Human Rights Standards:
Article 26, Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Articles 2.2 and 13, 2 (C), International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; Article 3 (d), World Declaration on Higher Education for the Twenty-first Century; Article 4, UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education; Paragraph 32, General Comment 13, Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR)
Areas of Focus:
Levels and Types of Education:
Marginalised Groups:
Types of Indicator:
Levels of disaggregation:
Type of financial aid; Vulnerable, marginalised, disadvantaged groups
Reducing the financial burden of direct and indirect costs of higher education for students is within states obligation to progressively introduce free higher education. ‘While progressively realising their obligations to provide free, public education of the highest attainable quality at all levels as effectively and expeditiously as possible, States must immediately take steps to ensure that no individual is excluded from any public educational institution on the basis of the inability to pay and must take all effective measures to prevent the risk of over- indebtedness for learners and their families’. (Abidjan Principles, Guiding Principle 36). Financial aid includes grants (tuition, mobility, etc.). Loans should be analysed as a separate budgetary line. Look specifically at the share over the years and ratio per students in needs (marginalised and disadvantaged groups.