, Sept. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Brazilian educator Beatriz Cardoso launches her commitment "All Kids can Learn" during the Fifth Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting at the New York Sheraton. Cardoso is the president of CEDAC, an NGO which has working for improving the quality of public education in Brazil through partnerships with public Education offices and private companies, such as mining company Vale, Natura (cosmetics), and Votorantim (cement industry).

With a 12-year experience in more than 50 Brazilian municipalities and 180 thousand beneficiaries, CEDAC is now committing to expand its work to new eight municipalities, reaching another 26,000 students throughout Brazil, and to structure the know-how gained by publishing material which will allow the institution to take its expertise to a larger number of municipalities and broaden its impact on public education.

The material produced as part of the commitment will rely on CEDAC's experience qualifying educators (both teachers and teachers' coachers) on Language, Arts, Mathematics and Environmental Education, as well as School Management for principals. It will be available not only for all 5,561 Brazilian Municipalities, but also for any Portuguese-speaking countries in Africa who think can benefit from CEDAC's methodology.

As studies and CEDAC's own practice have shown, the quality of an education system is directly linked to the quality of its teachers. CEDAC views the implementation of a continuous training process for educators, as well as awareness building for others actors involved in the education system, as strategic factors to improving learning conditions.

For fulfilling its commitment, CEDAC is seeking funds from its present partners (Vale Foundation, specially) as well as from other private companies with whom it maintains close contact through different forums, including Brazilian civil society coalition Todos pela Educacao ("Everyone for Education"). Having already secured funds for three municipalities, CEDAC is on its way to ensure financing for another five starting in 2010. On the international front, Clinton Global Initiative is an important ally in our ongoing efforts to mobilize resources from foreign social investors who might take interest in contributing to quality education in Brazil.

Background info on Brazil education

CEDAC's ultimate goal is to ensure that all students master basic literacy and numeracy skills, and learn to relate to others with respect, justice and solidarity. Brazil's public education system has expanded dramatically in recent years, but the country still faces the challenge of providing quality education for all.

Learning indexes are very low, specially in the poorest areas. In many cases, teachers themselves have a poor education history and were not trained in the discipline they teach. School principals are not always aware of their role in enhancing learning conditions and Education offices often lack a technical team committed to giving educators all the support they need in order to make the school serve its real purpose: learning.

Frustrated with the school system and pressed by financial needs, many students drop their studies and start working before high school, limiting their opportunities in a very competitive society.

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