On the eve of International Women's Day, a new report “Can Public-private Partnerships deliver gender equality?” was released by a European Network on Debt and Development (EURODAD). The report says: "PPPs are being actively promoted by donor governments and international financial institutions to fund social services and infrastructure projects around the world. However, support for PPPs runs counter to governments’ commitments to promote gender equality and the fullfilment of women’s rights under Agenda 2030 and elsewhere ". This report aims to contribute to the growing civil society debate about PPPs and describes how they could create additional fiscal constraints that undermine the state’s capacity to deliver gender-transformative public services and infrastructure, or to promote decent work for women.

North Queensland public sector workers have stepped up pressure on the federal government to rule out privatising Medicare and Centrelink services. “Community and Public Sector Union Queensland assistant regional secretary Amy Smith said the use of labour hire and potential privatisation of the service industry would negatively impact the North. ‘Centrelink services in North Queensland are under pressure because the Government has put profits before people by selling out jobs and millions of dollars to Serco, Stellar, Concentrix, Datacom and other labour hire companies,’ she said. ‘The money that’s being handed to corporations through privatisation should be spent providing quality, permanent jobs in North Queensland.’” The union has launched a “Proud to be Public” campaign.

The Financial Times reports that the question of privatizing state-owned refineries was a central dividing line in the 16 February election of the President, Vice President and National Assembly. The incumbent, President Muhammadu Buhari’s “focus is state-led growth and his plan is to form public-private partnerships to revive the refineries.” Atiku Abubakar, his main rival, “plans to sell off the refineries. The 72-year-old made his fortune in the oil and gas business before leading the country’s patchy privatisation drive as vice-president in the 2000s.”