A Chance to Learn

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* AAF ICA REG IO N HUMAN DEVE LOP MENT SE RI ES

THEWORLDANK

A Chdnce to LedrnKnowledgend Finance forLCducdtionn SuL-SdhardnAfricd

22005February 2001

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OtherTit(es n This SeriesEducation and Health in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Reviewof Sector-Wide ApproachesAdult Literacy Programs in Uganda


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KnowtedgendFinanceorEducationn Sub-Saharanfrica

SectorAssistarncetrategyRegionalHumanDevelopment amily

Africa RegionWorLd ank


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Copyright 2001The International Bank or Reconstructionand Development/THE ORLD ANK1818 H Street, N.W.Washington,D.C.20433, U.S.A.ALL ights reservedManufacturedn the United Statesof AmericaFirst printing February20011 2 3 4 04 03 02 01

The findings, interpretations,and concLusionsxpressedn this book are entireLy hose of the authorsand should not be attributed in any manner o the World Bank, o its affiliated organizations,or tomembers f its Boardof ExecutiveDirectorsor the countries hey represent.The WorLd ank does riotguaranteehe accuracyof the data incLudedn this publication and acceptsno responsibilityor anyconsequencef their use.The materiaLn this pubLications copyrighted.TheWorLd ank encourages issemination f its workand wilLnormaLLyrant permissionpromptly.Permissiono photocopy tems for internaLor personaL se, or the internaLor personaL seof specificclients, or for educationalcLassroomse, s granted by the WorldBank, provided hat the appropriatefee s paid directLy o CopyrightClearance enter, nc., 222 RosewoodDrive,Danvers,MA01923, U.S.A.,telephone978-750-8400, ax 978-750-4470.Please ontact the CopyrightCLearanceenterbeforephotocopying tems.For permission o reprint individuaLarticLes r chapters,please ax your requestwith compLeteinformation o the RepublicationDepartment,CopyrightClearance enter, ax 978-750-4470.All other querieson rights and licenses hould be addressedo the WorLd ankat the address boveor faxed o 202-522-2422.The cover photographof school children n Ethiopia s by Aminata Maiga-Toure.

ISBN: 0-8213-4907-4Libraryof Congressataloging-in-Publicationatahas beenappliedfor.


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The requirementor faster development f the newnations n Africa . . . is more educationand train-ing at all Levels-a moregeneraLLyiterateworking orce, more skiLLedrtisans, more members f the[earnedprofessions,moreentrepreneurs,more skilledgovernmentadministrators.UntiL he hiumanresources f the new African nationsare more uLLy eveloped-and no huge njection of moneycangreatLy cceLeratehat process-the opportunities or the wise and effective utilization of ifreigninvestmentwiLL ecessariLyemainLimited.

-Eugene Block,President f the WorldBank,1949-62Addresso the UnitedNationsEconomic nd SocialCouncil, 960

ALL gree hat the single most mportantkey o development nd to poverty alleviation s education.This must start with universalprimaryeducation or girls and boys equally,as well asan open and com-petitive systemof secondary nd tertiary education. . . . Adult education,Literacy, nd LifeLongearningmust be combinedwith the fundamental ecognition hat educationof womenand girLs s centralto theprocessof development . . pre-schooL ducationmust be given ts full weight . . . developmentsnscienceand technologyand knowLedgeransfer offer a uniquepossibiLity o countries o catch up withmore echnologicallyadvanced nes.

-James D. Wolfensohn, resident f the WorldBank, 1995-present"A Proposalor a Comprehensiveevelopment ramework, 1999

Thisstrategy paperwas prepared y AdriaanVerspoor, ducationead specialist n the Africa Regionofthe WorldBank,with the assistance f Angel Mattimoreand PatrickWatt. Thepaper s based n an ear-tier versionby Wadi Haddad,Ruth Kagia,and associates,hat wasdiscussedwith a focus groupofAfrican educationspecialistsn May 1998. A revisedversionwas urther discussed t a consultationmeetingorganizedn October1999at Unesco,Paris,with Africanministersof educationas well as withother educationspecialists ndrepresentativesrom NGOs, arentassociations, nd teachelunions.WewouLdike to thank hose who participated n thosemeetings or their comments, s welL sDavidBerk,EduardBos,NichoLas urnett,SamCarLson, avidCourt,BirgerFredriksen, lan Gelb,Wadi Haddad, onLauglo,AminataMaiga-Toure, mantsetsa arope,DzingaiMutumbuka,ohn May,Alain Mingat, BettinaMoll, PaudMurphy,SusanOpper,RobertProuty,Stefan Quenneville,NanditaTannan,DanielViensandthe membersof the EducationSector Board(all of the World Bank), PeterWilliamsof I]nstitute forDevelopment tudiesat the Universityof Sussex,TonyReadof InternationaLBook Development, ndEamonCassidy f the Department or International Development.We would also tike to thank theNorwegianEducationTrust Fund or providing unding for both consuttations.


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ContentsForeword ixPreface xiExecutiveummary 11. African ducationn the ThreshoLdfthe 21stCentury 7

StalledProgressn EducationDevelopment 8Accesso primaryschooling 9Mastery f basicskills 11

BeyondPrimaryEducation 13HigherEducation 14Efficiency 15PrivateEducation 15LimitedEducationAttainment 17Limited mpact of ExtemalAid 18

2. TheChallengesf theAfricanDevelopmentontext 21Pervasive overty 21Economies t the Periphery f the GlobalEconomy 22InadequateFinancingforDevelopment 23InsufficientScientificKnowledge 24Extensive rmedConflicts 24TheHIV/AIDSPandemic 26High Fertility 29Overcomingdversity 303. Country esponses:Quantum eapn EducationeveLopment 32Relentless ursuitof Quality 34

Leamingenvironment 34Curricula nd instruction trategies 36Trained nd motivated eachers 38New echnologies 41Student eadiness 42Measuring rogress 43

Unwavering ommitmento Equity 44Up-FrontEmphasisn Institutional Strengthening 50ToughChoiceso EnsureFinancialSustainability 54

Settingpriorities or public spending 55Spendingesources ffectively 55Diversifyingunding sources 55Providingadditional public unding 57

TheWayForward:NationalReform,RegionalCooperation,nd Intemational Partnerships 584. TheWorldBank's esponse:oingMore ndDoingBetter 60Opportunities-andChallenges-forExpandedendingServices 61GreaterEmphasis n NonlendingServices 64

CONTENTS v


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3.7 SouthernAfrican Consortiumor the Measurementf EducationalQuality 443.8 Success actorsn GirLs' chooLing 463.9 Nigeria-DeveLopingEducationProgramsor Nomads 483.10 The DualSystemof Face-to-Face nd DistanceEducation t the Universityof Namibia 503.11 ProvidingBasicEducationOpportunitieso ReduceLLiteracy: enegal'sExperience 513.12 MakerereUniversity:A ModeL f InstitutionaL Reform 533.13 TheAfrican VirtuaLUniversity 543.14 Government ponsorship f Studentsat Private nstitutions: A Case f Demand-Sideinancing 563.15 Privatizationand DecentraLizationf TextbookProvisionn Kenya 574.1 A CoLLaborativeffortto Prepare Strategy Papern Madagascar 654.2 The FRESHtart Partnership: ocusingResourcesn EffectiveSchooL eaLth 684.3 IncreasingSupport or EducationTechnology 704.4 SectorwideApproaches 724.5 BankSupportunder Different CountryConditions 764.6 Buildinga KnowLedge ase or SkiLL eveLopment 79

CONTENTS vii


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Foreword ensure national ownershipand sustainability ofinnovationand reform programs.

WhetherAfricacan ndeed"claim he 21st century," TheWorldBankhasa long recordof supportingas a recent eport WorldBank2000b)proposes, iLL educationdevelopmentn Africa. But the impact ofdepend argely on the effectiveness f its invest- our assistance as often been ess han expected.ment in education. Progressoward better gover- Given the critical contribution of education tonance,moreeffectiveconflict resolution, ncreased accelerated rowth and development n Africa,wecompetitiveness, reduced fertiLity, improved have n the past two years carried out an internalhealth-including fewer people with HIV/AIDS- processof analysis, eflection, and discussiononand most mportant, accelerated overty reduction the mpact of our assistancen this sector. n addi-is intimately related to progressn educationand tion, we have consulted with representatives ftraining of Africa'schildrenand adults. Africangovernments, ivil society,and UNagencies

ClearLy, frica will not be abLe o sustain rapid on how to becomemoreeffective a; a partner ingrowth without investing in the education of its educationdevelopmentn Africa.people.Many ack he education o contribute o- This eport s the productof these processes.tand benefit from-fast economic growth. Yet in argues hat there s a strongcase cr the Bank omany countries in the region education develop- expandand broadents support or education evel-ment has stagnated in the past two decades. opment n Africa. This mpliescontinuedand sus-Unabatedgrowth of the school-agepopulation, tainedsupport or basiceducation e\elopment.Butsevereconstraintson public resources, nd policy it also mplies expanding ur support:or the otherreforms hat too often were oo little and oo Late, educationsubsectors, speciallyhigher education.contributed o a widening educationgap between The eportalso makest clear hat suchan expandedAfrica and he rest of the world. Almost 40 percent program nly makes ense f we step Lupour effortsof the popuLations iLLiterate.EnroLLmentst alL to address he central issues of quaLity,equity,leveLs re ower han on any othercontinent. Many capacity,and sustainabiLity. ecause e cannot dochiLdrencomplete schooLwithout mastering he this alone, weare deepLy ommitted :o working nknowLedgend skills prescribedn the curricuLum. government-Ledartnershipsor accelerated duca-Fewschoolsprepare tudents or an economy om- tion development.inated by information and communication ech- At the WorLd ducationForum n Dakar n AprilnoLogies. And most tertiary institutions are 2000, World Bank President James WolfensohnisoLated rom international knowLedge etworks. reaffirmed he readiness f the Bank o work withEnsuring hat no child is denied access o school governmentsand other deveLopment artnerstobecause f her or his nability to pay emainsa dis- accelerateprogress oward the Education or AlLtant goal n manycountries. goals.He pledged hat the Bankwould makeevery

Reversinghese trends wiLLnot be easy. The effort to ensure hat no countrywith a credibLechallenge will requirea major effort by Africans plan will be unable o implement t Lecause f lackand their development partners over a long of external support. This commitmentwill governperiod-often a decadeor more. Many govern- our support or basiceducationn the next decade.ments will need to implement changes-often At the same ime we are equallycommitted o pro-politicaLLy ontroversiaLhanges-in the way edu- viding assistanceo ensurehat students graduat-cation is financed and managed.Governments, ing from secondaryschools,vocational trainingcivil society, and external funding agencieswill programs,anduniversitieshave he skills and sci-need to estabLishor reconfigure partnerships o entific and technicaL nowledgeo *nter the 21st

