A/HRC/23/56 the effective enjoyment of all other human rights, as education acts as a multiplier in enhancing the other human rights and freedoms. Such is the importance of education in the prevention of racial discrimination and the enjoyment of the civil, political, economic, cultural and social rights. 56. Although the Special Rapporteur welcomes some of the efforts and initiatives undertaken by various States to prohibit discrimination and segregation in their educational system and improve access to education opportunities for all individuals and groups, he notes that certain groups and individuals, including people of African descent, minorities, Roma, migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, and victims of caste-based discrimination still face obstacles and challenges to the full enjoyment of their right to education, as they experience a low level of education – in both quality and duration – and discrimination and segregation in schools. This persistence of discrimination among these vulnerable groups and individuals remains a challenge to the construction of a tolerant society which rests upon an inclusive education system. 57. In the light of the above, the Special Rapporteur would like to make the following recommendations: (a) States should recognize the important role of education in combating racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, in particular in promoting the principles of tolerance and respect to ethnic, religious and cultural diversity and preventing the proliferation of extremist racist and xenophobic movements and propaganda, especially among the youth; (b) States should take all necessary measures to ensure equality and nondiscrimination with regard to access to education, training and career development in education. They should pay attention to availability, accessibility, acceptability and adaptability as essential features for assessing the fulfilment of their obligations in the realization of the right to education as detailed in general comment No. 13 (1999) of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on the right to education; (c) In particular, States should adopt and implement laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin at all levels of education, both formal and non-formal, take all appropriate measures to eliminate obstacles limiting the access of children to education, including through affirmative action programmes of a temporary nature, and ensure that all children, especially those of African descent, minorities, Roma, migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, and the victims of caste-based discrimination have access without discrimination to good-quality education, including higher education. Measures to eliminate obstacles limiting access to quality education include committing appropriate resources to eliminating inequalities in educational outcomes; (d) The new information and communications technologies, including the Internet as an educational tool, are a positive contribution to combating racism through rapid and far-reaching communication and States should be encouraged to use these technologies to combat manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance in cyberspace; (e) States should recognize the important role of formal and non-formal education in the deconstruction of prejudices, positive change of negative perceptions, enhanced understanding and social cohesion. To this end, States should be encouraged in implementing educational activities and measures, including human rights training at various levels, to prevent and combat effectively racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance; 14

Select target paragraph3