10 years of the global movement for free, quality public education for all
In a short interview Juana Barragán Díaz from the Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (GI-ESCR) discusses the growth and evolution of the global movement to strengthen public education. Juana highlights positive developments regarding the right to education since 2015, the ongoing challenges and why we must continue to strengthen public education.
Video titled ‘GI-ESCR’s Juana Barragán - 10 years of the Public Education and Human Rights Coalition’.
What was the global situation regarding privatisation in and of education in 2015?
Juana: The global situation ten years ago was marked by increasing privatisation of education: public-private partnerships were expanding; low-fee private schools were multiplying; the so-called “school choice” movements gaining traction; and, the increasing establishment of voucher systems and other financing models redirecting public funds into the private sector around the world.
These trends were also accompanied by donor funds increasingly flowing towards private actors, while public schools, especially in low- and middle-income countries, strained, lacking adequate support to meet the educational needs of the population.
As the Sustainable Development Goals were being drafted and adopted, particularly SDG 4 committing the world to inclusive, equitable, quality education and lifelong learning for all, the debates sharpened among experts, educational stakeholders, and civil society organisations. Attention turned to particularly hard questions such as what would these privatisation shifts entail in practice for equity, cohesion, inclusion, justice, and the very purpose of education as a public good?
Why was increasing privatisation of and in education an issue?
Juana: Research has shown why privatisation of and in education is an issue. Growing privatisation of education leads to: economic discrimination and segregation, as exemplified by the well-known example of the voucher system in Chile; lower quality and unequal access for marginalised groups; frequent disregard for labour laws and standards, seriously impacting teachers; the reinforcement of unbalanced power relations; lack of transparency and unequal participation in the governance of education institutions; as well as loss of democratic public control. Above all, privatisation leads to a growing precarisation of the public system, particularly through the redirection of resources towards private interests.
How did civil society respond?
Juana: In the face of the evidence, a small group of civil society organisations across the globe saw the need to collaborate more. These civil society organisations and individuals started to share their knowledge and work together to advocate for the strengthening of good quality public education and raise awareness around the commercialisation and privatisation of education.
From this initial collaboration, a growing global network developed. Originally known as the Privatisation in Education and Human Rights Consortium, it has recently changed name to the Public Education and Human Rights Coalition (PEHRC).
What were the results of the Public Education and Human Rights Coalition’s collective work?
Juana: Working together, our collaboration across the globe has contributed to several significant milestones. For example, major education funders across the world have changed their policies. Notably, the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) stopped funding for-profit K-12 schools. Countries from Mongolia to Uganda have advanced the right to education through policy reforms. The Abidjan Principles which were developed and adopted in 2019 have been widely recognised, including by the UN and regional bodies, as well as helped students, policymakers, civil society organisations and lawyers from Nepal to Brazil to better understand the existing human rights law on private involvement in education, enabling them to defend the right to education. Moreover, we have spurred a growing movement worldwide to strengthen public education and to counter privatisation. A clear example is the Reclaiming Public Education for All statement and its calls for action, which have already been endorsed by over 100 organisations and continue to gain support.
How has the debate around privatisation in education changed over the last decade?
Juana: The landscape keeps shifting and there are new challenges:
EdTech and innovative financing bring new risks of corporate capture and data exploitation, among others.
Early childhood care and education, which is vital and has been increasingly recognised, remains highly privatised.
Donor and domestic resource mobilisation shortfalls are sometimes used to justify further expansion of private sector involvement, particularly through public-private partnerships (PPPs).
All of these changes are coupled with a persistent shrinking space for civil society worldwide.
Amidst the new challenges, the core question remains: will education systems worldwide be shaped by public interest and human rights, or by market logic?
Why does public education matter and why do we need to continue to defend it?
Juana: Why this matters is clear. When education turns into a commodity inequality widens; students face segregation and exclusion, particularly through fees; teachers face precarious conditions; and communities lose voice in decision-making.
Public education matters.
Human rights obligations require states to protect, respect and fulfil the right to education, and in that regard, fund, provide, and regulate, so that all learners, without discrimination, can access quality public education that builds social cohesion, accountability, and democracy.
Why are you optimistic about the future of public education?
Juana: We’re optimistic because the public education movement is bigger, smarter, and more connected than ever before. Networks like PEHRC enable rapid learning, coordinated advocacy, and concrete wins, from global norms to national reforms. We’ve shown what collective action can achieve, we can and will keep shifting normative frameworks and narratives toward what really works: strong, equitable public education for all.
Summary
Ten years ago, civil society organisations started to group together to raise their concerns around the growing privatisation in and of education.
These organisations and individuals across the world started to share knowledge, raise awareness around the commercialisation and privatisation of education, and advocate for strengthening access to good quality, publicly funded education. These were the founders of the Privatisation in Education and Human Rights Consortium (PEHRC), now known as the Public Education and Human Rights Coalition (PEHRC).
This global collaboration has had a significant impact. For example, in the last decade, leading education funders have changed their policies on funding for-profit education.
Author: Juana Barragán Díaz is the Programme Officer on the Right to Education at the Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. She works to advance the right to education and advocates for the provision and financing of inclusive, public, quality education opportunities for all. Previously, she worked as a consultant for the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning, developing several projects with the R&D Team, including a Toolkit that helps align Education Sector Plans with the Abidjan Principles. She holds a Master's Degree in Development and Humanitarian Aid from Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and a Law and Political Science Degree from Toulouse 1 Capitole.