The rate of completing higher education varies greatly between countries. The largest disparities in access to higher education are between the Global North and the Global South, with sub-Saharan Africa at only one quarter of the global average.
Income from overseas students plays a large role in the national economies and financial support of universities in countries such as the UK and Australia, hence the statement in the UK’s International Education Strategy: Global potential, global growth:
At its heart is an ambition to increase the value of our education exports to £35 billion per year, and to increase the number of international higher education students hosted in the UK to 600,000 per year, both by 2030.
While the strategy recognises the value to international students of access to higher education, the policy focus is on benefits to the UK economy with no mention of attempting to correct global imbalances in access.
