Mapping failure: governments fall short of duty to ensure free quality education for all
Education is a fundamental human right and a public good and it is the duty of states to protect this right. According to article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, education must be free and compulsory, at least at the basic level. Despite most states being signatory to this declaration, access to quality education continues to be a challenge in many countries.
Education privatisation and commercialisation have become standard practice, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. This trend has denied many children access to quality education and has deepened inequality. Teachers' salaries are low compared to those of other professionals with similar qualifications [1] and the pupil-teacher ratio is often high, which increases the teachers’ workload and diminishes the quality of education provided. Research has shown that many of these challenges are directly caused by the lack of public investment in public education.
Chronic underfunding
Education International advocates that states increase public investment in education by allocating at least 6% of their GDP and/or at least 20% of their national budget to education.
Fully funding public education with public money is essential for the recruitment, training, and retention of teachers and education support personnel able to deliver quality education for all students.
As the maps below show, according to the latest available data, most countries fall short of these targets, driving many teachers out of the profession they love and failing millions of children.
Global teacher shortage
UNESCO estimates that the world needs 69 million new teachers by 2030 if we are to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 4 on quality education for all.
The maps below show the pupil-teacher ratio in various countries around the world in primary and lower secondary education, with Sub-Saharan Africa emerging as the region where teachers have to work with unacceptably large class sizes.
Years of underfunding public education have led to increased attrition rates among education professionals. In many countries, teachers are consistently paid less than other professionals with similar qualification levels. Undervalued and underpaid, more and more teachers are leaving the profession in search of better career opportunities. Worse still, as older generations of teachers retire, fewer and fewer young people are joining the profession.
Go Public! Fund education!
Increased investment in public education and the teachers who make it all happen is imperative. Investment will help improve the status of the profession and allow education systems to recruit, train, and retain the teachers students need. Investment will also help reduce class sizes, which promotes quality learning and decreases teachers’ workload.
Education International is leading the global movement for increased investment in public education. Its Go Public! Fund Education campaign brings together the voices of 32 million educators across 178 countries to call on governments everywhere to invest in public education and in teachers. We are rallying to create the future our students are entitled to and ensure the pay, working conditions, and respect our colleagues deserve.
Click here to find out more about the campaign and join the movement!
