E/CN.4/2004/21 page 22 Access to education 22. States should continue to pursue equality with regard to access to education through, inter alia, the promotion and implementation of affirmative action measures, as a follow-up to the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action. 23. The mechanisms of access to higher education should include effective measures, including affirmative action based on race, aimed at increasing the participation of people of African descent, to reflect the diversity of society, as well as to take into account the historical exclusion of people of African descent from higher education. 24. The Working Group recommends that, wherever applicable, measures should be taken to provide scholarships and education loans for people of African descent in order to increase their access to education. 25. Appropriate international and regional organizations should work with States to develop a model survey instrument for collecting disaggregated data to assist States to analyse and determine the types of policies and affirmative action needed to combat racial discrimination and provide equal access to education, health, housing and employment; the Working Group invites States and international and regional organizations to consult with it on this subject. 26. States should promote educational programmes to raise awareness and understanding of the benefits of cultural diversity. 27. More regional workshops like the workshop on affirmative action policies for people of African descent in Latin America and the Caribbean (Montevideo, May 2003), organized by OHCHR in cooperation with the Government of Uruguay, should be held. The Working Group encourages States to implement the recommendations of this workshop. 28. States should adopt, implement and adequately fund appropriate and comprehensive education and prevention programmes, accessible to all, in the area of health, including HIV/AIDS. 29. States should revise school curricula and textbooks so that they reflect the diversity of society and ensure that they do not contain stereotypes about or discriminatory references to specific ethnic groups. 30. School curricula and textbooks should also accurately reflect the contribution of Africans and people of African descent to world history and civilization, as well as their role in historical events at the national and regional levels, and teachertraining programmes should include information relating to this subject.