UNESCO Calls for Debt‑for‑Education Swaps to Ease School Funding

UNESCO urged governments and lenders to expand debt‑for‑education swaps after a Paris summit on 10 July, warning that 113 countries – home to over six billion people – now spend more on sovereign debt service than on education. The agency said the annual education financing gap could reach nearly $100 billion by 2030, worsened by a projected 25 % drop in development aid between 2023 and 2027.

UNESCO highlighted past deals, such as a 2023 agreement with France and Côte d’Ivoire that financed more than 30 schools, and a Spain‑Peru program supporting 50 education projects. It announced a new technical guide to help governments design swaps, noting the World Bank’s recent backing of the model. Nigerian UN envoy Jimoh Ibrahim also called for a global swap framework at the conference, proposing that interest payments be redirected to schools, universities and digital learning infrastructure. The push aims to free fiscal space for education while allowing debtor nations to meet their debt obligations.