HIGHER EDUCATION PRIVATIZATION IN SAUDI VISION 2030: AN ANALYSIS OF THE PROSPECT AND IMPACT ON NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

Saudi Arabia, as delineated in its Vision 2030, has made increasing the participation of the private sector the utmost priority in the development. One of the key policies that Saudi is pursuing for greater private sector involvement is the privatization of government sectors. Parallel to this, higher education is no exception to this trend. A more important question is, how can privatization be a viable policy? And what are the developmental prospects of this privatization? To put this issue in perspective, this dissertation explored the prospects of higher education privatization within the context of Saudi Arabia. The research study also sought to explore rooted issues related to the phenomena of privatization and its different contextual settings. The study employed an inductive qualitative research approach, and data were collected and coded through multiple interviews with educational leaders in Saudi universities. The study concluded with several findings in relation to the key determinants that have shaped the attitude of government toward privatization, the challenges accompanying privatizing higher education institutions, and the role privatization of higher could play in the development. The study also shed some light on the quality issues in higher education and how they might be influenced by the implementation of privatization. The dissertation contributes to the literature on educational policies, privatization, and development studies in public administration and offers more insight within the context of developing and non-Western countries. The study suggested ten major recommendations to guide planners and policymakers toward proper policy implementation of privatization.