#TeachersMissing advocacy campaign

44 million additional teachers are needed worldwide to ensure universal primary and secondary education by 2030.

The #TeachersMissing advocacy campaign by the Teacher Task Force for 2024 is sounding the alarm on the urgent need to address global teacher shortages.

Watch the #TeachersMissing campaign video:


 

What's at stake?

Teachers are at the heart of providing quality education for all students. And yet, systems around the world continue to face shortages and struggle to attract and retain enough teachers. The first Teacher Task Force & UNESCO Global Report on Teachers unveiled that 44 million additional teachers are needed globally to reach the goal of attaining universal primary and secondary education by 2030. Encouragingly, this number marks a significant decrease from the 69 million teachers projected by UNESCO’s Institute for Statistics in 2016.

However, the ongoing gap remains about half the size of the existing teaching workforce. Some regions also continue to face large shortages, with sub-Saharan Africa requiring 15 million additional teachers by 2030 – or about one out of three of all teachers needed globally.

The working conditions of teachers today are the learning conditions of students tomorrow.  If we don’t act now, there won’t be teachers to ensure the new generations can thrive and contribute to building a more equal world. Investing in teachers is more than just a priority. It is an imperative. And it is urgent.
 

What is the Teacher Task Force doing about it?

In the wake of the Members States-led United Nations (UN) Transforming Education Summit and the exchanges of the international community convened at the Teacher Task Force 14th Policy Dialogue Forum, a cohesive strategy emerges. Anchored in the Recommendations of the UN Secretary-General’s (UNSG) High-Level Panel on the Teaching Profession, which delineate the transformative path for educators, and supported by the new data and analysis from the Global Report on Teachers, providing the pragmatic "how-to" guide, the Teacher Task Force (TTF) is poised for action.

Through its 2024 advocacy campaign #TeachersMissing, the Teacher Task Force harnessed the collective momentum to address the critical issue of teacher shortages. Rallying the network and partners, the campaign was launched at the TES stock-taking meeting 17 June 2024 at UNESCO HQ, to inform and influence key global decision and gatherings, including the Education Groups of the G7 and G20, the Global Education Meeting, and the 2024 UN Summit of the Future. Regionally, it also aimed to inform the African Union Year of Education. The campaign culminated with a call to action launched by the network and presented at the Global Education Meeting in November.

Watch the video with teacher testimonies from all around the world on the importance of teacher voices. This video was presented during the World Teachers' Day celebrations, 4 October 2024. 

 

Campaign objectives

  1. Raise global awareness on the urgency of addressing teacher shortages, based on the findings of the Global Report on Teachers;
  2. Advocate for policies that dignify, diversify, and valorize the teaching profession based on recommendations of the UNSG’s High-level Panel on the Teaching Profession; and
  3. Call to action to improve the attractiveness of the teaching profession and ensure that every learner has a qualified and motivated teacher, in alignment with the UNSG High-Level Panel's Recommendations.
     

Key messages

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Overarching message

It is crucial to increase the attractiveness of the teaching profession to address the global teacher shortage and ensure quality education for future generations. 
 

Thematic messages

  1. Investing in teachers is more than just a priority, it is an imperative. And it is urgent. If we don’t address teacher shortages, the next generation of learners will not have teachers in classrooms.

  2. Teachers and teaching are global public goods: public policies need sustained, long-term planning for teachers, and they must promote equity, diversity, inclusion, lifelong learning, and peace.
  3. To address teacher shortages, we must increase the attractiveness of the profession, both for in-service and aspiring teachers, through improving the working conditions, salaries, and career opportunities.
  4. The teacher shortages are an issue of quantity and quality: we need additional 44 million trained teachers to achieve primary and secondary universal education.
  5. Nothing on teachers without teachers: coordinated and institutionalized social dialogue on regional, national and global level is key to ensure teachers stay in the profession
  6. Striking the balance between accountability and agency is key to allow teacher innovations and improve the attractiveness of the profession
  7. Cooperation in building action plans to address teacher shortages is essential on global, regional and national level is essential between countries and within the international community.
  8. AI can’t replace teachers but teachers can leverage AI, if they are trained to do so.
     

Get involved

  1. Use and share the social media pack and hashtags #TeachersMissing and #InvestInTeachers
  2. Embed the key messages in your communications, campaigns and initiatives.
  3. Share a blog story on how your programme contributes to addressing teacher shortages (good practices, human stories,…). Read the examples from our Members below.
  4. Watch and share this video with teachers' testimonies on why making their voices heard is important. 
  5. Mobilize your networks, including youth and teachers
  6. Participate in drafting the Call to Action and endorse it (more information to come)
  7. Share teachers' testimoniesRead more here.

 

Sharing good practices

Read how our network is addressing teacher shortages:

 

Resources

The #TeachersMissing advocacy campaign was launched on Monday 17 June during the High-Level Dialogue parallel session on the teaching at the first Transforming Education Summit (TES) Stocktake event organized by the SDG4 High-Level Steering Committee. Click here for more information about this event. Its global part culminated and ended in November 2024 with a call to action, urging stakeholders to take immediate steps to value, diversify, and invest in teachers, in alignment with the UNSG High-Level Panel’s Recommendations.

 

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