A new report by the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report and Namati has delivered a powerful warning to governments and policymakers worldwide: without education, justice remains out of reach for millions.
The report, Education and Justice: Learning to Build Just Societies, paints a troubling picture of a world where inequality, discrimination, poverty, conflict and weak legal systems continue to deny people their rights. According to the findings, nearly 1.4 billion people across the globe lack meaningful access to justice because they are unable to resolve everyday legal problems or navigate complex legal systems.
At the heart of the report is a simple but profound message: laws alone cannot create justice. People must understand their rights before they can defend them, and education is the bridge that makes this possible.
Education and Injustice: Two Problems Deeply Connected
The report argues that injustice itself has become one of the biggest barriers to education. Across the world, millions of children remain excluded from schools because of poverty, discrimination, forced labour, early marriage, displacement and social inequality.
UNESCO data cited in the report shows that 273 million children and young people are currently out of school globally. In many countries, ethnic and racial discrimination continues to prevent children from accessing quality education, while girls and vulnerable groups face additional obstacles.
The crisis extends beyond classrooms. Globally, 3.3 million children are trapped in forced labour, while 9 million girls are living in forced marriages — realities that rob millions of their right to learn and build better futures.
The report stresses that education is not only a human right but also an “enabling right.” When people are denied education, they are also more likely to be excluded from employment, healthcare, political participation and justice systems.
Marginalized communities — including girls, migrants, displaced persons, ethnic minorities and children with disabilities — often experience multiple layers of exclusion that reinforce cycles of poverty and injustice.
Weak Legal Protection for Education Rights
Although many countries officially recognize education as a constitutional right, the report warns that legal protections remain weak in practice.
According to the findings, while 82 percent of countries guarantee the right to education in their constitutions, only 55 percent provide legal mechanisms strong enough for citizens to enforce those rights in court.
This means millions of children and families have little or no remedy when education opportunities are denied.
The report therefore calls on governments to strengthen accountability systems, improve legal protections and establish stronger monitoring frameworks to ensure education rights are truly protected.
How Education Improves Access to Justice
One of the strongest arguments made in the report is that education empowers citizens to understand and use justice systems effectively.
People with stronger literacy and educational backgrounds are generally better equipped to seek legal advice, understand official procedures and defend their rights.
Research across 27 countries revealed that trust in judges increases alongside education levels. In 40 countries studied, individuals with post-secondary education were significantly more likely to seek legal assistance when facing legal problems.
The report also highlights the importance of community legal education and grassroots paralegal programmes in helping vulnerable populations gain access to justice.
Education as a Tool Against Crime and Violence
The report presents compelling evidence that education can reduce crime, violence and social instability.
In Sweden, each additional year of schooling was found to reduce violent crime conviction rates by 10 percent. Similarly, in the United States, increased education spending significantly lowered youth arrest rates.
Education also plays a crucial role in prisoner rehabilitation. Yet despite evidence showing that prison education reduces reoffending, one in four countries still fail to include education in rehabilitation strategies for inmates.
The report urges governments to invest more heavily in educational opportunities for prison populations and young offenders, emphasizing rehabilitation over punishment alone.
Beyond crime prevention, education also contributes to peacebuilding. Across 15 countries studied, education ranked as one of the most important contributors to peace and social stability.
However, despite its importance, education is still largely missing from global peace agreements. Of more than 2,200 peace agreements signed since 1990, only 2.5 percent explicitly mentioned the right to education.
Human Rights and Legal Education Still Neglected
The report notes that legal education, peace education and human rights studies are still poorly integrated into school systems in many countries.
Teachers themselves often lack adequate training to teach these subjects effectively. Across several European countries, only half of teachers surveyed had received formal training in citizenship or human rights education.
In countries affected by conflict, many teachers reported lacking the support needed to teach difficult subjects such as conflict history, inequality and discrimination.
UNESCO argues that justice-related education should not remain a minor topic in school curricula. Instead, human rights, peacebuilding and legal literacy should become central parts of learning at all levels.
Building Better Justice Systems Through Education
The report also focuses on the justice sector itself, arguing that judges, lawyers, police officers, prosecutors and prison staff need more than technical legal training.
To build people-centred justice systems, professionals must also be educated in ethics, communication, human rights and community engagement.
Evidence from 11 Latin American countries showed that better-trained judges produced significantly better judicial decisions.
The report further praised Norway’s prison officer training model, which emphasizes rehabilitation and human dignity and has contributed to lower reoffending rates.
Key Recommendations from UNESCO
The report concludes with six major recommendations for governments and international partners:
Embed human rights and legal education into school systems at all levels.
Invest more in teacher training and quality teaching conditions.
Strengthen the capacity of justice institutions to adopt people-centred approaches.
Expand educational opportunities for crime prevention and offender rehabilitation.
Promote legal empowerment programmes for marginalized communities.
Improve research and monitoring on the relationship between education and justice.
Ultimately, UNESCO insists that education alone cannot solve every injustice. But without education, building peaceful, fair and inclusive societies will remain impossible.
As UNESCO GEM Report Director Manos Antoninis stated:
> “Laws alone do not deliver just societies. People do. And people can only claim the justice they know they are entitled to and know how to access. Education is how we close that gap.”
EduTimes Africa, a product of Education Times Africa, is a magazine publication that aims to lend its support to close the yawning gap in Africa's educational development.