This document outlines the process for developing Guiding Principles on States' obligations regarding private actors in education. An expert group and steering committee will draft the principles through research, consultations with states, NGOs, unions and other stakeholders. The final outputs will include principles, explanatory documents and an assessment tool to help states regulate private schools and public-private partnerships in education. The drafting process will involve multiple rounds of expert input and revisions over two years, with plans for regional and national consultations, before final validation and launch in 2018.

1. Defining human rights
Guiding Principles on States’
obligations regarding private
actors in education

2. What are human rights
principles/guidelines?
• Documents that unpack human rights legal principles:  from
ideology, what we think
• Provide more concrete guidance on specific topics
• E.g.: forced evictions
• E.g. Education in emergency
• E.g. the right to non-discrimination and equality
• Quasi-legal: authoritative interpretation of the law
• Respond to reality
• Neither too abstract (have to be concrete enough) nor too precise
(have to be universal enough)

3. States and public authorities
NGOs
Unions
Other education stakeholders
Guiding
Principles

4. Why do we need principles and guidelines
on private education?
 To set standards and provide a broadly accepted
normative framework to inform debates on privatisation
in education
 To provide guidance to States in addressing the issue /
implementing international law
 To help civil society organisations to assess the role of
private actors in education

5. How will it be done?
A Steering
Committee
An expert
group
A drafting
secretariat
(RTE/GI-
ESCR)

6. Principles
&
guidelines
Expert
Input
Country
research
Community
consultation
Conceptual
research

7. What are the final outputs?
Principles
◦ A legal commentary
◦ A series of short explainers for the public and various
audiences, including a document to guide States on regulating
private schools and a guide on PPPs
◦ An assessment tool: the Privatisation Analysis Framework
(PAF), together with research questions/indicators
◦ A methodological guide to conduct research and assessment

8. Date Activity
January – June 2016 Development of an initial draft
March 2016 Pre-consultation during side-event at Comparative International Education Society (CIES) Conference in Vancouver, Canada
March 2016 – June 2017 Development of expert background papers on key issues/themes
April 2016 – September 2017 Series of regional, national, thematic and informal consultations (the following include consultations planned or confirmed so far):
Regional consultations (planned thus far):
o Asia-Pacific (August 2016, potentially August 2017)
o East Africa (Nairobi, September 2016)
o Southern Africa (2017)
o Western Africa + Francophone countries (2017)
o Latin America (2017)
o Europe (Paris, 2017; hosted by UNESCO)
 Consultations with thematic groups:
o Geneva stakeholders
o CIES (Atlanta (USA), March 2017)
o DC stakeholders/World Bank/GPE/North America
o EU delegation
 National consultations organised by partners:
o Pakistan (January/February 2017; hosted by FOSI-Pakistan)
 Informal consultations with States
 Engagement of other stakeholders
October – December 2016 Review of the first draft based on inputs from consultations
Establishment of Guiding Principles Steering Committee and Expert Group
Development of second draft with experts
January 2017 – April 2017 Online consultations
May – September 2017 Review of second draft
Development of third draft
October – November 2017 Expert review and feedback
November – December 2017 Consolidation of the drafts
Validation at expert meeting
2018 Launch, dissemination, and advocacy