Project Name. PROJECT INFORMATION DOCUMENT (PID) APPRAISAL STAGE Report No.: AB3467 Second Education Quality Improvement Program

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1 Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Project Name PROJECT INFORMATION DOCUMENT (PID) APPRAISAL STAGE Report No.: AB3467 Second Education Quality Improvement Program Region SOUTH ASIA Sector Primary education (50%);Secondary education (50%) Project ID P Borrower(s) ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF AFGHANISTAN Implementing Agency Environment Category [ ] A [X] B [ ] C [ ] FI [ ] TBD (to be determined) Date PID Prepared November 15, 2007 Date of Appraisal November 15, 2007 Authorization Date of Board Approval January 31, Country and Sector Background Afghanistan is a country that has been besieged by civil strife for almost three decades. Conflict left the country devastated and with destroyed infrastructure, fragmented institutions and a lack of basic health, education and sanitation facilities in most parts of the country. Over the last five years, Afghanistan has achieved significant results in a challenging context. Nevertheless, the situation remains very fragile, especially in view of the tense, and in some areas deteriorating, security situation. Notwithstanding the economic recovery and the implementation of a sound development strategy, the country has not emerged fully from its state of conflict. The turmoil of the post conflict state is illustrated by the frail development achievements and enormous challenges that remain in Afghanistan today. Afghanistan is divided into thirty four provinces and the Government of Afghanistan estimates the population to be approximately 30 million. In the past five years of peace, the security environment remains tense and there are persistent expenditure pressures. Despite this, Afghanistan has sustained its growth momentum. GDP is projected to grow at 10% from onwards, assuming sustained growth in agriculture, construction and services sector. The reform agenda which the government is committed to throws up daunting challenges given the heavy dependence on aid, institutional and staff capacity constraints, an extremely low domestic revenue base, persistent insecurity and the threat of large illicit opium activity and poverty. Most urgent interventions include the restoration of countrywide security, rehabilitation of key economic and social infrastructure, and the establishment of functional state institutions across the country. The Constitution of the Afghan year 1382 mandates that the State will provided free and compulsory education from Grade 1 to Grade 9 and a free education to the completion of Grade 12. Although further legal and regulatory work is required, in general terms, the Constitution and the structure of the government (Ministries) assign the responsibilities for all education within those ranges to the MoE. This includes provision of schools; teachers and materials; regulation of the private education providers; pre-primary education; development of curriculum standards

2 setting and monitoring; training of teachers other than in universities; technical and vocational education; and special education. The MoE employs approximately half the entire civil service of the Afghanistan there are an estimated 143,000 teachers, and an additional 38,000 staff in administrative and other categories. Beyond the major achievement of enrolling almost six million children in school, the challenges remain daunting. One of the major bottlenecks that has affected and continues to affect the pace and scope of reconstruction is a massive skill deficit that cuts across all institutions in Afghanistan, from Principals to teachers, and from managers to skilled labor force needed for the bulk of the reconstruction work and its maintenance. Not least of the issues is the continued conflict in some parts of the country. Specifically for the education sector the challenges include the following: (i) a little less than half of the school age population remain out of school with significant gender and provincial disparities; (ii) while the number of teachers increased, only 22% meet the minimum qualifications of Grade 14 and only 28% are female and located primarily in urban areas; (iii) there is a new secondary school curriculum but new books have yet to be developed; (iv) only 25% of schools have usable buildings with lack of access for thousands of communities; (v) nearly 6% of schools were burned or closed due to terrorism in the past 18 months; (vi) 30,000-50,000 students graduate from high school yearly and only one third of them are admitted to universities; and, (vii) an estimated 11 million Afghans are illiterate (approximately 28-37% of the population); (viii) urgent need for civil service reform of education ministry personnel including Principals and teachers. National Education Strategy Plan The Government of Afghanistan (GoA) has taken bold steps to tackle the rehabilitation and development needs of the country. The GoA s goals for the primary and secondary education sub sector s are that by the end of 2010, in line with Afghanistan s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), net enrollment in primary school for girls and boys will be at least 60% and 75% respectively; a new curriculum will be operational in all secondary schools; female teachers will be increased by 50%; 70% of Afghanistan s teachers will have passed a competency test; and a system for assessing learning achievement such as a national testing system for students will be in place. The GoA s international commitment to achieving the above goals are ambitious especially in light of the emergency context in the country but the MoE has launched an aggressive campaign to work towards their achievement with the development and the implementation of the priority projects in the NESP. The NESP was developed by a new administration at the MoE which was appointed in June 2006 before this time, the sector had been dominated by frequent changes in leadership and piecemeal initiatives with small gains. The strategy was developed with the technical support of UNESCO s International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) through a wide consultation process with all stakeholders in the sector. The NESP is a five year road map for immediate educational development activities in the country and provides a detailed discussion of the interventions that will begin the process that will lead the country to achieving the Compact benchmarks and Afghanistan s MDGs. Educational development in Afghanistan for the next five years is prioritized into eight programs literacy, curriculum, teacher education, construction, public administration and management, vocational education and general education.

