Since free primary education was introduced in 1994, enrolment to primary schools has risen continuously, with almost equal numbers of girls and boys being enrolled. However, because of a lack of resources, inefficient educational management and poor educational quality, a large number of students, especially girls, have either had to repeat a year or have dropped out of school altogether. Less than half of all children enrolled in the first class of primary school actually complete their primary education, and only a quarter of children who have completed primary education come from the poorest population groups.
Malawi's national Education Sector Plan for 2008 to 2017 and its Education Sector Implementation Plan II, or ESIP II, delineate core areas for action in order to improve (i) equal access to education for all, (ii) educational quality and (iii) educational management. Implementation however is proceeding more slowly than planned. The reasons for this are that necessary information is often not available and additional expertise is required . Moreover, what information is available is not put to effective use. Furthermore, there is a lack of coordination within the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) when it comes to identifying, prioritising and initiating concrete implementation steps.
The aim of our project is to improve the MoEST's implementation of the ESIP II. The improvement is to be achieved by setting up a Study and Expert Fund, which is to be managed by the GIZ and from which the Ministry for Education, Science and Technology can apply for funding to cover short-term assignments of advisors. Such assignments might include delivering specialised expertise relevant for planning, implementing or monitoring ESIP II. Furthermore, the funding can be utilised to commission studies to support evidence based decision making as well as advanced external and on-the-job training courses in project management, communication, reporting, application writing and financial planning for MoEST.
The GIZ will provide the funds to cover such activities; other development partners may, if they are interested, also get involved (DFID and Norway are currently looking into the matter). The GIZ will take on the management of the fund and will be responsible for managing it effectively and transparently, both in terms of content and financially. It will seek close coordination with the EU, in particular, as that organisation has also pledged to support the MoEST with long-term and short-term expert advice from April 2016 onwards.
Applications for the support of short-term experts can be submitted by the technical task forces, departments, or gender equality officers of the MoEST. The applications for support are then assessed by an internal steering body within the Education Ministry. The "component managers", who will be responsible for dealing with the key areas of the Educational Sector Implementation Plan, ESIP, II, are to play a crucial role in the process, which is meant to strengthen their position. By enshrining equality and inclusion in education as key criteria for the approval of funding applications, it is hoped to ensure that these aspects are given systematic consideration in Malawi's educational policy generally.
The project will run for two years und six months (from 03/2016 to 08/2018), with Germany's technical cooperation contribution estimated to cost up to 2,000,000 EUR.