The Right to Education in the DRC

In this book, the author analyses the right to education in the DRC in the light of national and international legal instruments in a context where, more than two decades after the resignation of the organising power in the effective management of education, breathless parents allocate what they call PRIMEs to teachers to contribute to the instruction of their children. This system of bonuses or taking charge of teachers by parents clearly violates the child’s right to education, which is enshrined in Article 43 of the Congolese Constitution: 'primary education is compulsory and free'. Many children are currently excluded from the basic education system, as their parents can no longer offer them the right and/or the possibility to continue school. The Congolese state has subscribed to international commitments guaranteed by international legal instruments and cannot invoke the lack of resources. It must allocate sufficient resources and demonstrate an explicit political will to ensure that the Congolese school becomes a school of excellence once again.