3 2. Objectives The proposed program will build on the Bank s current engagement in the education sector and the wider reconstruction needs of Afghanistan. The proposed EQUIP II will ensure further assistance to the Government following a programmatic approach through which external assistance to the sector can be channeled. The program development objective is to increase equitable access to quality basic education especially for girls through school grants, teacher training and strengthened institutional capacity with support from communities and private providers. 3. Rationale for Bank Involvement It is important to note that despite the lack of school buildings and the continued conflict, the number of children in school has increased dramatically from 1 to almost 6 million, of which 35 % are girls. Notwithstanding this achievement, daunting challenges remain. IDA has been a major player in Afghanistan s education sector since 2002 and has gained extensive experience and knowledge on implementing education programs in the fragile country context. In addition, IDA brings international experience from its engagement in similar contexts. The achievements made under EQUIP in a very short time have spurred substantial donor interest in the sector. The MoE s strategy has been to request donors to align their programs with those of the National Education Strategy Plan and where possible, channel funds through the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF) co-finances EQUIP, complementing IDA. The multilateral nature as well as government s strong ownership of the ARTF and increasing support for the education sector illustrated by the recent contributions to the IDA education program, places the Bank in a strategic position as the main actor assisting the GOA to reach its goals. EQUIP has national coverage but is not sufficient to assist the GoA meet its substantial needs. The proposed EQUIP II will be more comprehensive in terms of coverage, fully aligned with the government s strategy in education and provide the vehicle through which other donor funding can be channeled which ensures a holistic and programmatic approach to assistance in the education sector. 4. Description 5. The project development objective will be reached through the following components. Component 1: School Grants (IDA $8.7 million, ARTF $13.1 million) There are two complementary objectives of the school grants component: a) to support the improvement of teaching and learning by facilitating the creation of enabling school environments; and b) support the improvement of basic school facilities at existing government registered primary, middle and secondary schools with teachers on payroll. This component has been tried and tested in the past two IDA-funded education projects in Afghanistan and its design is based on the lessons learned. Intensive social mobilization will be carried out by MoE and information on school grants will be disseminated through the communications campaign, Provincial Education Departments

