A worldwide review of literacy and basic education for adults and young people led to the following conclusions (among others: (1) returns on basic education are high; (2) universal participation in primary education is still far off; (3) carefully designed programs for adults and young people can pay off in increased retention of skills, compensation for deficiencies in primary schooling, and improvement in primary school effectiveness; (4) no society has come close to achieving universal literacy through primary schooling alone; (5) universal learning strategies must rely on both primary and adult literacy education; (6) programs for adults and young people need to be flexible, relevant to context, and responsive to changing needs; (7) sufficient research exists for effective literacy programming; (8) many past inefficiencies in the provision of literacy can be explained by the application of a single model of literacy; (9) many varying rationales have been successfully applied to literacy and basic education programs; (10) mass campaigns can be effective as policy options, but they run the risk of denying the diversity so essential for success; (11) literacy has to be taught in context to adults; (12) measurable economic outcomes are possible through literacy education; (13) effective international programming presupposes intellectual openness and an active link between theory and practice; and (14) effective aid to education requires long-term commitment. (126 references) (KC)