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Vol. IV/2006

 

Casella di testo:  Rivista di Diritto dell'Economia, dei Trasporti e dell'Ambiente
	                                                                         
	                                                                                     «GIURETA», IV/2006
 

 

 

 

 


Public law and Euro-Mediterranean management education:

Right to education for a coherence

Between training models and ongoing change

Gabriella Cangelosi*

 

Index

1. Education: a fundamental human right

2. Creating the Community of Democratic States

3. Agreements for a Euro-Mediterranean Partnership

4. A Democratisation in the European Union’s External Relations as a promotion of fundamental Rights

5. Education in Arab Countries: a Euro-Mediterranean perspective

6. Background for a management education

7. A strong multidisciplinary approach

8. A constitutional approach: the development of fundamental rights in the Euro-Mediterranean Countries

9. Conclusion: guiding principles for a Euro-Mediterranean management education

 

 

ABSTRACT

Education is a fundamental human right. This paper analyses the management education and its developments in the Euro-Mediterranean area through the Constitutional studies of right to education.

One of the main objectives of the proposal is to identify the most appropriate training models to facilitate ongoing change. So a right answer can be a right way to create, first of all, a connection between training and public policies and, especially, to promote a possible implementation of the various action plan of the many countries interested.

Key words: management education, training, Euro-Mediterranean area, public law, public policies, right to education.

 

1. Education: a fundamental human right

Historically, education was defined in many different ways but not as a human right and this heritage colours local laws and policies in most countries.

A great deal of attractive rhetoric about integrating (so called “mainstreaming”) human rights education into all education has been generated during the past decade.

Now the right to education is promoted and protected at all levels (from local to global) and it fully reflects the interplay between the dual processes of globalization[1] and localization which are taking place.

The right to education[2] can be analysed by focussing on the corresponding governmental obligations on two levels: on the level of individual states and on the level of global and regional inter-governmental structures within which governments act collectively.

On the first level, individual states are held primarily responsible for ensuring that human rights are effectively safeguarded and respected by public law and public policies.

On the second level, global economic and fiscal policies can constrain both the ability and the willingness of individual governments to guarantee the right to education.

The identification and elimination of obstacles to the realization of the right to education is the key to progress.

 

2. Creating the Community of Democratic States

The perspective of a Free Trade Area should be accompanied, following the example of what is happening in Europe, by a funding framework enabling social cohesion and solidarity policies to be put into practice to mitigate its possible negative consequences.

In the Barcelona Declaration (1995), the Euro-Mediterranean Partners agreed on the establishment of a Euro-Mediterranean Free Trade Area (EMFTA) by the target date of 2010[3].

Promoting education, training, modernisation of management, creation of infrastructure, competitiveness and innovation are measures which require significant financial outlay on the part of the Union compatible with the ambition of the proposal to construct a Community of Democratic States[4]. Such measures are a part of European shared responsibility.

Creating the Community of Democratic States means establishing an characteristic action plan and some intermediate goals, in which control of performance creation of the Community of Democratic States.

There are many different indicators, for example the economic development, so we can see that in the Euro-Mediterranean area has not brought enough strength to face the still high rate of population growth.

This growth is especially demanding on the collateral needs of the population, and in particular, in the field of education and in the capacity of the system to place them into a labour market that faces the challenge of absorbing them.

This is a key factor in developing the region with social cohesion.

 

3. Agreements for a Euro-Mediterranean Partnership

The Euro-Mediterranean Conference of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, held in Barcelona on 27-28 November 1995, marked the starting point of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (so called Barcelona Process).

This Partnership, brings together the 25 Member States of the European Union and 10 States of the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean region (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Israel, Palestinian Authority, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Turkey), had three chapters: political, economic and financial, and cultural, social and human[5].

A dialogue has been established at the level of experts on certain sensitive issues, such as the human rights. Creating a climate of trust and dialogue, has been established between Arabs, Europeans, Israelis and Turks and has been favourable to the European Union’s external presence.

During the Conference of Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Luxembourg (May 2005), were adopted consensual conclusions, proposing the following as priority fields for the future: human rights and democracy, sustainable economic growth and education.

The perspective of a Euro-Mediterranean area of higher education and research has been perceived by several theorists as a basic condition providing opportunities to study and work in a multi-ethnic and multi-lingual environment characterised by equal opportunity and equal dignity. And so it’s very important the creation of an “integrated higher education space”, characterized by great flexibility and a high degree of articulation in the training given.

