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2—A 2f

pressing of UNESCO's problems lie in the spheres of education and communications. The Programme Commission would seem to have some such point in mind when it said in its final report, " UNESCO will contribute to peace and security by promoting collaboration among the nations in the preservation of men's knowledge of themselves, their world, and each other; in the increase of that knowledge through learning, science, and the arts; and in the dissemination of that knowledge through education and through communications generally. This last function, given the present distressed and critical state of the world, would seem to be the most important, though not necessarily the most urgent." We have dealt with this issue at length because we arg of the opinion that the whole success or future of UNESCO may depend upon the policy adopted in this respect. Set out below are what we consider to be the most important projects finally adopted by the Conference. This list is by no means exhaustive, and, since there was considerable overlapping between the reports of the different Sub-Commissions, we have ignored the division of the projects into the various fields assigned to the SubCommissions. We begin, however, with those projects in the dissemination of knowledge through education and mass communication that appear to be the most appropriate for immediate action. We often follow closely the Preamble to the Programme Commission's report to Conference, and for the sake of simplicity do not always insert quotation marks. I. Fundamental Education It is proposed to launch a world-wide attack on illiteracy in the broadest sense of the term. Comparative figures are hard to get, but it is estimated that between SO and 60 per cent, of the population of the world is illiterate in the simple sense of being unable to read and write at all. In Northern Europe, North America, Australia, and New Zealand the percentage of illiteracy is practically negligible, but in some countries! of Southern Europe it exceeds 50 per cent. In parts of South America it is, even higher, whilst Asia as a whole is 80 to 90 per cent, illiterate, and amongst the coloured population of Africa there are only from 2 to 10 per cent, able to read and write in the various countries. In such circumstances it was pointed out, to talk of international understanding amongst the peoples of the world is little more than mockery. In the words of the Preparatory Commission, " The present educational inequality between nations represents a danger to the peace of the world which cannot become one if half of it remains illiterate." As one speaker said, "It is easy to start a panic in the dark." Delegates were all agreed that the time has come to recognize that the world owes a duty to its less-favoured peoples not only in their interest, but in its own.