Foreign Affairs minister Murray McCully says one million children in the Pacific Islands are missing out on attending school.
He made the comment in a speech on Monday, ahead of the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders' meeting in Auckland.
The focus of the speech was economic development, but he told his audience that could not happen in an environment where basic education is weak.
The minister says about about 40% of children in the region are failing to complete a basic primary education while just 20% graduate from secondary school.
Mr McCully says the Pacific countries cannot afford to perform so poorly when it comes to education.
He called on Pacific nations to get serious about the challenges and opportunities confronting the region, adding that there had been a lot of talk at Pacific Forum meetings in the past but too little action and follow-through afterwards.
The Pacific Islands Forum summit begins in Auckland on Tuesday and runs through until Friday.