4 (PEDs), District Education Department (DEDs), and with the support of NGOs where appropriate. Sub-Component 1.1 School Grants for Quality Enhancement (IDA $4.5 million, ARTF $5 million) The objective of the quality enhancement grant is to develop healthy linkages between schools, communities and local government while supporting and empowering schools and communities as local education managers. The quality enhancement grants will be given based on School Improvement Plans (SIP) prepared by the School Shura and where relevant, the PTA. The concerned PEDs, DEDs, and NGOs will provide technical and institutional support to the School Shura to prepare a SIP based on agreed upon criteria which can be referred to in the Project Implementation Manual (PIM). The grant will mainly finance activities such as education materials and supplies, supplementary readers, toolkits, expenditures for workshops, seminars, meetings and transportation for teachers and School Shura/PTA members to participate in appropriate meetings. Under the project, there will be two types of grants: first and second generation grants. The first generation grants will be given to schools throughout the country who have not previously received any quality grants under EQUIP Sub-Component 1.2: School Grant for Infrastructure Grant (IDA $2.1 million, ARTF $5 million) The objective of this sub-component is to rehabilitate and construct schools using community participation and community-based decision making. Standard cost-effective designs with upgraded local technology and earthquake resistant features already developed and being used in EQUIP will be adopted. The infrastructure grants subcomponent is a repeater and based on the experiences accruing from EQUIP and the government s strategic plan as documented in National Education Strategic Plan (NESP). It has been agreed that under this sub-component, there will be an increased emphasis on rural schools using cost-effective standard options as developed during EQUIP and community managed construction. Sub-Component 1.3 Social Awareness and Mobilization (IDA $2.1 million, ARTF $3.1 million) The main objective of this sub component is to mobilize and strengthen School Shuras to manage their schools based on local priorities. It will finance: (i) social mobilization activities for communities to implement the project components with NGO support where relevant; (ii) the development of training modules for training and support to DEDs, PEDs, Provincial Department of Construction (P-DOCs) and MOE at the center; and, (iii) the organization of community and provincial level dissemination of project information.

5 Component 2: Teacher and Principal Training and Education (IDA $16.7 million, ARTF $32 million) The objective of this component is to create sustainable systems which will increase the level of professional knowledge and skills of educators throughout Afghanistan. This component will provide much needed training to teachers and principals. As time passes, the training efforts will focus more on the creation and development of local professional networks which will allow educators to share ideas, problems, and solutions with their peers. This component will be delivered in partnership with USAID funded Building Education Support to Teacher Training program (BESST) and have national coverage. USAID funding will cover eleven provinces and the proposed project will cover the remaining twenty three. Sub-Component 2.1: District Teacher Training Teams (DT3s) (IDA $11.8 million, ARTF $22.6 million) The DT3 scheme will be implemented by NGOs with institutional support from DEOs at the district level and oversight from the Teacher Education Department (TED) at the center. The design of the DT3 program is as follows. Each district will have a team of trainers led by a team leader. The number of trainers will be based on the number of primary school teachers in each district with sessions having a 45:1 teacher to trainer ratio. DT3s will deliver three types of training to primary school teachers: pedagogy and basic knowledge training (INSET-I); content-knowledge training (INSET-II); and training to educate under-qualified female teachers (Accelerated Learning-AL). Moreover, members of the DT3 scheme with Bachelor s degrees will also where possible, teach in under served high schools in specific districts around the country. This sub component will also support the rehabilitation and construction of District Education Offices (DEOs) in order to provide for appropriate facilities in support of the DT3s. Sub-Component 2.2: Principal Training (IDA $1.5 million, ARTF $ 0.5 million) The two objectives of this sub-component are: a) to equip principals in government registered schools, approximately 9,500 in number, with the most needed administrative and leadership tools for improving schools today; and b) to establish a system of professional development networks which will support the longer-term MoE reform strategy for better quality teaching and learning. Sub-Component 2.3: Increasing Female Teachers (IDA $3.4 million, ARTF $8.9 million) The objective of this sub-component is to increase female enrollments in TTCs, through: (i) a program that hires and places qualified individuals to teach in under served TTCs around the country and (ii) a nation wide household scholarship program for girls entering TTCs.

