Education International 6th World Congress, Cape Town (South Africa), 22-26 July 2011 1. Aware that 80% of the world’s population does not have even minimum social protection, while the needs of populations in terms of health, old age, family protection and disability are growing constantly; 2. Convinced that social protection is an essential part of economic growth and human development, that it is a major instrument in the strategies to combat poverty and inequality, and that it has a stabilising role economically and socially in times of crisis; 3. Concerned at the inadequate efforts of many States to either provide minimal social protection, notably in the least developed countries, or maintain the level of social protection where it has been developed; 4. Noting with satisfaction the United Nation’s Social Protection Floor Initiative, of which education is an integral part; 5. Recalling that Social Protection is a human right recognised in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, and that it has been one of the four fundamental pillars of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) since its creation in 1919, and was confirmed by the Philadelphia Declaration in 1944; 6. Taking on board the 2010 ITUC Congress Resolution on Social Protection which refers to the ILO Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102), and integrates into its action programme work with the ILO to campaign for the extension of social protection to all; 7. Convinced that education unions have an essential role to play in the promotion of social protection for children, adolescents and education personnel and consequently the population at large; 8. Considering that improving the social protection of education personnel will help contribute to the quality of education; 9. Considering that benefitting from quality social protection is conducive to academic achievement, and that social protection education is bound to influence or change attitudes and behaviour, thereby enabling children and adolescents to take primary responsibility for their social protection and that of their family, and become future citizens aware of their rights and duties in terms of social protection; 10. Given that the EI has created together with its partners from the world of mutual societies the Education and Solidarity Network that strives to promote solidarity-based, quality social protection through the mobilisation of educational professionals and their trade union organisations: Congress urges States: 11. To adopt and implement policies aimed at creating a social protection floor guaranteeing that the whole population and in particular the poorest and most vulnerable have the means to ensure a decent standard of living throughout their lives; 12. To provide quality social protection for education professionals; 13. To include social protection as a priority in the policies carried out by the intergovernmental organisations to which they belong; 14. To establish solidarity-based partnerships, with developing countries in particular, in order to support their efforts to create a social protection floor; 15. To actively promote the integration of social protection education in education and training systems, with a view to creating a social protection culture. Congress commits EI member organisations to: 16. Pay greater attention to the crucial role that education systems can play together with all education personnel through social protection education, to create a real culture of solidarity and social protection within society ; 17. Play an active role in the elaboration and implementation of social protection education policies, in close collaboration with the ministries responsible for education and social protection as well as those actively responsible for solidarity-based social protection and health; 18. Take steps to ensure that all personnel in the education system receive initial and continued training on all aspects of a global social protection education programme. The role of Education International: EI must: 19. Continue and reinforce its collaboration with the relevant United Nations agencies, particularly the ILO, UNICEF, WHO and UNESCO; 20. Actively participate in international events concerning health and social protection education, and in the organisation of regional and global events in order to raise awareness in society, among the young in particular, with regard to health and social protection education; 21. Include the topic of health and social protection education in its development cooperation programmes; 22. Continue its own involvement and encourage that of its members in the Education and Solidarity Network, around the creation and development of mutual societies, training, education and the dissemination of a social protection culture, and the active implementation of cooperation and solidarity between teachers within the field of social protection.