Poor quality education means 250 million children worldwide fail to learn basic reading and mathematics skills, dpa cited the UN's cultural organization warning on Wednesday. The education crisis, which wastes an estimated 10 per cent of global spending on primary education, leaves a legacy of illiteracy more widespread than had been believed, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization said in its 2013/2014 annual report. "The cost of 250 million children around the world not learning the basics translates into a loss of an estimated 129 billion dollars," the report found. Of those children, up to 130 million completed the first four years of school, while the rest had little or no experience of school, Vibeke Jensen, Director of UNESCO New York office told reporters.