Education, in all its various aspects, plays a determinant role in development. The concept of human development regards people's educational level as one of the most important measurable dimensions that express a society's level of development.

As mentioned in Chapter 1, educated people are better able to innovate and to adopt increasingly productive methods that allow them to lead decent, creative and longer lives, under conditions in which, as it is popularly said, "life is worth living". In their special contribution that opens this chapter , Buendia and Juvane draw our attention to the basic fact that educated people have the necessary instruments to fight against social exclusion, they can influence decisions that affect their lives, and are capable of receiving and sharing information, thus contributing to enriching the knowledge and cultural heritage of humanity.

The school education system allows the social dissemination of knowledge in an effective, efficient and consensual manner . Apart from the transmission of scientific knowledge that allows individuals to "jump stages" in the learning process, education also performs an important function in their socialisation. The school should, in principle, be inspired in family and community education so that, apart from skills, it inculcates in the new generations socially important values, and shapes attitudes such as self-discipline, pride in one's work, flexibility, the spirit of openness, and willingness to cooperate with others (UNDP, 1996: 51).

Recognition of the importance of school education in development culminated in its promotion to the realm of fundamental rights, enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Article 26 of this inter national statement of principles defends the right to education without discrimination, and establishes compulsory free basic education for all citizens of any particular country. The definition of what constitutes "basic education" is left to the discretion of each country, in accordance with its capacities, resources and priorities ^5-. In the case of Mozambique, basic education, which it is intended gradually to make universal, covers the seven grades that constitute primary education.

In its essentials, the concept of human development pursues this ideal, stressing education in the development of individuals and of nations, and drawing attention to the observance of this right through its various measuring instruments discussed in Chapters 1 and 2.

It is important to stress that the approach to education in the context of human development is substantially different from the economist perspective of "human resources", because this stresses the role of education in training "human capital". From the human resources approach, the function of education is merely to develop skills, in order to make people more productive and innovative and, as the investment that it is, the merit of educating or not educating a population does not derive from social dictates, but from its perceived social or individual rate of return.

But the concept of human development takes the premise that education is one of the basic dimensions of development, since it constitutes an inescapable choice of people, irrespective of their wealth or social status. Thus learning is regarded as being of intrinsic development value, because it makes it possible to expand the abilities of people to make informed choices about their lives, regardless of whether these abilities will or will not be applied in increased production and in innovation.

In the human development approach, school education is only of value when it genuinely contributes to expanding the general well-being of people in its broadest sense. Thus education is transformed into an end in itself. The lack of educational provision is a privation which should provoke an analysis of the causes and lead, whenever possible, to corrective action on the part of governments and of society at large ( UNDP, 1996: 54-55).

School education is a priority and an indispensable instrument in combating exclusion and social discrimination. As the 1996 Global Human Development Report (GHDR) shows, education can be a vehicle through which the equitable distribution of resources is guaranteed. For example, when the possibility of qualified personnel using their knowledge to demand more privileges is restricted through an increase in the number of trained people, then the gap in incomes may also be reduced, thus contributing to social stability (UNDP, 1996).

A further example lies in providing schooling for girls and women, a process that liberates the beneficiaries, at the same time as opening spaces and opportunities for their economic and social participation, the fundamental condition for reducing the levels of privation that effect this social group, which is the majority of the population .

The present chapter analyses the trajectory of education as an important component in broadening the choices of Mozambicans. The chapter begins with a brief survey of the trajectory of education during the colonial period in Mozambique. It then discusses in detail the various stages in the effort to provide Mozambicans with a right that was denied them during colonial rule.

The chapter identifies and analyses what, from the perspective of its authors, are the main bottlenecks in the Mozambican education system, and the main challenges posed to the sector, taking into account the internal dynamics, but above all the reality of a world under going continual and rapid transformation.

There are multiple challenges and they concern broadening access to education, reforming its content, the programmatic, social and economic constraints, reduction of external dependence and the effort to make the school a relevant instrument for the development process in its broadest sense.