Beijing, November 2, 2005
—China’s economy can benefit from increased private participation in education projects that promotes lifelong learning, vocational training, and higher education. At the second annual Public-Private Partnership Forum sponsored by China’s Ministries of Education and Finance and the International Finance Corporation, educators and policymakers from across China and around the world provided examples of effective private education models and discussed how they could be applied in China.
“China has already proven that it can make extraordinary and rapid progress in the complex field of education,” said IFC Acting Executive Vice President Assaad Jabre, He pointed out further challenges lie ahead. “China needs universities, vocational, and technical schools that are just as vibrant and entrepreneurial as its private enterprises.”
Numerous trends are creating pressure on China to increase investment in education. China’s workforce is increasingly moving from the rural areas engaged in agricultural activities into cities, where workers are engaged in industrial and service jobs. China’s entry into the World Trade Organization increases pressure on the economy to keep pace with other countries. The World Bank estimates that in China some 90 million new urban jobs will have to be created within the next ten years to absorb labor shed by the rural areas, compensate for job losses related to the economic restructuring, and provide the additional jobs induced by the projected increase in the labor force.
The ability to create, access and use knowledge will be critical to China’s ability to respond to new economic challenges. China needs more investment in education and skills. In response, China may benefit from:
· changing incentives and reforming regulations to encourage more private sector investment;
· creating more synergies and tighter linkages between China’s private sector and its universities; and,
· experimenting with new partnership models, where the best of the public sector and private sector can come together.
Models and issues relating to private invested were presented and discussed at the conference. The program included a wide range of speakers that includes government, universities, and private education companies:
● Zhang Shaochun, Assistant Minister, Ministry of Finance
● Guo Xiangyuan, Assistant Minister, Ministry of Education
● Assaad Jabre, Acting Executive Vice-President, IFC
● Douglas Becker, Chairman & CEO, Laureate Education Inc.
● Toby Chu, President & CEO, CIBT School of Business and Technology Corp, Canada
● Ding Xuedong, Director General, Education Department, MOF
● Carl Dahlman, Professor of International Relations and Information Technology, Georgetown University, USA
● Terry Hilsberg, NextEd, China
● Sue Jeffrey, International Manager, Securities Institute, Australia
● Kang Hong, CEO, SAC, PR China
● David Alistair Kemp, Former Australian Minister of Education, Training, and Youth Affairs
● Ju Kuilin Deputy Director General, MOF
● Liu Zhanshan, Deputy Director General, Vocational Training and Adult Education Deparment, MOE
● Michael Mann, Founding President, RMIT International University,
Vietnam
● Chris McCahan, Health and Education Investment Officer, IFC
● Ann Marie Plubell, Senior Advisor, The Plubell Firm, USA
● Ronald Perkinson, Principal Education Specialist, IFC
● Richard W. Riley, Former U.S. Secretary of Education
● Jagbir Singh Nagra Maniple Medical School, Malaysia
● Robert Ubell, Stevens Institute of Technology Web Campus, U.S.
● Dr. Enrique Zepeda, Vice President International Affairs, Tec de Monterrey, Mexico
● Zhang Lu, Deputy Director General, Education Department, MOF
The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, promotes sustainable private sector investment in developing and transition countries, helping to reduce poverty and improve people’s lives. IFC finances private sector investments, mobilizes capital in the international financial markets, helps clients improve social and environmental sustainability, and provides technical assistance and advice to governments and businesses. Its 178 member countries provide its share capital and collectively determine its policies.
From its founding in 1956 through FY05, IFC has committed more than $49 billion of its own funds and arranged $24 billion in syndications for 3,319 companies in 140 developing countries. IFC’s worldwide committed portfolio as of FY05 was $19.3 billion for its own account and $5.3 billion held for participants in loan syndications. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
