A/70/342 78. The State is responsible for providing the right to education as the apex of its public service functions; it also remains responsible when it provides such services in partnership with other education providers and non-State actors. 79. Where educational services are provided by private partners, States remain responsible for complying with human rights law. All arrangements for public private partnerships in education, contractual or otherwise, are ips o facto subject to the norms and principles of the right to education. When collaborating with the private sector in discharging their public service functions, Governments cannot compromise on their international obligations regarding the right to educati on and must ensure that private providers also meet those standards. 80. A number of examples exist where public-private partnerships can be a social project for educational development, with the interests of various partners converging. For example, in Spain, contractual arrangements (conciertos económicos) between the regions and private education providers are a public private partnership modality with agreed mutual rights and obligations. 22 Similarly, “socialized education” in Viet Nam, seeking to increase financial and administrative support for schools from the community, is also a variant of a public -private partnership. Collaboration with communities based on social interest in education can lead to reinforcing public education systems. 23 The programme to improve learning outcomes in South Africa represents a unique partnership between public authorities and South African businesses and teacher unions as a way to progressively implement the obligation to provide free quality education. 81. The State should preserve the fundamental nature of the right to education as a societal or public good, rather than a private good. It is therefore important to develop a human rights-based understanding in relation to several crucial issues raised by public-private partnerships in education. VI. Public-private partnerships in education: key principles 82. The concept of “private” in public-private partnerships must be looked at from the perspective of the human rights framework. A public service supplied by any private provider is a “public” function, for which they are socially responsibility under human rights law. Any arrangement, contractual or otherwise, between the public (Government) and the private (a private entrepreneur, enterprise or entity) is and remains subject to human rights laws. All modalities and arrangements for public-private partnerships in education are therefore subject to the norms and principles of the right to education as being of overriding importance. 83. Public-private partnerships in education are not merely a matter of contractual arrangements in civil law, they are arrangements subject to human rights law, which remains of paramount importance. 84. The Special Rapporteur underlines the importance of the principles that govern the right to education and public-private partnerships in education. __________________ 22 23 15-12538 See Organization Act No. 8/2013 for the improvement of quality of education. See Ta Van Tuan and Duong Thi Viet Anh, “Socialization policy and access of the rural poor to education in Vietnam”, Privatisation in Education Research Initiative (2013). 15/25