The Delors report remains a timely and challenging agenda for shaping education from the earliest years. This article reviews the status of basic education, defined as a passport to life in the report. Despite progress toward universal primary education and gender parity, countries are still far from education targets adopted in 2000. Lack of care and education programmes for young children, of literacy and life skills programmes for youth and adults, and poor education quality are undermining progress towards education for all. The article stresses the importance of building inclusive systems that reach all learners regardless of their background and circumstances and provide appropriate conditions for learning. It reviews UNESCO's actions in education, emphasising the necessity of a rights-based, holistic vision as an imperative for reducing poverty and promoting sustainable development.