PARIS, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- The world is projected to need 50 million additional teachers by 2030, according to a joint message released Monday by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on the occasion of World Teachers' Day.
According to the joint message from UNESCO, the International Labour Organization, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Education International, the world is projected to need 50 million additional teachers by 2030, including 44 million teachers to achieve universal primary and secondary education and 6 million for pre-primary education.
The message stressed the importance of protecting and promoting the status of teachers. It pointed out that recruiting new teachers is as necessary as retaining experienced ones, while ensuring that teaching offers motivating, rewarding and sustainable career pathways, including opportunities for female teachers to take up leadership positions.
World Teachers' Day is held annually on Oct. 5 to celebrate teachers around the globe. It commemorates the anniversary of the adoption of the Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers 60 years ago, which sets benchmarks regarding the rights and responsibilities of teachers, as well as standards for their initial preparation and further education, recruitment, employment, and teaching and learning conditions. ■
