Concerns about growing educational privatisation in SSA have become more pervasive during the last decade mainly because rapidly increasing private sector involvement in education provision is viewed by many as undermining the attainment of Education for All and other education-related Sustainable Development Goals. Proponents of private sector provision, on the other hand, contend that the scale of private education is not only ‘huge’ but also accessible to the poor. Thus, given a supportive policy environment, PSP could become a viable, ‘egalitarian’ alternative to often poor quality public schooling in many parts of the continent.

Like so many other areas of educational policy and practice, this debate, which at times has been quite acrimonious, has been plagued by a lack of good quality information and, in particular, on the incidence and patterns of PSP in SSA as a whole. I thought it would be useful, therefore, to pull together the various information that is currently available in an attempt to get a clearer idea of what is happening and, in particular, to assess to what extent PSP is a viable alternative to public schooling in SSA.  

Read more my working paper no 10