PROJECT INFORMATION DOCUMENT (PID) CONCEPT STAGE Public Disclosure Copy Report No.: PIDC5449 Project Name Education Access and Quality Improvement Project (EAQIP) (P148062) Region AFRICA Country Burkina Faso Sector(s) Secondary education (60%), Tertiary education (20%), Primary education (15%), Pre-primary education (5%) Theme(s) Education for the knowledge economy (80%), Education for all (20%) Lending Instrument Investment Project Financing Project ID P148062 Borrower(s) Burkina Faso Implementing Agency Ministere des Enseignements Secondaire et Superieur, Ministere de l'Education Nationale et de l'Alphabetisation Environmental B-Partial Assessment Category Date PID Prepared/ 04-Apr-2014 Updated Date PID Approved/ 18-Apr-2014 Disclosed Estimated Date of 03-Jul-2014 Appraisal Completion Public Disclosure Copy Estimated Date of 25-Sep-2014 Board Approval Concept Review Decision I. Introduction and Context Country Context Since the early 1990’s, Burkina Faso has implemented sound economic policies and enjoyed relative political stability. This has led to strong economic growth despite the country’s narrow resource base and high vulnerability to climate change and exogenous shocks. From 2000 to 2010, real GDP grew by 5.2% on average per year. With cotton and gold as its main export commodities, sound macroeconomic management has enabled Burkina Faso to achieve stable growth for 10 years even as its predominantly rural population of 13.6 million has been expanding rapidly. The adverse impact of this expanding population has been reduced by sound structural and economic reforms, which have helped sustain steady investments and a stable macro-economic environment. However, Burkina Faso is facing challenges such as the difficult Sahel climate and growing unrest in the region. Recently Burkina Faso has taken in a large number of refugees which has placed additional pressure on its public budget and food security. There has also been some internal unrest Page 1 of 15 related to the unequal resource distribution and the perceived lack of accountability of public sector management. As the 2015 presidential election approaches, political uncertainty is heightening. Public Disclosure Copy Higher gross investment (private and public investment in mining, roads, services and school infrastructures) resulted in a GDP growth rate of 8% in 2012. The economic outlook is positive with an expected annual growth of about 7% over 2013-15. Nevertheless, Burkina Faso’s manufacturing sector remains weak and its agricultural sector continues to suffer from persistent low productivity, performing significantly under its potential. In order to sustain and accelerate growth, Burkina Faso will need to diversify its economy and enhance its competitiveness. It must also make determined efforts to deliver social services more efficiently. In December 2010, the Government of Burkina Faso (GoBF) adopted the Strategy for Accelerated Growth and Sustained Development for 2011–15 (Stratégie pour la Croissance Accélérée et le Développement Durable -- SCADD). The SCADD model combines promotion of growth poles to support agribusiness and small and medium-sized enterprises with pro-poor programs and critical structural reforms. Stubborn and persistently high levels of predominantly rural poverty still undermine development -- about 46% of the population lives below the poverty line. There are significant inequalities in terms of income, gender, and location (urban or rural). Non-income indicators of poverty and welfare, particularly in the areas of education and health, are among the lowest in the world, and most of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) remain out of reach. Education access and quality require significant improvements, and infant, maternal mortality, and fertility rates remain high. There is also a gender gap of 32% in employment and 15% in education. Burkina Faso has a young and rapidly growing working-age population. Based on 2009-10 household survey data 70% of the population is less than 30 years of age, and one out of four of the total is less than 7 years old. This will lead to the doubling of the population each generation and greatly undermines the impact (mainly in the education and health sectors) of poverty reduction initiatives. The GoBF is reviewing its policy and taking strong measures to control the Public Disclosure Copy demographic growth. In 2010, children under 14 years of age made up approximately one-half of the population. The youth literacy rate is low at 29% (2010). The illiteracy rate in rural areas is 90% compared to the Sub-Saharan Africa rate of 70 percent. Only 13% of the Burkina adult population aged >15 completed primary education or more. There are important differences between rural and urban areas, as more urban residents have achieved some education. Still, two-thirds of the urban labor force did not complete primary education. Access to technical and/or vocational training is minimal in both rural and urban areas. Higher education access is severely limited. The relatively young population of the country can be a major asset if the young can be better educated and trained to increase their productivity. Job creation is the focus of Burkina Faso’s economic and political debate. Against a background of h igh population and labor force growth rates, and an average annual economic growth rate of 5% from 1994-2011, the economy failed t o produce the kind of jobs needed to pull large numbers out of poverty. General discontent over increasing prices and the perceivedlack of sufficient social progress and economic opportunities, in particular for the youth, led to wide spread social unrest in 2010 and 2011. Following consultations with socio-political groups, the government quickly enacted measures to meet popular demands. The GoBF also quickly prepared an emergency program for supporting job creation for youth. Page 2 of 15 One of the key challenges facing Burkina Faso’s is the need to expand not only access to social services while also improving quality and show intangible results. The country cannot afford the Public Disclosure Copy usual sequential or linear approach