for official use only report no: pad2918documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/... · project appraisal...

FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Report No: PAD2918

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION

PROJECT APPRAISAL DOCUMENT

ON A

PROPOSED CREDIT

IN THE AMOUNT OF SDR 64.8 MILLION

(US$90 MILLION EQUIVALENT)

TO THE

REPUBLIC OF MALAWI

FOR THE

EQUITY WITH QUALITY AND LEARNING AT SECONDARY PROJECT (EQUALS)

February 20, 2019

Education Global Practice

Africa Region

This document has a restricted distribution and may be used by recipients only in the performance of their official duties. Its contents may not otherwise be disclosed without World Bank authorization.

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CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS

(Exchange Rate Effective: December 31, 2018)

Currency Unit = Special Drawing Rights (SDR)

SDR 0.7190158 = US$1

US$ 1.390790 = SDR 1

FISCAL YEAR

July 1 – June 30

Regional Vice President: Hafez M.H. Ghanem

Country Director: Bella Bird

Senior Global Practice Director: Jaime Saavedra Chanduvi

Practice Manager: Safaa El Tayeb El-Kogali

Task Team Leaders: Innocent Najjumba Mulindwa, Jeffrey Waite

ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ACB Anti-Corruption Bureau ACE Africa Centres of Excellence AGYW Adolescent Girls and Young Women AIDS Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome BAFO Best and Final Offer BoQs Bills of Quantity CA Continuous Assessment CAMFED Campaign for Female Education CAS Country Assistance Strategy CBCCs Community Based Childcare Centers CDS Consultant Direct Selection CDSSs Community Day Secondary Schools CEED Central East Education Division CERT Centre for Education Research and Training CFM Common Funding Modality CoWs Clerk of Works CPF Country Partnership Framework CWED Central West Education Division CWL Common Wealth League DC Direct Contracting DEP Directorate of Education Planning DHRMD Department of Human Resource Management and Development DIAS Directorate of Inspectorate and Advisory Services DLI Disbursement Linked Indicator DLR Disbursement Linked Result DPO Development Program Operation DSDE Directorate of Secondary and Distance Education DTED Department of Teacher Education and Development EDMC Education Divisional Management Committee EDM Education Divisional Management EIMU Education Infrastructure Management Unit EPIC EQUALS Project Implementation Committee EQUALS Equity with Quality and Learning at Secondary ESC ESIP Steering Committee ESHS Environmental, Social, Health and Safety ESIP Education Sector Implementation Plan ESMF Environmental and Social Management Framework EU European Union FM Financial Management GBV Gender Based Violence GDP Gross Domestic Product GER Gross Enrolment Ratio GNI Gross National Income GPE Global Partnership for Education GPF General Purpose Fund GPI Gender Parity Index

GRM Grievances Redressal Mechanism GRS Grievances Redressal Service HCI/P Human Capital Index/Project HIV Human Immune Virus HQs Headquarters IBRD International Bank for Reconstruction and Development ICB International Competitive Bidding ICR Implementation Completion and Results ICT Information, Communication Technology IDA International Development Agency IEYP Investing in Early Years for Productivity and Growth in Malawi IFMIS Integrated Financial Management Information System IPF Investment Project Financing IRR Internal Rate of Return IRT Item Response Theory JCE Junior Certificate of Education KPAs Key Priority Areas M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MANEB Malawi National Examinations Board MASAF Malawi Social Action Fund MCDE Malawi College of Distance Education MDGs Millennium Development Goals MDTF Multi Donor Trust Fund MESIP Malawi Education Sector Improvement Project MGDS Malawi Growth and Development Strategy MIE Malawi Institute of Education MIM Malawi Institute of Management MK Malawi Kwacha MLSS Malawi Longitudinal School Survey MMR Maternal Mortality Ratio MoEST Ministry of Education, Science and Technology MoFEPD Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Development MoU Memoranda/um of Understanding MS4SSA Math and Science for Sub Saharan Africa MSCE Malawi School Certificate of Education MTR Mid-term Review NAO National Accounting Office NAR Net Attendance Ratio NED North Education Division NER Net Enrolment Ratio NESP National Education Sector Strategic Plan NGES National Girls Education Strategy NPP National Procurement Procedures OPC Office of the President and Cabinet OSS Open Secondary School PDO Project Development Objective PEFA Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability PFM Public Financial Management

PforR Program for Results PIM Project Implementation Manual PP Procurement Plan PPF/A Project Preparation Funds/Advance PPP Public Private Partnership PPSD Project Procurement Strategy for Development PSLCE Primary School Leaving Certificate Examination PST Project Support Team P-RAMS Procurement Risk Assessment and Management System QCBS Quality and Cost Based Selection RF Results Framework RFB Request for Bids RFQ Request for Quotations SACMEQ Southern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Education Quality SAI Supreme Audit Institution SC Steering Committee SCR Student to Classroom Ratio SDGs Sustainable Development Goals SDI Staff Development Institute SDP Skills Development Project SEED South East Education Division S-EMIS Secondary Education Management Information System SHED Shire Highlands Education Division SHN School Health and Nutrition SMASSE Strengthening Math and Science for Secondary Education SRGBV School Related Gender Based Violence SSA Sub Saharan Africa SSBS Secondary School Bursary Scheme STDMS Secondary Teacher Development and Management System STEM Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics STEP Systematic Tracking of Exchanges in Procurement STWG Secondary Technical Working Group SWAp Sector Wide Approach SWED South West Education Division TFR Total Fertility Rate TMIS Teacher Management Information System TOR Terms of Reference TPV Third Party Verifier TRF Textbook Revolving Fund TSC Teaching Service Commission TTIs Teacher Training Institutions UBR Unified Beneficiary Registry UCE University Certificate of Education UNICEF United Nations Children Fund USAID United States Agency for International Development USE Universal Secondary Education WASH Water, Sanitation and Hygiene WDR World Development Report

The World Bank Equity with Quality and Learning at Secondary (EQUALS) (P164223)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DATASHEET ................................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

I. STRATEGIC CONTEXT ...................................................................................................... 7

A. Country Context .........................................................................................................................7

B. Sectoral and Institutional Context ...............................................................................................8

C. Relevance to Higher Level Objectives ........................................................................................ 15

D. Financing Instrument and Rationale .......................................................................................... 17

II. PROJECT DESCRIPTION .................................................................................................. 17

A. Project Development Objective ................................................................................................ 17

B. Project Components ................................................................................................................. 17

C. Project Beneficiaries ................................................................................................................. 24

D. Theory of Change ..................................................................................................................... 25

E. Learning Agenda....................................................................................................................... 25

F. Collaboration with ongoing initiatives and education development partners ............................. 27

G. Lessons Learned and Reflected in the Project Design ................................................................. 27

III. IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS ............................................................................ 29

A. Institutional and Implementation Arrangements ....................................................................... 29

B. Results Monitoring and Evaluation Arrangements ..................................................................... 30

C. Sustainability ........................................................................................................................... 32

IV. PROJECT APPRAISAL SUMMARY ................................................................................... 32

A. Technical Analysis .................................................................................................................... 32