6 21. The placement of the teachers in TTCs strives to increase the quality of and access to pre service teacher education with an emphasis on girls. The MoE would implement a nationwide drive to recruit individuals with Bachelor degrees (at least) to teach in TTCs where there is need for TTC professors especially as a result of increased female enrollment due to the household scholarship scheme. The sub-component also proposes incentives for females willing to enter two year pre-service programs in TTCs nationwide. It is proposed that the incentive scheme include a monthly stipend (maximum USD40), free accommodation (or an accommodation stipend of USD20 depending on which TTC they are placed in), and guaranteed employment as a government salaried teacher upon completion of the program. As an incentive to join the teaching profession, the teachers will also receive a bonus at the end of their first year as teachers in the public system. The conditions for continued benefits to the enrolled female TTC students are that they have to maintain average scores of 50%, 75% attendance and serve in a government school as a teacher for at least two years. The sub-component will also partially support MoE s plans to have fully equipped TTCs by providing for the construction of classrooms in provinces where no TTCs exist or there are gaps in funding, with a priority on classrooms for females. Currently full TTC complexes (including dormitories for females and males) are being constructed through USAID and KFW financing. The proposed project will be used to fund gaps in financing for TTC classroom space only. Component 3: Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation (IDA $ 4.6 million, ARTF $5 million) The objective of this component is to (a) build on and support the existing structure for EQUIP in MoE and (b) establish and implement a practical monitoring and evaluation system for the project so that lessons can be drawn in a timely fashion to facilitate project improvement as well as policy making. Sub-component 3.1: Project Management and Coordination (IDA $2.5 million, ARTF $2.9 million) The objective of this sub-component is to support the structure for the management and implementation of the project. The project will continue to be managed under the structure which has evolved and has been tried and tested during implementation of EQUIP. Under this sub-component, project management capacity will be enhanced through coordination meetings, trainings and workshops in-country and regionally. At the national level, the EQUIP Coordination Unit established in MOE, and headed by a Coordinator (EQUIP Coordinator), will be directly responsible for the day-to-day implementation of the project. A GMU which is responsible for all donor-funded projects in MOE, will keep track of related activities for the project such as all procurement, financial management and reporting as well as all project related coordination with the line departments and the EQUIP Coordination Unit. DOC and its relevant project staff (engineers and architects) will be supported by this sub-component.

7 Sub-component 3.2: Monitoring (IDA $1.6 million, ARTF $1.6 million) The objective of this sub-component is to measure if and to what extent monitoring KPIs have been achieved. This information will be used in the third party evaluation and will also be utilized for ongoing project improvement. To the extent possible, communities usually through school Shuras and NGOs will monitor their own activities gathering information as activities implemented. This strategy addresses the difficulty in accessing remote schools in several provinces and districts while at the same time empowering communities to assess and ultimately own EQUIP activities. Information, however, does not remain in the schools and NGOs. All data is reported to the DED which review the information and forward it to the PED who will direct data to the MoE. All data will flow to the national EQUIP Unit, located within the MoE, and be entered into the EMIS. This strategy ensures that information is available at a central location and allows for tracking at the national, provincial, and district levels. Use of monitoring results can be used not only to identify shortcomings and provide additional assistance but also to uncover successes and encourage sharing of best practices. Sub-Component 3.3: Evaluation (IDA $0.5 million, ARTF $0.5 million) The objective of this sub-component is to verify monitoring information and to measure if KPIs have been achieved. Independent third party evaluators will be used to assess all components as well as the project as a whole. Because of the diversity of provinces, districts, and schools and the difficulty if not impossibility of accessing all schools, teachers, students, and schools in select districts will be assessed with a focus on identifying major trends associated with the project. The evaluation will not be representative but instead will provide a snapshot of project progress in select provinces and districts. In a country where so much is unknown, a thorough evaluation of a few districts will provide crucial information not only on what occurred but what is possible. It will also allow for better planning and programming as EQUIP II is scaled-up. 6. Financing Source: ($m.) BORROWER/RECIPIENT 0 International Development Association (IDA) 30 US: Agency for International Development (USAID) 22 Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund 50.1 Other expected financing 84.6 Total Implementation