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century's world of work. RegionaL ooperationwill Information and communication echnology offeroften be essentiaLo accelerated rogressn many new opportunities to overcome onstraintsof dis-of these areas.We ntend to deveLopnstruments tance and time.that will alLowus to support regionaLprograms And there is more. For severaL ountriesaddi-more effectiveLy. tionaL resourceswiLLbecome avaiLable nder theAt the cuspof the 21st century he opportuni- Heavily ndebted PoorCountries HIPC)debt reliefty to address he often intractabLe probLems f initiative. Many unding agencies re committed oeducation n Sub-Saharan frica are perhaps etter increasing heir support or educationn Africa. Newthan at any time in the past two decades.Growth aid reLationshipsre being piLotedn the context ofhas resumed n many countries. The poLitical sectordeveLopmentrograms. expect his report ocommitment o education deveLopments strong set the stage or rapidly acceLerating ank supportaLmosteverywhere.The rising tide of democracy for education eveLopmentn this newenvironment.has created a more avorabLe nvironment or theparticipation of civiL society and communities n Callisto Madavopolicy formuLationand program mplementation. Vice-PresidentAfrica Region

x FOREWORD


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Preface to collaboratemore effectiveLywith one another,with governments, nd with civil sociEty o support

The World Bank'sAfrica Region irst outLined ts educationdeveLopmentn Africa. The prospectsorviews on education development n Africa in the educationdevelopmentmay be better now han at1988 paper, "Education in Sub-SaharanAfrica: any other ime in the past decade. ince1995 eco-Policies for Adjustment, Revitalization, and nomic growth has resumed n many Sub-SaharanExpansion" World Bank 1988). The paper chal- African countries. Since 1994 the primary grosslengedAfrican countries o formuLate omprehen- enroLLmentatio has ncreased, nd recentdata romsive and coherent education development the UNESCOnstitute of Statisticssuggest hat theprogramswith balanced policies for adjustment, trend may be acceLerating. t the Wcrld Educationrevitalization, and selective expansion. Several Forum n April 2000 countries onfirmed heir com-countries moved n this direction. In a few, inan- mitment o the goal of universaL rimaryeducationciaLadjustment poLicies et the stage for better by 2015. Accelerated ebt relief and moreeducationquality, sustained progress oward universal pri- aid can helpmobilize he necessaryesources.maryeducation,and seLective xpansionat higher The policy dialogue since 1988 has been alevels. Yet n manycountriesprogress n revitaLiz- modeL f effective donor-governmentartnerships.ing their educationsystemswas disappointing. Thedialoguewas nitially coordinatedoy he infor-

In six African countries-Burkina Faso, maLgroup Donors o African Educatirn,which hasEthiopia, Liberia, Mali, Niger, and Somalia-less since become he Association or the D)evelopmentthan half the school-age opulation s enroLledn of Educationn Africa (ADEA).Membersnclude allprimaryschooL.n 20 countriesmore han one-haLf African ministersof education and 17 donors. tsof womenare lliterate. LowLevels f learningper- objective s to providea forum n which he minis-sist throughout he region.Thepotential of distance ters can lead the discussionwith donors on keyeducation programshas yet to be tapped. Many education ssuesand on the need o aciaptexternaLvocational and technical programs emain ineffi- aid policies to national needs. ELevenhematiccient. And he quality of research nd post-graduate working groupsstudy and report on zreas of broadtraining hasnot improved. interest. ADEA eviewedprogress n education nAnalysis, dialogue, and internal consultation Sub-Saharan frica since1988 through a participa-often have aken much onger han anticipated.Still, tory process based on country stuiies and thea growingnumberof countriesare ormulatingpoli- active nvolvementof African educationspecialistscies o addresshe ssues aised n the 1988 paper- and policymakers. he result of this process, heand to respond o the chaLLengesf the Jomtien "Prospective,Stocktaking Review of Education nDecLarationf the WorLd onferencen Educationor Africa," was presented t ADEAsbianriuaLmeetingAll (1990), he targetsof he WorldSummit or Social in Johannesburgn December 999.DeveLopment1995), and the DakarFrameworkor The WorLdBank has actively supported theAction, adoptedat WorLd ducationForum 2000). ADEA-Led ssessment nd is a member of theMore han 40 African governments ave prepared steering committee estabLishedo rianage it. Inaction plans o achieve ducationor all, and at least addition, he Bank'sAfrica RegionEducation amiLysix countriesare piloting sectorwideapproacheso has refLected n its nonLending xperiences nd oneducation evelopment. ways o increasehe effectiveness f its Lending nd

Since1988 donorshavespent considerabLeime nonLending upport.The first draft o.:a discussionreassessingid priorities and procedures.Mosthave paper was preparedand discussed ri 1998 withnow completedhis process ndare exploringways senior education officials from Africa as well as

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ExecutiveSummary is not surprising hat learningachievementsLimited.In the knowLedge-basedLobal conomy f the This record s especially isturbingwhensetcoming ecades,ducation iLlbe he cornerstone against ther egions. fricahas he lowest nroll-of broad-based conomicgrowth and poverty ment ateat every evel,and t is the onLy egionreduction-providinghe meansor peopLeo con- wherehe numbers f chiLdrenut of schoolarefront new deveLopmenthaLLengesnd improve continuingo rise.Theaverage fricanadult hastheir Lives.Withoutmajoradvancesn education fewer han hreeyears f schooLing,owerhan heAfricawiLL ot be abLeo take advantagef trade attainmentor any other region.Thereare aLsoand deveLopmentpportunitiesn a technoLogy- growing education inequaLitieswithin Africadriven and rapidLy ntegratingworLdeconomy. betweenncomegroupsand between rbanandEducations aLso he most mportantnvestment ruraL opuLations.oor hiLdren,speciallyhose nfor making rogressowardhe nternationaLocial ruraL reas, re he mostdisadvantacledn educa-deveLopmentoaLsdopted y the world's overn- tion access ndquality.ments or 2015.Without rapid and substantiaL Educationrendshave a direct bearingonimprovementsn education ccess nd quality n poverty eductionefforts in Sub-Sanaranfrica.Sub-Saharanfrica,where40 percentof people Africa'sshareof gLobaLovertysince 1987 hasstruggLeo survive n Lesshan $1 a day,broader risen,anda growing roportion f Africansannotpoverty eduction ffortswiLLe bLunted. meetheir basic eeds.Morehan24(0miLLioneo-ple Liveon Lesshan $1 a day.Wilh its rapidLygrowingpopuLation,he region needs5 percentAfrican Education rends annuaLrowth o keephe number f )oorfrom is-ing. HaLvinghe ncidence f povertyby 2015wiLLThe educationeveLopmentecordn Africasince requireannuaL er capitagrossdomestic roduct1988hasbeendisappointing. everal ountries- (GDP) rowth f at Least percent-urilikeLy, ith-incLuding Botswana, Cape Verde, Mauritius, out acceleratedrogresst aLL eveLsf theeduca-Namibia,Seychelles, waziLand,nd Zimbabwe- tion system.sustainedrogressn the 1980s nd1990s.Others Withouta quantumeap n education t thehave nitiated promising ong-term rograms f nationaLeveL,fricawiLLmiss he 2315 arget ofreformand deveLopment.ut the reaLity or too universalrimary ducation y a marqin f 55 miL-many fricanss aneducationystem haracterized Lion hiLdren. nrollmentrendssince he JomtienbyLow uaLity nd Limited ccess. conferencen 1990ndicate hat n 2015AfricawiLLFor he regionas a whoLe, rogressasLarge- account or 15 percentof the world's primaryLystalled since1990, aiLing o reversehe set- school-agehildren,ut 75 percent f children otbacksof the 1980s. Every evel has too few inschool.education aciLities,and those that exist are FaiLingo extend he benefits of educationoften in poor repairand nadequateLyquipped. deveLopmento the poor s thus LikeLyo proveTeachers, ften underpaidand underqualified, highLyostLy-economicaLly,ociaLLy,ndpolitical-rareLy eceivehe supportand supervisionhey Ly.AcceLeratingducation eveLopmentn Africaneed o be effective.TheannuaL umber f hours therefore eedso bepartof broader rovertyeduc-spent n the cLassroomy mostAfricanstudents tion and ruraldeveLopmenttrategies. here reis far belownternationaLtandards.nstructional pLenty f exampLesf educationaluccessesndmaterials reoften n desperateLyhortsuppLy.t promisingnnovationsn Sub-Saharanfrica to

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showwhat canbe achieved f countries howa gen- unLesst can meet three other key deveLopmentuine commitment o educationdeveLopment. chaLLenges-ending extensive armed confLict,

reversing the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and reducingTheAfrican developmentcontext fertiLity rates. Recent confLict in Africa has

caused massive human and economic devasta-The broad deveLopmentontext for African education. At Leastone African in five Livesn a coun-tion has changeddramaticaLLyn the past decade. try severeLy isrupted by war. Between 1990 andMost important, economic performance has 1994 more han 1 miLLion eopLe ied becauseofimproved markedLy ince 1995, with consecutive conflict. In 1998 more than 20 milLion Africansyears of per capita growth in many countries or were either refugees or displaced. Restoringthe first time since he 1970s. peace and stabiLity in the region is thus an* In some countries,such as Uganda,growth is urgent priority.

beginning o provide he resources eeded o Africa has aLso een the region hardesthit byexpandeducationopportunities. AIDS,which hasevoLvedrom a heaLthssue nto a

* Many countries can expect significant addi- developmentssue. By kiLLing eople n their mosttional national resourcesor educationdevel- productiveyears, the pandemic s destroying heopment as debt relief is granted under the social and economic abric of countries. Reversingenhanced HeaviLy Indebted Poor Countries hard-won human deveLopment ains, repLacing(HIPC)program. educationsector staff Lost o AIDS-reLatedLLness-

* WhiLe onfLictshavedevastated he economies es, providingeducation o AIDSorphans,and inte-of severaL ountries, many others are steadily grating AIDS education nto school programsaremoving oward better governance nd partici- urgent chaLLenges.patory democracy. MeanwhiLe,apid populationgrowth consistent-Thesechangesmake he prospects or acceler- Ly rustrates efforts to achieve universaL rimary

ating education deveLopment etter than at per- education. Notwithstanding he impact cf AIDS,hapsany ime in the past decade.And at the World Africa'spopuLationwill continue o grow rapidLy yEducationForum n Dakar, he 185 participating internationaL tandards.ts dependencyatio is thecountries adopteda Frameworkor Action toward highest n the world, placing an unusualLy eavythe 2015 goal of Education or ALL, iving special burden both on the pubLicpurse and on house-attention to the needsof Sub-Saharan frica. hoLds. frica must ace all these chaLLengeso move

Even o, he region acesdauntingdeveLopment forwardand createeducationsystemshat meet hechaLLenges.overty, ervasive cross he region, s a needsof the 21st century.barrier o expanding ducation ccess nd mprovingLearning utcomes.Waste n the pubLicsector and Country esponsesweak governance tructures ontinue to hoLdbackmany countries and urgently require reform. Given the deveLopment haLLengesacing AfricaUnsustainabLexternaLdebt has diverted scarce and he widespreadaiLureof currentapproachesnresourcesrom priority socialneeds-at a heavy ost the educationsector to deliver he desired esults,for the poor.This s why he resourcesreed hrough nationaL governments must respond cLearLy ndthe HIPC nitiative have o be genuineLy dditional decisiveLy. he nationaLeducation challenge hasand directed owardmeeting he needs f the poor. four main dimensions:

Africa cannot sustain any of the necessary * Creatinga framework or reform.investments in education and infrastructure * Identifying strategic priorities.

