States, including their governments, legislatures and other decision-makers, should:

83. Establish, where appropriate, the legislative, political and financial framework for the reform and further development of tertiary / higher education, in keeping with the terms of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which establishes that tertiary / higher education shall be ‘accessible to all on the basis of merit’. No discrimination can be accepted, no one can be excluded from tertiary / higher education or its study fields, degree levels and types of institutions on grounds of race, gender, language, religion, or age or because of any economic or social distinctions or physical disabilities;

84. Reinforce the links between tertiary / higher education and research;

85. Consider and use tertiary / higher education as a catalyst for the entire education system;

86. Develop tertiary / higher education institutions to include lifelong learning approaches, giving learners an optimal range of choice and a flexibility of entry and exit points within the system, and redefine their role accordingly, which implies the development of open and continuous access to tertiary / higher learning and the need for bridging programmes and prior learning assessment and recognition;

87. Make efforts, when necessary, to establish close links between tertiary / higher education and research institutions, taking into account the fact that education and research are two closely related elements in the establishment of knowledge;

88. Develop innovative schemes of collaboration between institutions of tertiary / higher education and different sectors of society to ensure that tertiary / higher education and research programmes effectively contribute to local, regional and national development;

89. Fulfil their commitments to tertiary / higher education and be accountable for the pledges adopted with their concurrence, at several forums, particularly over the past decade, with regard to human, material and financial resources, human development and education in general, and to tertiary / higher education in particular;

90. Have a policy framework to ensure new partnerships and the involvement of all relevant stakeholders in all aspects of tertiary / higher education: the evaluation process, including curriculum and pedagogical renewal, and guidance and counselling services; and, in the framework of existing institutional arrangements, policy-making and institutional governance;

91. Define and implement policies to eliminate all gender stereotyping in tertiary / higher education and to consolidate women’s participation at all levels and in all disciplines in which they are under-represented at present and, in particular, to enhance their active involvement in decision-making;

92. Recognize students as the centre of attention of tertiary / higher education, and one of its stakeholders. They should be involved, by means of adequate institutional structures, in the renewal of their level of education (including curriculum and pedagogical reform), and policy decision, in the framework of existing institutional arrangements;

93. Recognize that students have the right to organize themselves autonomously;

94. Promote and facilitate national and international mobility of teaching staff and students as an essential part of the quality and relevance of tertiary / higher education;

95. Provide and ensure those conditions necessary for the exercise of academic freedom and institutional autonomy so as to allow institutions of tertiary / higher education, as well as those individuals engaged in tertiary / higher education and research, to fulfil their obligations to society.

96. States in which enrolment in tertiary / higher education is low by internationally accepted comparative standards should strive to ensure a level of tertiary / higher education adequate for relevant needs in the public and private sectors of society and to establish plans for diversifying and expanding access, particularly benefiting all minorities and disadvantaged groups.

97. The interface with general, technical and professional secondary education should be reviewed in depth, in the context of lifelong learning. Access to tertiary / higher education in whatever form must remain open to those successfully completing secondary education or its equivalent or meeting entry qualifications at any age, while creating gateways to tertiary / higher education, especially for older students without any formal secondary education certificates, by attaching more importance to their professional experience. However, preparation for tertiary / higher education should not be the sole or primary purpose of secondary education, which should also prepare for the world of work, with complementary training whenever required, in order to provide knowledge, capacities and skills for a wide range of jobs. The concept of bridging programmes should be promoted to allow those entering the job market to return to studies at a later date.

98. Concrete steps should be taken to reduce the widening gap between industrially developed and developing countries, in particular the least developed countries, with regard to tertiary / higher education and research. Concrete steps are also needed to encourage increased co-operation between countries at all levels of economic development with regard to tertiary / higher education and research. Consideration should be given to making budgetary provisions for that purpose, and developing mutually beneficial agreements in order to sustain co-operative activities and projects through appropriate incentives and funding in education, research and the development of high-level experts.