Progress In assuring children the right to at least primary education.

This graph is from a good website provided by The Guardian newspaper.

The Millennium Development Goals were set by the United Nations in 2000. Targets were set for 2015, and while most will not be achieved, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called the goals “the most successful global anti-poverty push in history”.

The education goals should be understood in relation to the Education for All movement headed by UNESCO. Net enrollment rates for primary education have increased globally from 83 percent in 2000 to 90 percent in 2011.

Of course, the heavy lifting in getting kids to school has been done by the people in the countries themselves, led by a massive effort by the governments of poor countries and supported by the global donor community. UNESCO's roll has been to monitor progress in Education for All, to make that progress well known internationally, and to provide forums for educational leaders to diagnose problems and re-energize their ambitions. Perhaps more important, UNESCO and UNICEF provided rallying points for the global community of educators and people supporting education for all, helping them to mobilize for the effort.