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This sectoral paper centers around the role of education in achieving the agenda 2030, as well as aims to analyse, through different perspectives, why we are still not on track to achieve SDG4 by 2030. All the points put forward in this paper stem from the point of view that education and lifelong learning are to be treated as fundamental human rights and a public good. This paper also seeks to put emphasis on how commodification of education remains a major challenge towards viewing education as a human right.
The analysis is done through three sections, which seek to address the achievements, the challenges for implementation of SDG4 and the improvements necessary within implementation. The different dimensions of sustainable development are taken into consideration when looking into the achievements we have had so far. It is important to emphasize that the human rights-based approach is the basis for the achievement of the SDGs. This approach develops the capacity of duty-bearers to meet their obligations on the one hand, and, on the other, encourages rights holders to claim their rights.
Recognising the progress made is an essential part in understanding what else needs to be done in order to find our way back on track with regards to the attainment of SDG4. In this regard, reference is made for instance to the tremendous progress towards the goal of universal primary education, and to the continuous movement towards gender parity in the last generation, as girls and young women in many parts of the world outnumber boys and young men in schools and universities.
The paper also seeks to highlight the contribution of civil society to the fulfilment of SDG4, which is many times underestimated. Civil society remains one of the main actors in providing education, through formal, non-formal and informal manners across the globe, and despite facing major challenges with the shrinking spaces within which it can operate, it continues to be at the forefront day in day out.
Needless to say, whilst appreciating the achievements is a good start, it is also important to thoroughly understand the challenges for implementing SDG4. Children, youth, and adults, especially in the global south, are facing significant barriers to effectively enjoy their right to education. This is due to both policy and financial challenges. Within existing and newly created policies across the globe, exclusion and discrimination remain significant barriers to achieve SDG4. This is also unfortunately accompanied by issues of gender inequality. Apart from this, conflict, climate change and migration are also significant challenges for governments and the international community making significant progress towards SDG4.
Furthermore, a problematic issue remains that while it is widely accepted that more resources for financing the Sustainable Development Agenda are needed, there is no consensus regarding the strategies that governments and international donors should adopt to protect the rights and interest of those who have been left behind.
One crucial section in this paper deals with what should be improved in order to achieve the Agenda 2030. The right to education is not limited to guaranteeing access to school services, but encompasses the content of education, teaching methods and school governance. The notion of transformative education should be positioned at the centre of policy debates on quality of education.
Lastly, in view of the growing threat of privatisation and commercialisation in, and of, education, and the regressive policies that are being witnessed in different countries and regions, EASG puts forward its beliefs that public funding should always aim to strengthen public education systems, as stated in human rights law.
