A/HRC/38/32/Add.1 some students are encouraged to attend private universities. According to the information received, it is often very expensive to attend such universities, which means that they are inaccessible to many students with severely limited resources. In order to tackle this problem, the Government is working to decentralize higher education by opening universities in all regions. New universities in San Pedro and Bondoukou should be operational by 2020. 39. The Special Rapporteur also noted with interest the establishment, in December 2015, of the Virtual University of Côte d’Ivoire, which is exclusively dedicated to online and distance learning. She noted that, according to the Government, the initial problems encountered by users of the Virtual University were being resolved. 40. The Government has established a system of bachelor’s degrees, master’s degrees and doctorates with the aim of meeting international standards, improving the quality of higher education and increasing the employability of university graduates. The Special Rapporteur received reports that the new system is poorly understood by students and teachers alike. The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research allocates 5.1 per cent of its budget to research and innovation; the remaining 94.9 per cent is spent on other programmes. Côte d’Ivoire currently spends less than 0.4 per cent of its gross domestic product on research and development, compared with the African Union Agenda 2063 recommendation of 1 per cent. D. Community participation: school management committees 41. The Special Rapporteur noted that the State has set up participatory bodies known as school management committees in primary and secondary schools, in order to ensure that communities are closely involved in managing the education system. These independent bodies have executive boards, which are made up of 11 or 12 members: 6 parents of students, 2 teachers, 1 bursar, 2 students and, at secondary school level, 1 inspector general. 42. School management committees are responsible for helping to maintain the buildings and facilities; helping to provide civic and moral education; fostering links between the school and the local community; supporting the socio-educational and learning activities run by the school; and helping to deal with the lack of teachers and instructors. They are also tasked with monitoring textbook management; helping to educate the students, especially girls; promoting the school canteen; and collecting and managing all of the school’s financial resources, aside from the funding provided by the State. 43. Each school management committee consists of four bodies: the general assembly, which is the committee’s decision-making body; the executive board, which is responsible for administration and management; the auditor’s office, which is a monitoring body; and the subsidiary assemblies. The general assembly is composed of the mayor or the president of the regional council; the head teacher of the school and, where appropriate, the head teachers of the other schools in the school complex; the members of the executive board; two student representatives; one teacher from each class or level; parents of students; and other community representatives. 44. It has been noted, however, that school management committees do not always operate smoothly; problems include poor management of financial resources and poor communication, resulting in a failure to involve members in strategic decision-making. There are over 8,000 such committees, of which 3,000 receive State funding. The Special Rapporteur emphasized the need to provide these committees with greater technical and financial support and to improve their planning and management, for they are the backbone of the basic education system. V. The four As of the right to education 45. In order to implement the right to education, it is necessary to develop available, accessible, acceptable and adaptable programmes. Availability means that education must be free and financed by the Government, with appropriate infrastructure and trained 8 GE.18-06824