Are we using Friedman's roadmap? A comparative analysis of stimuli of private school enrolments in post-Soviet countries

• This paper examines comparative trends in private schooling in the post-Soviet states.
• Private enrolments in post-Soviet countries are considerably below world averages.
• Private schooling may be complementing rather than substituting public schooling.
• Low public investment in education may be associated with higher private enrolments.
• In countries with relatively high private enrolments government funds private schools.

There have been extensive scholarly debates on the role the private sector in the provision of schooling across the world. The former Soviet states have been largely excluded from these debates. This exploratory study examines the role the private sector in the formal provision of primary and secondary education in post-Soviet countries to demonstrate comparative trends and to provide a framework for the analysis of stimuli for private enrolments in the region. On the basis of the analysis of secondary data, documentary evidence and relevant literature, this paper shows that across the former Soviet countries, neoliberal ideas of education marketisation have not found fertile soil for development.