UNESCO estimates that US$7 billion per year in external aid to basic education is required if universal primary education (UPE) and gender parity are to be achieved by 2015. Despite a modest upturn in aid and new pledges made in 2004, a significant funding gap of US$5.6 billion remains.

Chapter 5 of the EFA Global Monitoring Report, “Education for All: The Quality Imperative” analyses education aid, with reference to the amount, effectiveness and impact on quality. Donors allocate US$1.5 billion every year to basic education, out of a total US$5.5 billion to all levels of education. Many donors spread their aid across a large number of countries – an average of 63. Having to deal with multiple donors with different procedures places a heavy administrative burden on recipient governments. Better coordination among donors and improved partnership between them and recipient countries are key to the more effective use of aid.

Sector-wide approaches (SWAps) are sought to reduce this administrative burden and to strengthen national ownership of policy and process. While the shift from project to programme support is an indication of the commitment of external agencies to strengthen partnerships, the evidence suggests that such support does not necessarily improve partnerships if implemented as a plan of action rather than a process.

The analysis of existing aid practices shows that:

• Quality is not well addressed in current aid practice. There are some countries where quality is addressed through the SWAps process, but these cases are limited.
• External models of good practice in education are often not applicable to local circumstances.
• Agencies and national partners have focused their activities mainly on formal primary schooling, to the detriment of other basic education.
• Despite international commitments to consult with civil society, information exchange remains more dominant than meaningful longer-term consultation.
• Different aid systems have different benefits. While the move towards a more coordinated approach to supporting education is a welcome trend, the actual choice of aid system should be appropriate to the context.
• There is increasing agreement on the need for a more strategic approach to building up the skills in a country receiving aid.

The Fast Track Initiative (FTI) is an international partnership launched in 2002 by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to accelerate progress towards the achievement of universal primary completion (UPC) by 2015. Supported by thirty multilateral and bilateral agencies and regional development banks, FTI has become a test case of whether new development partnerships can help achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

However, there are no signs that the FTI is becoming a channel for significant education-aid expenditure. There is a risk of the FTI procedures being seen as an additional stage for both governments and agencies to overcome. Eligibility criteria may limit the inclusion of countries where EFA needs are greatest. The FTI needs to be consistent with and complement wider international work on coordinating donors.

The EFA Global Monitoring Report finds that:

• It is difficult to find clear evidence of an effective relationship between aid and better learning outcomes at national and international level
• Goverments and aid agencies are defining intermediate measures of good practice. These include sound policy, clearly defined objectives, national targets and indicators, well-managed monitoring and review processes and consistent attention to building strong institutional capacity.

Source(s):
'EFA Global Monitoring Report 2005', UNESCO
Chapter 5 of 'EFA Global Monitoring Report 2005', UNESCO Full document.

Funded by: UNESCO and several bilateral donors

id21 Research Highlight: 25 May 2005

Further Information:
The Director
EFA Global Monitoring Report Team
c/o UNESCO, 7 place de Fontenoy
75352 Paris 07
France

Tel: +33 1 45 68 21 28
Fax: +33 1 45 68 56 27
Contact the contributor: efareport@unesco.org

EFA Monitoring Report Team, UNESCO

Other related links:
'Two years after Dakar: on the road to EFA?'

'Going into a decline? Assessing global aid flows to education'

'Meeting education development goals: simply a question of money?'

'Far from the front line: how likely is universal primary completion by 2015?'

'Moneyed classes: public spending on universal primary education'

'Does aid go to the poorest?'