B. Economic and Financial Analysis ............................................................................................... 33

C. Fiduciary .................................................................................................................................. 34

D. Environmental and Social Safeguards ........................................................................................ 36

V. KEY RISKS ..................................................................................................................... 37

VI. RESULTS FRAMEWORK AND MONITORING ................................................................... 40

VII. ANNEXES ...................................................................................................................... 60

Annex 1a: Implementation Arrangements ........................................................................... 60

Annex 1b: Selection of the 13 Beneficiary Remote Districts and Corresponding Schools ....... 62

Annex 1c: Procurement ....................................................................................................... 63

Annex 2: Implementation Support Plan ............................................................................... 69

Annex 3: Environmental and Social Safeguards .................................................................... 72


Annex 4: Disbursement Linked Indicators Schedule .............................................................. 74

Annex 4a: Disbursement Linked Indicator 1 Verification Protocol ......................................... 76

Annex 4b: Disbursement Linked Indicator 2 Verification Protocol......................................... 78

Annex 4c: Disbursement Linked Indicator 3 Verification Protocol ......................................... 81

Annex 4d: Disbursement Linked Indicator 4 Verification Protocol......................................... 83

Annex 4e: Disbursement Linked Indicator 5 Verification Protocol ......................................... 85

Annex 5: Map of Malawi including the 13 high-intensity/remote districts ............................ 87


Page 1 of 87

DATASHEET

BASIC INFORMATION BASIC_INFO_TABLE

Country(ies) Project Name

Malawi Equity with Quality and Learning at Secondary (EQUALS)

Project ID Financing Instrument Environmental Assessment Category

P164223 Investment Project Financing

B-Partial Assessment

Financing & Implementation Modalities

[ ] Multiphase Programmatic Approach (MPA) [ ] Contingent Emergency Response Component (CERC)

[ ] Series of Projects (SOP) [ ] Fragile State(s)

[✓] Disbursement-linked Indicators (DLIs) [ ] Small State(s)

[ ] Financial Intermediaries (FI) [ ] Fragile within a non-fragile Country

[ ] Project-Based Guarantee [ ] Conflict

[ ] Deferred Drawdown [ ] Responding to Natural or Man-made Disaster

[ ] Alternate Procurement Arrangements (APA)

Expected Approval Date Expected Closing Date

13-Mar-2019 31-Dec-2025

Bank/IFC Collaboration

No

Proposed Development Objective(s)

The Project Development Objective (PDO) is to improve quality of science and mathematics instruction in Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSSs) and increase access to secondary education in selected remote areas.


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Components

Component Name Cost (US$, millions)

Component 1. Improving the quality of science and mathematics instruction 28.01

Component 2.Enhancing equitable access to secondary education 51.45

Component 3.Project Coordination, Learning, Monitoring & Evaluation 10.54

Organizations

Borrower: Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Development

Implementing Agency: Ministry of Education, Science and Technology

PROJECT FINANCING DATA (US$, Millions)

SUMMARY-NewFin1

Total Project Cost 90.00

Total Financing 90.00

of which IBRD/IDA 90.00

Financing Gap 0.00

DETAILS-NewFinEnh1

World Bank Group Financing

International Development Association (IDA) 90.00

IDA Credit 90.00

IDA Resources (in US$, Millions)

Credit Amount Grant Amount Guarantee Amount Total Amount

National PBA 90.00 0.00 0.00 90.00

Total 90.00 0.00 0.00 90.00

Expected Disbursements (in US$, Millions)


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WB Fiscal Year 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

Annual 0.38 5.59 10.58 15.20 17.89 18.27 14.09 6.28

Cumulative 0.38 5.97 16.55 31.75 49.64 67.91 82.00 88.28

INSTITUTIONAL DATA Practice Area (Lead) Contributing Practice Areas

Education

Climate Change and Disaster Screening

This operation has been screened for short and long-term climate change and disaster risks

Gender Tag

Does the project plan to undertake any of the following?

a. Analysis to identify Project-relevant gaps between males and females, especially in light of country gaps identified through SCD and CPF

Yes

b. Specific action(s) to address the gender gaps identified in (a) and/or to improve women or men's empowerment

Yes

c. Include Indicators in results framework to monitor outcomes from actions identified in (b) Yes

SYSTEMATIC OPERATIONS RISK-RATING TOOL (SORT)

Risk Category Rating

1. Political and Governance ⚫ Substantial

2. Macroeconomic ⚫ Substantial

3. Sector Strategies and Policies ⚫ Moderate

4. Technical Design of Project or Program ⚫ Substantial

5. Institutional Capacity for Implementation and Sustainability ⚫ High

6. Fiduciary ⚫ Substantial

7. Environment and Social ⚫ Substantial


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8. Stakeholders ⚫ Moderate

9. Other

10. Overall ⚫ Substantial

COMPLIANCE

Policy Does the project depart from the CPF in content or in other significant respects?

[ ] Yes [✓] No

Does the project require any waivers of Bank policies?

[ ] Yes [✓] No

Safeguard Policies Triggered by the Project Yes No

Environmental Assessment OP/BP 4.01 ✔

Performance Standards for Private Sector Activities OP/BP 4.03 ✔

Natural Habitats OP/BP 4.04 ✔

Forests OP/BP 4.36 ✔

Pest Management OP 4.09 ✔

Physical Cultural Resources OP/BP 4.11 ✔

Indigenous Peoples OP/BP 4.10 ✔

Involuntary Resettlement OP/BP 4.12 ✔

Safety of Dams OP/BP 4.37 ✔

Projects on International Waterways OP/BP 7.50 ✔

Projects in Disputed Areas OP/BP 7.60 ✔

Legal Covenants

Sections and Description Staffing (Schedule 2 Section IA.1b). The Recipient shall not later than thirty (30) days after the Effective Date specifically appoint, and thereafter maintain adequate technical staff to the following units and directorates in MoEST: DSDE, Directorate of Teacher Education and Development, and Directorate of Education Planning, and the Monitoring and Evaluation Unit.


Page 5 of 87

Sections and Description Project Support Team (Schedule 2 Section IA.1c). The Recipient shall at all times during Project implementation, maintain within MoEST a core Project support team comprising: a project manager, a financial management specialist or an accountant, two procurement officers (general and civil works), a monitoring and evaluation officer, and an environmental and social safeguards specialist, all with terms of reference, qualifications and experience satisfactory to the Association.

Sections and Description Annual Work Plan and Budget (Schedule 2 Section IB.1). The Recipient shall, not later than April 30 in each Fiscal Year during Project implementation, prepare, and furnish to the Association, a program of activities proposed for inclusion in the Project during the following fiscal year (Annual Work Plan), including: (a) a detailed timetable and budget for the sequencing and implementation of said activities; and (b) the types of expenditures required for such activities.

Sections and Description Independent Verifier (Schedule 2 Section IC.1). The Recipient shall not later than six (6 months after the Effective Date, recruit the Independent Verifiers, and thereafter, cooperate with said Independent Verifiers, acting as third-party monitoring and evaluation experts to assess the proper fulfillment of DLIs and DLRs as set forth in Schedule 4 to this Agreement.

