Published by the Oxford Human Rights Hub, the Commentary provides an expert analysis of the Abidjan Principles.

The Guiding Principles on the human rights obligations of states to provide public education and to regulate private involvement in education (the Abidjan Principles) were adopted on 13 February 2019 by a group of education and human rights experts. They are a tool to assist States and other actors in navigating the evolving education context in accordance with human rights law. 

The Abidjan Principles compile and unpack existing legal obligations of States regarding the delivery of education; to establish free, quality, public education systems for all, and to regulate private actors to guarantee that all participants involved in education are aligned towards the common aim of realising the right to education.​ 

The Commentary details the legal foundation of the Principles and elaborates on the reasoning and interpretation of them. The Commentary have been published in phases since 2023 by the Oxford Human Rights Hub (OxHRH). 

Following the initial four commentary pieces released on May 12, 2023, a new commentary has just been published. In this latest piece, University of Sydney Associate Professor, Jacqueline Mowbray provides an in-depth exploration of Guiding Principles 29-33, focusing specifically on the obligations of states in relation to public education.

Read the latest commentary now!

For more information on previously published commentaries:

Introduction to the Abidjan Principles Commentary, by Ashina Mtsumi (Formerly Programme Officer on Public Services and Africa Representative at GI-ESCR)  

Scope, Application and Interpretation (Principles 1, 4-7), by Professor Ann Skelton (UNESCO Chair in Education Law in Africa, at the Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, South Africa, as well as the Chair of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child) and Dr Perekeme Mutu (post-doctoral research fellow with the UNESCO Chair in Education Law in Africa, in the Department of Private Law, University of Pretoria, South Africa) 

Equality and Non-Discrimination in Education (Principles 22 to 27), by Professor Sandra Fredman (Rhodes Professor of the Laws of the British Commonwealth and the USA, University of Oxford) 

Obligations to Respect, Protect, and Fulfil the Right to Education in the Context of Private Involvement (Principles 47-48), by Dr Roman Zinigrad (Assistant Professor of Law at the American University of Paris) 

Implementation (Principles 91 to 97), by Professor Ann Skelton (UNESCO Chair in Education Law in Africa, at the Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, South Africa, as well as the Chair of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child) and Dr Perekeme Mutu (post-doctoral research fellow with the UNESCO Chair in Education Law in Africa, in the Department of Private Law, University of Pretoria, South Africa)