8 The overall responsibility of the project will be vested in the leadership committee made up of the Minister and his two deputy minister and senior advisors. The MoE through its central, provincial and district departments is responsible for the overall execution of the project. The project will continue to be managed under the same structure as that of the EQUIP. Under the proposed project, there will be an increased use of NGOs for specific components and independent organizations to support project implementation, build capacity within the government bodies and provide independent monitoring and evaluation of specific components. NGO contracting and monitoring will be the sole responsibility of the MoE and will be done using previously agreed upon guidelines and criteria. The Grants Management Unit (GMU) at the MoE will handle fiduciary aspects related to financial management, disbursement, and audit functions for the life time of the project. The EQUIP Coordinator and his team with the GMU will coordinate all project activities in individual components. The monitoring unit will liaise with all relevant project departments in gathering data on progress made against agreed indicators Procurement activities will be carried out by the MoE through the GMU. Procurement will be in accordance with the World Bank s Guidelines: Procurement under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits (dated May 2004; revised October 2006); Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants by World Bank Borrowers (dated May 2004; revised October 2006); and the provisions stipulated in the Development Grant Agreement. The Bank s Standard Bidding Documents, Requests for Proposals, and Forms of Consultant Contract will be used. In case of conflict/contradiction between the Bank s procurement procedures and any national rules and regulations, the Bank s procurement procedures will take precedence. Financial management and audit functions for proposed project will be undertaken through the agents contracted under the Public Administration Capacity Building project which strengthens the fiduciary measures put in place for ensuring transparency and accountability of Government, Bank and donor funds. Under these contracts, two advisers Financial Management and Audit are responsible for working with the government to carry out these core functions. The Financial Management Agent (FMA) is responsible for helping the Ministry of Finance (MoF) maintain the accounts for all public expenditures, including IDA-financed projects and for building capacity within the government offices for these functions. Disbursements from the IDA grant will include advances, reimbursement, direct payment, and payments under Special Commitments including records or against summary reports. 8. Sustainability It is likely that this project will be sustainable based on the following: (i) the project is a follow on one which essentially repeats the positive lessons learned from previous projects in Afghanistan; (ii) the project will be implemented against an institutional backdrop that is already in place; (iii) the project has been declared a national level project and enjoys strong government ownership; (iv) information on the project s benefits have been widely disseminated by the MoE at the community level so that they would be held accountable to deliver and sustain the project. 9. Lessons Learned from Past Operations in the Country/Sector

9 The EQUIP II builds on the first emergency education project and the current IDA funded EQUIP. The school grants component is a carry over from the previous two IDA projects and has been honed based on lessons learned. The proposed EQUIP II widens and expands the scope of the IDA interventions of the past to be a multi donor supported project that is fully aligned with the vision and goals set out in the NESP in partnership with major donors and NGOs in the sector. The teacher and principals training component builds on lessons learned from teacher training activities implemented throughout the country by NGOs during wartime and since Safeguard Policies (including public consultation) Safeguard Policies Triggered by the Project Yes No Environmental Assessment (OP/BP 4.01) [X ] [ ] Natural Habitats (OP/BP 4.04) [ ] [ X] Pest Management (OP 4.09) [ ] [X ] Physical Cultural Resources (OP/BP 4.11) [ ] [ X] Involuntary Resettlement (OP/BP 4.12) [X ] [ ] Indigenous Peoples (OP/BP 4.10) [ ] [ X] Forests (OP/BP 4.36) [ ] [ X] Safety of Dams (OP/BP 4.37) [ ] [ X] Projects in Disputed Areas (OP/BP 7.60) * [ ] [X ] Projects on International Waterways (OP/BP 7.50) [ ] [ X] 11. List of Factual Technical Documents Education Quality Improvement Program (EQUIP) Technical Annex Afghanistan National Education Strategy Plan 12. Contact point Contact: Scherezad Joya Monami Latif Title: Sr Education Spec. Tel: Fax: slatif@worldbank.org Location: Kabul, Afghanistan (IBRD) 13. For more information contact: The InfoShop The World Bank 1818 H Street, NW * By supporting the proposed project, the Bank does not intend to prejudice the final determination of the parties claims on the disputed areas

10 Washington, D.C Telephone: (202) Fax: (202) Web: