12B.

11
PES

THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION

Every human being has the right to quality education and lifelong
learning opportunities.

Education is a basic human right that works to raise men and women
out of poverty, level inequalities and ensure sustainable development.
But worldwide 244 million children and youth are still out of school for
social, economic and cultural reasons. Education is one of the most
powerful tools in lifting excluded children and adults out of poverty and
is a steppingstone to other fundamental human rights. It is the most
sustainable investment. The right to quality education is already firmly
rooted in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international
legal instruments, the majority of which are the result of the work of
UNESCO and the United Nations.   

 What you need to know about the right to education?

 Why is it important to have the right to education formally

enshrined in law and other instruments?

Around 258 million children and youth are deprived of education

worldwide as a result of social, economic and cultural factors. Yet only
70 per cent of the world’s countries legally guarantee 9 years or more
of compulsory education. While girls continue to be severely
disadvantaged, 132 million boys are out of school. And an estimated
617 million children and adolescents cannot read a simple sentence or
undertake a straightforward maths calculation with two thirds of that
number sitting in classrooms.
Education is an empowering right and one of the most powerful
tools by which economically and socially marginalized children and
adults can lift themselves out of poverty and participate fully in society.
To unleash the full transformational power of education and meet
international markers of progress such as those of the Sustainable
Development Agenda, everyone must have access to it. Binding
countries to certain standards by way of law is one way of ensuring
access to quality education is widened. Legal guarantees and
protection of the right to education are not time-bound (unlike policies
and plans). They also ensure that judicial mechanisms (such as courts
and tribunals) can determine whether human rights obligations are
respected, impose sanctions for violations and transgressions, and
ensure that appropriate action is taken.

 What are the key legal documents and instruments? 

Education as a fundamental human right is enshrined in the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and many
other international human rights instruments. UNESCO’s foremost
standard-setting instrument is the Convention against discrimination in
education which dates from 1960 and has so far been ratified by 107
States. It is the first international instrument which covers the right to
education extensively and has a binding force in international law. The
Convention also acts as a cornerstone of the Education 2030 Agenda
and Sustainable Development Goal 4 for education adopted by the
international community. SDG 4 is rights-based and seeks to ensure
the full enjoyment of the right to education as fundamental to achieving
sustainable development.  

 How does UNESCO work to ensure the right to education?

Through its programme on the right to education, UNESCO
develops, monitors and promotes education norms and standards in
relation to the right to education to advance the aims of the Education
2030 Agenda. It provides guidance, technical advice and assistance to
Member States in reviewing or developing their own legal and policy
frameworks, and builds capacities, partnerships and awareness on key
challenges especially considering the evolving education context.  

It also supports and monitors States in their application of legal

instruments, conventions and recommendations through periodic
consultations, its online Observatory on the right to education and the
interactive tool, Her Atlas, which shows where in the world and to what
extent women and girls have their educational rights protected by law.
As part of the monitoring, UNESCO also works closely with the UN
system and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.   

In addition, it advocates for and promotes the right to education

through communication actions as well as research and studies
on specific components of this right such as on pre-primary
education, higher education, and digital learning.  

UNESCO mobilizes, develops and fosters global partnerships to

raise awareness on key issues such as the right to education
of climate-displaced persons, non-state actors in education and
the right to education of vulnerable groups.  
Webgrafia

The Right to Education