The six EFA goals help to shape policies and priorities especially in developing countries; they can be seen as discrete targets or as a cohesive collection of complimentary developmental areas to improve learning for people of all ages and stages. The paper argues that the cohesion, success and impact of the EFA would be improved enormously if adult literacy and numeracy provision has advocated and developed more creatively in a linked and integrated way. The Global Monitoring Report (GMR) 2008 indicated how adult literacy has been under- resourced and under-developed. Progress on the specific EFA goal on adult literacy has been neglected. However, integrating literacy and numeracy in vocational education and training, in health programmes, early years support programmes and in family learning would help the ambition of EFA to be realised in an effective and sustainable way. Such an approach would increase achievement in adult literacy as well as other EFA goals.