Conditions

Type Description

Effectiveness Article IV, 4.01 (a). The Recipient has established the EQUALS Project Implementation

Committee (EPIC) with a mandate, functions, resources and terms of reference, satisfactory

to the Association. Type Description

Effectiveness Article IV, 4.01(b). The Recipient has: (i) established the Project core support team within the

MoEST with functions and terms of reference, satisfactory to the Association; and (ii)

recruited to said Project team a project manager, a financial management specialist or

accountant, two procurement specialists (i.e., general and civil works), a monitoring and

evaluation officer, an environmental and social safeguards specialist, all in accordance with

the provisions of the Procurement Regulations. Type Description

Effectiveness Article IV, 4.01(c). The Recipient has acquired and installed appropriate accounting software

for proper maintenance of the Project financial records. Type Description

Disbursement Schedule, Section III B, 1(b).No withdrawal shall be made under Category (1) for any DLI or

DLR unless the Association has received from the Recipient or the Independent Verifiers, the

EEP Spending Reports confirming that the DLI and DLR have been achieved and containing a


Page 6 of 87

proposal for disbursement under each Withdrawal.


Page 7 of 87

I. STRATEGIC CONTEXT

A. Country Context

1. Malawi is a land-locked country with a per capita gross national income (GNI) of US$320 (2017). Malawi’s GNI grew at an annual average of around 1.5 percent between 1995 and 2014, below the average of 2.8 percent in non-resource intensive African economies during the last twenty years1 and around 70 percent of the population lives below the international poverty line of US$1.90 per day – 95 percent of whom live in rural2 locations. Agriculture contributes 28 percent of Malawi’s gross domestic product (GDP), over 80 percent of the national export earnings and absorbs 64 percent of the country’s workforce, but its productivity is undermined by weather-related shocks and limited crop diversity. In 2017, 50 percent of the export earnings were from tobacco (28 percent), sugar (8 percent), tea (8 percent) and edible nuts (6 percent).3 Malawi’s Third Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS III) aims to break the cycle of persistently low agricultural productivity and limited opportunities for non-farm self-employment, which together are considered the main proximate determinants of stagnant poverty levels in Malawi.4

2. Malawi’s 17.65 million youthful, fast-growing population poses a challenge to poverty reduction. In 2016, the

annual population growth rate of 2.9 percent was higher than the regional average of 2.7 percent and the global average of 1.2 percent.6 Nevertheless, significant progress was made in key demographic indicators between 2010 and 2015 in comparison to regional counterparts. For example, infant and under-five mortality in Malawi declined to 42 and 63 per 1000 live births respectively compared to 56 and 83 for Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries; the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is 439 per 100,000 child bearing age women compared to 547 for SSA; the total fertility rate (TFR) is 4.4 compared to 4.9 for SSA. With 56 percent of the population below 19 years of age, 29 percent of girls being mothers by age 19, and a median age at first marriage of 17 years, more effort is however still needed to support Malawi’s demographic transition.7

3. Recognizing the country’s demographic challenges, the Malawi Government spends heavily on education.

Education is one of the three most funded sectors; and one of the five key priority program areas (KPAs), along with skills development, identified in MGDS III. Since 2011/12, primary and higher education subsectors on average received 40 percent and 30 percent of the education sector budget respectively, compared to 18 percent for secondary education. Secondary education however accounts for only 6 percent of the development budget.

1 Record, R., Kumar, P., and Kandoole, P. (2018); From Falling Behind to Catching Up: A Country Economic Memorandum for Malawi. Directions in Development. Washington. DC. 2 World Bank (2018); Malawi Systematic Country Diagnostic: Breaking the Cycle. May 2018 Decision Review Report. 3 World Bank (2017) data base. 4 World Bank (2016); Malawi Economic Monitor: Absorbing Shocks, Building Resilience. Macroeconomics and Fiscal Management Global Practice. Washington DC, World Bank 5 National Statistics Office (NSO) Malawi (2018). 2018 Population and Housing Census. Preliminary Report. December 2018. 6 World Development Indicators Data Base (WDI) 2017. Washington D.C.: World Bank. 7 National Statistical Office (NSO) Malawi and ICF (2017). Malawi Demographic and Health Survey (MDHS) 2015-16. Zomba, Malawi, and Rockville, Maryland, USA. NSO and ICF


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4. Despite heavy spending, education indicators show low achievement. The Human Capital Index (HCI) predicts that boys and girls born in Malawi today will have 9.4 years of education by age 18 (see Table 1). However, when adjusted for quality, the time effectively spent acquiring necessary skills drops to the equivalent of just 5.4 years – a learning gap of four years. Only one in every ten children who enter primary school completes secondary education (see Figure 1c). Although improving, reading and math proficiency at standard 6 are among the lowest in the region; only 17 percent of children of secondary school age attend school; and less than 1 percent access tertiary education.

B. Sectoral and Institutional Context

5. Sustainable investment in secondary education would offer several critical elements to Malawi’s socio-economic transformation. Expansion of post-primary education enhances people’s productivity, promotes technological advances, secures socio-economic progress for countries, fosters social cohesion, evens income distribution and jump-starts fertility transition.8,9 Private returns to an additional year of schooling range between 8 to 11 percent in Malawi, at par with average global levels; returns to secondary education are higher (67 percent compared to only 15 percent at the primary level) – and yields far higher returns for females than males (85 percent versus 58 percent).10 Household heads with secondary education have significantly lower multidimensional poverty than those with primary or no education.11 Mothers with secondary education not only have fewer children (3.3 for those with secondary education against 4.7 for mothers with primary education) but also have them later (the median age at first birth is 20.7 for girls with secondary education compared to 18.6 for those with primary education).12

6. Malawi follows an 8+4 (eight years of primary and four years of secondary/pre-university) school system, with

service delivery guided by the 2016 National Education Policy and operationalized by the 2014-2020 Education Sector Investment Plan.13 Secondary education delivery is coordinated by the Directorate of Secondary and Distance Education (DSDE) within the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST), and the six delegated Education Division Management (EDM) offices located throughout the country.14 The DSDE and EDMs are supported by MoEST’s key directorates, along with statutory agencies (see Section III). Table 2 provides highlights of key education sector indicators for Malawi.

