Despite substantial spending on education and robust support for reform both internally and by external donors, the quality of education in many, if not most, Arab countries remains low.
In a new book entitled, The Political Economy of Education in the Arab World, experts seek to understand why this has been the case and find answers in the mostly authoritarian political economies that shape the architecture of national governance across the region.
Presenting studies from North Africa and the Gulf region, as well as comparative perspectives from Asia and Latin America, they show clearly that efforts to improve education—and thereby enhance economic development and broaden the base of citizenship on which more stable and effective systems of governance can be built—will fail until ruling elites are no longer able to increase their political and economic power at the expense of the greater good.
In this webinar, organized by the Chatham House MENA Programme, the editors and contributors will present the book’s main arguments and will discuss with Chatham House experts the key dynamics that shape the political economy of education in the Arab world.
The webinar will be livestreamed on the MENA Programme Facebook page.
