Concluding Observations Committee on the Rights of the Child CRC/C/IRN/CO/3-4 para
78(f)
Full recommendation:
Ensure adequate human, technical and financial resources to schools in rural areas.
Assessment using Impact Iran human rights indicators1
According to Article 3 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the State “has the duty
of directing all its resources to”, among other goals, “free education and physical training for
everyone and at all levels”. Article 30 stipulates that “The government must provide all citizen
with free education up to secondary school”. Article 43 of the Constitution of the Islamic
Republic of Iran provides that the economy of the Islamic Republic of Iran shall be based on
providing essential needs to all its citizens, including education.2
In its National Report to the UPR in 2019, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran
stipulated that under the “Document on the Fundamental Transformation of Education System”,
“ensuring access to appropriate education in all regions of the country, regardless of race and
gender, with emphasis on the education of girls and vulnerable groups in less developed, rural
and nomadic regions, is among the most important objectives of the country.” The Government
also reportedly engaged in the development of pre-school education, “especially in lessdeveloped, rural and nomadic areas” and distributed “7,000 educational packages and other
supplies, free of charge, in less developed areas”.3 There is no readily available information as
to what extent these measures translate effectively in practice.
In June 2019, the state-run IRNA News Agency reported that approximately 27% of Iran’s
school building were in ruin, 34% needed repair and only 39% of schools had safe buildings. A
lot of the schools requiring renovation are reportedly located in the Sistan and Baluchestan
province, 4 where a significant part of its population reportedly live in rural areas. 5 In 2016, the
Committee on the Rights of the Child expressed concerns about “poor living conditions in
regions traditionally inhabited by ethnic minorities, that in some cases completely lacked basic
1
CRC.28.1.S.1; ESCR.13.2.S.1
ESCR.13.2.P.17
CRC.28.1.O.7; ESCR.13.2.O.5; ESCR.13.2.O.19;
2
Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, English translation, https://irandataportal.syr.edu/wp-content/uploads/constitutionenglish-1368.pdf
3
UPR 2019, National Report, Islamic Republic of Iran, https://undocs.org/A/HRC/WG.6/34/IRN/1
4
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, July 2019,
https://undocs.org/A/74/188
5
Iran Wire, https://iranwire.com/en/features/5523
1