On 12 February, during an informal meeting with the UN Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (CESCR), Anna Marriott (Oxfam UK) delivered an oral statement on behalf of GI-ESCR and other organisations, highlighting serious concerns about UK investments in for-profit education and healthcare providers in lower-income countries. 

The statement, based on two joint submissions for the upcoming UK review, raised critical issues, including States' responsibility to allocate public funds in a manner that upholds rights, particularly in the realm of education and health. This responsibility extends beyond national borders and is deeply tied to states’ extraterritorial obligations. 

It also urged the Committee to make strong recommendations to the UK government, including: 

• Ceasing all investments in for-profit education and healthcare providers in low and middle-income countries, including indirect investments through financial intermediaries. 
• Ensuring full transparency and accountability by investigating and fully disclosing these investments and their impact on the right to education and health.  
• Prioritising free, quality public education and health as the primary focus of international development assistance in these sectors. 
• Aligning all development finance investments with human rights obligations, ensuring that public funds do not contribute to privatisation trends that cause harm and especially for the most marginalised communities. 

This statement reiterates our call for public funds to serve the public good—not subsidise private profit at the expense of human rights.