Global Fight Against School Privatization

Global companies are targeting public education as an area for privatization and profit. In the United States we face Trump's make-believe mandate for charter schools and vouchers. If Trump and proposed Education Secretary "Amway" DeVos succeed in pushing through their agenda expect hedge fund profiteers, for-profit charter companies, charter networks, so-called educational publishers, and private and "religious" schools to make a big play for federal dollars.

In the developing world, especially sub-Sahara Africa, government agencies and non-government organizations are having some success in pushing back against the edu-vultures. In Uganda, more than 60 Bridge International Academies were ordered closed by the government and courts for failing to meet legal and educational requirements. The first Bridge school opened in the Nairobi, Kenya in 2009. According to the Wall Street Journal investors have poured more than $100 million into the company. They include Bill Gates of Microsoft, E-Bay founder Pierre Omidyar, textbook publisher Pearson PLC, and $10 million from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. A partner at the California-based venture-capital firm Learn Capital LLC is Bridge's largest shareholder. It also receives funding and support from the World Bank and the UK Department for International Development (DFID). DFID, while a government agency, has suspiciously close ties to the global edu-company Pearson. It also publicly criticizes UN agencies like UNESCO while promoting the World Bank's global privatization initiatives.

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