WASHINGTON, June 21, 2013 – The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved a $US15 million IDA* grant today that will support Chad’s efforts to improve teaching and learning in primary and upper secondary schools and to improve data collection and decision-making in the country’s education sector.
The Education Sector Reform Project, now in its second phase, will benefit over a million children in Chad, covering 10,000 teachers and 3,800 schools at the primary level. It will also cover 30 schools and 600 teachers at the upper secondary level, with a special focus on mathematics and science.
“We are delighted to serve children in Chad through this project, which will not just expand the country’s classroom space but also ensure that both teaching and learning improve significantly,” said Ousmane Diagana, World Bank Country Director for Chad. “Investing in children is simply critical in this resource-rich country where many have never been taught formally, and only a third of students finish primary school.”
The project aims to improve schools by building or renovating classrooms, making more teaching and learning material available, and training teachers, among other activities.
Also, progress in education will be documented more accurately going forward, as the project will strengthen monitoring and evaluation capacity in two education ministries.
“The funds approved today will go a long way to help hundreds of thousands of children acquire the essential skills that will serve them well later in life when they search for jobs,” said Marie-Hélène Cloutier, World Bank Task Team Leader for the project. “A sound basic education increases their chances of earning a decent income in future.”
The project is well aligned with the Government’s Interim Strategy for Education and Literacy (2013 to 2015), which addresses both access to education and education quality. The regions to be covered under its various components are Mayo-Kebi East, Mayo-Kebi West, Tandjile, Mandoul, Hadjer Lamis and N’Djamena. These regions are not currently covered by complementary education projects that also support the strategy.
* The World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), established in 1960, helps the world’s poorest countries by providing loans (called “credits”) and grants for projects and programs that boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve poor people’s lives. IDA is one of the largest sources of assistance for the world’s 82 poorest countries, 40 of which are in Africa. Resources from IDA bring positive change for 2.5 billion people living on less than $2 a day. Since 1960, IDA has supported development work in 108 countries. Annual commitments have increased steadily and averaged about $15 billion over the last three years, with about 50 percent of commitments going to Africa.