8 World Development Report, 2018: Learning to Realize the Education Promise. Washington DC. 9 Bashir S., Lockheed M., Ninan E., Tan J.P. (2018). Facing Forward: Schooling for Learning in Africa. World Bank, Washington, DC. 10 Gondwe, B. (2016); An Empirical Analysis of Poverty, Inequality and The Labour Market in Malawi. Chapter 3, Education and Earnings in Malawi: Panel Data Evidence. Thesis (Dcom)--Stellenbosch University, 2016. 11 World Bank (2016); Poverty Assessment Report. 12 National Statistical Office (NSO) Malawi and ICF (2017) ________________ 13 Government of the Republic of Malawi (2016). National Education Policy. 14 The EDMs are Central East Education Division (CEED), Central West Education Division (CWED); North East Education Division (NEED), Shire Highlands Education Division (SHED); South East Education Division (SEED), and South West Education Division (SWED)

Table 1: Human Capital Index - Malawi (World Bank) Total Male Female

Probability of Survival to Age 5 0.95 0.94 0.95

Expected Years of School 9.4 9.4 9.4

Harmonized Test Scores 331 330 331

Survival Rate from Age 15-60 0.73 0.67 0.78

Fraction of Children Under 5 Not Stunted

0.63 0.61 0.64

Human Capital Index (HCI) 0.40 0.39 0.41


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Table 2: Key education sector indicators for Malawi

2006/07 2011/12 2016/17

New entrants to Standard 1 656,821 661,224 737,107

Enrolment - Primary 3,280,714 4,034,220 4,901,009

Male 1,638,884 2,000,509 2,439,605

Female 1,641,830 2,033,711 2,461,404

Net Enrolment Ratio - Primary 104 99 88

Gross Enrolment Ratio - Primary 122 126 131

Male 123 127 131

Female 121 125 131

Survival rate to Standard 8 29.6 49.7 32.5

Transition to Secondary Education 38.4 30.2 35.0

Male 37.4 30.1 33.5

Female 39.6 30.3 36.4

Enrolment - Secondary 218,310 256,343 373,000

Male 122,312 140,189 193,960

Female 95,998 116,154 179,040

Gross Enrolment Ratio - Secondary 20 20 23

Male 22 22 25

Female 17 18 21

Key Indicators 2017/18 by Type of School

Malawi Govt Boarding

Govt Day CDSS Private

Number of Secondary Schools 1,160 61 59 701 339

Number of qualified maths teachers 2,012 227 262 1,045 478

Number of qualified biology teachers 1,449 173 171 735 370

Number of qualified physical science teachers 1,165 132 154 492 387

Student to Classroom Ratio 58.7 44.9 53.6 52.5 46.1

Source: Calculations based on data from MOEST EMIS Bulletins (2006, 2011, 2016 and 2017)

The access and financing challenge

7. At the current enrollment of 373,000 students in secondary school (47.8 percent girls), Malawi needs to enroll a further 1.1 million students per year to achieve ‘secondary education for all’ by 2030.15 Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4.1 commits governments to ensuring that by 2030, all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education that leads to relevant and effective learning outcomes. Although expanding, Malawi’s secondary education access rates are amongst the lowest in SSA with few opportunities for the poor. In response, the Government announced ‘free secondary education’ effective January 2019. Figure 1a shows that the net attendance ratio (NAR) is 4.4 percent for the poorest households compared to 41 percent for the richest, against a national average of 17 percent. Through the Secondary School Bursary Scheme (SSB), the Government has provided at least 14,792 bursaries to disadvantaged students since 2010, excluding parallel initiatives from development partners; the impact on the poor is yet to be realized, which implies challenges with beneficiary identification. In 2017, only 53 percent of the 2016 primary education graduates who qualified to continue their education could be absorbed in secondary schools, with significant variations across districts. Phalombe district, for

15 Calculations by the task team based on the UNESCO secondary education enrolment and secondary education age group estimates of 2015.


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example, could only absorb 19 percent of primary completers, compared to over 72 percent in Zomba Urban district. This is exacerbated by delayed replacement of vacant student places making the already limited number of schools to operate below capacity.16 International evidence shows that it is the poor, rural and girls who are often left out.17 Reforming beneficiary targeting for the ongoing bursary schemes and the selection process are strategic entry points for a sustainable pro-poor expansion drive.

8. While reaching, or even approaching, SDG 4.1 for secondary education completion will require significant new resources (see Table 3). Given the projected population growth rate of 3.2 percent, the additional funding cannot come from the public budget alone, even on the optimistic GDP growth projections of 4.9 percent by 2020. Resources must therefore be mobilized across the full range of education stakeholders: well-coordinated multi-sectoral engagements that leverage resources from both public and private sectors; diversification of secondary education service delivery, with a special focus on cost-reducing, yet effective, technologies; and efficiency-enhancing measures for effective use of existing resources. Further pressure will be put on the secondary education budget by the Government’s recent announcement of free secondary education – motivated by the very low enrollments and the present high private costs of enrollment – though students and their families will still face direct costs which vary across school types.

Table 3: Projected Financing Gap - Achievement of Secondary Education for All in Malawi Expenditure Scenarios Expenditure on

education (USD) % GDP

% Govt expenditure

Actual spending in 2015 1,100 m 5.61% 21.60%

if 90% enrollment, using the current per student spending on secondary education (USD 317.93) 1,454 m 7.40% 28.50%

if 90% enrollment, using a lower (primary education) per student spending (USD 114.95) 1,228 m 6.30% 24.10%

9. Whereas pre-primary and primary education also suffer from systemic weaknesses, which in turn affect progress in secondary education, they have a reform agenda that is being implemented to address identified issues. Although learning levels are rising slowly, Malawi registers the lowest learning levels in the Eastern and Southern Africa region, with most Standard 6 learners not being able to achieve the requisite minimum competencies in mathematics over the last three cycles (see Figure 1d). Evidence from the ongoing Malawi Longitudinal School Survey (MLSS) shows that Standard 4 pupils achieved between 40 and 50 percent on average in Chichewa, English and mathematics on items aligned with the Standard 1 curriculum.18 International evidence shows that with such a slow start at learning, even those who make it through primary do not master basic competencies, weakening the foundation for secondary, and such learning deficits are magnified over time.19 The Malawi Education Sector Improvement Project (MESIP - P154185), financed by the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) and supervised by the World Bank, prioritizes strategic policy and programs that improve primary education efficiency and accountability by attracting support from various stakeholders. The recently negotiated Investing in Early Years for Productivity (IEYP) Project (P164771) aims to improve the coverage, quality and utilization of early childhood development services, for enhanced primary school readiness.

16 This refers to the placement of primary school graduates into secondary schools having satisfied minimum conditions for admission to secondary education 17 Bashir S., Lockheed M., Ninan E., Tan J.P. (2018). Facing Forward: Schooling for Learning in Africa. World Bank, Washington, DC. 18 Asim, S. (2018). Creating Equal Opportunities for Malawi’s Children Insights from a Longitudinal School Survey. 19 World Development Report, 2018.


