World Bank Changes Policy on For-Profit Privatized Schools
Until recently, the World Bank has been a vocal supporter of for-profit privatized education such as that offered by Bridge International, which had been expanding rapidly in Africa.
Thanks in large part to the work of Education International, a world confederation of teachers’ unions, the World Bank has changed its policy.
In a sudden and far-reaching policy shift, World Bank President David Malpass has agreed to major reforms that include officially freezing any direct or indirect investments in private for-profit pre-primary, primary and secondary schools. This has been a critical issue for Education International for many years and has been the key focus of our interactions with the Bank.
It has also been a major thrust of our Global Response campaign, where member organisations, regions and the EI secretariat have worked together to research and expose the activities of private, for-profit firms. Examples of that work include Uganda and Kenya, where illegal CONTINUE READING: World Bank Changes Policy on For-Profit Privatized Schools | Diane Ravitch's blog