E/CN.4/2005/88 page 10 27. For the same reasons schools, when they do exist, are often in substandard physical condition, teacher absenteeism is high, the requisite school supplies are not delivered with any regularity and the use of audiovisual equipment and other modern technology is particularly difficult (when electricity has not been installed, for example). The supply of educational services for indigenous children is generally farther below the recommended minimum than is the case for other sectors of the population. 28. According to information received by the Special Rapporteur, some 81,000 homes in certain parts of India (Andra Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, Rajastan and Bengal) lack access to education services. In one tribal area in Tripura, for example, many schools lack basic physical facilities, as they are converted during the rainy season into shelters for livestock; the poor sanitary conditions in the schools then affect school attendance.1 29. In Ecuador and Bolivia some indigenous students must travel long distances on foot for hours, cross rivers and use canoes to attend schools that often lack piped drinking water. According to the Department of Education in Ecuador’s Cotopaxi Province, 526 rural children did not go to school in 2003 because the schools were too far away. In Colombia the level of education on indigenous reservations is reported to be minimal, owing to a lack of infrastructure and teachers. 30. In State schools in Ecuador the Government runs a school food programme for indigenous children, yet a study shows that over 1.3 million pupils do not regularly receive the breakfasts and lunches provided under the programme. 31. In the Russian Federation indigenous peoples in the north find their access to schools restricted by their remote situation, the vast distances and transport difficulties, as well as the deteriorating school infrastructure. These peoples’ economic problems exist alongside a number of serious social problems such as unemployment and high rates of alcoholism, suicide and infant mortality to create an environment in which it is hard to determine what educational strategy is most appropriate to local conditions. 32. The documents that the Special Rapporteur consulted also show that public spending on education for indigenous children is generally lower than for other sectors of the population, that teachers of indigenous children tend to receive lower pay and incentives than do other teachers and that their level of preparation is also below average. 33. In addition, indigenous children also often do not attend school with the same regularity as other children, even if they have, at least in principle, an opportunity to do so. Sometimes this is because children are needed by their parents in the field or in the home, especially at certain times of the year such as harvest time or grazing periods, so that their school attendance is 1 Information concerning many of the cases mentioned in this report comes from the documentation submitted to the Expert Seminar on Indigenous Education, the report of which is contained in document E/CN.4/2005/88/Add.4. See also Linda King and Sabine Schielmann, “El reto de la educación indígena: experiencias y perspectives” [“The challenge of indigenous education: experience and perspectives”], UNESCO, 2004, Cultural Survival Quarterly, 2004.