2 كانون اﻷول (ديسمبر) 2016

Press release by 58 organisations, 2 December 2016

(Antananarivo, Nairobi, Uganda, Paris, Port-au-Prince, Quebec, Rabat)

As 57 heads of State and Governments of the Francophonie raised concerns regarding the development of commercialisation of education and reaffirmed their commitment in favour of public quality education in a landmark common declaration, 302 organisations from 38 countries of the Francophone area will this week launch a Call of the Francophone civil society against commercialisation of education.

This call represents an exceptional mobilisation of the Francophone civil society, in response to the unprecedented global phenomenon of privatisation of education.

Many African countries have seen an explosion in the number of private schools during the last decade, in particular low quality low cost schools, which target the poorest people. Since 2000, the share of private institutions at the primary level has for instance increased from 10% to 17% in Burkina Faso and fivefold in Mauritania”, observes Samuel Dembelé, president of the Africa Network Campaign on Education for All (ANCEFA).

Similarly, in Morocco, where the share of private education has more than tripled in only fifteen years, “the State has failed in its role of ensuring schools for all. Today the Moroccan State encourages privatisation and commercialisation of education as a solution to educational challenges faced by the country. The Head of government even declared that the moment had come for the State to disengage from education and health provision”, declares Ibtissam Mzibr, General Secretary of the Mouvement Anfass Démocratique (Morocco).

Yet, “research in many countries has demonstrated that privatisation of education has disastrous effects in terms of quality of educational content, of segregation and socio-economic inequalities, and hence on the fulfilment of human rights, which contravenes States’ legal obligations,” regrets Sylvain Aubry from the Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (GI-ESCR),

The Call of the Francophone civil society against commercialisation of education warns against the different forms of commercialisation in the formal and non-formal education sectors, and opposes the transformation of education into a commercial product. It notably calls States to:

  • put in place public educational systems of quality and completely free of charge
  • regulate private education
  • eliminate educational establishments with a commercial purpose

“This Call demonstrates that privatisation of education is a crucial global challenge, and it constitutes an important tool of solidarity, for us who act daily in Haiti to redevelop our public education system, while 80% of educational establishments are private! This is due to decades of abandonment of public education by the Government, and to the support of the private sector by international donors such as the World Bank and the Global Partnership for Education” explains Mona Bernadel, from the Programme Collectif pour le Développement de l'Éducation et du Dialogue Social in Haïti.

In this context, the Antananarivo Declaration, which was signed in conclusion of the 2016 Francophonie Summit which took place in Madagascar on 26th and 27th November, and which includes a great part of the Francophone civil society’s demands, constitutes a major political commitment. The 57 signatory Member States of the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF) express concerns in paragraph 39 with the “development of academic and educational establishments with a commercial purpose”.

We are particularly concerned with chains of private schools with a commercial purpose, such as Bridge International Academies, which has over 400 schools in Kenya, Uganda, and Liberia, and which promotes a low-quality and hyper-standardised education model”, denounces Carole Coupez of Solidarité Laïque. “If Francophone countries have not yet been as affected by these chains of schools, it is important that they mobilise prior, and that they promote at the international level another educational model that ensures social justice and the dignity of all”.

Francophone States additionally requested that the OIF, “in collaboration with civil society”, “take measures to promote efficient institutional mechanisms for the regulation of private actors in education, in order to ensure quality and equity of education services”. 

Sonia Chebbi, of the Fédération Internationale des Céméa underlines that “the signatories of the Call now expect that the OIF implement this clear request of States: act to put in place efficient regulation of private actors in education. It is crucial to reinforce the joint work of civil society organisations, the OIF and States to defend and protect public educational systems of quality in the formal and non-formal education sectors.”

The mobilisation of all must continue after this important step. We expect in particular from donor States that they support partner countries in the development of quality public education systems and in the regulation of private actors in education” added Hélène Ferrer, coordinator of the Education Coalition in France.

Luc Allaire, General Secretary of the Comité syndical francophone de l’éducation et de la formation concluded: “Quality education for all will only be achieved through compulsory, free, and universal public education. This is an indispensable tool to end educational inequalities that have been exacerbated by the privatisation and commercialisation of education, in Northern countries as well as in Southern countries.”

Key documents

About the Francophone Network against commercialisation of education

This informal network was originally initiated by six organisations (the French Education Coalition, the Comité syndical francophone de l’éducation et de la formation, the Fédération internationale des Céméa, the Global Initiative for Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, the Right to Education Project, and Solidarité Laïque) on the occasion of a symposium in March 2016. It now has 302 member organisations which signed the Call of the Francophone civil society against privatisation of education. The Network works to ensure a collective reflection and mobilisation concerning the growing role and impact of private actors in formal and non-formal education throughout the Francophone area, by bringing together in their diversity education actors (NGOs, associations, media, teachers, educators, unions, researchers…).

Contacts

For  information or interview requests, contact Ekaterina Mikhaylova at nevendezpasleducation@gmail.com+33 7 83 21 57 74 (English and French).

Signatures

#

Organisation

Country

Contact

1.      

Amnesty International Mali

Mali

saloum.traore@amnestymali.org

hamane.toure@amnestymali.org

2.      

Amnesty International/ Senegalese Section

Senegal

aminata.dieye@amnesty.sn

3.      

ANCEFA

International

dembele_sam@hotmail.com

4.      

Association Tchadienne pour le Bien Etre Familial

Tchad

noel.ouaimane@yahoo.fr

5.      

BANI BA HAW

Niger

almoctar.illou@gmail.com

6.      

Campagne Mondiale pour l'Éducation

International

anjela@campaignforeducation.org

7.      