to service delivery, expanding access first and fixing quality afterwards, nor can it underestimate the need for improved governance and accountability to achieve better service delivery. While Burkina Faso is on track to reach the MDG targets for access to potable water and reduced HIV prevalence, significant challenges exist with respect to attaining the rest of the targets, including those in the education sector. The growing political and economic unrest in the region and the effects of the global financial crisis are likely to have a negative impact on Burkina’s progress towards attaining the MDG’s. Sectoral and Institutional Context The education system consists of Pre-school education which is mostly limited to: a few private kindergartens generally located in major cities; primary school which leads to the primary school leaving certificate (CEP); secondary school comprising a lower secondary cycle of 4 years, leading to the BEPC (Brevet d’Etudes du Premier Cycle); and an upper secondary cycle of 3 years, leading to Baccalaureat and tertiary education. Technical education and vocational training (TVET) is also provided at the secondary and higher education levels. Primary Education The country made significant progress in primary school enrolment and completion over the past decade. The primary GER reached 81% in 2013 (from 72% in 2008), and 93% of the age group enters the first primary grade on time. The primary completion rate improved significantly, but remains relatively low at 59%. Further progress in expanding access to primary education is constrained by supply and demand factors. On the supply side, inadequate school places, long distances to school, and an inappropriate school calendar adversely affect access. The gross enrollment and admission rates are progressively lower the farther away children live from school. Public Disclosure Copy This is particularly true for girls in rural areas, who are considered to be at greater risk when they have to travel long distances on isolated roads. Demand for primary education is constrained by high direct and indirect costs. Primary education is free, but the subsidies provided by the GoBF are inadequate to cover the costs of good quality education. Schools, therefore continue to impose unregulated fees on students. This, combined with informal fees, costs of textbooks and other teaching materials as well as the high opportunity costs of education, makes primary education unaffordable to many of the poor. The quality and internal efficiency of primary education also needs to be further improved to meet the MDGs. The quality of teaching and learning is low, largely due to scarcity of educational materials and poor teaching practices. Pedagogical and administrative management of primary education is also weak. The government is addressing access and quality issues in primary education through a number of IDA and other partner supported programs and projects and good progress is being made in these areas. The focus of this project is therefore on secondary education. Secondary Education Despite recent developments in secondary education, progress in the expansion of primary education over the last ten years is increasing the already strong pressure to develop this level of Page 3 of 15 education, particularly in rural areas. In 2013, although 259,000 students completed primary education, only 66 % were able to continue in lower secondary. That means that 88,000 students, many of them qualified and mainly from rural areas missed the opportunity to access secondary Public Disclosure Copy education. The secondary GER increased slowly since the early 2000s reaching 28% percent in 2013 (37% in lower secondary and 14% in upper secondary) and there is inequitable access between rural/urban, income groups and genders. Several factors explain this limited and unequal access. Inadequate supply of accessible school places is one of the key factors explaining limited and unequal access to secondary education. Many of the secondary institutions, especially in the rural areas, are located far from many households. Available data show that parents are reluctant to send their children to schools located more than 20 kilometers from their homes because of a variety of reasons including security, especially for girls who may have to walk long distances or live away from home in uncertain conditions. The cost burden on parents also increases in both cycles of secondary education from the primary level. This makes secondary education unaffordable to many parents especially the large majority who are poor. Tuition and textbooks costs are prohibitively high and this is compounded by the opportunity costs when children reach employable age. In a recent survey, students cited high costs and parental reluctance to enroll them in secondary school as reasons for staying out of the system. The preference of parents to keep girls at home while they send boys to school is even more pronounced at the secondary level. Even when parents decide to send children to school, they are often withdrawn before the end of the cycle to get them enrolled in productive activities to help alleviate household poverty. Girls are also withdraw from school because of early marriages and early/ unwanted pregnancies. Some parents prefer early marriages as an insurance against unwanted pregnancies. The specific constraints on access to education vary significantly among regions. Interventions will therefore need to be designed to target the specific constraints in a given area. Data shows that as a result of these factors, those in the lowest two income quintiles are less represented at these levels. Public Disclosure Copy Given the size of the population, enrollment in higher education is fairly low, at 61,000 in 2010/11, or 388 students per 100,000 inhabitants. However, a substantial enrollment growth (82%) compared with four years earlier lead to over-crowding of facilities and high ratios of students to academic staff (on average 116 in public institutions). Higher education is also affected by high repetition rates (15 percent on average), particularly among those attending the 2nd