5 July 2017: Ministers of Education from Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) pledged to deepen their cooperation on education, following a meeting in Beijing, China. The Beijing meeting discussed reforming education, promoting equity in education, fostering quality education, and organizing student exchanges. The ‘Beijing Declaration on Education’ reaffirms the commitment of BRICS countries to achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 (quality education).

In the Declaration, Ministers agreed to share their experiences and practices with regard to achieving SDG 4 to foster a more favorable policy environment to achieve SDG 4 as well as to advocate for global education policies that take into account the common concerns and priorities of BRICS member states. Ministers’ reiterated their support for the BRICS Network University, a joint initiative for collaboration among universities in the five BRICS countries. Ministers agreed to cooperate on language education, support the professional development of academics working in higher education, promote teacher exchanges, develop joint projects in Technical and Vocational Education (TVET), expand student scholarship opportunities, and organize youth camps. They welcomed China’s invitation to host a conference that will explore further opportunities for cooperation on education.

The Beijing meeting of BRICS education ministers took place from 4-5 July 2017. BRICS education ministers previously met in Paris, France, in 2013; Brasilia, Brazil, and Moscow, the Russian Federation, in 2015; and New Delhi, India, in 2016. China’s Minister of Education, Chen Baosheng, welcomed the declaration, noting the BRICS summit that will take place in Xiamen, China, in September 2017. Liu Yandong, Vice-Premier, China, highlighted the importance of people-to-people exchanges in strengthening partnerships among BRICS countries.

BRICS’ leaders also highlighted synergies between education and achieving other SDGs.

BRICS’ leaders also highlighted the role of education in reaching the SDGs during an informal meeting on the margins of the Group of 20 (G20) Summit, in Hamburg, Germany, on 7 July. Leaders said education improves the global economic environment, promotes innovation and adoption of technologies, accelerates job creation and moves economies towards diversified, value adding industries. [Beijing Declaration on Education] [Xinhua Press Report on Beijing Declaration] [Xinhua Report on Liu Yandong’s Remarks] [BRICS Network University Website] [BRICS Press Communiqué on G20 Informal Meeting]