There are fewer than 500 days before the world reaches its deadline for achieving the Millennium Development Goals. These goals contain a set of targets agreed to by world leaders in 2000 to eradicate poverty and hunger, ensure universal primary education and women’s rights and improve health across the globe by 2015. With the finish line in sight, it is time to focus our attention on completing the job. We will need every single one of the 500 days we have left.

2015 is at our door and there are tremendous achievements with regard to access to primary school and a shrinking gender gap. Despite these successes, the Education for All and Millennium Development Goals education agendas remain unfinished: millions of children around the world are still out of school and the quality of education in many countries is often subpar.