and 3rd year (21 and 23 percent respectively). A national 10-year action plan for higher education was prepared in 2013 (Plan national d’action de développement de l’enseignement supérieur - PNADES), laying out the weaknesses of the tertiary education sub-sector and proposing a plan for investments in the sector aimed at expanding access and quality, supporting university research and improving system governance. The internal efficiency of the secondary education levels also remains low. Annual lower- secondary dropout and repetition rates were on average 13-15% and 25-29% respectively over the 2006-2012 period. The annual grade 10 repetition rate was much higher (at 40-49%). Similar patterns can be observed for the upper-secondary level, with annual dropout and repetition rates of between 5%-15% and 14%-21% respectively for grades 11 and 12. The annual repetition rate for the final Baccalaureat examination year (grade 13) is much higher at between 35% and 40%. The low levels of internal efficiency inequitably impact the various socio-economic groups and make the system more expensive and unsustainable if expansion is the government’s goal. Relatively more students from the poorest families fail to complete these education cycles in contrast to those in the Page 4 of 15 highest quintiles; limiting the impact of education on poverty. The unit costs per graduate are also unnecessarily high because of the low internal efficiency and this could limit the returns to investments at this level and make expansion more expensive. Public Disclosure Copy The high repetition rates in grades 10 and 13 are partly because the BEPC and Baccalaureat examinations are high stakes examinations which can have life changing implications for students, as they determine access to upper-secondary and higher education. Many students who do not pass the first time therefore repeat to get a second chance at succeeding. Increased opportunities for training and employment, especially after grade 10 would help reduce the importance of the BEPC and BAC to ease the cost to the government and parents who now have to finance students who repeat and may fail at this point. The challenges of developing the education sector, particularly secondary education, are not limited to access and low internal efficiency; perhaps even more important is the low level of learning achievement. A recent study found that 65 percent of students in grade 7 had not acquired the basic competencies specified in the curriculum. Also, the assessment of student learning carried out in 2013 by OCECOS found that the majority of students in secondary education could not achieve the minimum required levels in French, Math, Life and Earth Sciences, History and Geography and that the achievement levels have been declining since 2007. One of the fundamental reasons for the poor performance of students in grade 7 is because of the low level of achievement of primary school graduates who enter lower-secondary education. Efforts are being made to address quality issues in primary education and good progress is being made, but pre-school education, which is a key factor in determining student learning and a government priority, remains largely undeveloped because of limited support. Currently, access to early childhood education is extremely limited in the country with a net enrollment rate for pre-primary education of just 3.5% (2011-2012). An estimated 800 ECD centers Public Disclosure Copy currently enroll about 67,000 children throughout the country, primarily in the non-state sector (both for-profit and non-profit) with only 15% of ECD centers being operated by the government. Public expenditure data from 2007 show just 0.6% of the public education budget was spent on pre- primary education. There is evidence of rapidly increasing demand from parents for ECD programs, combined with willingness to pay for these services. In the past 5 years, enrollment in pre-primary education has increased by over 60%, although this is starting from a very low base and access is very limited for the poor. The quality of ECD programs also needs to be improved. The proportion of trained staff in the better quality registered pre-primary schools is 21.7% and the ratio of students to trained staff is 107:1 (compared to international best practice of 15:1). Effective quality monitoring and compliance checks also need to be put in place for both the state and non-state sectors as required by regulations. Inappropriate curriculum and poor teacher quality are other factors that explain the low quality of education and limited learning achievement of secondary level students. The programs used by many ECD centers do not sufficiently focus in developing the social and psycho-motor skills as well as the literacy and numeracy foundations which are essential for preparing children properly for primary school education. The programs therefore need to be improved, supported by materials and training, to ensure improved readiness for school and for higher achievement in the education system. There is also a sharp discontinuity between the curriculum for primary and lower secondary education. Students who enter grade 7 find that they have to start learning new concepts for which Page 5 of 15 they lack the required preparation. As a consequence, they fail in the end of year examinations and either repeat or drop-out; the latter being the choice for those for whom the opportunity costs are already high. This high drop-out rate limits output of secondary school students. Public Disclosure Copy Limited availability of qualified teachers especially in math and science is a key issue. Data shows that some schools operate without a single teacher for math and science for an entire year. When teachers are available, they are often unqualified and use inappropriate teaching methodologies. The limited supply of qualified teachers is partly attributable to the limited training capacity, low qualifications of trainers and inappropriate teaching methodologies transmitted to student-teachers in higher education teacher training institutions. The two institutions responsible for secondary teacher training