This communiqué was adopted by the participants of the 2009 World Conference on Higher Education which held from 5 to 8 July 2009 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, in recognition of the abiding relevance of the outcomes and Declaration of the 1998 World Conference on Higher Education, and taking into account the outcomes and recommendations of the six regional conferences (Cartagena de Indias, Macau, Dakar, New Delhi, Bucharest and Cairo) as well as the debates and outcomes of this world conference, ‘The New Dynamics of Higher Education and Research for Societal Change and Development’.

The communique emphasises higher education as a matter of responsibility and economic support of all governments, exploring the social responsibility of higher education; access to, equity and quality of education, and the internationalisation, regionalisation and globalisation of higher education. Learning research and innovation in higher education, as well as higher education in Africa are also emphasised. The communique concludes with calls for action by UNESCO members states, as well as UNESCO.