Lachhman Ajay
Executive Member of the Mauritius Trade Union Congress MTUC • Mauritius
Distinguished academics, trade union leaders, and colleagues,
Project Article 26 emerged from the conviction that the right to education, as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, must be renewed and expanded to meet the realities of our time.
Nearly ten years after its launch, the world has entered what many describe as a period of polycrisis — war, economic instability, democratic erosion, digital transformation, and open violations of international law.
Why must Project Article 26 be globally positioned?
Because education is no longer shaped only within national borders.
The movement of capital, labour, technology and artificial intelligence transcends frontiers. Decisions taken in one country affect students and workers across continents. A purely national or even regional approach cannot defend the human right to education in this interconnected system.
In the 1950s and 1960s, the struggle was against the educational divide — access to schools and literacy, particularly in post-colonial societies. Many nations invested heavily in education after independence.
Today, the divide has shifted.
We now face a digital divide — a divide in access to knowledge infrastructures, AI technologies, research power and intellectual sovereignty.
The question we must ask is:
Are we educating free human beings — or producing human resources for global markets?
There is a growing tendency to design education systems around labour supply chains. In this model, human beings risk becoming economic outputs rather than autonomous citizens.
In times of international lawlessness, where international norms are openly violated and institutions weakened, education becomes even more vulnerable to privatisation, militarisation, and ideological control.
This is why the global positioning of Project Article 26 is not optional — it is necessary.
We must defend education not only as access to schooling, but as:
- A pillar of democracy
- A condition for peace
- A safeguard against anti-humanity
- A space for cultural dignity and intellectual sovereignty
Global positioning does not mean uniformity.
It means solidarity across continents, while respecting local histories, cultures, and aspirations.
It means ensuring that education serves human development, global peace, and collective progress — not merely economic extraction.
In Africa, the right to education was central to independence movements. After colonial rule, many countries placed education at the heart of nation-building.
Countries such as Zambia invested heavily in public education after independence, recognising that political freedom without intellectual development would remain incomplete.
In Mauritius, long-term investment in universal education contributed significantly to social stability and economic transformation.
Across the continent, education budgets often became symbols of sovereignty.
Even controversial figures such as Muammar Gaddafi promoted pan-African educational visions, emphasising continental self-determination in knowledge production.
These examples remind us that education in Africa has never been merely technical — it has always been political, emancipatory, and linked to dignity.
Yet today, the challenge has shifted from access to sovereignty in knowledge systems.
If Article 26 is to remain alive, it must evolve.
And its evolution must be shaped not only by states, but by educators, workers, students and social movements worldwide.
Thank you.
