Mozambique

Country status

Mozambique has not ratified the UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education.

Country status

Mozambique ratified the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women on 21/04/1997 with no reservations.

Country status

The Constitution of Mozambique enshrines the right to education but this right is limited to citizens and therefore does not apply to all within the territory. The Constitution contains a non-discrimination provision with sex as a prohibited ground, and principles of equality and universality, protecting equal treatment for both sexes.

Constitution of Mozambique of 2004 (unofficial translation)

Article 35. Principle of Universality and Equality All citizens are equal before the law, and they shall enjoy the same rights and be subject to the same duties, regardless of colour, race, sex, ethnic origin, place of birth, religion, level of education, social position, the marital status of their parents, their profession or their political preference.

Article 36. Principle of Gender Equality Men and women are equal before the law in all spheres of political, economic, social and cultural life.

Article 39. Acts against National Unity All acts intended to undermine national unity, to disturb social harmony or to create divisions, situations of privilege or discrimination based on colour, race, sex, ethnic origin, place of birth, religion, level of education, social status, physical or mental ability, the marital status of one’s parents, profession or political preference, shall be punished in terms of the law.

Article 88 (1). In the Republic of Mozambique, education shall be a right and a duty of each citizen.

Country status

The legal framework guarantees the right to education for all. This right is explicitly guaranteed without discrimination, including based on gender, but only for children.  

Law on the National Education System (No. 6/1992) (unofficial translation)

Article 1. The National Education System is guided by the following general principles: (a) Education is a right and a duty of all citizens; …

Law on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child (No. 7/2008) (unofficial translation)

Article 38 (1). every child has the right to education with a view to their full development, of their gifts, abilities and potentialities, preparing them for the exercise of citizenship and qualifying it for work, ensuring them, namely: (a) equality in the conditions of access and permanence in school …

(3) No child shall be excluded from the school network for reasons of gender, religion, social, physical or health status

Country status

The Law on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child calls for the progressive implementation of compulsory basic education and the extension of the compulsory period of schooling to the secondary level.

Law on the National Education System (No. 6/1992) (unofficial translation)

Article 3. The general objectives of the National Education System are: … b) guarantee basic education for all citizens according to the country's development through the progressive introduction of compulsory schooling; … Article 5 (1) Mozambican children of six years of age will be enrolled in the 1st class.

(4) The Council of Ministers will determine the rate of implementation of compulsory education in accordance with the socio-economic development of the country.

Law on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child (No. 7/2008) (unofficial translation)

Article 40. It is the duty of the State to create, in a progressive manner, the conditions for the child to be assured: (a). Basic education, compulsory and free, inclusive for those that did not have access to it at the right age; (b). The extension of compulsory and free of charge education to the secondary level; …

Country status

The Law on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child calls for the progressive implementation of free basic education and the extension of the free of charge period of schooling to the secondary level.

Law on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child (No. 7/2008) (unofficial translation)

Article 40. It is the duty of the State to create, in a progressive manner, the conditions for the child to be assured: (a). Basic education, compulsory and free, inclusive for those that did not have access to it at the right age; (b). The extension of compulsory and free of charge education to the secondary level; …

Law on the National Education System (No. 6/1992) (unofficial translation)

Article 5(1). Children of six years of age will be enrolled in the 1st class.

Country status

No legal provision has been identified that guarantees free and compulsory pre-primary education.

Law on the National Education System (No. 6/1992) (unofficial translation)

Article 5(5). The attendance of pre-schooling is optional.

Country status

The legal framework guarantees equal access to professional training.

Law on the National Education System (No. 6/1992) (unofficial translation)

Article 3. The general objectives of the National Education System: … (a) to ensure that all Mozambicans have access to professional training

Article 25(4) (a). The state should guarantee scholarships with pre-established quotas and other forms of support to low-income classes, and for each region. These scholarships can be attributed to students coming from state and private superior education institutions. (b). In state superior education institutions, quotas and or the reservation of places to the various groups of individuals mentioned in the previous provision may be considered. 

Article 25(3). the access to each course of higher education should take into account the candidate’s preference, level of scientific knowledge and skills, as well as the capacity of the respective institution.

Constitution of Mozambique of 2004 (unofficial translation)

Article 88(2). The State shall promote the extension of education to continuous professional training, and the equal access to the enjoyment of this right by all citizens.

Country status

The minimum age of marriage is 18, although boys and girls may marry at 16 years old with parental consent if there is recognized public and family interest.

Family Law of Mozambique (No.10/2004) (unofficial translation)

Article 30. … (1). The following are nullifying impediments, preventing the marriage of the person to whom they concern, with any other: a) an age inferior to eighteen years old …

(2). A woman or man over sixteen years of age, by way of exception, may marry, when there are circumstances of recognized public and family interest and there is consent of the parents or legal representatives.

Country status

The minimum age of employment is ambiguous. The baseline is 15 years old with the authorization of the child’s legal representatives, however work can be performed by minors between 12 and 15 years old in exceptional cases as defined by the Ministers of Labour, Health and Education. The work for this age group is not expressly classified as ‘light work’ and there is no further extrapolation into the type of work that minors can engage in. The compulsory period of education is not clearly defined in the legislation therefore it is not possible to ascertain if the ages are aligned.

Constitution of Mozambique of 2004 (unofficial translation)

Article 121. Childhood … (4) Child labour is prohibited, whether the children are of compulsory school going age or any other age.

Labour Law (No. 23/2007) (unofficial translation)

 Article 26. Admission to Work (1). The employer may only admit to work a minor who has reached the age of fifteen, subject to authorization of their legal representative. (2). By specific diploma, the Council of Ministers shall define the nature and conditions under which, exceptionally, work may be carried out by minors between twelve and fifteen years.

Country status

Corporal punishment is not expressly prohibited in law. There is a limited protection from violence from teachers, although this is not expanded to the entire educational institution.

Constitution of Mozambique of 2004 (unofficial translation)

Article 121 (1). All children have the right to protection from the family, from society and from the State, having in mind their integral development.

(2). Children, in particular orphans, disabled and abandoned children, have protection from the family, society and the State against all forms of discrimination, ill treatment and the abusive use of authority within the family and in other institutions.

The Law on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child (No. 7/2008) (unofficial translation)

Article 6. … No child shall be subjected to treatment that is negligent, discriminatory, violent and cruel, nor be subjected to any form of exploitation or oppression, being punished by law all acts which amount to an infringement of the principles set out in this provision.

Article 38(1). Every child has the right to education … in particular: b) the right to be respected by their educators …

Article 64 (1). The State shall adopt special legislative and administrative measures with a view to protecting the child against any physical or psychological abuse, ill and negligent treatment on the part of the parents, tutor, host family, legal representative or third person.

(2). The legislative measures to be adopted should provide for the application of sanctions against perpetrators of abuse, ill-treatment or negligent treatment.

Country status

A 2003 decree stated that pregnant school girls should be excluded from day school and requested to transfer to night courses. It has been reported that this decree was repealed in 2018 by the decree No. 435/GM/MINEDH/2018 (UNESCO did not have access to it). No explicit disposition concerning the right to education of pregnant girls and women has been identified in the legislation. 

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[1] Human Rights Watch, https://www.hrw.org/video-photos/interactive/2022/08/29/brighter-future-... [accessed on 23/09/2022]