have a combined annual output of only 1,400; significantly below the projected needs of 2000. The poor quality of graduates partly derives from inadequate numbers of aging higher education professors who are unable to meet the required training standards. Addressing these issues at the secondary and higher education levels would therefore require a multi-pronged approach th at would address short, medium and long-term issues. The poor educational environment, resulting from limited physical facilities and inadequate organizational arrangements also explain the low levels of student learning. These factors include delayed availability of quality educational materials, inadequate utilization of the results of student learning assessments to improve quality, weak capacity for results based planning and management and over centralization of management in the sub-sector. In particular, there is limited involvement of beneficiaries and communities in management at the local levels and weak management capacity at the school level. Both of these are contrary to international evidence which suggests that a suitable environment for good quality education should include management systems at local levels which involve beneficiaries, communities and other actors, with the aim of managing resources to achieve jointly established goals. The Government started addressing some of these issues in Post- Primary Education Projects 1 and 2 but much remains to be done. Public Disclosure Copy EAQIP’s link to the GoBF’s education sector policy. The GoBF developed and launched the implementation of a ten-year education program (PDSEB 2012-21) for basic and secondary education, which was complemented by a national tertiary education development strategy (July 2013). Recently the GoBF launched the preparation of a comprehensive education sector program combining the existing sub-sector programs to ensure better integration. The GoBF’s priority in basic education is to fully operationalize the principles of compulsory and free public education (to be gradually extended to the first cycle of secondary education), improve the “transition management” from primary to lower secondary education, reduce overcrowding and strengthen schools management towards quality improvement and increased efficiency. The overall aim of the reform is to create greater coherence in the curriculum between grades and cycles and to reform education and training to increase the employability of youths. This project would continue implementation of the reform by building on the results of PPEP 1 and 2, to further facilitate transition from primary to secondary education and expand output of quality lower and upper secondary education graduates. Relationship to CAS Relationship of the proposed EAQIP to the Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) The Burkina Faso CPS (covering FY13-16) has three main strategic pillars: (a) accelerate inclusive and sustainable economic growth; (b) enhance governance for more efficient social service delivery; Page 6 of 15 and (c) reduce economic, social, and environmental vulnerabilities. The CPS notes it is important to promote greater productivity in the informal and agricultural sector, and equitable access to quality social services to protect the poor from socio-economic and environmental shocks. This includes Public Disclosure Copy the need for increased access to quality and relevant education and basic skills training in order to help vulnerable groups improve their employability. About 46% of the Burkina Faso population lives below the poverty line, and there are significant inequalities by region, gender, and urban or rural location. The Gini coefficient was 0.46 in 2012. Main determinants of rural poverty include a high dependency ratio and low levels of education in households. Women represent 60 percent of those employed in the informal sector. Their lack of education, vocational training, and access to credit makes it particularly difficult for them to move from the informal to the formal sector. The proposed EAQIP is linked to all three strategic CPS pillars by contributing to increased access and improved quality & relevance of basic (primary and lower secondary) and upper secondary education in Burkina Faso. The first strategic CPS pillar includes support for “a higher-skilled workforce and lower unemployment.” The second strategic CPS pillar (expanded access of the poor to quality social services) includes support for education, through its partnership with the government and other development partners. The third strategic pillar includes reduction of social vulnerabilities, which includes addressing gender and poverty issues linked to basic and secondary education. This includes continued World Bank support for higher rates of attainment in basic education, improving the quality of learning & teaching outcomes in primary and secondary education, promoting the quality & relevance of school science and technology, and support for the decentralized education management with deep community involvement through school-based management committees. For both the GoBF and its development partners basic education and the related MDGs remain a priority as the foundation of the education-training system. Bank support aligns with the holistic approach of the GoBF to education. The EAQIP is designed to align with ongoing sector activities supported by the GoBF and its development partners. It would build on the achievements of the Post-Primary Education Project II Public Disclosure Copy (PPEP2). The “value added” contribution of EAQIP, towards fulfilling the objective of improving the quality & relevance of general secondary education, rests on the extent to which the components are implemented in coordination with other inputs financed mostly through the GoBF budget and other partnerships. EAQIP would provide support for activities such as curricula reform, teacher training, improving the school environment, and strengthening of institutional capacity at national, regional, provincial, and school levels. The need to prioritize and better target resources would help ensure more equitable