A world of discrimination: Minorities, indigenous peoples and education

Chapter from Minority Rights Group, State of the World’s Minorities 2009

Education is a basic human right, but in all regions of the world minority and indigenous children are
being deprived of a quality education or access to schools at all. Of the 101 million children out of school
and the 776 million adults who cannot read and write, the majority are from ethnic, religious and linguistic
minorities or indigenous peoples.

Numerous states are violating international laws and standards by failing to provide adequate education for
minorities. The costs of failing to provide education for all are massive, holding back economic growth and
potentially sowing the seeds for conflicts. Yet the international community – governments and aid donors
alike – has still not fully woken up to the need to address inequities in education, and specifically the needs
of minorities.

At the UN Forum on Minority Issues, held for the first time in December 2008, speaker after speaker gave
evidence about educational discrimination and exclusion in their country. Often, national laws bar or reduce
minorities’ access to school or teaching passes over the history or culture of minority groups; further, schooling
is often only available in the dominant, official language rather than mother tongues spoken by minorities, or
else personal abuse is heaped on people from minorities by other pupils and even teachers.

In most developing countries – but especially in those schools attended by minorities which tend to be in poorer,
more remote areas – overcrowded classrooms, dilapidated buildings, few textbooks, few sanitary facilities and
poor teaching are all too common, and are holding back the educational and life opportunities of millions of children.

According to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, ‘as an empowerment right, education
is the primary vehicle by which economically and socially marginalized adults and children can lift themselves
out of poverty’. Yet educational discrimination against, and exclusion of, minorities is perpetuating poverty,
depriving people of fulfilling their potential and of playing a meaningful role in society. Education must, as
articulated by the former UN special rapporteur on the right to education, Katerina Tomasevski, meet the
‘four As’: it must be available (free and government-funded), accessible (non-discriminatory and accessible
to all), acceptable (culturally-appropriate and with good quality teaching) and adaptable (evolves with the
changing needs of society).

Ensuring access to such schooling for minorities is the greatest challenge facing policy-makers in the field of
education. Furthermore, in a world where inter-ethnic violence is present, and in some cases rising,
improvements in the education of minority groups to help create more tolerant, multi-cultural societies is
surely one of the very greatest challenges the world faces.

To read the full chapter, click here and go to “A world of discrimination”