Policy Brief No. 9. Public Private Partnerships and Educational Outcomes in Pakistan: A gendered perspective

Abstract

As one of the eight Millennium Development goals, education has increasingly become a priority for the international community and the governments in developing countries alike. The growing involvement of the private sector in providing educational services has been hailed as an important determinant in the move towards achieving the goal of universal primary education. However, in countries where there is still a significant gender gap in access and intra-household expenditure and where the private sector accounts for an increasing proportion of enrolments and institutions, the significance of public-private partnerships, needs to be looked at through a gendered perspective. The policy brief uses insights from a detailed qualitative study to examine the issues surrounding access to quality education for boys and girls especially at the middle school level. It highlights the importance of involving all stakeholders, the parents, community, school and the government in developing educational policies that take into account local aspirations and cater to the needs of the people