As part of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership process, a new generation of bilateral agreements (1998-2005) have been set up between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the Mediterranean partnership countries of the other. These replace the first generation of agreements, i.e. the cooperation agreements of the 1970s.

The European Union between 1998 and 2005 concluded seven Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreements with the Arab Republic of Egypt, the State of Israel, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Republic of Lebanon, the Kingdom of Morocco, the Republic of Tunisia and the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria. These agreements provide a suitable framework for North-South political dialogues.

They also serve as a basis for the gradual liberalisation of trade in the Mediterranean area, and set out the conditions for economic, social and cultural cooperation between the EU and each partner country.

 

Act

Entry into force

Official journal

Decision 2005/690/EC,

People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria

01.09.2005

OJ L 265 of 10.10.2005

Decision 2004/635/EC,

Arab Republic of Egypt

01.06.2004

OJ L 304 of 30.09.2004

Decision 2002/357/EC,

Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

01.05.2002

OJ L 129 of 15.05.2002

Decision 2000/384/EC, State of Israel

01.06.2000

OJ L 147 of 21.06.2000

Decision 2000/204/EC,Kingdom of Morocco

01.03.2000

OJ L 138 of 09.06.2000

Decision 98/238/EC, Republic of Tunisia

01.03.1998

OJ L 97 of 30.03.1998

Table a: Acts References

 

The agreements stress that cooperation should promote economic and social development. Opening permanent dialogue should stimulate reforms that take account of fundamental social rights and the most disadvantaged sections of the population. The forms of cooperation in these areas vary from one partner country to another.

Cooperation actions are mainly intended to manage the movements of persons and workers, to ensure that the role of women in public life is promoted, to enable social protection systems to be developed and to promote improvements in living conditions.

The parties are, also, committed to actions to spread knowledge about different cultures and increase mutual respect between them. The agreements refer to the crucial role played by education and professional qualifications, and the importance of core international labour standards.

 

4. A Democratisation in the European Union’s External Relations as a promotion of fundamental Rights

Benita Ferrero-Waldner (European Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighbourhood Policy[6]) said[7]: Respect for human rights is one of the most fundamental and universal values of our world. All of us, in our official capacity and in our private lives, have a responsibility to promote and protect the rights of our fellow members of the human family, be that at home or elsewhere in the world.

Since the Treaty of Rome[8], the European integration has been founded upon and defined by universal principles of liberty and democracy, respect for the rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms.

In this context, we recognise the crucial role of education, also, for political, social and economic development.

Education and training are crucial for the national future and euro-mediterranean perspective. High quality and accessible education is essential for all citizens, such as future entrepreneurs, workers, researchers.

Euro-Mediterranean-level actions on culture are indispensable for promoting a sense of Euro-Mediterranean Area and to support an evolving identity of each country.

We must be strained to bring about a better understanding of others’ cultures and wider recognition of a common heritage, completely we respect the cultural diversity.

Promoting, so in a spirit of new governance, forms of active participation for citizens, particularly young people, thus contributing to the development of mutual understanding and trust and a spirit of tolerance, in a Euro-Mediterranean Area open to the rest of the world.

5. Education in Arab Countries: a Euro-Mediterranean perspective

South Mediterranean countries (such as Morocco, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine to which we refer to as Maghreb and Mashreq) have witnessed a peculiar improvement in education[9].

As the “Arab Human Development Report” also emphasised, the most serious problem facing Arab education is its deteriorating quality (AHDR, 2002, 47-51). This emphasis, as noted in the “Arab Human Development Report 2003”[10], will be laid on that crucial aspect of education and its impact on knowledge. In fact, about education, the recommendations are the following:

®                            Education reform should be a main and permanent item on the agenda of summits and meetings.

®                            There is still much room to create pan-Arab educational institutions and enhance the efficiency of existing ones, both governmental and nongovernmental.

®                            Higher education is perhaps one of the most important areas of Arab cooperation with Europe.

®                            Graduate studies, research and publication are among the areas that should be given priority in such cooperation efforts.

®                            Networking among educational institutions using ICT (Information & Communication Technologies) and creation of knowledge networks among researches would be effective means of building collaboration.

®                            For expanding and improving education the following are important; Self education or learning to learn means greater focus on tools of education.

