First Edition, March 2025
Commonwealth Teachers Group (CTG)
I am the International Secretary of the National Education Union in the UK. I have worked for the NEU and its predecessor union, the NUT, since 2009, initially as a senior policy adviser in the education team specialising in the privatisation of education. I became International Secretary in 2020. Get to know Cde Celia Dignan, CTG Committee Member
Before joining the union as a staff member, I was an active member of the NUT in north London where I
worked as a primary school teacher. As a union activist, I fought alongside colleagues against cuts in school
funding and to teachers’ pay and to secure safeguards for teachers against ever-increasing workload.
My aspirations for the Commonwealth Teachers’ Group (CTG) are to see it work effectively in bringing
together Commonwealth unions to speak with one voice on some of the key issues that affect us all. For
example, there is an urgent need to address the global teacher shortage: 44 million teachers are needed if
the world is going to meet its commitments to the sustainable development goals. As trade unionists, we
must ensure that the teacher recruitment and retention crisis in the global north is not solved at the
expense of global south countries. To this end, I would like to the CTG to push for a recommitment from
Commonwealth Education Ministers to the Protocol for the Recruitment of Commonwealth Teachers first
adopted in 2004. Other priorities for the CTG must include ensuring governments take the necessary steps
to meet their commitment to SDG4 and ensuring all children can access inclusive and high-quality
education by 2030.
Education unions are a powerful voice when we work together and the CTG has a unique opportunity to
influence decision-making at the highest level. Let’s make sure we use our voice and our strength effectively
for the benefit of educators across the Commonwealth.
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