According to the Bank’s website, the objective of this project is to strengthen regional collaboration to generate, share, and support the use of evidence and regional public goods by participating countries to inform basic education reforms.

The proposed regional operation is Phase 5 of the AIM4Learning Multiphase Programmatic Approach and will support the Program's regional learning and collaboration pillar. Its rationale is grounded in the scale of the education challenge in Eastern and Southern Africa, where learning poverty remains very high, access and progression bottlenecks continue to weaken the basic education pipeline, and lower secondary education has become a critical constraint for the wider skills and jobs agenda. These challenges are being intensified by tighter financing and delivery conditions, including conflict, climate pressures, food insecurity, debt stress, and recent fuel and energy price pressures. While evidence on effective learning reforms is growing, much of it remains concentrated in a limited number of countries, interventions, and delivery settings. The central implementation challenge is to help countries adapt, finance, and sustain evidence-informed reforms within country education systems. A regional operation is needed because many countries face similar reform challenges, while regional public goods, shared tools, common standards, evidence platforms, and cross-country learning can reduce duplication, lower transaction costs, and help countries move more quickly from evidence to implementation.

The Project Development Objective is to strengthen regional collaboration and the use of evidence and regional public goods to inform basic education reforms.

Component 1, Connecting Countries to Regional Public Goods for Basic Education Reform, will help participating countries identify, access, adapt, and use selected regional public goods and standards. It will operate as a connector between countries, regional initiatives, specialized institutions, and country-level financing, rather than seeking to develop a comprehensive set of new public goods. The component will finance annual demand and public goods mapping, a small number of uptake and adaptation packages, learning assessment and data-use support, and a light regional knowledge and collaboration platform.

Component 2, Regional Learning, Evidence Uptake, and Implementation Support, will finance a focused regional learning agenda on how countries can adapt and implement evidence-informed reforms. It will support a limited number of joint research studies on learning poverty, implementation research, selective diagnostics, and communities of practice or regional problem-solving forums that document implementation lessons and agreed follow-up actions.

Component 3 is Project Management, Results Monitoring, and Communication.The operation will be implemented by the Association of African Universities, which will serve as the regional coordinating and facilitating entity. The project will draw on existing regional initiatives and specialized technical partners rather than building parallel structures or concentrating all expertise within the implementing agency. Larger country-level implementation activities, including national rollout, full assessment implementation, or major data collection, are expected to be financed through country projects, government programs, or partner resources.

This design keeps the regional grant selective, demand driven, and focused on helping participating countries use evidence and regional public goods to improve the design and implementation of basic education reforms.

The project has been assessed as having a Low environmental risk rating. The planned activities primarily involve analysis, building capacity, and sharing knowledge. They do not significantly impact the physical environment, as they are mostly non-intrusive. Minor environmental risks may arise when organizing regional events such as forums, meetings, or workshops, including the use of resources and generation of waste. However, these risks are temporary, not significant, limited to specific locations, and can be effectively managed using standard, well-established procedures.

The project has been assessed as having a Moderate social risk rating, with primary risks arising from its indirect effects on education policy and research activities, rather than any physical interventions or land acquisition. Principal concerns include the potential exclusion of vulnerable and underserved populations should equity considerations not be integrated into both research outputs and policy recommendations. Additionally, the implementation of digital first tools under Component 1 may exacerbate inequality in areas with significant connectivity and digital literacy barriers. The embedded implementation research in Component 2 further highlights essential issues related to informed consent and data privacy, particularly for minors and other vulnerable groups.

Total Project Cost: US$ 5.00 million
IDA Grant: US$ 5.00 million

The operation will be implemented by the Association of African Universities, which will serve as the regional coordinating and facilitating entity.

CONTACT POINT - World Bank

Task Team Leader: Samer Al-Samarrai
Title: Lead Economist
Email: salsamarrai@worldbank.org

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

To submit an information request for project information, you will have to create an account to access the Access to Information request form. You can learn more about this process at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/access-to-information/request-submission

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF THE WORLD BANK

The World Bank Inspection Panel is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by a World Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Inspection Panel, they may investigate to assess whether the World Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can contact the Inspection Panel or submit a complaint by emailing ipanel@worldbank.org. Information on how to file a complaint and a complaint request form are available at: https://www.inspectionpanel.org/how-to-file-complaint