®                            Benefiting from modern educational technology and ICT, these technologies can play an important role in formal and in informal education.

®                            There should be a constant evaluation of education.

®                            The role of the teachers’ should be rethought in light of a new, multifaceted understanding of their task based on guiding, coordinating, evaluating, teaching, etc.

®                            The decentralization of the educational administration should be encouraged: There should be more freedom.

®                            Areas of expansion and improvement in education with a special emphasis on women and girls include the following:

            - Adult education

            - Pre-school education

            - Children with special needs, particularly the gifted.

            - Technical and vocational education

            - Higher education

            - Cultivation of talents in early childhood.

Now this development has, also, an impact on Economic Growth. In fact a recently published study of the World Bank entitled “Gender and Economic Development”[11] highlights that a reduction of the gender gap in education may translate into an increase in the GNP per capita and a correlative increase of the economic growth by 0.5 to 0.9% per year as demonstrated in the Asian countries. Moreover, it mentioned that in high development countries, an increase by 1% of the enrolment of women in secondary education translates into 0.3% increase in the GNP per capita.

 

6. Background for a management education

The development of Euro-Mediterranean partner countries requires the strengthening of management capabilities and capacities, and especially in small enterprises.

In this context management education must be adapted to their type and characteristics with training activity directed to: learning and applying the “Quality approach”, as well as those methods and procedures for monitoring and measuring improvements must also be adapted to the type of country, with each economy and social and political assets.

First of all the response requires a common and innovative “Approach to Quality”, as well as to educational and training tools for the dissemination of a common approach. The information and communication society can make this approach accessible to the Euro-Mediterranean regions.

Recognising the crucial role of education for political, social and economic development, each Euro-Mediterranean partner must improve equitable access to quality education in line with the Millennium Development Goals and the Educational objectives. So these partners must undertake measures aiming to: ensure equality of access to quality education at all levels for girl and boy students; reduce disparities in educational achievement between Euro-Mediterranean states under internationally recognised education standards; enhance graduate employment through efficient, high quality higher education and greater co-operation across higher education and research; increase awareness and understanding of the different cultures and civilisations of the region, including through conservation and restoration of cultural heritage.

Many studies have concentrated their attention on the development of Euro-Mediterranean Management models (based on the relationship between many different elements), so we have four approaches: the personal Development (Learner centered); Anglo-Saxon management approach; Euro-Mediterranean management approach; Euro-Mediterranean values and culture (identity).

 

7. A strong multidisciplinary approach

to develop the human resources and promote understanding between different cultures and rapprochement between the peoples of the euro-mediterranean area

Barcelona Declaration, 1995

Since years there is a debate about the new universalism of fundamental rights, that mainly regarded the expansion capability of the Constitutional State, connected to the generalization of a common heritage of fundamental rights and so to the right to education.

This scientific debate showed a strong multidisciplinary approach to identify the most appropriate training models to facilitate ongoing change.

Under the point of view of constitutional rights studies, we remember the works by Peter Haeberle, that focused on concepts like “cooperative constitutional State”, “open society of the interprets of the Constitution”, “global image of the constitutional State” and “common European constitutional law”.

Under the point of view of legal philosophy studies, the most recent study about the dimension of rights in the scenery of the multicultural societies has been deeply influenced by the contrast among positions based on the classical liberalism, communitarism and multiculturalism. These positions are been found in the works by Brugger, Huster and Kymlycka.

In Italy in the last years the debate on the new universalism of human rights caused a particular confrontation, which involved scholars of constitutional law, political and legal philosophy like Ferrajoli and Facchi.

We want to put under evidence that this debate (regarding the constitutional cosmopolitism) is a phenomenon with a continuity, able to be critically analysed. After an initial enthusiasm about the chance to export typically west-oriented systems, the doctrine is now careful about the chance of generalized success of this approach.

We therefore see the opportunity to study the fundaments of a educational model (based on a new universalism of human rights) and of its difficult to be adopted in the praxis.

In the economy law the study of the material dimension of the fundamental rights as fundament of a possible observation of the phenomenon following the opposite dimension of power, already accepted by the constitutional law studies, is under analyse and stressed the attitude of “private powers” to reduce the spheres of individual liberties like the public powers do.

