This manual is written for teachers and educators in the Africa region who work with young people both in the formal and non-formal educational environments who want to introduce human rights in their teaching practices. ‘Siniko’ is a word in Bambara, Mandingo, and Dioula which means literally ‘tomorrow’s business’. It translates loosely into ‘things that the future holds’ or ‘what we want for future generations’.


The manual is designed as a basic introduction, with advice on methodology, activities for older and younger children, and ideas for action. The approach, as stated in the introduction, stresses the practical rather than the theoretical. The intention is that educators can take this material and adapt it to suit their own circumstances and context.


The manual is divided into six parts. Part one explains what human rights are and what is understood by human rights education. It also answers some common questions about human rights education. Part two contains teaching methods, ideas for designing teaching activities and how they can be incorporated into the curriculum, as well as information on evaluation. Parts three and four contain example activities for older and younger children which can be adapted to suit specific circumstances and contexts. They are organised in the format: title; aim; learning points; what you need; time; how to do it; questions; and choices. For reference purposes, part five contains the full or simplified text of selected human rights documents. The manual concludes with a section which gives advice on building a human rights network and provides details of useful organisations, funders, books, and internet resources.