This volume investigates the growing influence and operational impact of non-state actors within the educational systems of developing nations. Editors Geoffrey Walford and Prachi Srivastava compile research from various international scholars to analyze how private providers, non-governmental organizations, and religious institutions shape educational access and quality. The text argues that the privatization of schooling in the Global South is a complex phenomenon that requires nuanced policy evaluation rather than binary support or opposition.

Experts in international education policy identify this work as a significant contribution to the debate on educational privatization. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose, which makes it a foundational text for researchers and policymakers focused on development studies.