ADVOCALE: Advocacy for the Marrakech Framework for Action in Adult Learning

Through Advocacy Trainings, regional networking and a final conference in Switzerland, participants from across the world learn and work together, share ideas and enable each other to implement concrete actions in their own countries – and with this, give a momentum to the MFA.

AdvocALE seeks to empower adult education organisations with the skills and tools needed to actively foster the implementation of the Marrakech Framework for Action (MFA). The MFA was adopted at UNESCO’s CONFINTEA VII conference in June 2022 and represents the global roadmap to advance Adult Learning and Education (ALE) through the following priorities: inclusive ALE, gender equality, sustainability and climate action, global citizenship, digital environments, the future of work, and learning cultures. With 142 countries – including Switzerland – having signed the MFA, national governments have formally committed to advancing these goals. However, the implementation of the MFA at national level is stalling in many countries, including Switzerland. In many contexts, adult education organisations still lack the shared narratives, advocacy skills, and transnational coordination needed to influence policy and funding decisions.

Project goals

AdvocALE pursues three closely linked objectives and results:

🎯1. Increase capacity building through Advocacy Trainings and Toolkit
A core objective is to equip adult education stakeholders with competencies advocacy, raising policy-relevant arguments, and a shared understanding of MFA priorities. To achieve this, partners will organise three advocacy training weeks for ALE professionals on the themes of 1) Basic Skills Education 2) Digitalisation of Work and 3) Global Responsibility, in Brussels, online and Girona, respectively.

🎯2. Regional networking for coordinated advocacy and policy action
A second objective is to improve regional cooperation and peer learning among organisations and learners working on MFA implementation. AdvocALE therefore creates regional networking activities, such as online or in-person discussion rounds, which provide space to reflect on advocacy actions, exchange good practices, and address shared challenges.

🎯3. Replicable toolkit and method for advocacy
The third objective is to consolidate project learning and strengthen civil society voice through a final international conference in Switzerland, organised as a lead-in to UNESCO’s CONFINTEA mid-term review in 2028. By bringing together all thematic focus areas and participants across regions, the conference will translate a wide range of approaches into coherent, policy-relevant messages aligned with MFA commitments. The conference is open to the public. Around 120 persons are expected.