availability of good quality lower and upper secondary education and contribute to rebalance the disparities in education in general, The eligibility criteria should be equally based on poverty analysis. EAQIP would focus on the five poorest regions as identified in the Policy Note 1 of Burkina Faso Poverty Trends and Profile – 2003-2009. These five regions have relatively high poverty rates (50-70%), well above the national average (46.7%). Regarding the project budget, five regions among a total 13 are considered to be appropriate for significant impact. The EAQIP would not create further inequities and disparities among secondary schools so its support would focus on secondary schools that are located in the poorer communities which do not now receive funding from donors for the same components. The criteria for rehabilitation, expansion and new construction would be based on a school mapping / survey looking at the condition of existing inventory, availability of key amenities like water, electricity and sanitation facilities. Other criteria such as enrollment capacity and number of trained teachers could also be considered. It is also Page 7 of 15 important that the teachers and staff of selected (participating) regions, provinces, and secondary schools will be fully informed about the objectives and criteria for the improvement of quality and releva nce of secondary education, and how this will be measured (through M&E). Public Disclosure Copy II. Proposed Development Objective(s) Proposed Development Objective(s) (From PCN) Project Development Objectives (PDOs) of the Education Access and Quality Improvement Project (EAQIP) are to (i) increase access and quality of secondary schools (grades 7-13) in five of the poorer regions with a special focus on girls; and (ii) contribute to strengthening the education institutional capacity at national, regional, and school level. To help achieve these objectives, the project would support further development of ECD and curriculum development in primary education, both of which are critical for increased access and improved quality of secondary education, but are not now adequately financed through other interventions. In addition to further development of ECD, it is expected that interventions at this and the primary level would positively impact primary education during the life of the project and secondary education in the short to medium term . Key Results (From PCN) The project will use the following key performance indicators (KPI) to assess the progress toward the achievement of the PDO. (All indicators will be disaggregated region, province and gender) • Direct project beneficiaries: additional students enrolled in classrooms constructed by the project (number) of which female (%) Access increase will be measured by: • Gross intake rate respectively in first grade of primary, lower and upper secondary Education in the 5 poorest regions Public Disclosure Copy • Gross Enrollment rate in lower secondary in the 5 poorest regions. • Gross Enrollment rate in upper secondary education Quality will be measured by: • Completion rate in lower and upper secondary in the 5 poorest regions disaggregated by gender • Lower repetition and dropout rates in the first 3 grades of primary education in the five targeted regions disaggregated by gender. Strengthening the institutional capacity will be measured by: • Percentage of Secondary education recurrent budget allocated to non-salary expenditures (excluding civil servant staff salaries) managed at decentralized level. • Percentage of Lower secondary schools in the targeted five poorest regions with SBMCs which agreed annual Action Plans. III. Preliminary Description Concept Description The project will focus primarily on the five poorest regions in the country, but will also contribute Page 8 of 15 to the further development of some national programs. The latter include curricula reform, teacher training (pre- and in-service training), improved student assessment and monitoring, and institutional capacity strengthening and development. Public Disclosure Copy The expansion of secondary-level access, including specialized classrooms, would create additional capacity to accommodate the growing number of students coming from the primary level. The lowering of the costs of education to the poorest households in the five regions would make it easier for families to enroll their children in school. Involvement of School-Based Management Committees (SBMCs) will also stimulate demand by ensuring keener focus on some of the non- financial and contextual constraints to access. The design of the SBMC would build on earlier successful outcomes with COGES, including the use of School Improvement Plans (SIPs). Quality & relevance of learning and teaching would be improved through support to strengthen curricula reform, SBMCs and SIPs, student assessment & monitoring, and expansion of better quality of teacher training. “Lycées Scientifiques” (focusing on excellence in math and sciences) would serve as “living laboratories” for other secondary schools to emulate to further improve their school-environments and to adopt more appropriate teaching methods, especially for math and sciences. Strengthening the institutional and management capacity in selective areas at the national, local and school levels, including greater use of modern computer and technology tools would also enhance efficiency and effectiveness in the secondary education sub-sector. Component 1: Expanding equitable access to secondary education (US$20.00 million) The objective of component 1 is to contribute to increased and equitable access to secondary education by tackling supply and demand constraints to enrollment in the five poorest regions. On the supply-side, the EAQIP would support the expansion of lower and upper secondary education, through increasing: (i) public and private secondary education access; and (ii) equity in lower and upper secondary education, especially for girls and children from low income families. This would Public Disclosure Copy be achieved through reduced school costs by providing subsidies to selected students and introducing