Developing countries in Asia have gone through rapid changes in recent years politically, economically, and socio-culturally. Demographic changes, for example, profoundly affect education. The growing proportion of the school-age population in some countries increases the need for investment in basic education. In other countries, aging populations and increasing life expectancy suggest a greater need for worker retraining, skill upgrading, and lifelong or continuing education. Economic changes require more attention to investment in post-basic and higher education as well as in skills development, in order to support the transformation to a high-technology, service-oriented economy. The movement to a market-oriented economy in many developing countries of the region requires fundamental changes in the way economic growth is managed and promoted. Above all, globalization presents a major challenge to which education systems must ensure that global standards are met and competitiveness in marketing goods and services needs to be increased.

Under these ever-changing circumstances, how can we ensure that today ﾕs children receive an education relevant to their future needs? What are the new issues and main education challenges