Conference name, dates, place

International Conference on Development Studies in Ethiopia, July 11-12, 2003, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Document Type

Paper

Presentation Date

7-2003

Abstract

Given today’s appetite and search for better quality education in Ethiopia, coupled with meager educational budget available for the sector, little attention has been given to see the comparative advantage of demand side financing in education. In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, the state-run education system was criticized for being elitist, rigid and irresponsive. Today, more than ever, there is a constant public out cry for access to quality educational services both in urban and rural settings. The starting point for school choice is the availability of private schooling. School choice is believed to increase the efficiency of educational services by encouraging competition and sharpening innovations in the sector. On top of that, it will help to strengthen publicprivate partnership to supplement the limited government capacity to expand educational opportunities and better target public subsidies to the poor. Many economists also think that school choice will bring about consumer satisfaction and could be regarded as the best measure of a product’s quality. The 1994 Education and Training Policy of Ethiopia also claim to establish conditions to encourage and support private investment in education. However, there is a view that its implementation has problems and little has been achieved in this direction.

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