other support mechanisms to tackle specific local constraints on education demand. This component consists of three sub-components. Subcomponent 1. Increasing public secondary school places, especially in the five covered regions. This sub-component will finance construction and equipment of new lower (CEG) and upper secondary (Lycée) schools/classrooms in underserved areas. The construction will also include 2 “pilot” lycées scientifiques located in suburban areas to allow easier access for secondary schools that would want to emulate their best practices. Based on the schema used for previous projects (PEPP II), the MESS will hire full time teachers for each new school, while communes will hire contractual teachers to supplement pedagogical staffing needs where needed. Subcomponent 2. Increasing private secondary school places in urban areas. This sub-component would support the construction and equipment of new private lower (CEG) and upper secondary schools (lycées) and the expansion of existing private secondary schools using the public-private partnership (PPP) practices adopted in the previous education project. The MESS would build and lease ownership and management of schools to private education providers selected through a competitive process. Expansion of existing schools will include high achieving “religious private secondary schools” based on agreed and specific eligibility criteria which would include an agreement that they would enroll promising students sponsored by MESS. Page 9 of 15 Subcomponent 3. Targeted support to girls and the poorest households. This subcomponent will contribute to tackling education demand constraints through combined actions aimed at increasing enrollment and retention of girls and/or the poorest students. The policy of fee reduction started in Public Disclosure Copy the PPEP2 would be continued to help lower the direct household costs of secondary education and make it easier for girls and poorest households to participate in secondary education. Subsidies would also be provided to selected students, mainly girls, from poor households to help with additional schooling costs. Specific criteria would be established to identify promising students who successfully complete primary or lower secondary education, but for socio-economic reasons would not be able to afford lower or upper secondary education. The identification “targeting” system would build on the mechanisms prepared by the Social Protection team in the proposed Safety Net Project. This approach would be launched on a pilot basis in 5 Communes selected within the covered five regions. The third action would consist of targeted support for the implementation of the School Improvement Plans (SIPs) led by the SBMC (see Component below). The project will contribute to financing, within the SIP, specific activities related to promoting enrolment and retention of girls and poorest students. This intervention would help address two key issues identified in the preliminary results of the gender study on factors limiting girls and poor students’ enrolment: (i) housing of students living away from their home villages to attend school and (ii) early pregnancy and accommodation for students’ newborn babies. The project would also support within the SIP, locally identified solutions to address these issues. Component 2: Improving the quality and relevance of Secondary Education (US$22.00 million). The objective of component 2 is to contribute to improved quality & relevance of teaching & learning in secondary schools in the five poorest regions, focusing on Mathematics, the Natural Sciences, Languages and computer sciences. This component would consolidate and scale up achievements from the previous Post-Primary Education project (PPEP2) and support the GoBF reforms for improving the quality, relevance and efficiency of secondary education. The component consists of four sub-components. Public Disclosure Copy Subcomponent 1. Targeted activities for efficient transition from primary to lower secondary education. Assessment of the results of PPEP2 showed that many secondary schools students had not attained the expected level of achievement. The explanation was largely because students entering from the primary cycle had not acquired the minimum academic requirements needed to embark on the secondary school program. This issue will be addressed by two structural actions which could have a profound impact on the quality of primary education and beyond. The project would provide continued support for the targeted activities under the PDSEB. The targeted activities include: (i) Curriculum reform: Building a quality basic-education curriculum by upgrading the programs for the ECD and streamlining the primary and lower secondary school curricula. This would ensure coherence in the curriculum throughout the basic education cycle, particularly to correct the discontinuity in learning objectives at the transition point from primary to lower secondary education. The specific activities would include (i) development and adoption of good quality early childhood education programs; and (ii) streamlining the curricula for the primary and secondary levels to ensure a systematic progression between grades and transition between the two cycles. Implementation of the basic education curriculum reform which was launched in 2013 is expected Page 10 of 15 to be completed by the 2020-2021 academic year. To date, the following activities have been completed, financed by national budget and other donor partners: (i) Reference document for the curriculum reform; (ii) Determination and organization of basic education contents; (iii) Public Disclosure Copy Organization of curriculum contents per sub-cycle; (iv) Rewriting of programs per sub-cycle in a curriculum format; (v) Development of framing instruments; (vi) Development of an experimental Protocol. Under this strategy, the key remaining activities to be undertaken include: (i) Development and approval of teaching programs, teacher training modules and didactical instruments for the curriculum pilot and generalization phases; (ii) Training of teachers and pedagogic