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Figures 1a Secondary Education in Malawi Figures 1b: Secondary Education in Africa

Figure 1c: Malawi’s School Profile 2007 and 2016 Figure 1d: Average Math Scores for SACMEQ Countries 2000, 2007,

2013

Secondary education delivery platforms

10. Through the “free secondary education” policy, secondary school students in the four types of public schools will pay MK 3,250 (US$4) less in fees. Secondary education is delivered through 1,160 secondary schools, of which 821 are public. Public schools are in three main categories: 701 community day secondary schools (CDSSs); 61 government boarding schools and 59 government day schools. Government also runs 253 open secondary schools (OSSs) in the existing public schools. There are also 339 private schools. The no-fee policy means that uniform tuition, the Textbook Revolving Fund (TRF) and the General-Purpose Fund (GPF) will no longer be financed from parental contributions. There are however costs that student will continue to pay, with total school fees ranging from a high of MK 95,000 (US$126) per year for national schools to a low of MK 8,250 (US$11) per year for CDSSs. Students with the highest grades in the Primary School Leaving Certificate of Education (PSLCE) examination are selected to join, for the top scorers, government boarding and day schools (at national and district levels) and, for the next tier, CDSS (at local level). Primary graduates may also apply to join OSSs and the 339 private schools. The PLSCE examination is administered by the Malawi National Examinations Board (MANEB), and selection using the PLSCE results is carried out by the Secondary and Distance Education Directorate (SDED). Funding for public schools is inequitably distributed. Government per capita allocation varies significantly, both by type of school and across


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the six-secondary education administrative divisions. An equitable financing formula for public secondary schools is needed, supported by an effective school-level resource management system.

Figures 2a: Enrollment Growth in Secondary Schools Figures 2b. Enrollment Growth by School Type in Malawi

11. CDSSs, operated under a public-community partnership, are the main vehicle for expanding access, but the service

standards and regulatory framework need comprehensive improvement to promote quality student learning. CDSSs and OSSs absorb the largest share of students and have been almost the sole source of enrollment growth (Figures 2a & 2b), thanks to their low fees, proximity to local communities and low burden on public funds. They are established by communities and approved by Government upon meeting minimum infrastructure standards. Teachers’ salaries constitute the main government contribution to CDSSs. CDSSs play a part in expanding access in two other ways. First, 137 of the 701 CDSSs operate on a double-shift system, whereby the same facilities are used for two sets of students. Second, CDSSs facilitate OSSs, which operate on the same site but after the CDSSs’ school day has ended. An OSS20 is in essence a private school on public premises, managed by a school management team that charge fees to pay government teachers for the additional teaching load. The OSS model comes with a host of issues.21 For example, improvements in CDSSs which serve 45 percent of students will likely result in a collateral improvement for another 30 percent of students. That said, CDSSs have the lowest inputs at baseline: 52 percent of CDSS teachers are not qualified, in comparison with about 10 percent in government boarding and day schools. Moreover, weak regulations for OSSs and their poor enforcement (e.g., limited inspection of OSSs) undermine the potential growth of this sub stream.

12. The rapid growth of private schools in the recent past points to a potential, with streamlined policies, for the private sector to complement government efforts to expand secondary education. Between 2011 and 2015, the number of private secondary schools increased by 85 percent (from 194 to 360), compared to a 26 percent increase in public schools (from 847 to 1070). The speedy expansion of the private schools’ network (excluding OSS because these ideally run on public premises) shows the huge potential to support the Government deliver on the “free

20 Students who attend OSS pay almost the same fees as CDSS students. 21 Chingaipe, H., Nthakomwa, F. and Katundu, E. (2018); Political economy analysis of secondary education in Malawi: Governance, access, management and reforms of CDSSs and OSSs (background paper commissioned by the World Bank, Governance Practice.


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secondary education” promise. Private schools can fill a gap where the nearest public schools are far away or when there is a need to expand faster than public infrastructure can be built, both of which are true for Malawi.22 Public-private partnerships (PPPs) were central to Uganda’s Universal Secondary Education (USE) reform program, with the Government offering a per-student subsidy to low-cost private schools. Evidence shows that the PPP program not only absorbed many eligible students into secondary schools, but students in PPP schools performed significantly better than those in purely private schools.23

Secondary curriculum reform and student learning

13. Implementation of the revised secondary education curriculum and assessment frameworks, which guide student learning, continues to face challenges. The number of subjects covered by the curriculum has been reduced from 42 to 22, with major reforms in science subjects. The eight core subjects are Chichewa, English, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, agriculture, and physical education. The first cohort of students using the revised secondary curriculum reached Form 4 in academic year 2018/19, but implementation has been characterized by insufficient teacher orientation and a lack of accompanying teaching-learning materials.24 The revised curriculum stipulates adoption of continuous assessment for secondary education examinations, but very little has been done to date. On the positive side, secondary education teacher training institutions like Mzuzu University and Malawi University Chancellor College have, under the ongoing World Bank-supported Skills Development Project (SDP) P131660, reformed their training programs in response to the reformed curriculum.

Figure 3a: MSCE Pass rates in all Subjects, 2016 Figure 3b. 2016 MSCE Pass rate in Sciences and Mathematics

14. Learning outcomes are inequitably distributed across the secondary education student population, with the

lowest results for students enrolled in CDSSs, particularly in mathematics and sciences. The proportion of students

22 World Development Report, 2018. 23 Barrera-Osorio, F., Galbert, P., Habyarimana, J., and Sabarwal, S. (2015); The Impact of Public-Private Partnerships on Private School Performance: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial in Uganda. 24 CDSSs visited during program preparation had no textbooks for three years (from either the new or old curriculum) and the level of awareness around core and elective subjects seems limited. In addition, new donor-funded science laboratories at one school were deteriorating rapidly because there was no money to replace materials.


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passing the Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE), taken in Grade 12, has risen over the years: from 44 percent in 2006 to 61 percent in 2016, according to MANEB statistics.25 However, Figures 3a and 3b show that CDSSs register the lowest learning outcomes and a wider gender gap in pass rates compared to government boarding and day schools; pass rates are lowest for math and science subjects, with girls scoring lower than boys; and students in urban schools outperform those in rural schools.

Secondary education teachers

15. A large proportion of the secondary education teaching force is unqualified, teacher deployment norms are weak, and no teacher management information system exists. More, and better, teachers are needed in the secondary education subsector to ensure expansion of coverage with quality in the coming years. This will require equitable deployment of available qualified teachers, policy guidance on the minimum qualifications for secondary teachers, and teaching load/periods per week and deployment norms per subject. Currently, 44 percent of the 10,728 secondary teachers lack the requisite qualification to instruct at the secondary education level, 4,000 of them being trained as primary school teachers. Although there are reported severe shortages of mathematics and science teachers, the Government has not developed sufficiently accurate estimates of teacher supply needs in the medium and long term and has therefore been unable to calculate the related wage-bill requirements. The government strategy to improve the number of qualified secondary education teachers sets out two interventions, in addition to the regular pre-service training programs offered at university level: (a) creation of a nine-month University Certificate of Education (UCE) for Bachelor of Science graduates to equip them with teaching methods prior to deployment in schools; and (b) establishment of a four-year secondary teacher training program targeting underqualified teachers in the secondary education system. That said, between 2015 and 2018, only one round of secondary teacher recruitment has been conducted.

16. The existing model of teacher support programs delivered through local school clusters aligns with international good practice, but its implementation is dysfunctional.26 A functional teacher support program improves teachers’ pedagogical and content knowledge. It also enables the development of a quality assurance mechanism to assess their content and pedagogical knowledge. Malawi’s secondary education in-service teacher support system is based on 120 secondary school clusters, with an average of six schools per cluster, each linked to one of the six administrative secondary education divisions. A secondary school cluster is coordinated by a cluster-lead school that is expected to regularly host and support teachers from member schools. The absence of linkages with teacher training institutions and top-down training programs, coupled with low resourcing of cluster-lead schools, continues to render the cluster system dysfunctional. A long-term and progressive engagement would facilitate the development and experimentation of a teacher support system, built on existing programs and buttressed with new technologies at teacher training institutions.

