Cabinet approves Category I UNESCO institute

Updated on: Wednesday, March 16, 2011

The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved to establish the Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP) as a Category I Institute of UNESCO at New Delhi.

The proposal to set up the Institute was recommended by the UNESCO Executive Board, at its 182nd session held in September, 2009 and approved by the 35th Session of General Conference of UNESCO in October, 2009.

It will put India into the category of select countries with a Category I Institute of UNESCO. Currently there are eleven Category I Institutes of UNESCO in the world, of which 9 are located in the developed countries while the remaining two are located in developing countries namely, Ethiopia and Venezuela. Further it will serve as a platform for India to emerge as a global leader from the Asia-Pacific region in the areas of education for Peace and Sustainable Development.

The mission of the Institute will be to strengthen educational and knowledge base for promoting education for peace and sustainable development and to contribute to the peace education and sustainable development-related research and capacity building needs of Member States with focus on Asia and the Pacific region.

The MGIEP will be managed through an Operational Agreement between UNESCO and lndia. It will be administered by a 12 member Governing Board to approve the programme and budget of the Institute and give policy directions. The Governing Board shall be assisted by a four-member Executive Committee including the chairperson.

The estimated expenditure for setting up this Institute will be Rs. 223.68 crore over a period of seven years.

Cabinet approves Category I UNESCO institute

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