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* Developingnvestment rograms. Fourth,actingseLectivelyo make quantum* Acting eLectivelyased na fewclear rincipLes. Leapn education evelopment ill be achievedWhatdo these our dimensions eanor gov- and sustained nly where ffortsare underpinnedernments? irst, creatinga frameworkor reform by genuine ommitmento a clearset of guidingrequires old poLicies, ustained ver time and principLes:impLementedn broadpartnership ith civil soci- * A relentlesspursuit of quality. Without his,ety andwith donors. he eforms eed o be ramed expandedducationalpportunitiesreunlikelyin a sectorwide erspectivehat promotes al- to achieve heir purpose-impiarting sefulanced evelopmentf education ndconsidershe knowledge,easoningbilities, kiLls, nd alues.Linkagesetween ifferent artsof the system. he * An unwavering ommitment o equity. This schaLLenges to develop ocal olutionso financial, vital to ensure hat disadvantagedroups-educational,nd nstitutionalssues-all nformed especially ruraL residents, he poor, andby nternational xperience. femaLes-havequalaccesso Leairningppor-Second, ecause fricahassucha diversityof tunitiesat all levels. hiswill demand xplicit-contexts,he processf dentifying trategic rior- ly targeted trategiesor hard-to-reachroupsities will have to be country specific. But to and better analysis f the mechanismshatachieve quantum eapn education evelopment, excLudeeopLeromeducation.any country's riority objectivesmust ncludean * A willingness o make ough choices o ensureincreasen the educationalttainment f the abor financialsustainability.African ountries eedoforce hroughuniversaLrimary ducation-anda ensure hat education eveLopmenttrategiesgradual xpansionf accesso the fuLL ducation are inancially ustainable.ough ecisionsrecycle. wo therkeypriorities reespeciallympor- neededn settingspending riorities, pendingtant now that the world of work s increasingLy effectiveLyhe resourceshat have een LLocat-dominatedby information and communication ed, diversifyingundingsources, nd n manytechnologies: nhancingocationaLnd echnicaL casesmobilizing dditionaLundinc.Oncemade,skills, and strengthening ost-primary cience, these ecisions ill have o beadheredo.mathematics,nd echnology. * An up-front emphasis n instituticral strength-Third,designingnvestment rogramso make ening.Effective lanning,mplementation,ndthis happen wiLL often require fundamentaL evaLuation f reformsdependon effectivechangesn the managementnd inancing f edu- incentives, easonableules, efficient organi-cationsystems: zational structures, and competent staff.* Exploring Lternativeso existing ervice eLiv- Without hem,no strategyor education evel-ery approacheshat are currentlybasedon opment ansucceed.assumptionsnappropriaten much f Africa. Theagendaor reform ndprogresss challeng-* MovingpLanning nd resource LLocationn ing. Yet he emergencef new echnoLogiess cre-manycases rom central ministries o local ating opportunitiesor Africaneducat-iono moveofficesandcommunityrganizations. forwardn wayshat only a decade gocouLd ot* Allocating adequate esourceso nonsalary be magined. he xtent o whichAfric3will beableneeds. to takeadvantagef thesenewopportunitieso* Sharing esponsibiLityor the financingand participaten the gLobal nowLedgeconomy illprovision f schooling trategicallymong ov- depend nthe capacity f its educationystemsoernments, rivateproviders, arents, ndnon- harnesshe potential f nformation id communi-governmentaLrganizationsNGOs). cation echnologies.

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But the processof identifying priorities and is consistentwith the institutional commitmentodesigningand implementing eformsmust be coun- eLiminating overty.Theneed o baLancehe devel-try led if it is to succeed.NationaL irection and opmentof different leveLs f the educationsystemownerships wideLy ecognized s a key ingredient has not aLways eenobserved.Policy ecommenda-of successfuLmpLementation. tions have often rested on weakanalytical ounda-Much is already under way. Burkina Faso, tions. The linkages o broaderpoverty reductionGuinea,Mozambique, enegal, nd Ugandahaveall efforts have not been well developed.And too fewinitiated promising Long-termprogramsof reform interventions have generatedsustainable nstitu-and development t the primary evel. Ugandahas tional benefits.also impLementedar-reachingchanges n higher Bank evaluations cLearLy how the limitededucation. SeveraLSouth African Development impactof manypast nvestments nd emphasizeheCommunity ountries are piloting reforms n sec- need to Learn rom these experiences-at a timeondaryeducationand in math and science each- when hereare strong caLLsn donorso contributeing. Madagascar nd Zambiaare pLanning adical to broad-based ountry-Led artnershipsor educa-reformsn the way vocationaL nd technical education deveLopment. emocracyas createda spacetion are financed and managed.South Africa has for stakehoLderiaLogue n education eform, andformulateda comprehensiveine-point program or severaL ountries have either sustained eforms orsector reform. Such efforts derivefrom a recogni- embarked n promisingnew programs. t the sametion that without equitabLe, igh-quaLity, nd effi- time, donorsare Learningo work more closeLy ithcient education systems,Africa cannot meet the government,with eachother, and with civil society,development haLLengesf the 21st century. in pursuit of common bjectives.The deveLopment

New echnologies re creatingopportunities or of sectorwide rogramsn particuLars an encourag-Africaneducation o move orward n waysunimag- ing newapproach.inabLeonLy a decade ago. The extent to which To grasp hesenewopportunities,he Bankmusteducationsystemsprepare he students or partici- do more-and it must do t better. Becoming morepation in an economyncreasingLy ependenton effective partner nvolvesboth pursuinga strategyelectronic information and communication ech- and identifying specificgoaLs. he Bank'sstrategynologieswill be a key actor n the ability of African shouldgive priority to encouragingnnovationandcountries o take advantageof the opportunities changeand expLoitingts comparative dvantage.offeredby the new global economy. The Bank can be an effective lender only if it

increaseshe effectiveness f its nonlendingser-The WorldBank's response vices, by sharing ts knowledge nd by recognizing

and promoting ocal capacityor soundanaLysisndSupportingacceleratededucationdevelopment n pLanning. he strategy shouLdaLsoemphasize heAfrica s pivotaL o the WorldBank missionof elim- Bank'skey nstitutional priorities for the educationinating poverty. The Bank has two comparative sector:equitableaccessor the poor,especiaLlyirls;advantages or education sector development:a broadening the portfolio to include combatingstrong macroeconomicnd public expenditureper- HIV/AIDSas a centraleLementn the Bank'sassis-spectiveand an unusualdepthandbreadthof inter- tance; and mproving he quality of provisionmea-nationaL nowLedgend expertise. sured by Learningachievementand sustainable

Evenso, the scopeand effectiveness f World financing.ALLhis requires hat education nvest-Bank support often have been Limited. Lending ments be designedas an integral part of overallcommitments ave stabilized at a lower evel han poverty reduction programs.So educationsector

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staff wilt have to work in a more ntegratedway PromotingLong-term artnershipswith govern-across ectors. mentand civil societywilL equirea sectorspeciaList

In pursuing his strategy, he Bank needso: in the field office of everycountrywherehe Bankhas* Provide omprehensiveupport or sectordeveL- a significant invoLvementn the educationsector.

opmentprioritiesat the nationaLLeveL. This s a chaLlengen Africa,whereman countries re* Improveportfolio performance. smatL nd operationsare often adversely ffectedby

The Bank's upportwilL ncreasingLye designed economic nd politicaL nstabiLity.to promote he balanced eveLopmentf the entire Matching upportstrategieso couritryconditionssectorand considerhe tinkages etweenall partsof requires more lexibLe nd responsive ank.Wherethe education ystem-from earLy hildhood o post- the conditions exist for success, t could providegraduateprograms.nvestmentprioritieswiLLefLect Large-scaLeudgetsupport for educationdeveLop-that universaL rimary education s necessary or ment.WherepoLicy nvironments re weak, t couldmeeting nationalsocial and economicdeveLopmentsupport eformwith small,specific nvestmentLoans.goals. They wiLLaLso ecognize he importanceof Bank operationsshould provide enough assistancegraduaL nd seLective xpansion eyond he primary and ncentives o countries mergingrom conflict olevel. Policies nd argetssupported y these nvest- aLLowhem o developas quickLy s possible he con-ments wiLLbe highly countryspecific, reflecting a ditions for viable sectordeveLopmentrograms.political consensusn priorities and rade-offsbased Many needed eformsand innovations can beon human and financial resources,deveLopment moreeffective n cooperationwith neighboring oun-objectives,Labormarket ignaLs, nd he demands f tries facing simiLarproblems.This cooperationwillsociety. aLLow rogramso expLoiteconomies f scaLe,ecruit

Better portfolio performance iLt requireaction studentsrom a muchLarger ooL f czrididates, ndin five areas: Learn rom impLementationn different settings. To* Improving Lending eveLopment. support egionalor subregionaLrogramsffectiveLy,* Promotingpartnerships. the Bankwill need o deveLopnstrumentshat fit the* Matching upport trategieso country onditions. specific equirementsf these programs;.* AppLying tate-of-the-art knowLedge. The Bank can only meet these chaLlenges y* Enhancing taff skills. appLyingstate-of-the-art knowledge o its opera-

Improving he lendingdeveLopmentrocesswiLL tions, something hat clients demand nd are enti-requirea focuson heLping ountries mpLementhe tLed to. KnowLedge an be effecl:ive if it ispolicy reforms hey have dentified.With more han underpinned y sector analysisof economic, inan-40 potentiaLborrowers, he Bank needs o respond cial, educational,and nstitutional issues.Technicalto a range of development ituations and develop solutions must be based on locaL conditions andLending strategies to match. Improving tending reflect LocaL nowledge,whiLe ncorporating nter-deveLopment iLL Lso equiremore nonLending er- nationaL experience. ndeed, far greater priorityvices and cLearstandardsat entry. Also crucial s shouLd go to strengthening countrs capacity togreater LexibiLityn appLying ankpoliciesand pro- deveLopnd appLy ew knowledge.cedures, nabLinghe Bank o bemore esponsiveo To aLign ts staffing with the new sectorstrat-the new program priorities of budget support, egy, the BankwiLL ssembLe n apprcpriate mix ofdecentraLized mpLementation, and community economists,education speciaLists, id staff withinvoLvement.n particuLar,he Bank wiLLneed to speciaLized kiLLsn areas such as institutionalsupport programs hat include recurrentexpendi- analysis and implementation. The strategy aLsotures such as eachers' aLaries. requires a good mix of experiencedstaff and

