Global AIDS Alliance

Free Basic Education

Did you know?

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations in 1948 states: "Everyone has the right to education [and] education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages." But today, over 72 million children in the world's poorest countries do not attend school, more than half of them girls. Although there has been progress in getting children into school, universal primary completion remains low. Approximately one billion people have had less than four years of schooling and two-thirds of these people are women and girls. All school-age children must start school this year if we are to meet the world's commitment of universal primary completion by 2015.

Many countries with low enrolment rates are also those hardest hit by AIDS. In fact, the HIV epidemic itself is devastating struggling school systems-killing teachers and administrators, increasing absenteeism, and lowering productivity, all of which increase costs and undermine educational quality. Education correlates directly to safer behavior and reduced infection rates, and experts agree that education ranks among the most effective-and cost-effective-means of HIV prevention. The Global Campaign for Education estimates that if all children completed primary school, as many as 700,000 cases of HIV could be prevented each year.

What needs to be done?

Mobilize Increased Financial Resources
Currently, there is a $16 billion external financing gap for basic education and no multilateral education financing mechanism that could absorb and effectively disburse this level of funding. The poorest countries need external assistance in order to scale up and improve educational systems. Specifically, funds are needed to train teachers, strengthen and expand the educational infrastructure, buy textbooks and equipment, ensure educational quality, and introduce computer technologies. Additional resources are also needed to underwrite the costs of eliminating school-related fees and meeting increased demand for education.

U.S. Leadership on Education and the Establishment of a Global Fund for Education
During his campaign, President Obama committed to establish a Global Fund for Education with at least $2 billion, and Secretary Clinton reiterated this commitment during her confirmation testimony. A multilateral, multi-donor Global Fund for Education, based on the principles of transparency, mutual accountability for results, independent governance and predictable financing, would improve the effectiveness of all donor funding and increase the accountability of developing countries to provide children with a quality education. Its goal should be to mobilize the resources needed to achieve all six of the Education for All Goals-from early childhood development through adult literacy-and address the unique needs of the hardest to reach children and the most vulnerable children, including those living in conflict-affected and fragile states. The Obama Administration must follow through on this commitment to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of U.S. support for basic education by engaging with our global partners to provide hope and a seat in the classroom to all the world's children.

Eliminate School Fees
In the poorest countries, school-related fees keep millions of children out of school. And nearly all developing countries assess separate fees on various aspects of education, including tuition, textbooks and equipment, uniforms, Parent Teacher Association membership, and building services. Many mothers dying from HIV are most concerned with who will pay their children's school fees. And the cost of sending children to school often prevents people from adopting orphans either formally or informally.

What is the Global AIDS Alliance doing?

Mobilize global stakeholders in support of free basic education.
Advocate for the transformation of the Education for All-Fast Track Initiative into a well-resourced Global Fund for Education.
Shape U.S. policy and secure increased funding for basic education and school fee abolition.
Define basic education as a key component of both HIV prevention and a response to the crisis of orphans and vulnerable children.

Recent Action Alerts

ABCs and 123s

Imagine being 8 years old and getting ready for school. Instead of that iconic long yellow bus pulling up to your neighborhood and taking you to a building filled with teachers, books, cafeterias and chalkboards; you have to walk several miles to sit in a room without enough books and with ill-trained teachers, while fearing violence on your trek to and from school and in the school yard. Unfortunately the second scenario is reality for millions of children worldwide.

Join Representative Nita Lowey (D-NY) in saying this is not acceptable.

Education is a basic human right. Right now, 72 million primary-aged children are not in school and millions more will drop out before grade five because schools are overcrowded, unsafe, poorly equipped, poorly managed and have inadequately trained teachers. According to UNESCO, if current trends continue, 56 million children will still be out of school in 2015. None of these children will be equipped to survive in the 21st century without a quality basic education. We are setting our future up to fail.

Human Rights Denied

Seventy-five million children around the world will not attend primary school today, and another 225 million will never start secondary school. These children will not receive the basic building blocks needed to fully participate in society because of obstacles like school fees, long and unsafe distances to the nearest school, and an insufficient number of teachers.

We have the opportunity to change this.