National Constitutional provisions – Guinea-Bissau
The constitution is the fundamental law of the country, reflecting the underlying and unifying values of society. It spells out the basic rights of each person; it serves as a framework for all other laws and policies, and cannot be easily changed. However, it can be changed and updated through a democratic process, and it is important to keep it alive, by popularising and using it, and by campaigning for its reform or amendment if necessary. Below we have picked out what we see as some of the most relevant articles, but please be encouraged to seek and read your constitution in its entirety.
The state is the central actor in any claim to the right to education: it is the prime duty-bearer and the prime implementer; it is the guarantor; and it is the state´s signature vis-à-vis the international norms and standards which binds it to respect, protect and fulfil the right to education. The state must therefore be judged or challenged on its central text on the right to education, whether this be the constitution, the laws or the policies.
The Constitution of Guinea-Bissau 11 May 1991, amended 1996
EDUCATION
Art.16
1. Education shall see to the total development of each individual.
2. The State shall consider the elimination of illiteracy as its fundamental task.
Art.41
1. Every citizen shall have the right to education and the duty to be educated.
2. The State shall gradually promote the gratuitous nature of education and the equal possibility of all citizens to have access to every level of education.
EQUALITY
Article 24
All persons are equal before the law, enjoy the same rights and are subjected to the same duties, without distinction as to race, social status, intellectual or cultural level, religious belief or philosophical conviction.
GENDER
Article 25
Men and women are equal before the law in all aspects of political, economic, social and cultural life.
HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS
Article 29
1) Fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution do not negate other rights foreseen by the laws of the Republic and applicable rules of international law.
2) Constitutional and legal procedures relating to fundamental rights have to be interpreted in harmony with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

