US withdraws Unesco funding

week after backing the admission of Palestine into the world body.

The 10-day Unesco conference, which was held in Paris, France ended last Thursday and resolved to incorporate Palestine as a full member, a decision that irked western nations like the US, which has since withdrawn funding to Unesco, a development that is bound to cripple the organisation.

In an interview last night, Education, Sport, Arts and Culture Deputy Minister Mr Lazarus Dokora said Zimbabwe had backed Palestine’s bid after recognising the country’s need to associate with Unesco member states.

“We made our mark at the conference after we co-sponsored the bid for Palestine to become a full member of Unesco. We took a position of principle as we believe that Palestine is an independent state that deserves to freely associate with other nations in the field of science, education and culture,” he said.

Minister Dokora said Zimbabwe had also played an important role on the decision taken by Unesco to popularise African history on the globe.
“Zimbabwe also had its influence felt after we co-sponsored with Mali, the resolution to popularise and translate the general history of Africa,” he said. In his address at the conference, the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education Dr Stan Mudenge said the popularisation of African history would help the decolonisation agenda.

“We attach particular importance to the project on the Pedagogical Use of the General History of Africa as it seeks to transform and re-orientate the teaching of African history at all levels of the education system in Africa and throughout the world.

This project, when successfully completed will not only decolonise the history of our continent for the benefit of the ordinary non-specialist, but also help to liberate others from any lingering baggages,” he said.

Minister Mudenge challenged Unesco to raise sufficient financial resources to ensure that the processes of reform succeed.
“While Unesco’s future is not in immediate question, we must raise alarm over its future capacity to deliver on its mandate. Unesco is in permanent reform, while simultaneously it faces progressively diminishing financial resources.

“Unless we strike the balance between these two trends, reforms and provision of adequate financial resources, a day is surely approaching when all what will remain is a skeleton, or even a distant shadow, of a once vibrant organisation,” he said.

Minister Mudenge said Zimbabwe had continued to pay its contributions to Unesco despite the illegal sanctions imposed by EU and the United States.

“Even though my country’s financial contributions to UNESCO’s regular budget may appear rather insignificant in nominal terms, in relative terms, they represent a sacrifice and a commitment for country which is burdened by EU and US illegal sanctions,” he said.

Minister Mudenge also called on UNESCO to pursue the reform of its field network and work out a plan for the location of the multiregional offices.