Adolescent girls

17. The multisectoral National Girls’ Education Strategy (NGES) 2018-2023 and the Adolescent Girls and Young Women’s (AGYW) Action Plan for Malawi are being implemented. Girls’ secondary education experience is characterized by higher dropout and repetition than boys’, due to lack of school fees and early pregnancy.27 Malawi’s

25 World Bank 2010. 26 Bashir S., Lockheed M., Ninan E., Tan J.P. (2018). Facing Forward: Schooling for Learning in Africa. World Bank, Washington, DC. 27 McConnell, C., and Mupuwaliywa, M. (2016). ‘Keeping Girls in School: Situation Analysis for Malawi’. Policy Brief: Malawi. Education


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education policy allows adolescent mothers to return to school, although its application remains limited. The revised curriculum also offers ‘life-skills’ as a compulsory subject from Forms 1-4. Results from these two initiatives are yet to be realized. Gender-based violence is prevalent amongst students on school grounds or on the way to and from school,28 while 17 percent of school heads in the Malawi sample for the Fourth Southern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Education Quality (SACMEQ IV) assessment exercise reported that teachers sexually harassed students.29 This is coupled with low awareness of menstrual management and hygiene, oft cited as contributors to girls’ irregular school attendance. Each additional year of secondary education is associated with lower risk – about 7 percentage points on average – of girls’ marrying and having a child before age 18.30 Safe schools that provide timely life-skills information are integral to quality secondary education.

C. Relevance to Higher Level Objectives

18. The 2013-2020 National Education Sector Plan (NESP) sets out ambitious goals for secondary education, but implementation remains weak. The NESP comprises five priority objectives: increasing equitable access to quality secondary education; resourcing of schools with teaching-learning materials; increasing the number and equitable deployment of qualified teachers; increasing access to quality in-service and pre-service training programs; and strengthening management of secondary schools. However, the 2017 NESP review report shows that only 20 percent of the set targets for the respective strategies has been achieved.31 Background analysis done during preparation of the proposed project and the ongoing dialogue with the Government indicate that the same strategies will continue to be prioritized in the 2021-2030 NESP cycle. Secondary education reform will be key to the overall achievement of the Government’s vision articulated in the MGDS III, since an underdeveloped secondary education sub-sector limits the realization of the desired transition from primary to secondary, and from secondary to tertiary.32

19. The proposed operation is aligned with Theme 2 of the extended FY13-16 Country Assistance Strategy (CAS): ‘enhancing human capital and reducing vulnerabilities’.33 The specific results areas to which the proposed project will directly contribute are: Results area 2.1, ‘improved delivery of public services’; Outcome 2.1: (Improved access to quality education), rated as having been achieved in the CAS Completion and Learning Review Report.34 Arising from the socio-economic benefits of secondary education highlighted above, the project also has a linkage to Results area 2.2: ‘lowering vulnerability and enhancing resilience’; as well as Theme 1: ‘promoting sustainable, diversified and inclusive growth’, Results area 1.3 ‘strengthening productivity in a diversified economy.’

Global Practice; Health, Nutrition and Population Global Practice. World Bank Group. 28 Rancourt, N. 2013. Baseline Study: Ending School Related Gender-Based Violence in Nsanje District, Malawi. Fruitport, MI: Concern International. 29 Bashir S., Lockheed M., Ninan E., Tan J.P. (2018). 30 Wodon, Q., Montenegro, C., Nguyen, H., and Onagoruwa, A. (Unpublished). The Cost of Not Educating Girls. Low Educational Attainment for Girls and Child Marriage in Africa: Impacts, Costs and Solutions. 31 Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (2017). Review Report for National Education Sector Plan 2008-2017. 32 Government of Malawi (2017). The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS) III (2017-2022). Building a Productive, Competitive and Resilient Nation. 33 World Bank (2012), Date of CAS (FY13-FY16): December 17, 2012 (Report number 74159-MW) 34 Malawi Country Strategy Completion and Learning Review: March 25, 2015 (Report number 95178-MW)


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20. The proposed project is also aligned with the MGDS III, which anchors the next Country Partnership Framework (CPF) under preparation. Education and skills development are one of five key priority areas in MGDS III, with its overall goal of ‘improving quality and relevant education and skills for all.’ The specific outcomes of the MGDS to which the project is aligned are: (a) increased access to secondary education; (b) improved quality of secondary education; and (c) improved governance and management of secondary education. Improved education opportunities are expected to contribute to the realization of results for several MGDS III priority program areas, specifically health and population, agriculture and climate change management, ICT infrastructure, HIV and AIDS control, and environmental sustainability. Considering the limited progress made on the secondary education priorities, the Government will likely continue to focus on their progress beyond the 2017-2022 MGDS cycle.

21. Further, the project will contribute to, and help measure Malawi’s progress towards SDG 4: (a) Target 4.1 – ‘by

2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes’; and (b) Target 4.4 – ‘by 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship’, due to the emerging high returns to secondary education in Malawi.

22. The project will contribute to the World Bank’s twin goals of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared

prosperity and is consistent with the World Bank Group’s Human Capital Project (HCP), of which the Malawi Government is an “early adopter.” Global evidence shows that countries that experience high and sustainable economic growth have a large supply of post-primary education personnel. Investments in secondary education would enable Malawi to harness its “population dividend” through the high returns that accrue to secondary education, and in turn to contribute to the demographic transformation arising from the social returns to secondary education.

23. The project will strengthen linkages across the education sub-sectors, as well as ongoing World Bank supported

projects. Investments in secondary education will expand opportunities for primary education graduates and thereby generate linkages with the World Bank supervised Malawi Education Sector Improvement Project (MESIP) - P154185, of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE). In addition, the project will generate linkages with the Skills Development Project (SDP) and the regional Africa Centers of Excellence (ACE II) project – P151847, through its prospect of increasing the number and quality of secondary education graduates enrolling for science- and math-based programs at universities and vocational training institutions. Cross-practice collaboration will be enhanced through several projects supported by the World Bank in related sectors including: (a) Malawi Social Action Fund (MASAF)-P133620, through the planned application of the Unified Beneficiary

Registry (UBR) to reform the ongoing bursary scheme with respect to beneficiary identification; (b) Malawi Digital Foundations Project - P160533, for which discussions have been initiated to facilitate internet

connectivity to CDSS; (c) Malawi Electricity Access Project - P164331, under preparation, which projects to connect CDSS to the main

grid to facilitate science instruction and self-study by students at night, along with innovative approaches of supporting rural teachers’ access to low-cost solar systems for their homes.

(d) Malawi Governance to Enable Service Delivery Project – P164961, through engagement on key aspects of accountability and effective resourcing for secondary education.


