The education ministry is publishing a blueprint for education, due out this month. If this is a serious effort, I suggest that the best way toward quality education is by ensuring parental choice and school competition.

Parents should have the ultimate say in this matter. If they have the financial capacity to choose and are presented with practical options in terms of schools, they would undoubtedly ensure that their children get the best education.

Imagine a system where parents can send their children to a school of their choice. If teachers in School X mistreat the pupils, parents can move their children to another school with more committed and talented teachers. If a school repeatedly does badly in terms of UPSR or PMR performance, a switch can be made to a better performing school. Wouldn't that be much better?

Nobody would stay in a hotel where the toilet is blocked or where staff are abusive. Why should parents be forced to keep their children in a school that does not have the necessary resources or where teachers are incompetent?

Admittedly, low household income prevents the majority of Malaysian parents from exercising choice. They are almost always forced to send their children to schools that are closest to home because they cannot afford to go anywhere else.

To improve, the government must empower parents by removing the financial barrier and ensuring that schools compete to improve their performance.

There are many ways to remove the financial barrier and introduce competition. I propose three strategies. First, introduce a targeted voucher system. Second, set up a National Education Fund funded solely by corporate and individual donations. And third, publish a school league table every six months.

The voucher system has been proven to work in countries from America and Britain to Bangladesh and Colombia. It works in developed countries just as it works in developing countries.

The targeted vouchers give parents with low household income the necessary funds. The vouchers can only be used to pay for education.

Through this system, schools no longer get automatic funding from the state. Instead, vouchers are given directly to parents who can then use these to pay for their children's education needs at a school of their choice. Having funds in hand, they are no longer compelled to send their children to the school that is closest to home. They can use the funds to cover the costs of enrolling into a better school that maybe a bit further.

The National Education Fund would be funded by the private sector and individual contributions, not the government. Companies and individuals who donate would gain tax relief, as an incentive for them to donate. The money can be used to top up the vouchers if necessary, especially to assist the very poor to pay for other costs like transport, books and school uniforms.

Removing school-based funding and giving money directly to parents would effectively make schools like any private company offering a service. In this case, they, effectively, become private schools.

Imagine too how much taxpayers' money can be saved by axing the intermediaries between the education ministry and individual students. If we remove the bureaucrats in the state and district education departments and give the saved funds directly to parents, imagine how much better off the latter would be. When parents make informed choices, there is no need for these intermediaries.

Value for money

Schools must compete to offer services that are the best value for money, and must prove that they are delivering the results parents demand. Otherwise, schools would lose money and risk closure because parents would simply not send their children there.

The six-monthly league table would provide parents with a tool to compare performance of schools and therefore help their decision making process. It would also inject more competition to improve the schools.

If the government wants to be bolder, it should stimulate growth of private schools around Malaysia so that there is greater competition. Malaysians must get out of the mindset that says private schools are elite expensive institutions. In many African and South Asian countries, there are thousands of private schools catering for the very poor and charging very low fees. If parents have the vouchers, there is no reason why they cannot afford to pay.

Under the proposed system, parents are not adversely affected by the 'privatisation' of schools as they hold in their hands the necessary funds to pay fees. 'Privatisation' brings choice and empowerment to all parents regardless of household income, and puts pressure on schools to improve. This, coupled with the voucher system, brings huge benefits to everyone, especially the poor.

In an article published in October 2006, John Blundell, director of the London-based Institute of Economic Affairs, argued that the best way to improve schools is to turn schools into enterprises and teachers into entrepreneurs. Schools that are not up to standard would have to improve or be closed down.

James Tooley, Professor of Education Policy at the University of Newcastle, has written extensively about how private schooling has worked well for poor people worldwide. In his book 'The Global Education Industry', he drew on examples from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, India, Indonesia, Peru, Romania, Russia, South Africa and Zimbabwe, among others.

He gave a snapshot of private education that was unknown to many - that contrary to expectations, the private education sector is large in many poor countries, innovative and not the exclusive domain of the wealthy. On the contrary, he found that the private sector often provide social responsibility, subsidised places and student loan schemes.

Choice and competition have been proven to work worldwide. It will work in Malaysia. There is no reason for us to continue to deny Malaysian parents the right to choose the best education for their children. And there is also no reason why failing schools should continue to operate through subsidies.

It is time we find a way to empower parents and improve our schools. The surest way is through choice and competition.

WAN SAIFUL WAN JAN is director-general of Malaysia Think Tank London. Previously, he was at the Commonwealth Policy Studies Unit and the Conservative Party's Research Department.