Fred van Leeuwen became EI General Secretary during the Constituent Congress of Education International in January 1993. He was since reelected by EI's World Congresses (July 1995, Harare; July 1998, Washington D.C.; July 2001, Jomtien; July 2004, Porto Alegre).

A former teacher in the Netherlands, he joined the Algemene Bond van Onderwijs Personeel (ABOP- now AOb) in 1973 and became responsible for its international affairs in the late 70s.

Fred van Leeuwen was elected General Secretary of the International Federation of Free Teachers' Unions (IFFTU) at its World Congress in Panama in 1981. He held this post until the IFFTU and the World Confederation of Organisations of the Teaching Profession (WCOTP) formed the Education International in 1993.

Education International now comprises 348 member organisations representing 29 million teachers and other education workers in 166 countries or territories.

Fred van Leeuwen is Vice-President of NOVIB, the Netherlands Organisation for International Development Cooperation (Oxfam Netherlands) and Chair of the Conference of Global Unions Federation for 2005-2006.

Fred van Leeuwen was born on 22 April 1950. He currently lives in the Netherlands.

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