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D. Financing Instrument and Rationale

24. The project will use an Investment Project Financing (IPF) instrument with disbursement-linked indicators over a

six-year period. The Malawi Government’s implementation of prioritized institutional reforms has been weak, due to adoption of a solutions-based as opposed to a problem-driven approach.35 The FY13-16 Malawi CAS Performance and Learning Review recommends that progress should be measured on the basis of results indicators rather than process indicators.36 While Common Financing Mechanism (CFM)37 in the education sector currently prevents the use of the Program for Results (PforR) instrument, experience with the ongoing education projects (SDP and MESIP) nevertheless shows high responsiveness to results-based financing using DLIs. An IPF with DLIs over a six-year period would: (i) provide an opportunity to the system to address key foundational gaps and focus on results; (ii) develop requisite capacity to sustain the interventions; (iii) generate and use the data from pilots facilitated by the innovative technologies; and (iv) gain momentum for key policy reform such as PPPs, and equitable school financing.

II. PROJECT DESCRIPTION

A. Project Development Objective

25. The PDO is: To improve quality of science and mathematics instruction in Community Day Secondary Schools and increase access to secondary education in selected remote areas.

PDO Level Indicators

(a) Percent of CDSS meeting selected minimum standards for quality science and mathematics instruction (b) Primary to secondary transition rate in remote schools from 13 selected districts (c) Learning achievement in standardized assessment in science and mathematics

B. Project Components Component 1. Improving the quality of science and mathematics instruction (SDR 20,162,000/US$28,010,000) 26. The interventions supported by the EQUALS Project are in line with the Education Sector Investment Plan (ESIP)

strategic priority of improving the quality of secondary education and teacher training. In this component, the project seeks to provide the minimum standards for effective instruction of sciences and mathematics to all CDSSs – modelled on the ‘structured pedagogy package’ of interventions that boost learning in sub-Saharan Africa;38 develop and implement student learning enhancing strategies and strengthen secondary education system to support learning. Project funds for this component will be disbursed based on the completion of agreed results for the respective subcomponents below. Secondary teacher salaries and government subventions to public secondary schools will constitute eligible expenditure program items.

35 Bridges, K., and Woolcock, M., (2017). How (Not) to Fix Problems That Matter. Assessing and Responding to Malawi’s History of Institutional Reform. Policy Research Working Paper #8289. The World Bank Group. 36 World Bank Group (2015). World Bank, IFC and MIGA Malawi CAS Performance and Learning Review for the period FY13-FY16. 37 The CFM is an oversight arrangement for the use of development partner funds managed by the government (though not presently for World Bank funds). This was established following the ‘cash-gate’ scandal that led development partners to withdraw funding. 38 Bashir S., Lockheed M., Ninan E., Tan J.P. (2018).


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Sub-component 1.1. Ensuring minimum standards to quality instruction of mathematics and sciences for Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSSs) - (SDR 11,160,000/US$15,500,000).

27. The selected minimum standards comprise the following: (a) In-service teacher orientation to the revised sciences

and mathematics curriculum targeting all CDSSs teachers by subject and grade, based on the developed syllabuses and teacher guides; (b) Ensuring each CDSS student has access to content and pedagogically appropriate teaching and learning materials – including adapted text books for students with visual impairments – and equipment for Forms 1-4, to complement the teacher orientation program. Application of International Competitive Bidding (ICB) modalities with direct delivery to schools which has proven to enhance value for money will be ensured; and (c) CDSS’ head teacher training in school management and instructional leadership drawing from the existing certified and accredited programs offered by institutions like Malawi Institute of Management (MIM) and Staff Development Institute (SDI). The agreed DLI for this subcomponent is ‘percentage of CDSSs with a student to textbook ratio of 1.1 for math and sciences’ (DLI 1) and corresponding amounts for the agreed disbursement linked results (DLRs) over the years are presented below.

DLI 1. Percentage of CDSSs with student textbook ratio of 1:1 in Mathematics and Science (SDR 11,160,000/US$15,500,000)

1.1. 100% compliance to procurement methods that enhance value for money (SDR 2,160,000/ US$3,000,000)

1.2. 25% of CDSS with student textbook ratio of 1:1 in at least two of the four subjects (SDR 2,880,000/ US$4,000,000)

1.3-1.6. SDR 23,760/US$33,000 disbursed for every percentage point achieved above 25% for each of the four subjects up to a maximum of SDR 6.12 million/US$8.5 million corresponding to 90% of CDSSs having a student textbook ratio of 1:1 in Math and three Science subjects (SDR 6,120,000/US$8,500,000)

Sub-component 1.2. Enhancing student learning in selected thirteen (13) districts (SDR 9,002,000/US$12,510,000)

28. This subcomponent will support three interventions that enhance student learning, targeting 43 secondary school clusters in the selected 13 remote districts of Malawi. These include: (a) Enhancing quality and delivery of the ongoing teacher support program for sciences and math with linkages and technical leadership from the five-selected public teacher training institutions (TTIs). The enhancement will involve integration of pedagogical technologies in materials development and teacher training, drawing from the World Bank supported Math and Science for Sub Saharan Africa (MS4SSA). The project will promote learning from similar initiatives in the region. (b) Development and/or adoption of interactive digitized student learning material that elaborate math and science concepts, experiments and student exercises for each grade. (c) Supporting improvements in student assessment and examinations which will involve: (i) development and trial testing the processes (test item development, moderation, security elements, etc.) and material for the operationalization of summative continuous assessment (CA) in the Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE) examinations; and (ii) introduction of student assessments at Form 2 through support to Malawi’s access to the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) global exercise. These interventions have potential for scale up through potential follow on projects on secondary education or other development partner initiatives guided by results of the learning experiments from this project.

DLI 2. Percent of CDSS teachers in 43 targeted clusters with good professional, subject and curriculum knowledge in science and

mathematics (SDR 9,002,000/US$12,510,000) 2.1.1. Framework that maps TTIs to the 43 cluster lead schools developed (SDR 360,000/US$500,000)

2.2. – 2.6. SDR 328,320/US$456,000 disbursed for every percentage point improvement on teacher professional, subject and curriculum knowledge up to a maximum of SDR 6.842 million/US$9.51 million corresponding to 20 percentage


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2.1.2. Baseline established based on selected national education standards (SDR 1,800,000/US$2,500,000)

points increase from established baseline (SDR 6,842,000/US$9,510,000)

Component 2 – Enhancing equitable access to secondary education (SDR 37,038,000/US$51,446,000)

29. This component will support the Government to institute a sustainable 10-year secondary education expansion plan grounded on equity and efficiency enhancing policy reforms; revival of school health and hygiene promotion along with school related gender-based violence (SRGBV) mitigation measures; and optimal use of existing school spaces in the selected 13 remote districts. This is in line with the Government’s strategy of increasing access to, and equity of secondary education. Funds to this component will be disbursed upon completion of the DLRs for the respective subcomponents below. Secondary teacher salaries and government subventions will constitute the eligible expenditure program items.