supervisors to ensure smooth implementation and monitoring of the pilot and for scaling up the new curriculum; (iii) Revision, development and approval of textbooks and other didactical materials. The Government created a Directorate to conduct the curriculum reform, relying on national expertise within the ministry organized in specialized committees, supported by international expertise. Based on the implementation schedule, it is projected that by end of 2018, which is also the expected closing date of the project, the new curriculum for the first two sub- cycles of primary education, ECD, and all grades of lower secondary education would have been piloted and generalized. The project will contribute to the financing of the curriculum reform, including development of instruments, teacher training for the first two sub-cycles of primary education, ECD, and the first three grades of lower secondary education. (ii) Further Development of Early Childhood Development. Research shows that investments in quality early childhood education programs are effective in achieving improved educational outcomes at higher levels of the education system. ECD helps provide the required psycho-motor and basic literacy and numeracy skills that promote on-time entry and improved learning at the primary level. This in turn leads to improved retention and completion rates at the primary and secondary levels. Students who learn more in primary schools are better able to master the lower secondary curriculum and would enter lower secondary at a younger age. This latter is important since younger students are less likely quit school for marriage or employment in contrast to older students. To support Government’s efforts to further develop ECD, the project will invest in Public Disclosure Copy increasing access to early childhood care and education through parenting education and in improving the quality of existing ECD services through teacher training. Parenting education will better prepare parents to play a critical role in their child’s development by providing early stimulation and appropriate health and nutrition care for them. This component will be based on the UNICEF supported Government Parent Education Strategy that is currently being implemented. This str ategy includes selected low-cost, good quality and highly scalable models of parent education currently in operation in the country, run by the non-profit sector. Subcomponent 2. Development of school-based quality initiatives This component would strengthen the administrative arrangements and management capacity of secondary schools to help achieve improved student learning outcomes. It would build on the Presidential Decree of 2010 authorizing nation-wide establishment COGES in all primary schools by 2015. Following this Decree, the Government and the Bank agreed to pilot the use of COGES in lower secondary education to complete coverage for the basic education cycle. The composition and functions of the SBMCs would be designed to ensure that they operate effectively. Recent evidence shows that the school based management approach can be an effective strategy to increase parental participation in school decisions that would help reduce dropout, repetition and failure rates and, under certain conditions, increase learning outcomes . outcomes. Therefore, the project will focus on creating the conditions (local capacity building, SIP preparation, resources transfer and Page 11 of 15 management, incentives) within which the school based management policy, can be translated into improvements in the quality of education service delivery. The three following key tools will be used to achieve success in quality improvement at this level: (i) support for establishing School Public Disclosure Copy Based Management Committees; (ii) supporting School Improvement Plans (pedagogic support and materials); and (iii) piloting incentives for performance improvement. (i) Promoting School Based Management Committees. The project will support the establishment of SBMCs in each lower secondary school and provide training for its members. The design and implementation will build on the successful experiences of using SBMCs in Niger and the JICA financed pilot programs on SBMCs at the primary level in Burkina. The existing guides clarifying the roles, responsibilities and modalities for their establishment and operations, as well as training programs for members are available and will be adapted for use in Burkina. The first project year will be used for adapting the various tools and for piloting SBMC in one region. (ii) Development of School Improvement Plans (SIPs). Each lower secondary school will have a SIP prepared by the SBMC focusing on quality improvements, notably better learning outcomes and performance in national examinations. The SBMC will lead the process of preparing the SIP, from diagnostics to implementation, including managing resource allocation. The existing guides for the preparation of SIPs at the primary level will be adapted for use at the lower secondary level. (iii) Incentives for performance improvement. Two types of incentives will be financed for schools. The first, which will vary based on the size of the school, will be provided for 2 years to allow time for these resources to be included in the government’s recurrent budget. The second will be linked to existing annual school performance competition already being run by MESS. This initiative is based on agreed criteria that will be incorporated in the Project Implementation Manual. Under the MESS initiative, the best performing schools are included in a Circle of Excellence. Schools that do not maintain their performance levels annually will be re-evaluated and, if performance does not improve, dropped from the “Circle of Excellence”. The ranking of all schools will continue to be Public Disclosure Copy published in the regional and national press, as well as on the web sites of the Education Ministries. Subcomponent 3. Improve teacher management and Pre- and In-service Training in secondary Education This subcomponent aims at improving both the initial and In-service training of secondary