Enhancing Public Education System; the role of collective action towards IMF and World Bank/IFC education financing policies

• In Event: Reclaiming public education: The movement to defend a sustainable, just and human future for all

Proposal

Right to education as enshrined in Article 26 of the UDHR[1] and other international and national legal frameworks imposes the primary responsibility to states to ensure that Public education works to serve all citizens and to regulate private for profit actors are regulated in accordance with the laws.
Strengthening public education systems guarantees equitable access and availability of inclusive and quality education for all. On the contrary, overemphasis and international for profit funding models that seek to maximize profits over innate human rights undermines the state’s ability to enhance public education, monitoring of compliance standards in education, and diversion of public resources through corrupt means.
The role of collective action by civil society actors has seen an upwards trend in informing and influencing IMF and World Bank (IFC) policies to revert the trends in financing for profit making education models to prioritize public education and strengthen public education systems. For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Kenya sought an extended arrangement under the extended fund facility and an arrangement under the extended credit facility[2] as policy response towards addressing the challenges occasioned by Covid-19 including education. Civil society organizations continue to play a key role in advocating for states’ commitment to improving the investments in public education.
Profit making in education has adversely affected access to education denying many marginalized and vulnerable children equal opportunity to enjoy their right to education. Profit seeking models of financing private education such as those provided by IFC/ World Bank among others has promoted states’ laxity in increasing public budgeting towards education financing due to reliance of private actors who in turn take advantage of weak policy implementation to escalate exclusivity. Education is growingly becoming a privilege for the rich and middle earners while the low earners and poor are being left out.

Author

• Johnstone S. Shisanya, The East African Centre for Human Rights