Right to Education

Nothing inherent in children’s development explains why their right to education should be more or less accessible depending on whether they are 4, 8, or 16. Yet international law treats financial barriers to education as more or less problematic depending on their stage of childhood. For primary education, the obligation to remove fees is clear and urgent. For secondary education, it is weaker and easier to postpone. For pre-primary education, there’s largely silence. This uneven approach, arbitrary on its face, is one reason why states are considering a new Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The protocol would guarantee free public pre-primary and secondary education, and recognize early childhood care and education as part of the right to education.