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younger staff eager to experiment and innovate. Bank needs greater seLectivity n the context ofIncreasing technical and operational knowledge increaseddialogue and partnershipwith govern-about education n Africa is central o the success mentsand with other deveLopmentctors he Bankof the proposed action program. Achieving this is Lessaccustomed o working with. Experiencegoal will require ntensifying efforts in the region shows hat education or all can be achievedandto hire staff-from inside and outside the Bank- sustained nLywheregovernments, onors, nd civilranging from top-quaLity, experienced staff to society work coLLectivelyoward shared priorities.promising young taLent. t wiLLaLso equire mak- The DakarWorLdEducationForum and the Socialing expLicit arrangementswith senior staff to Summit njected new urgencynto coLLectiveffortsmentor and coach Less xperiencedcoLLeagues- to achieve ducation or all. TheBank s determinedand implementing an Africa-specific staff deveL- to grasp his opportunity. t will provide he maxi-opment program. mum possibLe ontribution to achievinguniversal

Noneof these goaLswiLL e achievedunLesshe primaryeducation n Africa by 2015 whiLe teppingBank becomes t once more comprehensiven its up support or broaderdeveLopmentf the educa-anaLysis nd more seLectiven its approach.The tion sector.

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1. AfricanEducation n the Threshold Convention n the Rightsof the Child, ratified byof the 21st Century everynation exceptSomaLia nd the LlriitedStates,recognizes hildren's ight to educatiorand requires

The WorLdBank'sAfrica Region comprises he 41 signatories to provide free compuLsorybasiccountries (Djibouti is part of the Middle Eastand education. Education s aLso he cornerstoneofNorth Africa Region)on the continent south of the deveLopmentand the foundation of economicSahara and the six isLand nations cLose o it. competitiveness nd social well-being. NumerousAfrica's rich cultural and ethnic traditions refLect studies show that education,particLLarLy rimarydifferent heritages in aLL countries-an earLy education,hasa significant positive mpact on eco-Christian heritage in the Nile Basin, a strong nomicgrowth Barro1991; Lau,Jamison,and LouatIslamic nfLuencen the north, and Christian nflu- 1991; Nehru and Dhareshwar 1994), earningsencesdating from coLoniaLismn manycentral and (PsacharopouLos985), andproductivity Lockheed,southernAfrican countries. Each sLandnation has Jamison,and Lau1980).By ncreasinghe vaLue ndalso developedts own cuLture. efficiency of Labor, ducationheLps aise the poor

GeographicaLLynd economicaLLy, frica is from poverty.By increasing he overaLLroductivitydiverse and fragmented. In 1998 the region's and nteLLectuaLlexibiLityof the labor force, t heLpspopuLationwas about 630 milLion,with two-thirds ensure country's ompetitivenessn world markets.in rural areas.Sevencountries have ewer than 1 Almost aLLhe newLyndustriaLizedeconomiesmillion peopLe. Nigeria has 120 miLLion and that have experienced dramatic growth in theEthiopia 60 miLLion. Within the continent past 25 years-such as Hong Kong, China, thecommunications nd raveLare difficuLt, and inter- RepubLic f Korea,and Singapore-achieved uni-naL rade s Limited.GNPper capita averaged 488 versaLor near-universaLprimary education byin 1998, ranging from about $100 in the 1965. This helped ncrease productivity and LaidDemocraticRepubLic f Congo, Ethiopia, Eritrea, the foundation for an equitable distribution ofand Mozambique to more than $2,800 in the benefits of rapid growth. In contrast, coun-Botswana,Gabon,Mauritius, and South Africa. On tries with uneducatedpopulations cannot expectthe whoLe, he region's GNPgrowth and human to increase incomes and weLL-being LockheeddeveLopment ave Lagged ehind those of other and Verspoor1991; WorLdBank 1990, 1999a).regions, especiallysince 1980. Education s thus intertwined inexl:ricably with

Despitegains n the secondhaLfof the 1990s, economicdevelopment. t is both a sourceand aSub-Saharan frica enters the 21st century with consequence of development, fcr economicmanyof the worLd's oorestcountries. Can t rise growth provides he resources o e>pandeduca-to the chaLLengesf this new century?The answer tion opportunities.will dependLargely n the scopeand effectiveness Primary ducation annotexpandandeconomiesof investments n education. Decades f research cannotgrowwithout an education ystemhat trainsand experience n Africa and eLsewherehave a Large umberof studentsbeyond he basic cycLe,shown he pivotal roLeof a weLL-educatedopuLa- incLudinggraduatestudents at universities.To betion in initiating, sustaining, and acceLerating sustainable,education deveLopment ust be baL-sociaL and economic deveLopment. Education anced. t mustensure hat systems roduce tudentsdeveLopments unquestionabLy f cruciaL mpor- at different LeveLsith quaLificationshat respondotance for Africa. the demand f the labormarket,producing contin-

Every ountry n the worLd ecognizes asicedu- uous suppLy f skiLLed orkers, echnicians,profes-cation as a fundamentalhuman right. The 1989 sionaLs, anagers, nd Leaders.

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In addition o its economiceturns,education- partsof the system-make a difference.Third, heparticuLarly f girLs-has a positive impact on a returns o these nvestmentsmaterialize nLyn anvarietyof nonwage ctivities that increasehouse- environment of good governance,political andhoLdwelfare. For example, he schooLingof girls macroeconomictabiLity,and broad and equitabLeattersbehaviorn ways hat Latereduce ertiLityand accesso sociaL ervices.infant and child mortality, improve househoLdheaLthby influencing nutritional and heaLth arepractices,and improvechiLdren'school perfor- StalledProgressn EducationDevelopmentmance.Several enefitsof thesebehavioral hangesaLsoaccrue o society, such as tower ncidenceof In 1960-about the time most African cDuntriescommunicabLeiseases. urthermore,ducationcan gained independence from colonial ruLe-theincrease social cohesionby teaching chiLdren o region tagged ar behind the industriaLwortd inLearnand work together with others rom different nearlyeverystandard ndicatorof educationdeveL-social or ethnicgroupsearly n life, contributing o opment. Efforts to redress his situation yieLdednation-building and personaLoLerance. road and dramatic resuLts in the 1960s and 1970s.equitabLe ccess o education s thus essential or Since 1980 enroLLmentsave declined.Access osustainedprogressoward democracy, ivic partici- educationhas risensLowly. he quaLityof faciLitiespation, andbetter governance. and teaching is poor in many areas. Repetition

Threecaveatsare clear, however.First, educa- ratesare high, compLetionatesLow.While egion-tion deveLopments a necessaryut not a sufficient at trendshide Large ationalvariationsn educationcondition for development.Second, onLy nvest- development,hey are ndicative of the challengesments in quality education-baLancedamong aLL Africa aces.

Table 1.10Grs EnrolltmentatiosinAfrica,1960 97 (percent)Primaryotal 43.2 52.5 79.5 74.8 76.8Primary emale 32.0 42.8 70.2 67.6 69.4Primarymale 54.4 62.3 88.7 81.9 84.1Primaryemaleasshare f totaL 37.0 41.0 44.0 45.0 45.0

Tertiary ota 0.2 0.8 1.7 3.0 3.9Tertiary emale 0.1 0.3 0.7 1.9 2.8TertiarymaLe 0.4 1.3 2.7 4.1 5.1Tertiaryemaleas share f total 20.0 20.0 22.0 32.0 35.0Note.All data include Sout Afica xcep 0:Source: NESCO1984,1999b.

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Accesso primary schooling cent for Afrca, comparedwith 51 percent or alldevelopingcountries.The tertiary enrollmentratioEnroLLmentsuintupLedn the 1960sand 1970s- in 1997 reached3.9 percent or Africa, compared

from 12 million to 62 million. Primary nrolLments with 10 percent or all developingcourtries.jumped rom11 mitlion n 1960 o aLmost 3 miLLion FemaLe rimary enrollments increasedby 55in 1980, while the primary gross enrollment atio percent between 1980 and 1995 and almost keptexceeded 9 percent n 1980 (table1.1). Growthat up with population growth. At the se.ondaryLeveLthe secondary nd ertiary levelswasevenmoredra- femaLeenroLLments ore than doubled, while atmatic, with secondary nroLlmentsncreasing y 15 the tertiary Level female enroLLmertsncreasedtimes and ertiary enrollments y 20 times. more han fourfoLd.Despite hese n-reases,gen-

From 1980 to 1995 enrollmentscontinued o der nequaLities ersist at all levels.Female nroll-increase n absoLuteerms, but much more slowly ments are onLy80 percent of male einroLLmentstthan durng the initial post-independenceeriod. the primary and secondary eveLsnd less han 55Thenumberof prmary schooL tudentsncreased y percent at the tertiary level.52 percent, o 76.5 miLlion.Thenumber f secondary WhiLe ross enrollment rates have stagnated,schoot students doubLedo 18.8 miLLion. nd the intake and net enroLLmentates shovwedonsider-numberof tertiary studentsmore han trpLed o 1.9 abLe mprovement n the 1990s (table 1.2). NetmiLLion. enroLlmentates ncreased rom 54 percent n 1990

At the primary Level, however, enrollment to 60 percent n 1998, apparent ntake rates romgrowth did not keep up with popuLationgrowth. 70 percent o 81 percent,and net intake rates romTheprmary grossenrolLmentatio fell from 80 per- 33 percent o 43 percent.The country coverage fcent n 1980 o 75 percent n 1990, [argelya resuLt these ndicators, hough incomplete,suggestshatof dectiningmaLe articipation rates. n the 1990s moreschool-age hiLdren re n school, he declineenroLlments,specially or boys, began o recover, in boys' participation has reversed, nore chiLdrenreaching77 percent n 1997.At the secondaryevel are enroLLingn grade 1, and the proportion ofthe grossenrollment atio in the 1990swas 26 per- overage and underage children has dropped-

Tabte1.2 PrimarySchool Net Enroltment nd Intake Rates, 1990, 1995, and 19981990 1995 IMMl

Boys Girls Boys Girts Boys GirtsNetenrollmentatea 59.8 49.9 64.2 52.9 67.6 54.2Apparentntake ateb 75.7 65.3 83.4 70.0 88.3 73.5Net ntake ate* 34.7 31.9 41 -4d 40.6d 44.5 41.6a. Net enrollments he proportion f school-agehildren-excdudingnderager overagehildren-as percentagef theschool-ageopuationb. Apparent, r gross,ntakes he number f childrenentering rade , regardlessf age,asa percentagef t6epopulationof offcial entryage.c.Net ntake s he number f school-agehildren ntering chool sa percentagef the officialschool-ageopulation.d. Becauseo datawereavailableor 1995, heseigures re or 1994.Source:NESCO000b.