The Italian doctrine aims to affirm the warranties of fundamental rights and values of constitutionalism also in the new relationships among private powers present in the juridical systems. An interesting methodological perspective can come also from the study of the relationships between big international companies and juridical production, in front of the reduction of the fundamental rights to mere interests in the normative process of the “globalization”.

We can generally affirm that the juridical and philosophical-political science paid a occasional attention to the topic of this paper.

This subject has instead always been analysed by interesting but nevertheless partial approaches by now; thanks to the need of a research aimed to a sever study of the constitutional cosmopolitism also taking account of the foreign studies – American, English and French - already started.

 

8. A constitutional approach: the development of fundamental rights in the Euro-Mediterranean Countries

The message is clear: we intend to help the experts in a evaluation about the theory of constitutional process in consideration of the recent democratisation processes as well as of the development of fundamental rights in the Euro-Mediterranean Countries.

This approach analyses the aspects of the democratisation processes in the Euro-Mediterranean area, in order to put under evidence the various aspects of the different local forms of constitutionalism in this region; it considers the juridical dimension of the relationships between individuals and private powers.

The main goal is to give a right answer can be a right way to create, first of all, a connection between training and public policies and, especially, to promote a possible implementation of the various action plan of the many countries interested. This is to obtain a final verification of the reliability of the theory of constitutional cosmopolitism, which means to evaluate if it is possible to recognize homogeneous propagation processes of rights and warranties into the Euro-Mediterranean area.

The cosmopolitan approach is a typical aspect of the constitutionalism, at least from the beginning of the big bourgeois Revolutions, that fixed its basic principles from a juridical perspective. The universality of human rights is in fact affirmed from 1789 on, and since always represented a stable principle of the western juridical heritage, although hardly maintained in certain periods.
The Constitutional State until its actual structure had very different and often hard developments. Nevertheless, its conceptual model seems to be very homogeneous and compulsoriness, also for the homogeneous cultural environments where this model took place.
The continuing differentiation of the western societies, already started at the beginning of the 20th century, but increased through the multiculturalism approach, put the constitutionalism theory under pressures very hard to eliminate through the mere integration.
The analysed area has recently been affected by democratisation processes that deeply redefined the characters of the institutional structure. We can remember the sudden and contradictory process followed to the fall of the Soviet Union and the Eastern European Countries, as well as the hard and difficult democratisation of some Arabian Countries of the Euro-Mediterranean area, first of all Turkey, candidate to become a member State of the European Union. There are obviously different religious, cultural, juridical contexts affected by such democratisation processes; however, all of them seem to agree with some fundamental premises typical of the political-juridical Western tradition, as the protection of fundamental rights, also through a difficult attempt to define the border lines between political experience and religious faith.
We must define through a comparative approach similar and different aspects between these constitutional traditions.
In order to evaluate the compulsory functionality of a Constitutionalism of human rights in recently democratised Countries, as well as in Countries affected by expansion of the multicultural society. A further goal of the project is therefore to define the relationships among individuals, intermediate groups and public powers on the ground of the human rights and the juridical warranties, of the political participation, of the use of financial resources, and of the local private autonomies.
The societies are affected also by globalization process, that realize a space of juridical relationships impossible to insert in a national or international order: for the Eastern European Countries it is necessary to analyse how the join of the free market by most of these Countries can go together with the principle of equality and the fundaments of the welfare state. For the Arabian Countries it is instead necessary to evaluate the laicism principle as regards the effectiveness of the constitutional rights in religious traditions and institutions radically different from the fundamental values of the culture of rights and liberties.

The constitutionalism showed from its first times a compulsory nature, typical of a tradition aimed to influence the political and juridical structures through certain basic principles realized in a millenary human experience.

The theoretical approach of this study must therefore be proofed taking account of the normative holding of the protection of fundamental rights in the considered geographical areas, affected by a growing join to values and structures of the European constitutionalism.

9. Conclusion: guiding principles for a Euro-Mediterranean management education

The Barcelona Process promotes intercultural dialogue and aims to build social, cultural and human partnership among the peoples of the Euro-Mediterranean area.

The creation of a Euro-Mediterranean area of higher education and research has been perceived as a basic condition when providing opportunities to study and work in a multi-ethnic and multi-lingual environment characterised by equal opportunity and equal dignity.

An Euro-Mediterranean cooperation involves tasks and challenges for Europe as a whole and the Mediterranean as a whole. This is a peculiar relation, in fact, regional, decentralized, flexible cooperation schemes (throughout the region and between the region and Europe) should be explored.

