EN | FR | ES | AR

January 2021: the Abidjan Principles are turning two, with a new video series!

*|MC:SUBJECT|*
Logo

January 2021: the Abidjan Principles are turning two, with a new video series!

Dear *|FNAME|*,

We trust this message finds you well and healthy, and that you’ve had a good start to the year.

And there is much to celebrate to start 2021, as the Abidjan Principles are soon turning two! On 13 February, it will be two years since a group of eminent international experts put their signature at the bottom of the text, with the Minister of Education of Côte d’Ivoire and the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the right to education. Two years, and they have already gone a long way, becoming the reference text on the right to education.

To commemorate this historic period for the right to education, we are releasing a series of five videos, every week from today, until the anniversary of the Abidjan Principles on 12-13 February. The first four videos contain testimonies from the main actors that were involved in the Abidjan Principles, with many being shot during the conference itself. The last video will be an animation presenting an overview of the Principles.

You can find the first video below:

Abidjan Principles on the right to education: What are they?

The next videos will be posted every Friday on the Abidjan Principles’ YouTube channel and website, as well as on supporting organisations’ platforms.

In addition, there will also be an anniversary event on 12 February, at 1-2pm UTC, to celebrate this moment, and reflect on the role of the Abidjan Principles in the months to come, in an education landscape that has been devastated by the measures taken as a result of COVID-19. We’ll send you more information to join next Friday, and you can already save the date!

Last but not least, as for every quarter, you can find below an overview of the key developments on the implementation and use of the Abidjan Principles since September 2020. As previously, a lot has happened, with the Principles getting increasingly used in practice. This update features in particular a report from the National Education Campaign Nepal’s work in the implementation of the Abidjan Principles at the national and local level.

For more information, follow the developments on the Abidjan Principles website, and on Twitter via the hashtag #AbidjanPrinciples.

⚖️ Taking action

  • The Civil Association for Equality and Justice (ACIJ) used the Abidjan Principles for its arguments as part of a lawsuit in Argentina on inclusion in pre-primary schools. ACIJ has been taking action regarding the State’s obligation to control and monitor compliance of private actors with regard to the right to inclusive education in the city of Buenos Aires. The ruling was upheld by the Appeals Chamber through a well-founded verdict based on international standards and obligations regarding the right to education, equality and non-discrimination. More information on this case can be found here. You can also find the statement here (in Spanish).

  • On 13 November 2020, the Right to Education Initiative presented the progress made in the implementation of the Abidjan Principles at the 2021 Paris Peace Forum. This presentation followed the award delivered in November 2019 to the Abidjan Principles as one of the ten ‘most promising governance projects’.

Developments referencing the Abidjan Principles

🕮 The background papers of the Abidjan Principles will soon be published!

One of the tools that informed the development of the Abidjan Principles was a set of background papers, written by law and education experts to inform the drafters’ reflection on some of the sharpest concepts in the the Abidjan Principles. These have been turned into booked chapters, that have been edited by Frank Adamson, Sylvain Aubry, Mireille de Koning, and Delphine Dorsi. They are in the last phase of production and will be published by Edward Elgar Publishing in June 2021, with two additional chapters providing background and analysis on the Abidjan Principles. More news soon!

Featured

Using the Abidjan Principles to inform local and national education plans in Nepal

By Ram Gaire, Program Manager

The National Campaign for Education Nepal (NCE) has been working at the national and grassroots level on the implementation of the Abidjan Principles since their adoption in February 2019. In the context of COVID-19, more than 2,500 stakeholders have been sensitised on the need to regulate the private actors during the pandemic, and the importance of the State obligations with regard to public education.

Radio discussions on the role of local governments in monitoring private actors and alternatives have been organised in 15 districts. The programs were focused on applying the Abidjan Principles for the improvement of quality education in public schools during COVID-19, and on how local government has to ensure its accountability and monitor private actors. Local governments were made aware of the Abidjan Principles, to take these as guidelines in the formation of the education act at the local level.

On the occasion of International Human Rights Day 2020, NCE Nepal district coordination committee in 25 districts advocated at the local level for the adaptation of the major provisions of the Abidjan Principles as well as ensuring “Education as a right”. Contextualisation and localisation of the Abidjan Principles into the local language was made and disseminated to the larger stakeholders including the federal, province and local governments.

As a result of this continuous engagement, there have been some positive changes. The role of State regarding the monitoring of private actors of education, the need of reducing privatisation in education and strengthening the public education system have been included in the National Education Policy, the Fifteenth five-year plan of Nepal, as well as on some Local Education Act and Policies.

Find out more about the the National Campaign for Education Nepal

Facebook iconInstagram iconTwitter icon