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possibly refLecting he decLine n repetition rates Despite he progressn somecountries,accessreported by UNESCO2000a). But many children to primaryeducation emainsprobLematicn muchenroLL ate only two-thirds of the new entrants n of Africa. The economic problems of the 1980s1998 were he official age for schoolenroLLment), causeda dramaticdecline n primary participationthe gap in girLs' initiaL enroLLment ate has rates hat was redressed nly partiaLLyn the 1990sincreased, nd more han 40 percentof school-age (figure1.1). Of he 44 countrieswith data or 1996,children are not in school. only 10 (Botswana,Cape Verde, Congo, MaLawi,

Botswana,CapeVerde,Mauritius,Namibia, he Mauritius, Namibia,South Africa, Swaziland,Togo,SeycheLLes,waziLand, nd Zimbabwe sustained and Zimbabwe) ad a primarygrossenrollment atioeducationprogress espiteconcernabout he quaL- of 100 percent.Six (BurkinaFaso,Ethiopia,Liberia,ity of teaching and Learning.MaLawi,Mauritania, MaLi, Niger, and SomaLia)had a primary grossand Uganda mplementedpoLicieshat resulted n enrollment atio below50 percent.And since 1985a sudden ncrease n primary enroLLmentsnd now the primary gross enroLLmentatio has actuaLLyare struggLing o deal with consequent quality declined in 17 countries-Angola, Burundi,challenges. Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mozambique, Cameroon, entralAfrican RepubLic, omoros, 6teand Senegalopted for a more graduaL pproach. d'Ivoire, he DemocraticRepubLic f Congo,Kenya,Manyothers-Nigeria among hem-are formulat- Lesotho,Liberia, Madagascar, ozambique, igeria,ing comprehensive ong-term trategies or educa- Sierra Leone, SomaLia,Tanzania, and Zambia.tion deveLopment, ncLuding universal primary Together, he 17 are home o more than haLf ofeducation. Africa'sschooL-ageopuLationUNESCO998d).

Figure1.1 PrimaryGrossEnrotlmentRatios HaveFallen n ManyAfrican CountriesPercent120 -..

t;00 . > _. ............... s =ffil=.....9851990

199760

v 010 A E A TE IV0Sre:UNESCO99a.~

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The chaLLenges clear. n aLmost lL countries, Learning is further constrained by Limitedaccess has expanded ar too sLowLyo achieve LearningmateriaLs box 1.1). MateriaLs hat areinternational education targets for gender avaiLabLere often n Languageshat moststudentsequity and universaL rimaryeducation. The arget do not speak at home. A recent study (UNESCOdatesof the Organisationor Economic o-operation 1998d) found hat in 10 of 11 countries surveyed,and DeveLopment, eveLopmentssistanceCommi- more han a third of students had no chalkboardsttee are 2005 or genderequity in primaryand sec- in their cLassrooms.n 8 of the 11 more han haLfondary enrollment and 2015 for universaL rimary the students n the highest grade i,ad no matheducation;OECD, AC996.) About12 percent f the books.Most African childrenspend cughLyhaLfasworLd's hildren ages6-11 Live n Africa, yet the much ime n the cLassroomver he academic earregionaccountsor more han a third of chiLdren ut as chiLdrenn the industrial countries.of school. Unless urrent rends reverse,Africa will Poverty-reLatedeprivation contributes o lowaccount or three-quarters f the world's hiLdren ut education attainment in Africa. Foor chiLdrenof schooLn 2015 (Oxfam 999). spendmore ime than other chiLdren ontributing

directly or indirectLy o household ncome.As aMastery of basic skills result they are Less ikeLyo spend out-of-schooLhours on schooLwork,more LikeLy :o be absentLeamingconditions.ManyAfrican countries aiL o from school during periods of peak Labordemand,provide an environment for effective Learning. and more LikeLyo be tired and iLL-preparedorChiLdren re taught in overcrowded Lassroomsy Learningwhen they are in the cLassroom.Moreunderqualifiedand unmotivated eachers who are than 40 percent of chiLdren n Africa are stunted,often poorLy nd irregularLy aid and receive ittLe whiLe aLmost a third are underweight. PrimarymanageriaLupport. Teacher bsenteeisms wide- schooL-age hiLdrenare especialLy usceptible ospread, isrupting Learning nd erodingpubLic on- iLLnesseshat affect poor people mcst, in partic-fidence n the vaLue f education. uLar gastrointestinal and respiratory probLems.

Box .1TextbookAvailabiity in AfrcaTextbookavailability is generaLly oor in most es and damages. elaysn book suppLies nd theAfrican countries. Somecountries (Lesotho, or rapid ncreasen primary nrollment avealso con-exampte) avehad well-managedevolvingextbook tributed o the lackof adequateextbooks.fundssince he early 1980sand have managedo Textbooksre ypicalLy carcerartheraway romsustainhigh extbookplrovision. ut hesecountries distribution enters:he differencen textbook vail-areexceptions.n Ugandaield surveysn 1999dis- ability between ural and urban areas s marked.covered hat despite significant donor-supported Textbook vailability Lso ariesamong rade evetstextbook suppLies, ctual textbook:studentatios and subjects. t the secondaryeveLmorebooksarewereas Low s 1:30 n somecases,owerhan he avaiLabLeor coresubjects,uch sLanguagendmath,official estimate f 1:7. Themain easonor the dis- than or science ndhImanities. lthough fficialcur-crepancy ppearso be a lower-than-expectedook ricula usuallyspecifybetween8 and 10 subjects,life caused y poorstorage onditions ndhigh oss- donorsend o supply ooks nly or coresubjects.

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MaLnourishednd sick chiLdren re essLikeLyhan More ecentLy,he SouthernAfrica Consortiumhealthy chiLdren o Learn n schooLand are more for Monitoring EducationalQuaLityassessed heLikely o be absent from Lessons Lockheedand reading skiLLs f grade 6 students in Mauritius,Verspoor 991). And f private costs or education Namibia, Zimbabwe,and Zanzibar,Tanzania.Theare substantial, parents in poor householdsare mean or reading achievement-that is, the aver-more ikely to withdraw heir children from school age percentageof correct answers-ranged fromearly in the schooL ycLe UNICEF 999). All these 38 percent o 58 percent (figure 1.2). In SenegaLeffects are exacerbatedby the rapid spread of onLy 25 percent of students recentLy ested onHIV/AIDS,which affects the attendanceof teach- proficiency n material from the officiaL curricu-ers and students and strains househoLdesources. lum achievedmastery eveL-defined as a scoreof

Monitoring and assessment.Unsurprisingly, 75 percent correct or higher-in science andstudents who compLete rimary schooL ften have French INEADE 997).an unacceptably ow level of learning. The few Retention. The poor Learningenvironment nreguLarassessments f learning achievement n many African schools often resuLtsn high repeti-Africa are not encouraging.n 1990-91 Botswana, tion rates and low completion rates (UNESCONigeria, and Zimbabwe participated in a 31- 1998a). A few Africancountries have Low epeti-country survey of grade 9 reading skiLLs Elley tion rates. Someof these, for example, Zambia,1992). Students in these three countries regis- have adopteda policy of automaticpromotion. Intered the lowest scores, performing considerabLy others, such as Mauritius, effective instructionworse han students n the other four non-African resuLtsn less han 10 percentof students repeat-deveLoping ountries participating in the survey, ing each year. But in 15 countries more than 20(the PhiLippines,ThaiLand,Trinidad and Tobago, percentof studentsare repeaters-in C6ted'Ivoireand Venezuela). more han haLfof aLL rimary students are repeat-

Figure 1.2 Resuts of Reang AchievementTests n Selected CountriesPercent60 Narrative50 Expository

40 Z ~~~~~~~~~~~~30 U TotalTest20100

Namibia at Zanzibar,anzania ZimbabweSource: aito 1998.

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ing a gradeat any time. Repetition s an nefficient mentary Literacyand numeracyskill;. For exam-useof scarce esources.n 11 of 33 countrieswith pLe, n Chad,Ethiopia, and Madagasc3r ore handata, the input-output ratio (the numberof stu- a third of the chiLdrenwho enter school neverdent-yearsspent by a cohort entering primary complete grade2.school divided by the theoretical number ofstudent-years raduates eed ake o completepri-mary ducation ithout epeating r dropping ut) BeyondPrimaryEducationis morethan 1.5. The cLoserhe vaLue o 1, theideal, the more efficient the system.Thesecoun- Few countries provide adequateoppor-tunities ortries spend50 percentor more han wouLd e nec- education and training needed by 12-17-year-essary n an ideaLsystem. oLds figure 1.3). WhiLe ome youths in this age

Repetition s aLsoa majorfactor in students' cohort have never attended school. and othersdropping out of school, since Learning rareLy have dropped out, in manycountries an increas-improves after studentsrepeat grades. n Africa ing proportion have compLeted rimary educationonLy Mauritius, the SeychelLes, nd Zimbabwe and are looking for opportunities to either con-have primary compLetion ates of more than 90 tinue formal schooLingor acquire skilLs hat wiLLpercent. In 14 of 32 countries or which data are equip them to enter the worldof work. This s theavailable, more than a third of schooLentrants age when peopleacquire habits of Lifelong earn-fail to reach the finaL grade(UNESCO998a).In ing and deveLop kiLLs nd interests. The educa-the CentraL African RepubLic, Chad, Congo, tion and skiLLs f this age group wiLL e cruciaLnMadagascar,nd Mozambiqueewer than haLf he shaping national deveLopment ell nto the 21stchiLdrenwho enroll in primary school complete century.five years. Manyof the students drop out early n Education nd raining for youths s not onLyanthe primary cycLe,before hey acquire evenrudi- economicmperative. n manycountries oungpeo-

Figure1.3 EstimatedEnrollmentRatiosof 12-17-Year-Oldsby RegioniPercent80 &O ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ gjg ~~~~~~~~~~~MaLe

..... E ... .. ....... ........i _ gemale6050403020

Af1ica Arabtates Latin mericand Easternsia/ SouthernsiaCaribbean OceaniaSource:NESCO995.

