The sixth International Day of Education will be celebrated across the globe including Pakistan on January 24 (Wednesday) to emphasize the role of education for ensuring peace and development. The day will be celebrated through a number of activities including seminars, conferences, discussion programmes, rallies and competitions highlighting this year’s theme “learning for lasting peace” which seeks to illuminate the path to global harmony through the voices of our youth. To mark the day, the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE) has announced to hold the sixth annual `International Day of Education English Speech Contest’ on January 23. The board had called upon the Secondary School Certificate and Higher Secondary School Certificate students to share their perspectives on fostering peace, tolerance, interfaith harmony and gender equality through participation in the contest. Through this opportunity, the students having extraordinary oratorical skills can show their eloquence and originality and ignite discussions on critical global issues while representing their institution at a national level. The Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training has planned to celebrate the day through hosting celebrations at the National Library to promote the power of learning. The event will have awareness activities about social issues affecting youth and opportunities for vision screening and career counseling. The National Education Foundation (NEF) will also be participating by setting up a stall with the help of their transgender learners and community school students. By providing education to vulnerable groups, NEF is helping fulfill the promise of quality education as a human right. The Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training has arranged a meeting to review the arrangements for celebrating the day under the supervision of Senior Joint Secretary, Syed Junaid Akhlaq. The meeting was attended by the senior officials of the ministry and its allied departments, different stakeholders and media teams. UNESCO has dedicated this year’s International Day of Education to the crucial role education and teachers play in countering hate speech, a phenomenon which has snowballed in recent years with the use of social media, damaging the fabric of our societies. The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 24 January as International Day of Education, in celebration of the role of education for peace and development. Education is a human right, a public good and a public responsibility. Without inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong opportunities for all, countries will not succeed in achieving gender equality and breaking the cycle of poverty that is leaving millions of children, youth and adults behind. According to the UNESCO, today, 250 million children and youth are out of school, and 763 million adults are illiterate. Their right to education is being violated and it is unacceptable. It’s time to transform education. The world is seeing a surge of violent conflicts paralleled by an alarming rise of discrimination, racism and hate speech. The impact of this violence transcends any boundary based on geography, gender, race, religion, politics, offline and online. An active commitment to peace is more urgent today than ever: Education is central to this endeavor, as underlined by the UNESCO Recommendation on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Sustainable Development. Learning for peace must be transformative, and help empower learners with the necessary knowledge, values, attitudes and skills and behaviours to become agents of peace in their communities.