UNICEF'in Bolivya ve Brezilya'da eğitimin geliştirilmesi üzerindeki etkisine ilişkin karşılaştırmalı bir çalışma

Education is key to the development of individuals and states. Local educational programs with universal principles are currently being developed across the world through international organizations. This research aims to examine the role of one particular international organization, the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), in developing education with a gender focus in Bolivia and Brazil. Among many mechanisms that IOs use to influence policies of nation-states, four mechanisms are chosen and analyzed to identify the ways in which and the extent to which UNICEF contributed to education policy in these countries: 1) advocacy and awareness, 2) experience and knowledge, 3) financial aid and donations, and 4) legitimization through positive rhetoric. In addition, gender inequality in education and UNICEF's efforts to reduce the gap were examined. The case studies, Brazil and Bolivia, are analyzed through the Qualitative Method of Summative Content Analysis of newsletters, articles and educational reports found on the official pages of UNICEF's local offices and the respective governments. When comparing the cases, which present divergent historical, socioeconomic, cultural, gender inequality and educational characteristics, findings show that the influence that UNICEF has is stronger in Brazil than in Bolivia in terms of creating and changing policies. UNICEF Brazil focuses on seeking regulatory changes with strong local participation. This feature has allowed the agency to participate alongside national policy makers with direct influence. On the other hand, in Bolivia, though there is active participation, its influence occurs indirectly, and no recent policy changes have been found. The differences between the two countries appear in the government-UNICEF relationship, even though UNICEF has a long-standing relationship of trust with both.