Sen, A. (1999) Development as Freedom, Oxford, OUP, pp. 3–12.

Sen 1999 is a philosophical approach; the core tenet is that the provision of freedom – economic, social, public facility – enables development opportunities to be taken.  More fundamentally, the level of development can be measured by the level of enhancement of freedoms.

Freedom is equated with the ability to have opportunity – which does not necessarily map to development if people choose not to take such opportunity.

The linkage between freedom and values is discussed – freedoms enable choice of values which may then act to constrain freedoms by imposing social mores.

Freedom is both the means and end of development.  Freedoms are linked – political with personal/social with economic. Freedom replaces the patient with the agent.

Reflecting on how this impacts education it seems to imply that freedom will generate demand for education and outlet for the economic benefit of education, hence promote a positive link between education and well being.  However, people who haven’t had freedom do not necessarily know what opportunities they have been missing.  If they are used to being enslaved to primitive social or political realities, they may not have the knowledge or confidence to take the benefit of freedom.

Hence, there is a case for fundamental education on the choices a free person may make before the development benefits of freedom can be realised.  This will be inhibited by embedded societal values (religions, tribes, traditions, prohibitions) which enlightened development (as opposed to missionary development) will not primarily target to change,

Can supply-side enablement of freedom actually generate demand for the benefits of freedom?