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Equal rights and discrimination Equal rights and discrimination Equal rights and discrimination Equal rights and discrimination Equal rights and discrimination General Constitutional ProtectionsThe WORLD Policy Analysis Center analyzed national constitutional texts in force as of May 2017.

The Constitutions database includes analyses of constitutions from all UN member states.

We only referred to additional legislation when it was explicitly referenced in the constitution.

Although the vast majority of countries have written constitutions in place, a few countries (e.g. the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand and Israel) either have no written constitutions or have a series of laws that function similarly to a constitution, rather than a single text. In these cases, our data was collected from documents or laws that are considered to be constitutional in nature either by the country itself or by the legal community.

Why consider constitutions? Governments establish human rights through national and sub-national legislation, targeted programs and policies, and national constitutions. Among these tools, constitutions fulfill several unique and important functions:

Constitutions are fundamental building blocks of a nation’s government and laws. As such, they can play an important role in establishing values and rights.

Constitutions are particularly difficult to repeal or amend. Their commitments remain relatively stable and permanent even as different political parties assume power.

Constitutions are typically the highest laws of a country and so can be used to shape legislation and policies.

Constitutions often contain mechanisms for the legal enforcement of citizens’ rights. In countries around the world, such provisions have been used successfully to combat discrimination and hold governments accountable to their commitments.

Constitutions often outline broad rights that require complementary legislation or policies to be fully effective. For example, legislation that guarantees free secondary school helps realize the constitutional right to education. Nevertheless, constitutions’ critical role in formally establishing countries’ fundamental values makes them an important unit of analysis on their own.

Preventing Workplace Discrimination and Sexual HarassmentThe WORLD Policy Analysis Center systematically reviewed original legislation and statutory guarantees extended to the private sector in labor codes, anti-discrimination legislation, equal opportunity legislation, and penal codes. Data is current as of January 2021 for variables focused on gender and sexual harassment, as of May 2018 for variables focused on disability, and as of August 2016 for 13 protected characteristics. Original, full-text, national-level legislation for all 193 United Nations member states was identified primarily using the International Labour Organization (ILO)’s NATLEX database. The World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law and other supplemental sources were consulted to ensure all applicable legislation was reviewed.This data analysis has focused on national-level legislation; for countries that legislate at the sub-national level and have no federal policy in place, we coded based on the lowest level of protection set at the state or provincial level. This analysis captures legislative language that explicitly applies to private-sector workplaces, and excludes provisions that guarantee non-discrimination without specifying their applicability to work (such as protections which may apply to public spaces or educational institutions). In some countries, case law has extended the application of more general prohibitions to specific areas of work and to cover additional protected characteristics. However, systematic review of case law is outside of the scope of this analysis and rights extended through litigation are not reflected in these findings.For details on the variables included in this category, please see WORLD's global maps on Equal Rights and Discrimination.For more information about WORLD’s approach to building globally comparative databases on policies affecting human health, development, well-being, and equity, please visit our Methodology page.Non-Discrimination and Inclusion for Students with DisabilitiesThe WORLD Policy Analysis Center reviewed original legislation and statutory protections extended to public education in education acts, child protection legislation, and anti-discrimination legislation as of June 2018 for all 193 UN member states. Original legislative texts were identified primarily using the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)'s Observatory on the Right to Education and the International Labour Organization (ILO)'s NATLEX database.Data analyses focused on national-level laws and policies collected by the UN and other global organizations. For countries that legislate educational provisions at the sub-national level (and have no relevant federal law in place), we coded based on the lowest level of protection set at the state or provincial level, utilizing university-based legal compendiums and government websites as necessary.Finally, this systematic review included legislative guarantees to non-discrimination that were both specific to public education, and broadly extended to the public sector. In some countries like Canada, case law has applied less explicit guarantees to education (i.e. guarantees to non-discrimination in “the provision of goods, services, facilities, or accommodations customarily available to the general public”); while acknowledging that this is an important step forward, our coding frameworks only capture exactly what is written in legislation.