Global Perspective of Speech Pathology Education

The entire world population is over 3.4 billion, with more than half of the world’s population living in areas where a single hazard could signifi cantly impact them. An example of the connectedness of the global conditions is the recent catastrophe that the tsunamis brought to southeast Asia, south Asia and Africa. It is imperative that we understand the world that we share and the challenges that we face. Over one third of the world’s urban population lives in a slum and it is projected that in 30 years that fi gure will be have doubled to 2 billion. The world population is continually increasing, by 2050 the world population is expected to reach 9.1 billion. The world population will age rapidly over the next 45 years. This global population is spread across seven continents with people speaking over 6,700 languages and over 399,000 languages and dialects. Some are spoken by over a billion people and others are shared only by a few. The development of speech pathology education differs from area to area and from region to region. What is being taught in Iceland may not be included in Honduras, what is being prepared in Brazil may be unheard of in Bermuda. Countries such as Iraq are barely capable of providing basic needs while countries such as Sweden provide health coverage for her entire populace. Islands may be isolated from the larger continents, but some islands are progressing rapidly such as Malta and other islands such as Sumatra are not making many changes. Countries such as Burma (Myanmar) are still going through political unrest and very little information is available about the current status while countries such as the United States are going on-line. These disparities and differences are continuing to challenge the education committee of the International Association of Lopopedics and Phoniatrics (IALP). In addition, the entire world is progressing rapidly in technology and information. The services we provide continue to expand. The mission of the IALP is to work