school teachers. Toward this end, the project will support the government’s teacher tr aining policy. Initial training: Currently the two institutes responsible for teacher training, the ENS-UK, (covering all subjects) and the IDS (which trains teachers only for math and science), produce only around 1,400 teachers per year against the need for about 2000 teachers, with the highest deficits being in math and science. The project will support progressive expansion of teacher output to meet all the needs and to facilitate teacher assignments to rural areas where the needs for qualified teachers are greatest. In addition, the project will support use of improved teaching methodologies in the training institutions especially for math and science. The current training strategy comes from reforms undertaken in 1990s piloted and implemented by previous Bank financed projects (PEPP1 and PEPP2). The project will also support improving the contents of the training program. An evaluation of the pre-service training programs will be carried out to identify the specific areas of need. Support for improving the pedagogical methods would be done through technical assistance. In addition, the project will finance equipment to improve the curricula programs. Page 12 of 15 In-service training. Continuous pedagogic support and advice are necessary to improve the quality of instruction and to update teaching capacity. The PPEP2 supported the revision of the in-service training system. The strategy for upgrading the skills of teachers is designed and implemented on a Public Disclosure Copy three-pronged approach. School principals would receive initial training related to their pedagogic responsibilities. The training would draw on the experience of PEPP2 and would use the manual already developed, which clearly explains the respective roles. The second level of support involves deployment of Pedagogic Advisers (CP) and Inspectors, who are responsible for visiting each school and each teacher at least once a year, in the regions. On the basis of their reports, the insp ectorate would prepare subject-based in-service training programs (including how to use existing materials and textbooks). The third level of support is the teachers' study group established in networks of closely located schools (Cellule animation pédagogique-CAP). The in-service training would take advantage of the half-day midweek break to organize activities for teachers each week. Subcomponent 4. Increased availability of textbooks and pedagogical materials This sub-component will support improving the teaching and learning environment by increasing the availability of textbooks and other pedagogical materials. The previous project (PPEP2) financed successful local production of teaching materials to improve science teaching. This initiative will be extended. The project will also finance necessary equipment for the two “Lycees Scientifiques” pilots in upper secondary schools. The current project will build on and improve the overall textbooks provision started under PEPP2 to ensure textbooks availability for lower and upper secondary. The project will not acquire textbooks directly, but will provide support to ensure adequate textbook availability for the secondary education. Quantity and details will be completed during project preparation. Component 3: Contributing to strengthening education institutional capacity at central and decentralized entities (US$8.00 million) Public Disclosure Copy The objectives of component 3 are to contribute to strengthening the ministry’s capacity in selective areas and support the PCU operations. The areas covered include: 3.1. Project management and implementation activities; 3.2. Establishment of a Technology Platform: the Technology Platform, as an IT infrastructure for secondary education institutions (secondary and higher education), with connectivity to the Ministry in charge of Secondary and Higher Education (MESS) will reinforce the sector EMIS built under the PPEP2 by integrating different entities. It would serve a dual purpose for academic and administrative management of institutions and schools. With regard to academics, the platform would serve as a tool for course development, in the form of so-called “virtual labs”, and for course delivery with the view to reducing teacher shortages in higher education; and as a virtual library shared by teacher training institutions within the universities. 3.3. strengthening students learning assessment and examination systems; 3.4. Studies to provide relevant information needed for policy dialogue and decision-making for education policy reforms. IV. Safeguard Policies that might apply Safeguard Policies Triggered by the Project Yes No TBD Environmental Assessment OP/BP 4.01 ✖ Page 13 of 15 Natural Habitats OP/BP 4.04 ✖ Forests OP/BP 4.36 ✖ Public Disclosure Copy Pest Management OP 4.09 ✖ Physical Cultural Resources OP/BP 4.11 ✖ Indigenous Peoples OP/BP 4.10 ✖ Involuntary Resettlement OP/BP 4.12 ✖ Safety of Dams OP/BP 4.37 ✖ Projects on International Waterways OP/BP 7.50 ✖ Projects in Disputed Areas OP/BP 7.60 ✖ V. Financing (in USD Million) Total Project Cost: 50.00 Total Bank Financing: 50.00 Financing Gap: 0.00 Financing Source Amount BORROWER/RECIPIENT 0.00 International Development Association (IDA) 50.00 Total 50.00 VI. Contact point World Bank Contact: Adama Ouedraogo Title: Senior Education Specialist Tel: 5354+6314 Public Disclosure Copy Email: aouedraogo1@worldbank.org Borrower/Client/Recipient Name: Burkina Faso Contact: Kabore Lassane Title: DG Cooperation Tel: 22650312550 Email: Implementing Agencies Name: Ministere des Enseignements Secondaire et Superieur Contact: Bila DIPAMA Title: General Secretary Tel: 22650332626 Email: Name: Ministere de l'Education Nationale et de l'Alphabetisation Page 14 of 15 Contact: Emmanuel GOABGA Title: General Secretary Tel: 22650307853 Public Disclosure Copy Email: VII. For more information contact: The InfoShop The World Bank 1818 H Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20433 Telephone: (202) 458-4500 Fax: (202) 522-1500 Web: http://www.worldbank.org/infoshop Public Disclosure Copy Page 15 of 15