Open debates need open spaces. First of all, the dialogue between civil society and local, regional, national and intergovernmental representatives in the region should be encouraged; spaces for cultural and educational interaction should be multiplied and supported.

The development of intercultural competence, the sharing of knowledge, and capacity-building are essential for strengthening a genuine Euro-Mediterranean cooperation.

This cooperation should be a tool for replacing mutual stereotypes by a realistic recognition of common ground, differences and inequalities and, furthermore, it should be based on genuine partnership. Dialogue and cooperation need mobility in all directions, and the international community should oppose the building of both real and mental walls which prevent such mobility. Cultural operators, intellectuals, educators, researchers and journalists often lead the way in the process of understanding. Their mobility has to be facilitated and supported.

However migration should be approached in a way which stresses mutual benefits. Intercultural competence should be valued in cultural policies and programmes.

Cooperation and the sharing of knowledge should contribute to the development of educational policies and sustainable cultural infrastructure, especially in regions where cultural policies are presently weak, or where cultural infrastructure is or has been destroyed.

This “Euro-Mediterranean project” requires various investigations to be made. These should be entrusted to experts to deal with: the identification (using topics of action) of operators that can be rapidly mobilized; the examination and evaluation of information transfer systems that are already organized within existing networks in order to broaden them; the examination of the possibilities for widening and gathering these networks to open them to all interested Euro-Mediterranean partners; draw up proposals for the organization of this network.

It is necessary focused attention on some specific aspects of training: continuous training, high training and remote training.

There are the specific goals in the field of training: to promote training as a way to develop territory and civil society; to favour dialogue between the several actors involved in education and training systems; to promote interregional comparisons on training (at national, European and Euro-Mediterranean level); to define innovative training modalities and pathways; to contribute to the improvement of the skills certification process and to facilitate the mutual recognition of the same between actors from different areas.



* Dottoranda di ricerca in “Diritto dell’economia, dei trasporti e dell’ambiente”, cultore di diritto pubblico, Facoltà di Economia, Università degli Studi di Palermo.

[1] J., TOOLEY (1999) The Global Education Industry. Lessons from Private Education in Developing Countries, International Finance Corporation and Institute of Economic Affairs, Washington D.C. and London.

[2] The Dakar Framework for Action - Education for All: Meeting Our Collective Commitments, Text adopted by the World Education Forum, Dakar, Senegal, 26–28 April 2000.

[3] This is to be achieved by means of the Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreements negotiated and concluded between the European Union and the Mediterranean Partners, together with free trade agreements between the partners themselves.

[4] The word democracy comes from the Greek words demos (people) and kratos (government). Democracy is a “government by the people”, exercised either directly or through elected representatives; it is based on the provisions to provide broad-based citizen involvement in the public decision-making making process. A democratic system also needs the presence of a high degree of freedom, constitutionally granted to and retained by the citizens.

[5] The comprehensive Euro-Mediterranean partnership, in fact, focuses on three key aspects: the political and security aspect aims to establish a common area of peace and stability; the economic and financial aspect hopes to allow the creation of an area of shared prosperity; the social, cultural and human aspect aims to develop human resources and promote understanding between cultures and exchanges between civil societies.

[6] The European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) was formulated as a consequence of the enlargement of the European Union towards the east, which took place in May 2004, whose declared objective is to help the creation of a ring of stability, security and prosperity around the enlarged EU. Officially, the European Commission has pointed out that the European Neighbourhood Policy is founded on the contractual agreements between the EU and its neighbour countries.

[7] International Human Rights Day, Brussels, 10 December 2005.

[8] The Treaty of Rome signed in Rome on 25 March 1957 and entered into force on 1 January 1958. The Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) was signed at the same time and the two are therefore jointly known as the Treaties of Rome.

[9] Women’s enrolment in secondary education has grown with an average of 4% to 5% within the period from 1985 to 1995.

[10] See United Nations Development Programme, Arab Fund For Economic And Social Development,  http://www.undp.org.sa.

[11] Éditions Saint-Martin 2002, Gender and Economic Development, Towards gender equality for the rights, the resources and the participation; 2003, Genre et développement économique, Vers l'égalité des sexes dans les droits, les ressources, etc.

 

 

Data di pubblicazione: 1 settembre 2006.