The South African charter on children’s basic education rights

1. Presentation to the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education Cape Town, May 14, 2013 The South African charter on children’s basic education rights

2. The presentation will provide an overview of the background, purpose and structure of the SAHRC Charter on Children’s Education Rights. It will indicate how the Charter is intended to be used by the Commission and other stakeholders. introduction

3. Key elements: • A statement of the various obligations of the State to ensure the realisation of the right to basic education; • Key shortcomings and inequities; • Outline of commitments made to address the gaps in achieving quality education • Key role-players in fulfilment of this right • This document is the third of its kind in the world, and the most detailed and comprehensive of the three. The charter: an Overview

4. The SAHRC is an independent national human rights institution mandated by the Constitution. Mandate includes the promotion and monitoring of children’s rights including the right to basic education. The right to basic education is enshrined in section 29(1)(a) of the Constitution. It is an unqualified socio-economic right. The monitoring of basic education has been hindered by the lack of a common and consolidated national statement of the scope and content of the right. Background to the development of the Charter

5. To contribute towards the realisation of the right to basic education; To provide a common, legally- grounded planning, monitoring and advocacy framework for use by the SAHRC and all relevant stakeholders; To provide a statement of the various legal obligations on the state and the services and support that must be provided to ensure that all children, especially SA’s historically educationally marginalised children enjoy the right to basic education Purpose of the charter

6. The Charter was developed through a process of research and consultation with stakeholders in the education sector. A Reference Team was developed to oversee and make inputs into its development. The document began with a scoping of legal obligations and undertakings made by the state in terms of international legal and developmental instruments (such as UNCRC, MDGs), regional instruments ( ACRWC, SADC Regional Indicative Strategic Plan) and national constitutional obligations A consultant was briefed to compile the text of the document The Charter is limited to the right to basic education through schools Aligned to DBE’s mandate to secure basic education through Grades R to 12 The Process of developing the charter

7. Charter recognises that : • Basic education is wider than pre-primary, primary and secondary education • It does not encompass the full scope of the right to basic education • Pursuant to the research stage, a workshop was convened under the leadership of the SAHRC to bring together a range of stakeholders in government and civil society to consider, discuss and comment on a draft version of the Charter. • The Minister for Basic Education delivered the keynote address • Speakers discussed a range of issues, and inputs were made by diverse, multi-level stakeholders • A two – month period was provided for comments on the draft charter • Report was revised, adopted by the SAHRC and formally launched on 31 January 2013 The Process of developing the charter

8. Organising framework selected was Tomasevski’s 4A framework and the Right to Education Project . This framework prescribes that education must be: • Available • Accessible • Acceptable • Adaptable • The Charter draws significantly, then, on the extended 4A and Right to Education indicators, but it has been specifically shaped to reflect our national education priorities and realities. The Theoretical framework

9. Reasons for selecting the 4A Framework: it is legally grounded and draws together the full range of legal obligations regarding basic education; it includes a range of indicators bringing in the development dimensions and commitments; it comprehensively surfaces commonalities across the full range of legal and development instruments; it is rights-based and emphasises the best interests of the child; it recognises the interrelatedness of education and other rights; it is responsive to the contextual equity imperative driving education reform in South Africa; it includes access and quality; and, it encompasses a body of child centred-indicators developed in consultation with education experts to measure progress. The Theoretical Framework

10. The elements of the 4 A Framework comprise the titles of each of the Chapters in the Charter. At the beginning of each is a concise explanation of what is meant by the title. Below is an example: The layout of the charter

11. The body of the Charter is in tabulated form. The same four column headings occur through the document. This is extremely valuable as it gives the reader a consolidated view of the right and its core content. The Layout of the charter

12. The launch of the Charter took place on the 31 January 2013 at the SAHRC National Offices. It was attended by a diverse range of stakeholders, including government, civil society, academics, the Commission's Section 5 Committee Members, members of other Chapter 9 Institutions, members of the press and numerous others. The event took the form of a dialogue followed by an open discussion. The launch was highly-publicised in various forms of media- including radio, television and print media. The Launch of the Charter

13. The Charter can be used for the following purposes: • A means of educating children and care-givers about children’s rights • A planning and educational tool for schools, governing bodies, principals and teachers • A planning and monitoring tool for use by the department of basic education and other relevant departments • A monitoring tool for parliament • A planning, educational, monitoring and advocacy tool for civil society, including NGOs, CBOs, research institutions and trade unions; and a planning and monitoring tool for development partners and donors How Can the Charter be Used by Stakeholders?

14. Reports of the Commission that come to Parliament highlight challenges in the realisation of rights. For instance in 2006 the Commission issued a report on the Right to Basic Education; Most of those challenges can be found in the Charter; The Charter provides indicators against which MPs can monitor progress. How Can parliament, in particular, make use of the charter?

15. The Commission has used the Charter as its primary frame of reference in conducting the following activities: • Commenting on the Draft Minimum Norms and Standards for Public School Infrastructure. • Convening a hearing relating to the delivery of primary learning materials to schools. • Participation in the SAHRC National Water and Sanitation Hearing. • Informing certain of its comments on the Draft UNCRC Country Report. • Participation in a Solidarity Visit to schools in the Eastern Cape. • A recent dialogue on the right to education convened by the Commission’s Provincial Offices. • Evaluating the Department of Basic Education’s response to questionnaires sent to them by the Commission in terms of section 184(3) of the Constitution. Since its launch, how has the commission made use of the charter?

16. The Commission is grateful for the opportunity to present this exciting initiative to the Portfolio Committee. We welcome any questions or comments on the presentation and related matters. It is our hope that this document can be taken forward and used to facilitate the realisation of this fundamental right. Conclusion

17. South African Human Rights Commission Website: www.sahrc.org.za