Carrefour de la Famille Marocaine

Morocco

yamlahi_khadija@yahoo.fr

8.      

CEMEA-F

France

isabelle.palanchon@cemea.asso.fr

9.      

CEMEA-HAITI

Haiti

cemeahaiti@yahoo.fr

10.   

Centre d'Actions pour la sécurité alimentaire et le Développement Durable

Benin

a.olounlade@casad-benin.org

11.   

Centre d'assistance à la diffusion des méthodes d'éducation active

Russia

rusakova51@mail.ru

12.   

Centres d'Entraînement aux Méthodes d'Education Active du Sénégal (CEMEA Sénégal)

Senegal

cemea.senegal@gmail.com

13.   

Coalition Éducation

France

hferrer@coalition-education.fr

14.   

Coalition Nationale pour l'Education Pour Tous du Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso

traoretahirou2005@yahoo.fr

15.   

Coalition Nationale Togolaise pour l'Education Pour Tous

Togo

coalepttogo@yahoo.fr

16.   

Coalition Nigérienne des Associations, Syndicats et ONG de Campagne EPT (ASO-EPT Niger)

Niger

asoeptniger@gmail.com

17.   

Comité National de Développement des Réseaux pour l'Education en Afrique de l'Ouest (CNDREAO Sénégal)

Senegal

info.cndreao@gmail.com

18.   

CONAMEPT

Madagascar

conameptmada@gmail.com

19.   

CONEPT

DRC

coneptrdc2011@gmail.com

20.   

Conseil des Activités Educatives du Bénin (CAEB)

Benin

caeb2007@yahoo.fr

21.   

Conseil National des ONG de Développement

DRC

cnongdrdc@gmail.com

22.   

Construisons Ensemble le Monde

DRC

gamolik@yahoo.fr

23.   

CSFEF

International

president@csfef.org

24.   

Défense des enfants international Belgique

Belgium

bvankeirsbilck@defensedesenfants.be

25.   

Education Notre Vision (ONG ENVI)

Niger

ongenvi_2012@yahoo.com

26.   

Edugestion Cameroun

Cameroon

awoudasabine@yahoo.fr

27.   

Fédération des Aroéven

France

v.duval@aroeven.fr

28.   

Fédération des Syndicats Libres de l'Enseignement

Roumania

augustul_leu7@yahoo.com

29.   

FICEMEA

International

sonia.chebbi@cemea.asso.fr

30.   

Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

International

sylvain@globalinitiative-escr.org

31.   

Graine de paix (AGP)

Algeria

aldjiafifi@yahoo.fr

32.   

Héritiers de la Justice

RDC

amwendelwa@heritiersdelajustice.org

33.   

IDEF - Initiatives pour le Développement communautaire et la conservation de la Forêt

Ivory Coast

tbakharry@gmail.com

34.   

Jeunesse et Emplois Verts pour une Economie Verte

Benin

ongjevev@gmail.com

35.   

Maan promotion économique et culturelle des personnes risquant la précarité

Tunisia

dh1992fr@yahoo.fr

36.   

Migrations Co-développement Alsace

France / Morocco

contact@mcda-asso.org

37.   

Miroir Vagabond

Belgium

p.navatte@miroirvagabond.be

38.   

Mouvement Anfass Démocratique

Morocco

contact@anfass.ma

39.   

Mouvement Associatif pour l'Education et l'Egalité des Chances

Comoros

n.assoum@maeecha.org

40.   

ONG Changement Social Bénin

Benin

secretariat@csbenin.org

41.   

Plan International France

France

Michelle.perrot@plan-international.org

42.   

PROCEDH

Haiti

monabernadel@yahoo.fr

43.   

Réalisation Téléformation Animation

Belgium

jean.blairon@rta.be

44.   

Regroupement Education Pour Toutes et pour Tous

Haiti

wthelusmond@gmail.com

45.   

Réseau des Acteurs de Développement de l'Éducation au Bénin (RADEB)

Bénin

ongradeb@yahoo.fr

46.   

Réseau des Organisations pour le Développement de l'Éducation au Burkina (RODEB)

Burkina Faso

cnrodeb@gmail.com

47.   

Réseau des Organisations pour le Développement de l'Éducation au Burkina (RODEB)

Burkina Faso

cnrodeb@gmail.com

48.   

Réseau Ivoirien pour la Promotion de l’Education Pour Tous (RIP-EPT)

Ivory Coast

gneloupaul@yahoo.fr

ahuijunior@yahoo.fr

49.   

Réseau Nigérien  pour le Développement de la Femme (RENIDEF)

Niger

renidef@yahoo.fr

50.   

Réseau Progrès et Développement Humanitaire du Niger (REPRODEVH-NIGER)

Niger

almoctar.illou@gmail.com

51.   

Réseau Wallon de lutte contre la Pauvreté (RWLP)

Belgium

christine.mahy@bapn.be

52.   

Re-Sources Enfances

Belgium

re-sources.enfances@skynet.be

53.   

Right to Education Project

International

delphine.dorsi@right-to-education.org

54.   

SNESUP-FSU

France

herve.christofol@snesup.fr

55.   

Solidarité Laïque

France

jdacosta@solidarite-laique.org

ccoupez@solidarite-laique.org

56.   

SOLIDARITE-UNAFETPCI (Union Nationale des Formateurs de l’Enseignement Technique et Professionnel de Côte d’Ivoire)

Ivory Coast

bensoloidarite2003@yahoo.fr

tanohben@yahoo.fr

lemanitou1016@yahoo.fr

57.   

SYNAFEN NIGER

Niger

synafen@yahoo.fr

58.   

Syndicat alternatif et indépendant du personnel de l'Education de La Réunion 2

France

contact2d@saiper.net