In many developing countries financial constraints restrict school enrollment to low levels. Empirical evidence from Malawi is used in a simulation model to show that families are willing to pay for education and that scholarships can offset the equity effects of user charges. Appended are 18 references. (MLF)

Steven Klees's criticism of Thobani's application of neoclassical economics to funding education by increasing tuition fees is based in part on misunderstanding or misrepresentation of arguments. The neoclassical framework can readily incorporate exogenous constraints; such constraints are political realities that must be reckoned with rather than…

Mateen Thobani's proposal to fund public education in Malawi through increased tuition fees applies inappropriate analytical techniques and fails to address a complex set of political, social, cultural, and economic issues. Policy formulation should stress a basis for dialog instead of pretending neoclassical economic analyses can provide answers.…

A partial equilibrium framework (user charges/government subsidy) analyzes optimal user charges for social services. The framework is applied to Malawi's education sector to formulate policy recommendations for solving problems of high student-teacher ratios and drop-out rates. Malawi's school user fees were increased in 1982 based on this…