The Ministry of Education is all set to host the 3rd Education Working Group (EdWG) meeting in Bhubaneswar, Odisha from the 26^th- 28^thApril 2023. The event will see participation from G20 member countries, guest countries, and invited organizations such as OECD, UNESCO, and UNICEF.

The three-day event will consist of a seminar/exhibition and working group meetings. The seminar on ‘Building Capacities for lifelong learning in context of future of work’  will be organized at CSIR- Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology in collaboration NSDC. The day 1 of the working group meetings will be addressed by Dr. Subhas Sarkar, Minister of State for Education, Government of India.

Briefing the media during the Pre-event Press Conference today, Shri Sanjay K Murthy, Secretary Higher Education informed that the 3^rd EdWG meeting will provide a platform to the G20 members, guest countries and International Organisations to deliberate on the Zero draft of G20 Education Minister Declaration based on the inputs received from the countries and International Organisations. The recommendations that will come out of it will feed into the drafting of the declaration to be presented at the Education Ministers meeting in Pune on the 22^nd June, 2023.

Shri Atul Tiwary, Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, discussed highlights from the precursor events leading up to the 3rd EdWG meeting and seminar. He informed the media that 1 lakh people have participated in Jan Bhagidari events in Odisha since Utkal Diwas, which began as a response to the Prime Minister's clarion call to make the G20 Presidency a People's Presidency. He also mentioned the ongoing G20 Future Of Work exhibition at the CSIR-IMMT grounds, which was launched by Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Education, Skill Development, and Entrepreneurship, as well as conferences and workshops that took place on the sidelines of the Working Group Meetings.

Shri Sanjay Kumar, Secretary, Dept. of School Education & Literacy discussed skill integration in the school curriculum and arming children with a variety of future abilities to start them on a path of lifelong learning. He also shed light on the meeting with Singapore delegates during the India and Singapore workshop held at Taj Vivanta on 25th April morning. He briefed  the media about the various partnerships being explored between India and Singapore. The 4th EdWG meeting at Pune post Bhubaneswar will focus on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy, which is a crucial component of NEP 2020, he added.

More than 60 delegates from 27 countries and International Organsiations are expected to attend the meeting and seminar. Additionally, presentations from UNESCO, Employment Working Group meeting and Digital Economy working Group will also be discussed. The event will also include a multimedia exhibition with participation from industry, academia, and start-up initiatives. The exhibition will be open to local institutions, students, academicians, and researchers from 23rd to 25th April and 27th-28th April 2023.

The Delegates will also have the opportunity to visit the Konark Sun Temple as part of the excursion component of the EdWG meetings. The event will highlight Odisha’s traditional art and craft through various cultural events planned on the side-lines of the G20 meetings.

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