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pLe's issatisfactionand disillusionmentwith their locaL probLems. et African universities are reLa-prospects or education and work threaten social tively new and weak nstitutions. EarLy urricuLumcohesion and stability. Reaching his age group links to reLigious tudies and civiL service needsthrough formal and nonformaL ducation is aLso haveoften promoted he humanities nd socialsci-vital to the success f targeted interventions in ences at the expense of the natural sciences,such areasas HIV/AIDS and reproductiveheaLth applied technoLogy,business-reLated kiLLs, ndeducationand programso raise awareness f civic research apabiLities WorLdBank 1998a).rights and responsibilities.Yet only one-fourth of Manycountrieshave ound t difficuLt o moveyouths n this age group have accesso secondary away rom the coLoniaLmodeLn which the stateeducation,and only 6 percentare reached y voca- was he onLyLegitimateprovider of higher educa-tional and nonformaLducationprograms.Moreover, tion for a small priviLeged Lite.The effectivenessthe quaLityof pubLicLyunded skiLLs eveLopment of university educationhasbeen urther hamperedprograms s usualLy oor. Theseprogramsdepend by poor national economicperformance,nappro-heaviLy n externaLinancing and carry high costs priate governing structures, weak nationaL poLi-per student (Middleton, Van Adams,and Ziderman cies, weak manageriaL capacity, politicaL1993). Suchprograms ften are alsopoorly attuned interference n universities, and campus nstabiLi-to Labormarketdemand nd ail to Leado income- ty (ADEA 999b). MeanwhiLe,ften Limited egion-earningopportunities.SkiLLsraining programsyp- al cooperationamong nstitutions further restrictsically are geared o formal sector employment t a teaching and research capacity. Nevertheless,time when he formaL ector n most African coun- enroLLment rowth in higher education has beentries absorbsonly a smaLL inority of Labormarket unprecedented. n 1960 Africa (excluding Southrecruits (Mingatand Suchet orthcoming). Africa) had six universitieswith fewer han 30,000

Accesso new communication,nformation,and students. n 1995 he region supportednearLy 20computer echnology s Limited n secondary nd universitiesenrolling aLmost2 miLLion.pubLic raining institutions in Africa. The Lackof Dwindling esources uring his periodof grow-instructional equipment and materiaLs further ing enrollments ADEA1999a) has had a sharpLyinhibits Learning. arallel o public training nstitu- negative mpact on the quaLity of education ntions, aLmost LL frican countrieshave a large pri- African universities. Expenditure per student-vate training sector that trains people for measuredn units of GNPper capita-decLined inempLoymentn the formaLand informal sectors 10 of 15 countries or which data are avaiLable.nthroughon-the-joband school-basedraining. While countriessuch as Mauritania and Zambiaexpendi-manyof theseprivate raining approachesavebeen ture per student fell by more han 50 percent.Yetsuccessful,manyothers are of poor quaLity.Only a on average African higher education remainsfew givestudents he skiLLshey need o work n the expensive y international standards.n 1992 pub-emergingnformationand communicationsconomy. lic educationspendingper pupiLas a percentage f

per capita GNPwas 15.1 percent at the pre-prima-ry and primary Levels,53.7 percent at the sec-

Higher Education ondary leveL, and 507 percent at the universityLevel.This disparity makes he strategic manage-In manyAfricancountries universitiesare he only ment of higher education esources centraLcon-national institutions with the skilLs, equipment, cern of any education developmentpolicy. Someand mandate o generatenew knowledge hrough universities have begun to develop aLternativeresearchand to adapt global knowledge o solve methodsof servicedeLiveryhrough distance edu-

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cationprogramsor ruraland sparsely opulated incomeLeveLhe cost per studentof secondaryareas, isadvantagedtudents, nd studentswho schooling ariesconsiderabLyetween ountrieswork uLLime. A number f universities rebegin- andwithin countries. n fact, secondarychool-ning to use Internet-basedechnoLogies.hese ing is mostexpensiveeLativeo GNF' ercapitaoptions fferanalternativeo the traditionaLigh- in countrieswith the LowestnroLLmentates. ner-educationmodelof fuLL-timere-empLoymentAfricasecondary choolsuse resourcesuch astrainingon residentialampuses,ut n most ases teachers ndbuiLdingsmuchLess fficientLyhanthe potentiaL f the new echnoLogiess under- primaryschooLs. ne easonmaybe that in theused. poorestcountries, secondary chooLs re stiLLorganizedaLong raditionaLLines o educateasmaLLlite.Efficiency Limitedpublic esourcesnd cornpeting ub-Licspending rioritieshavepreventEdmanygov-The efficiencyof education xpendituresaries ernments rom addressing he challengesofconsiderabLy,s do the reasonsor differences education eveLopment.ince he mid-1980shewithin and betweenrancophonendangLophone shareof educationspending n the GDPhascountries.n some countries,especiaLLyn the increasedn 14 of the 26 AfricancountriesorSahel,high teachersalariesmake t difficuLt o whichdataare available,emainedhe samen 1,mobiLizehe resourceso reachuniversal rimary and decreasedn 11. Perhapsmoresignificant,educationn the foreseeabLeuture. n othercoun- this shares stilL Lesshan3 percentn 8 coun-tries teacher aLariesre so Lowhat teachers re tries (UNESCO998c).At a given evel of educa-forced o take additionaLobs. tion spending sa share f GDP, articipation ndTeacher eploymentoLicies an aLsoead o attainment evels n Africa comparEnfavorabLyinefficient and inequitable distribution of with those n other Low-incomeountries tabLeresources. ften eachers renot depLoyedccord- 1.3). Inefficient and inequitabLese of scarceingto number f students, earsof experience,r resourcesn a contextof high population rowthsaLary.heeacher:studentatio n Niger,or exam- and demandor generaLubLicinancingof edu-pLe,varieswideLyrom schooLo schooLfigure cation by politically powerfuL ressure roups1.4). Forexample,n primary chooLsf 200 stu- adds o the fiscal chaLLenge.huscountriesmustdents, he teacher:studentatio rangesrom1:100 set priorities or pubLic pending, chieveeffi-to 1:20.Thesituation s simiLar t the secondary ciencygainswherepossible, nd dentify oppor-level.These iscrepanciesan eopardizehe effec- tunities for mobilizingadditional pubLicandtive operation f the entireeducation ystem nd private esources.aLmostnvariabLyesultn lowstudentLearningndparticipation rates. DetaiLedcountry-specificanaLysiss needed or an appropriatepoLicy PrivateEducationresponse.

A recent study (Lewinand CaiLLods999) The private sector s an increasincilymportantargues hat deveLopingountrieswith low sec- provider f educationn Africa.Privateprovidersondary nrollments,ncludingmostAfrican oun- range romcommunity-runchoolseLying n in-tries, cannot finance substantiaLLyhigher kindcontributionso for-profitschooLsun or theparticipation rates from domestic public weaLthy. odaymost egistered rivate chooLsnresourcesith currentcoststructures. t a given Africa are nonprofit communityarid reLigious

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Figure1.4 Retationshipetweenhe Numbefrofeachers ndStudentst thePrimary ev:elnNigerNumber f teachers22 - A21- A20Q A A A19: AA A A18 A AAA A AA17 AA A AA AC A16- A A A A AA A15 B A AA B A A AA A14 A ABAAACAR A AAA AA BA A13: A AAB C AAAAA AAAA ACAA AA12- Ac~ BAADBAAA AA ~AA A11- A OBAA AAAAA Mt>BBA A A A10 k B A A BBACAA CA A A A A9 BB BACD B ABCt BAA A A8- AB ABABBBCCAAAOAA A A A7 A BA AD :}0EtD :A AMA A6- - AB!tGIKXJJLGECCCBA - - A _ _5 ABBDMHKFkFHCQCxA

4 =HGdOGMGEHCBA C3- EZZZZZZZUO::BBA2- ZZZZZYVIGC:1- LZZKCCB A

0 2200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400Numberf studentsNote:A - 1 school,B = 2 schools, = 3 schools;.. = 26 schools.Source:World B3ankorthcoming .

schooLs IIEP 1999). The private sector plays a burdenon governments, ive parents more choicesmalL oLeat the primary level, but its share n and control, and improveaccountabiLity.meeting secondary, ocational, and tertiary educa- Somecountries are also increasing he role oftion needs has increasedsignificantly in recent private providers n deLiveringsupport servicesyears. In C6te d'Ivoire 36 percentof generaL ec- such as textbook publishing, classroom onstruc-ondarystudents and 65 percent of technical stu- tion, and university catering. Countrieswill needdents are enroLled n private schools (Vawda, detaiLedanalysesof these programs,organization-Yaaub, and Patrinos1999). In Zambia almost 90 al arrangements, nd cost structuresas they con-percentof students aking technicaLandvocation- sider affordablepoLicies or expandingaccess oaLexaminationswere trained outside pubLic nsti- secondaryeducation, vocationaL raining, techni-tutions. Privateeducationcan reduce he financiaL caLeducation,and higher education.

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Table1.3 Comparativendicatorsf Educationpendingfficiency,993Years f PrimaryEducationPrimary ducation Gross Schooling TeacherSpending/ Spending/ Enrollment per1 Percent Salary/GDPCountry GDPpercent) GDPpercent) Ratio percent) of GDP per capitaBurkina aso 2.7 1.13 38 1.06 8.4Chad 2.4 1.03 59 1.75 5.5Mali 2.8 1.32 25 0.69 10.3Niger 3.1 1.43 29 0.73 9.7Senegal 4.2 1.85 59 1.15 7.2Average 3.0 1.35 42 1.08 8.2

Limited EducationAttainment maLes nd hreeyearsor femaLesUNESCO998c).In aLmostall countries he situation is worseforTheeconomic hocksAfricaexperiencedn the 1980s girLs.AveragemaLeand femaLeLiteracy ates inandearly1990sare stiLLeLt n educationsystems. Africadiffer by aLmost 0 percentage oints, whiLeFollowingearLierprogress,educationdeveLopment average rimarygrossenrollment atiosdiffer by14stagnatedand n several ases ecLined. anycoun- percentagepoints (UNESCO 998c). Only fivetriesstilLcannotprovideheir populationswithequi- African countries(Botswana,CapeVerde,Kenya,table opportunitiesor good education.Asa resuLt Lesotho,and Namibia)have femaleprimarygrossmanypeopLetiLL aveLittleor no education, kiLLed enroLlmentatiosequalo or above hose or males.workersareLacking, nd the region s increasingly As disturbingas the LowLeveLsf literacyandisoLatedromgLobal nowledge etworks. educationattainment s the markeddecLinen the

TheaverageAfricanadult has fewer han three capacity f manyAfricancountrieso generatenowL-yearsof education figure1.5). Onen three males edge s a resourceor tertiaryLevelnstructionand orand one n two femaLess illiterate. In severaLoun- researchnd echnologydevelopment. 1992studytries the average ix-year-oLdanexpecto receive (UNESCO999a) estimated hat Afric:ahas onLyfewer han threeyearsof formaleducation.Average 20,000scientistsand engineers, r 0.36 percentofeducationattainment n BurkinaFaso s estimated the worLd'sotal. In Nigeria,with 20 percent ofat threeyears or malesandtwo years or females; Africa'spopuLation,nly 15 scientistsanidengineersin Mozambiquet is estimated at four years for per miLlionpeopleengagen research nddevelop-

