accelerator, and any delays in our actions from this point forwards will result in irreversible consequences for people and inflict irreparable damage on our planet. Let’s ensure that the one billion children who are currently at extreme high risk of climate change can inherit the world, realize their full potential, and propel our planet’s prosperity to new heights.”