A/70/342 47. The Special Rapporteur considers partnerships in education is important herein some areas which he considers challenges of public-private partnerships that a critical appraisal of public -private for public policy responses. He outlines to be of key importance in meeting the in education. IV. Key challenges A. Financing education through public-private partnerships Mobilizing maximum resources for education as a human rights obligation 48. Reduced public investment in education can be seen in many developing countries, resulting from privatization and public -private partnerships in education. Governments turn to donors, non-governmental funding and the private sector to overcome resource constraints. The Special Rapporteur emphasizes that devoting maximum resources to the right to education as a foundation for developm ent is a human rights obligation of States. He commends the Incheon Declaration on inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning for all, adopted at the World Education Forum in May 2015, in which Governments are encouraged to commit between 15 and 20 per cent of national budgets, or between 4 and 6 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), to education. Public investment in education as a high development priority is not only a legal obligation of Governments, it is also their moral obligation to respect education as a public good. 49. Rather than relying on private financial support for education through public private partnerships, Governments should mobilize maximum national resources for education. In a declaration of 7 July 2015, the participants in the Oslo Summit on Education for Development, held in July 2015, recognized that “the provision of education is a national responsibility”. Governments can resort to many other modalities for enhancing national investment in education. They can increase tax-toGDP ratios and stop giving tax incentives, including long tax holidays, to companies to solicit foreign investment. They can also gain by monitoring and controlling aggressive tax avoidance. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development estimates that developing countries lose more than $100 billion a year to tax avoidance, nearly half of which is lost from Africa. 9 Voucher systems: a drain on public investment in education 50. Voucher systems, which support parents to send students to public or private schools, amount to public-private partnership arrangements, which promote privatization. The experience of Chile demonstrates the negative consequences of a voucher system in creating social stratification. Education service contracting in the Philippines, providing a public subsidy for each student opting to enrol in eligible private schools, is fraught with similar consequences, exacerbating ine quities and social segregation. 10 The Punjab Education Foundation in Pakistan, which sources funds from donors and financial institutions (in mixed loans and grants) and __________________ 9 10 15-12538 See United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, World Investment Report 2015: Reforming International Investment Governance, (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.15.II.D.5) and High-level Panel on Illicit Financial Flows from Africa, “Illicit financial flows”, African Union (2015). See Asia South Pacific Association for Basic and Adult Education, “Gain or drain? Understanding public-private partnerships in education, a primer” (2013). 9/25