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Figure1.5 Averag Yearsof Adult Schooing4 ave Stagnatedn Africa6 \: 0 0000_ ;00 0 000000000 0: X 1980

5 19854 19903

Africa t fAmeEastsi &l Lt A ca& e East& SouthAsiaPaciffc Caribbean North fricaSource:Barroand Lee 1996; EDsTATS.

ment,compared ith 149 n India, 350 n China,and deveLopmentssistance epresented .7 percentof3,700 n the UnitedStates UNESCO998c). Africa'sGNP, omparedwith an average f Lesshan

A continuing brain drain exacerbates hese 1 percent or all deveLopingountries UNDP 999).probLems. easonsary rom country o country but Worldwide, bout 10 percentof aid supportseduca-usuaLLyeLateo a Lack f empLoymentpportunities tion and about 1.5 percent supports basic educa-in the modernsector, Limited esearchbudgets n tion. Since1992, however, id lows havedecLined,universities,and the Lack f freedomof speechand and since 1994 aid to Africa has droppedby $3.7the fear of politicaL repression n countries with billion (Oxfam1999).Theeffect of this reduction nauthoritarian egimes.AvaiLabLeiguressuggesthat aid on educationaccess nd quaLitys not cLear.about 30,000 Africans holding Ph.D. degreesLive The 1990 WorLdConferenceon Education oroutside the continent,and 130,000Africansstudy All was an important impetus for a review of edu-in higher earning nstitutions outside Africa. Many cation deveLopmenttrategies and assistance ri-of those who ind employment broadnever eturn. orities. WorLdBank Lending or basic education,

having increased n the Late 1980s, umped con-siderabLy fter the conference.UntiL1990 biLater-Limitedmpact f External id aLsupport for basic educationwas Limited.Afterthe conference id agenciesbegan o reorder heir

Africa has consistentLyeceivedmore external aid priorities and formuLate policies for increasedthan other regions.Between1996and 1997 over a assistanceo basiceducation.The result was sub-third of totaL officiaLdeveLopmentssistancelows stantiaL biLateraL support for basic educationwent to Sub-Saharan frica despite the fact that deveLopment, speciaLLyn Africa. In 1996, 42the regionaccounts or onLy12 percentof the totaL percent of the $668 million Africa received n aiddeveLoping ountry popuLation.Africa aLsos more to educationwent to basiceducation (figure 1.6),aid dependenthan other regions. n 1997 official an important increase rom the Late 1980s. Yet

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official deveLopmentssistanceepresents nly Shortcomingsn donorapproache; avecon-3-4 percent f totaLexpenditure n educationn tributed o the mixed ecord f aid for education.Africa.This average ides argevariations: ome Often donorshave paid insufficientattention ocountries eceivevirtually no foreign aid, while countries' apacity o manage eveLopmentro-others receiveaid from severaldonorsand can grams,o hat aid has ot been sed sefficientLysfund muchof their pubLic xpenditure n educa- it couldhavebeen.Donors ave areLyoordinatedtion fromexternaLources.n somepost-conflict their education id programs,nd manyprojectscountries, uchas Mozambique,id to education remainenclaveoperations ith LimitednationaLhas roughLy quaLedpendingrom domestically ownership.Where ationaL wnerships Lacking,generatedevenuen recent ears. donors ndgovernmentsftenhave ifferent bjec-ExternaLLyssistededucation deveLopment tives. In this situation ungibiLity an becomeprograms avea mixed ecord.Manyprograms- probLem,nd aid is moreLikeLyo substituteor,incLuding hose supportedby the Bank-have rather than compLement, overnmenteffortsfailed to achieve he expectedesults, specially (Feyzioglu, waroop, nd Zhu 1998; WorLd ankin strengthening ational policies and institu- 1998a).Programsave often failed to take ntotions. SustainingnitiaL positive esuLts aseven accountnationaLmacroeconomicnd nstitutionaLbeenmore ifficuLt.n onLy fewcases asexter- environments,ocusingnstead n specificnvest-naL ssistanceroughtaboutsystemiceform.The ments efLectingxternaLgencies'gendasatherreasonsor this mixed ecord revariedand com- thannationaLriorities ndoftensupportinghecre-pLex.n many ountries oLitical pheaval ndvio- ationof unsustainabLearaLLeLystems.Weakoordi-Lent confLict have disrupted eforms. n other nationof externaLid programsas ruLtipLiedhecountries governments ave faced formidabLe demandsn domesticnstitutions, ed) fragmentedpoLiticaLppositiono sector eform,particuLarLy anddupLicatedfforts, istorted pending riorities,reform that challenges raditionaL modesof andproducedapsn coveragend unding.financing and delivery hat benefit priviLeged These probLems re wideLy ecognizedbyminorities. donors and governments.n response, everaL

Figure .6 OfficialDevelopmentAssistance to Education, 996ByLevel: ByEducationector:Pre-primary%AduLt 1 Vocational0%educatian19% \ TechnicaL17% = /

riay22%

Secondary0%S General2%

euaon01% Norformat1%Post-secondary2%

Source:DEA1998.

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countries, including Ethiopia, Mozambique,and * PoLicy-basedid shouLd e providedo nurtureZambia, have designed sectorwide approaches. better policies in countries with credibLeBut experiencewith these approachess Limited, reformersand strong domesticLeaders.and not aLL gencieshave sufficient staff with the * DeveLopmentrojects houLd trengthennstitu-anaLyticaL,oLicy,and operationaL kiLLsequired tions and poLicies y increasing he efficacyofto contribute effectively to the design of these pubLic pendingand by promotingpartnershipsprograms.SimiLarLy, any countries do not have with civil society o repLaceop-downapproach-the nationaLcapacity to manage he design and es o projectdesignand mpLementation.implementationof these programsor coordinate * Projectsshouldcreate and ransmit knowLedgethe assistance f severaL onors-especiaLLy hen and capacityand ncLudeevaLuation spart ofdonor poLicies nd procedures iffer. the process.

Thecase or increasingaid flows to education, * In distorted policy environments, deas areparticuLarLy asic education, s strong. But per- more usefuLhan Large-scaLeinance.haps the most urgent challenge s ensuring hat * Ideaswill have he greatest mpact wherepart-aid programs produce visibLe and sustainabLe nershipsbetween governmentand dcnorsareresuLtsn the ground.A recent reviewof aid effec- genuineand groundedn diaLogue.tivenessargueshat aid shouLdind the right com- The WorLd ankstudy of aid effectiveness ec-bination of financeand ideas o address ifferent ommendshat aid agencies ecomemoreselective,situationsand problems WorLdBank1998a). This more knowLedge ased, better coordinated,andreport finds that: more seLf-critical.WhiLe hey do not focusspecifi-* Financialaid works n a strong poLicyenviron- caLLyn education, he findings are a useful rame-

ment. n weakpolicy environments,moneyhas work for rethinkingapproacheso aid for educationLessmpact. (seechapter4).

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2. TheChallengesf the African * Newscientific knowLedges sLowoD enetrateDevelopmentontext the continent.* Armedconflicts disruptcivit societY.

Economicgrowth was slow in Sub-Saharan frica * HIV/AIDS is spreading rapidly, and diseasein the 1980s and earLy1990s. Rising oil prices exactsa heavy oLL.and weakening export markets in industrial * FertiLity ates remain high.countries, along with drought and civil strife inmany African countries, resulted in baLanceofpayments eficitsand declining nd often nega- Pervasive overtytive economic growth rates. These probLemsrefLected years of poor economic management Economic stagnation in the 1980s and earLyand exposedunsustainable tructuraLweaknesses 1990s had a devastating mpact on the progressin the economies.Average real GDPgrowth in of human deveLopmentn Africa. Most basicthe region dropped rom about 5 percent in the social indicators stiLl lag behind thDse of other1960s to less than 2 percent in the 1980s and regions (table 2.1). Of the 35 countries the0.1 percent during 1990-93. Becauseof rapid United Nations DevelopmentPrograimmeUNDP)popuLation growth, this drop represented an classifiesas having Lowhuman development,28annual averagedecLineof 1 percent n per capita are in Sub-SaharanAfrica (UNDP 1999). MoreGDPbetween 1980 and 1995. As a result, by the than 40 percent of AfricansLive below the $1 amid-1990sonLy12 countries n the region had a day povertyLine,and the incidenceof poverty ashigher per capita GDP han they had in 1975. well as the absolutenumbersof people Living n

Many African countries had to adjust their poverty have increased since the Late 1980s.economies o the changing economic environ- Extreme poverty and deprivation both impedement. But during 1994-97 growth rates gradual- investments in education by governments andLy recovered, and reaL GDP growth per capita househoLds nd are a result of Low educationaLaveraged2.9 percent. In 1997 per capita growth attainment.averaged3.1 percent and was positive for 35 of DeveLopment trategies designEd o reducethe 47 Sub-Saharanountries for which data are poverty must thus be grounded n sound eco-avaiLabLe. otwithstanding the worLdwideinan- nomic policy and centered on hLrnan capitaLciaL crisis, half the countries in Sub-Saharan deveLopment rograms.With its rapidly growingAfrica showeda positive growth in 1998. popuLation, he region needsan annuaLgrowth

The economiccrisis of the 1980shad a severe per capita of 5 percent to keep the numberofimpact on the education sector (chapter 1), poor from rising and it must do so in such a wayadverseLyffecting household emandor and pub- that increasedproduction expands employmentLic suppLy of education. Without acceLerated opportunities and improves access:o sociaLser-improvementsn the sector, he region'sLong-term vices for the poor. To haLve he incidence ofdeveLopment rospectswill remain dim. Yet the poverty African countries wiLLhave to sustaincontext or educationdeveLopmentn the region s annuaL er capita growth rates of a: Least7 per-daunting: cent untiL 2015 (WorLd Bank 2000b). Human* Poverty s pervasive. deveLopment rogramsmust be based on cLear* Economies unction at the periphery of the anaLysis of who the poor are and what

gLobaleconomy. mechanismsexclude them from social services,* DeveLopmentinance s difficuLt o mobiLize. incLudingeducation.

