Development Goal: Universal Basic Skills

The large growth effects of educational performance imply that low educational performance is very costly to society. Based on the relationship between educational performance and economic growth, we can perform projections of the future growth paths of the economy with given and improved educational performance. The thus calculated economic costs of low educational performance in terms of foregone future growth in developing countries are stunning. In this, the projected gains from improving the current quality of schools are substantially larger than those from expanding enrollment at the current quality. As a consequence, the primary development goal should be that all youths around the world achieve at least basic skills. The importance of such a goal of universal basic skills for inclusive world development would be immense.

Here you can find a short non-technical overview on this topic.

Short contributions:

Teach the World: Why the UN Sustainable Development Goals Should Focus on Education (with E.A. Hanushek). foreignaffairs.com, 20.8.2015

Teach All Young People Universal Basic Skills by 2030 – It Will Give Huge Boost to GDP (with E.A. Hanushek). The Conversation UK, 18.5.2015

Non-technical contribution:

Universal Basic Skills Should Become the Primary Development Goal (with E.A. Hanushek). VOX, 24.5.2015

My contribution to the "Copenhagen Consensus" on development goals:

Access to Education: Perspective Paper. In: B. Lomborg (ed.), Global Crises, Global Solutions, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 241-250, 2004

Material available only in German

Non-technical contribution:

Das zentrale Entwicklungsziel sollten Grundkompetenzen für alle Kinder sein (with E.A. Hanushek). ifo Schnelldienst 68 (10): 27-31, 2015