PRESS RELEASE – UNESCO, World Bank, Leading Universities and Organisations Unite to Launch First-Ever Global Network on Equitable Access and Success in Higher Education

10 Dec 2024

10 December 2024 – The World Access to Higher Education Network (WAHEN) officially launches today, marking a transformative moment in the global fight for equitable access and success in higher education.

WAHEN is the first global network for universities, policymakers, foundations, NGOs, employers and other organisations dedicated to addressing inequalities in higher education. Its launch kickstarts a fresh wave of globally collaborative, multi-stakeholder efforts to tackle deep-rooted disparities in higher education. With a vision that everyone should benefit from participation in higher education regardless of their background, WAHEN aims to drive meaningful, lasting change through:

  • Capacity Building: Facilitating equity in higher education through the sharing, professionalisation and enhancement of practice in learning, teaching, access, student success and completion and pre-higher education outreach.
  • Collaboration: Enabling and leading new partnerships between organisations, working together on a global basis to achieve shared goals around equity in higher education.
  • Convening: Bringing together those from across countries and sectors to affect change in higher education equity.
  • Advocacy: Advocating for and working with policymakers and governments around the world to make higher education more equitable.
  • Critical Thinking: Developing and disseminating knowledge on “what works” to inform effective equity practices worldwide.

WAHEN is led by a board of world-leading organisations. They include the World Bank, UNESCO International Institute for Higher Education in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNESCO IESALC), the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF), Magna Charta Observatory, Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization Regional Centre for Higher Education and Development (SEAMEO RIHED), Institute for the Development of Education, National Education Opportunities Network (NEON), Equity Practitioners in Higher Education Australasia (EPHEA), Lumina Foundation, The Saville Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, University of California, Berkeley, University of Oxford, University of West London and Central University of Technology, Free State.

With its launch coinciding with the Human Rights Day, WAHEN’s launch conference also featured the launch of UNESCO IESALC’s new report, Reaching for the Right to Higher Education: Evidence from 15 Countries.

This report highlights the persistent inequalities in higher education across the globe, emphasising the challenges faced by marginalised groups, including indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, and those from low-income backgrounds. Advocating for higher education as a fundamental right, the report adopts a social justice framework to synthesise the findings of 15 national case studies that examine effective policies aimed at improving access and promoting equity within education systems.

The launch conference was attended by global thought leaders, policymakers and advocates who are shaping a more equitable future for higher education, including global tertiary education expert Dr Jamil Salmi, Global Lead for Tertiary Education and Senior Education Specialist at the World Bank Dr Roberta Malee Bassett, UNESCO IESALC’s Right to Higher Education Lead Dr Emma Harden-Wolfson, Director for Fair Access and Participation at the Office for Students John Blake and more. Over 800 registrants from over 100 countries also signed up to attend the conference virtually.

Professor Graeme Atherton, Director of the National Education Opportunities Network (NEON), which convenes WAHEN, said:

“The launch of WAHEN is a call to action for everyone who believes in the transformative power of education. The right to higher education should be universal, not conditional. Through global collaboration, we can dismantle the barriers that perpetuate inequality and build a future where higher education is a pathway to opportunity for all, not a privilege for the few.” 

ENDS

  1. For more information on the World Access to Higher Education Network (WAHEN), please go to https://worldaccesshe.com/.
  2. For the full UNESCO IESALC’s new report, Reaching for the Right to Higher Education: Evidence from 15 Countries, please go to https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000392154.
  3. For interviews and further information, please contact Frances Sit on frances.sit@uwl.ac.uk.