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Table2.1 BasicSocial ndicatorsby RegionI 1;.1; 1 .s.L.. 1 iLL I' 1. ILLI1_ _~~~ni

Afrcanm contie 74tt fia(oLdBn 97.Mn

South Asia N76 94EastAsiaand Pacific ill a115Latin Amperict nCaribban 105 ~ 110 N N '\

andspoL,Ariapoue ut ecn f ohe ecnmiaL NcieLbrfrc019)

Middle E~ast NNNNNN NandNohder 77s 84 i' hNnSource:UNICEF 99NNi

Economiesat the Periphery of the Global of foreign direct investment flows to developingEconomy countries went to Africa (WorldBank1997). ManyAfrican economies avea smallmodernproductive

With 18 percentof the worLd'sand and 11 percent sector, ypically absorbingno more han 30 percentof its people, Africa produces ust 1 percent of of the economicallyactive labor force (ILO 1998).gLobal GoP. The international economy has Increasing he productivityand competitiveness fexpanded nd changeddramaticaLlyn the past 20 the informal and modern ectors s a challengehatyears,with shifting patternsof trade and competi- few Africancountriescan afford o ignore.tion and continuous technotogical innovation. As noted, however, rost African economiesTogether hese changesare creating a high-speed, have experienced aster growth since 1994. Moreknowledge-driven, nd competitive global econo- flexibLeand competitive exchange ates, healthiermy. Africa has not beenable to maintain ts share fiscaLbaLances, nd an icproving export marketin this new global economy. indicate that the recent trend can be sustained

During1980-96 as world GDP rew 3.3 percent over he next few years.Furthermore,he continenta year,GDP rowth n Africa averaged nly 1.7 per- can makehugegains f it can ake advantage f itscent a year. Worldwideexports of goods and ser- catch-up potential in the returns on new nvest-vices (in currentdollars)almost ripled during his ment (KiLlick1998).period, but Africa's exports stagnated, causingts Longer-term conomicperformance ill dependshareof the total to plummet rom about 4.0 per- on improvementsn humani apital and he associ-cent to 1.3 percent World Bank 1999c).The rapid ated ability to use modern echnology,as well asincrease n foreign direct investmentsince 1990 on improvementsn public institutions and infra-hasLargely ypassedhe region, reflecting in part structureat nationaL nd regional evels.The mostthe overhang effect of unsustainable externaL important determinant of the pace of Africa'sdebts.Between1990and 1996 Lesshan 3 percent developmentmay be its abiLity o create,acquire,

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absorb, and communicateknowledge WorLdBank taxes, but trade LiberaLizations eroding thesel999c). This processcan accelerate f the region instruments.Thecontractionof the formialeconomycan Leapfrog o new technoLogies, kipping inter- and the concomitantgrowth of the informal sectormediate tages.But without concertedeffort, coun- in many countries pose further chaLLengesotries wiLLbe unabLeo adapt to the demands f a resourcemobiLization, iven the difficLlty of taxinggLobalized conomyand wiLl risk further marginal- smaLL-scalenterprisesn the urban gray and blackization. Africa needs o improve ts macroeconomic economy Grunberg 998).poLicies,governance, nd export performance nd The esource nveLope vailable o governmentsto invest more n human capital. And in several often has been further constricted by weak eco-countries deveLopment oLicy needs to recognize nomicperformance nd the voLatiLity nd declineofthat peopLeare the most important-sometimes export receipts or primarycommodities xports,onvirtuaLLy he onLy-resource they have. Thus the which most countries n the region de3endheavily.deveLopmentf education-at aLLeveLs,rom basic The combinedeffect of these constraints has beento tertiary-is the centraL eveLopmentmperative. faLLingper capita expenditureson priority sociaL

services, ncluding education. Between1985 and1995 egionalspendingper student on primaryedu-Inadequateinancingor Development cation ell by 6 percent. n stark contrast o thisdecrease,primary education spendinig ncreased

Sustained conomicgrowth and povertyeLimination approximately hreefoLd n every other deveLopingdependon strong and effective government.UnLess region over he sameperiod. Per student spendinggovernments can mobilize finance from stabLe feLLsimiLarlyat the secondaryand tertiary Levelssources, hey wiLl be unabLe o meet their core (UNESCO998d).responsibiLitiesn the sociaLsectorsand in infra- UnsustainablepubLic debt has further con-structure or to provide he institutional framework strained the mobilization of developTient inanceneeded or deveLopment.Education inancing is acrossmuch of the region. Debt overh ng has cre-typicaLly one of the largest items of government ated uncertainty or domesticand oreign investorsexpenditure,often claiming as muchas one-fifth or and restrictedgrowth. UnsustainabLeebt has alsomore of the total budget. Spendingon education imposed a direct fiscal burden in many heaviLyincreases n line with popuLation and income indebted poor countries HIPCs)by diverting Limit-growth and is a long-term nvestment hat requires ed public revenue o debt repaymerts. Debt hasa predictabLencomesource. acted as a further brakeon growth by undermining

In recent years many African countries have public investment in social and economic nfra-improvedmarkedLyhe efficiency,equity, and rans- structure. ManyAfrican HIPCshave spent three toparencyof their tax regimes.Yet he countries stiLL four times as much on debt servicin(g s on basicface enormous hallengeso resourcemobiLization, social services n recent years. ResoLution f theand Africa's unmet needsare greater han those of debt impasses now n sight. Thecurrent HIPCdebtany other region. Tax evenues low even by devel- reLief nitiative, which provides omprThensive ebtoping country standards,ypicalLyabout 10 percent stock reduction, s expected o relieve almost 20of GNP.Domestic apacity o raise revenue s often Africancountriesof unsustainable ebt burdens ndLimited,and the tax base s smaLLn the region's significantLy ncrease heir nationaL dication bud-predominantLyuraLand nonwageeconomies.This gets within the next five years.small tax base traditionally has led to favoring Falling aid fLows o Africa have mirrored chaL-other tax instruments, in particuLar rade-based Lenges o mobiLizingdomestic revenue. Between

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1990 and 1998 per capita net aid flows to Africa of its childrenare out of school.Secondary nroLL-felL rom $32 o $19, refLectinghe gLobaL ecLine ments are Low,especially n science and mathin aid fLows since 1991 (WorLd Bank 2000b). cLasses. nd the science and technology base ofFalLingaid fLowshave reduced he proportionate most African countries s inadequate.contribution of aid to deveLoping ountry inancing Public investments n scientific research andneeds,but the decline has beenaccompanied y a development are estimated at 0.2 percent ofsurge n private capital fLows o developingcoun- regionalGNP, ne of the Lowest eveLsn the worLd.tries. Yet Africa hasbeen Largely ypassed y these The region s responsibLeor onLy0.8 percent ofprivate fLowsand stiLLdependsheavily on official the worLd's cientific pubLicationsUNESCO999a).deveLopmentssistance. n 1996 net aid flows to Most African universities tack sufficient resourcesthe region-excLuding South Africa-equaLed 8.6 to carryout effective teaching and research.percentof regional GNP, omparedwith [ess han 1 To ake advantageof the new knowledge con-percent n other deveLopingegions. omy, Africa needsweLL-trained cientific, techno-

Whetherhe HIPC nitiative provides eaLaddi- logical, and processing ersonnel-incLudingsometional finance for African countriesor simpLy ecy- with sophisticated esearch kiLls-who can partic-cLesexisting aid budgets will determine whether ipate in advancesn key ieLds physics,materiaLsdownward id rends can be reversed. n the longer science,computer science, echnoLogy, ngineer-term, the extent to which debt reLief boosts ing) and who canassess nd developLocalappLica-investor confidence n Africa and the abiLity of tions of new technoLogy.WorLdclass centers orAfrican governments nd creditors o avoid future scientific education and research,abLe o suppLydebt criseswill be crucial n shapingprospects or and retain these personnel, wilL be needed ateconomicgrowth, poverty aLLeviation, nd reduced regionaL nd subregional eveLs.aid dependency. Weak ommunication etworksand nformation

flows further constrain Africa's use of new knowL-edge.These hortcomings imit nformation on theInsufficient Scientific Knowledge quaLity f products ndservices,nhibit monitor-ing, and impedeexchangingnformation with ben-The globaLexplosion of knowledgegives African eficiaries (box 2.1). Addressinghese information

countries an opportunity to narrow information gaps will be an essentialeLement f every nation-and knowLedgeaps, hereby raising ncomesand aLknowledgemanagement trategy.living standardsmuch aster than previousLymag-ined. But to take advantage f the gLobaLtock ofknowledge,ountries eed o deveLophe techno- Extensive rmedConflictslogicaLcompetence-typicalty in universities andother pubLicand private research nstitutions-to In 1996 alone a third of African countries experi-select, absorb,and adapt mported echnoLogy nd encedarmed onflicts. OneAfrican n five lives n apursuea researchagenda ocused on local prob- country severelydisrupted by war. These onflictslems.Creating,absorbing,and communicating ew causeenormous uman uffering, materialdevasta-knowLedgeequires basic education (pre-primary, tion, human capital depLetion,and damage o theprimary, and adult) for all and opportunities to social and cultural fabric that holds nationscontinue Learning nd o acquire advancedechni- together.ConflictshaveaLso estabiLizedhe regioncaL nd scientific skiLLsWorLd ank 1999b). Africa as a whole, eroding nvestor confidence, isruptinglags behind on both counts. More han 40 million trade routes, acceleratinghe spreadof HIV/AIDS,

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Box2.1 -Africa's nformation nfrastructure* Dailynewspaperirculation er 1,000peoplen Burkina asoo 7 in Zimbabwend 37 n South

Africa angesrom in Benin,Burkina aso, nd Africa (comparedwith 38 in Chile, 172 inMauritaniao 28 in Gabon nd 31 in Botswana Singapore,nd408 n SwitzerLand).(comparedith 135 n Argentina,46 n Latvia, * Thenumber f elephone ainlineser1,000peo-and800 n HongKong). pte angesrom2 in Niger nd8 n Kenyao 48 n

* The umberf radios er1,000 eople verages98, Botswanand 00 n SouthAfrica comparedithrangingrom34 n Angolao 231 n Ghanand316 75 n Brazil, 66 n Malaysia,nd335 n BuLgaria).in SouthAfricacomparedith 163 n China, 04 n * Thenumberof fax machines er 1,000peopleLithuania, nd 469 in Malaysia).hreeof five rangesrom 0.1 n the Central fricanRepublicAfricansivewithin each f a radioransmitter. andGuineao 2,5 n Cape erdecompared ith

* Thenumber f television etsper 1,000people 113 n Japan).averages6, angingrom esshan 1 n Eritreao * Forty-sevenfrican ountries aveaccesso the96 in Swazilandnd 123 n SouthAfrica com- Internet.However,naveragef onlt 1 personnparedwith 322 n Trinidad ndTobago,69 n the 5,000uses he nternet, compared ith 1 in 40Czech epublic, nd 805 in the UnitedStates). globallyand1 in 6 in Europe ndNorthAmerica.Televisions limitedmaintyo major owns. Thenrumberf Internet hostsper 1,000people

* The umber f personalomputerser1,000peo- rangesrom0.01 n Burkina asoo 3.82 n Southple averages , ranging rom tess han 1 in Africa.

Source:UNESCO 1998c; UNOP 1999.

and sending efugeepopulations nto neighboring aLsoaddressing he causesof conflicts. Countriescountries.The United Nations High Commissioner wilL then have to rebuild and expaid the infra-for Refugeesestimated he number of refugees, structure needed o increaseeconomicproductivi-returnees,and personsdisplacedwithin their own ty

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