and parents or legal guardians.217 Where financial circumstances would prevent children from accessing primary education or participating in extra activities, financial assistance must be provided to the families to enable the full enjoyment of the right to education. The elimination of the costs of primary education must be addressed by the required plan of action. In addition to eliminating direct and indirect costs, States must address the opportunity costs of schooling. In this regard, financial obstacles can be overcome by providing financial incentives, such as free meals and transportation, for poor families to send their children to school and keep them at school.218 The privatisation of education has also gained international attention. The private schooling system supplements but does not replace the public schooling system. While some governments and international financial institutions consider privatisation is the most efficient means to finance the school system, others strongly disagree. In this connection, the HRC has held that the State does not discriminate when it provides more subsidies to public schools than to private schools.219 Similarly, the ECHR has held that States are not required to subsidise private education of a particular type or level.220 Secondary education, including technical and vocational education, must be made generally available and accessible to all Human rights instruments state that secondary and vocational or technical training should be generally available and accessible to all.221 Article 13(2)(b) of ICESCR provides that: Secondary education in its different forms, including technical and vocational secondary education, shall be made generally available and accessible to all by every appropriate means and in particular by the progressive introduction of free education. It is clear, therefore, that States have, at minimum, an obligation to regulate secondary and technical levels of education in order to ensure that programmes, services and institutions exist and function in accordance with the aims of the right to education. It was traditionally 217 The CESCR has said, however, that some indirect costs may be permissible, subject to the Committee’s examination on a case-by-case basis: see CESCR General Comment No. 11: Plans of action for primary education E/C.12/1999/4 10 May 1999 at para 7. 218 Report of the Special Rapporteur on the right to education E/CN.4/2004/45 15 January 2004 at para 22. 219 Blom v Sweden Communication No. 191/1985 4 April 1988 at 10.3 (HRC). 220 Simpson v United Kingdom Application No. 14688/89 (1989) 64 DR 188 (ECHR). 221 Article 13(2)(b) of the ICESCR and article 28(1)(b) of the CRC. See also article 26(1) of the UDHR and article 13(3)(b) of the Protocol of San Salvador. 87