Sub-component 2.1: Strengthening system level strategic reforms for efficient expansion of secondary education (SDR 7,956,000/US$11,050,000)

30. The sub-component will support requisite system level strategic reforms to anchor the secondary education expansion drive. These are: (a) Development of a sustainable secondary education expansion plan with complementary regulatory frameworks that streamline and introduce: (i) public private partnerships (PPPs) for secondary education service delivery with special focus on low cost purely private entities to broaden the service delivery platforms; (ii) Open Distance Learning (ODL) for secondary education building on the nascent steps supported by the Common Wealth League (CWL) in partnership with Notes Master; with visioning focused on similar programs in countries like Ghana (see http//www.icampusgh.com) and counterparts, in addition to exploring the possibility to leverage already established regional centers by public universities supported through the ongoing Skills Development Project (SDP); (iii) A well-functioning OSS model; and (iv) A reformed equitable financing formula for public secondary schools. The envisaged plan will embrace the projected secondary education demand based on projected primary completion rates, key input requirements and corresponding verifiable access targets. (b) Development of a secondary education teacher development and management strategy (STDMS) as well as support to at least 800 unqualified in-service teachers with university qualifications in math and science subjects access the 9-months University Certificate of Education (UCE) program. The STDMS will (i) guide the system estimates of the secondary teacher supply requirements and wage bill allocations in the medium term; (ii) set the secondary teacher establishment and minimum secondary teacher load to enable optimal use of teachers; and (iii) institute efficient and need based recruitment and deployment modalities and teacher management strategies at the system and school levels. Lessons learning and integration with the ongoing teacher recruitment and deployment strategies along with the reformed remoteness allowances scheme at the primary subsector would be essential for harmonized standards across the school system. Development and piloting of policy reforms will trigger the disbursement of funds as summarized below.

DLI 3. Complementary streams for delivery of secondary education established (SDR 7,956,000/US$11,050,000)

3.1. Secondary education delivery streams (OSS, ODL, Double-Shift, Public Private Partnership schools) and financing formula/model reviewed, and clear policy direction provided to inform expansion plan (SDR 720,000/US$1,000,000)

3.2. Secondary education sustainable expansion plan finalized and endorsed for implementation (SDR 2,160,000/US$3,000,000)

3.3-3.6. SDR 169/US$235 disbursed for every additional student enrolled in the complementary stream of secondary education up to a maximum of SDR 5.08 million/US$7.05 million corresponding to 30,000 additional students in the pilot stream (SDR 5,076,000/US$7,050,000)


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Sub-component 2.2. Increasing equitable opportunities for secondary education access (SDR 7,848,000/ US$10,900,000)

31. Interventions to be supported include: (a) reforming the student selection process and linking it to an ICT enabled examinations system for equity and optimal use of existing schools; (b) reforming the targeting mechanism for government bursaries with linkages to the national Unified Beneficiary Registry (UBR) for enhanced pro-poor beneficiary targeting; (c) provision of scholarships to the best primary completers from primary schools (one girl, one boy and one child with disability) in the remotest 13 districts to enable them to attend secondary schools of choice; and (d) promotion of school based adolescent health & hygiene and gender-based violence (GBV) mitigation programs operationalized by the existing counsellor teachers and ‘mother group’ school structures. For adolescent programs, dissemination of existing information on menstrual management and hygiene developed by the School Health and Nutrition Directorate in partnership with UNICEF as well as the Teachers’ Code of Conduct will be prioritized together with training of the school teams to enable reach to students through clubs. Linkages with the school health service delivery system of the health ministry will be established to revitalize the provision of public goods like folic acid tablets to adolescent girls at school by the community health teams learning from ongoing programs in Kenya. For GBV, support will be extended towards the establishment of confidential school-based grievance redress mechanisms, production and dissemination of information materials through the same school clubs. Using existing Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with Civil Society, the MoEST is encouraged to draw on existing girls’ education coalitions and linkages with community leadership structures, for comprehensive focus on socio-cultural practices that perpetrate GBV or have potential to affect adoption of health promoting and hygienic practices amongst adolescent girls and boys. Disbursement of funds to this sub-component will be triggered by percentage of public secondary schools conforming to the class size range of 45-55 students in Form 1 in the selected 13 districts to enable optimal utilization of existing spaces and thereby reduction in wastage.

DLI 4. Percentage of public secondary schools conforming to class size range of 45-55 in Form 1 in the 13 selected districts

(SDR 7,848,000/US$10,900,000)

4.1.1. ICT enabled examination management system developed (SDR 360,000/US$500,000)

4.2-4.6. SDR 177,840/US$247,000 disbursed for every percentage point improvement on the proportion of schools meeting the prescribed class size in Form 1 up to a maximum of SDR 7.13 million/US$9.9 million corresponding to 90% of CDSS meeting this norm (SDR 7,128,000/US$9,900,000).

4.1.2. School selection digitized with flexibility in admissions at school level established (SDR 360,000/US$500,000)

Sub-component 2.3. Upgrading and expanding day schools (SDR 21,234,000/US$29,496,000)

32. This sub-component will aim to elevate at least 80 CDSS selected from the selected 13 remote districts to absorption capacity and learning environments like district day public schools, as well as expand at least 20 district day schools. The selection criteria for the beneficiary CDSSs includes: (a) needy and remote cluster-lead schools among the targeted 43 school clusters in Component 2.2; (b) community and school needs as defined by student to classroom ratio (SCR), number of primary feeder schools per CDSS, number of existing CDSSs within the catchment area, and potential to provide double-shift instruction based on school location. The expansion package will include: two furnished classroom blocks (four classrooms), a twin furnished multi-purpose science block installed with requisite systems to facilitate science instruction, two gender and disabled friendly six-stance ablution blocks (one of the stances in the girls’ block being a changing room); one block comprising a furnished library and equipped ICT laboratory; and solar power installations for schools that would not be connected to the main power grid. Flexibility


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will be applied to respond to school specific infrastructure needs. Disbursement of funds will be triggered by number of schools expanded or completed and well maintained based on the agreed minimum infrastructure package.

DLI 5. Number of schools expanded or upgraded based on agreed minimum infrastructure package (SDR 21,234,240/US$29,496,000)

5.1.1. 100% compliance to civil works procurement procedures that enhance value for money

(SDR 720,000/US$1,000,000).

5.2.1.100% contracts signed (SDR 3,654,720/ US$5,080,000)

5.3–5.4. SDR 105,235/US$ 146,160 disbursed for every school that is completed up to a maximum of SDR 10.5 million/US$ 14.62 million corresponding to 100% completion of civil works (SDR 10,523,520/ US$14,620,000).

5.5-5.6. SDR 19,440/ US$27,000 disbursed for every school that is well maintained up to a maximum of SDR 1.44 million/US$2 million corresponding to 75% of the CDSS meeting this norm (SDR 1,440,000/ US$2,000,000).

5.1.2. Environmental and social management plans (ESMPs) for each site cleared (SDR 1,296,000/US$ 1,800,000)

5.2.2. Civil works commenced at 90% of the sites (SDR 3,600,000/ US$5,000,000)

Component 3. Project Coordination, Learning, Monitoring and Evaluation (SDR 7,600,000/US$10,543,900)

33. Funding to this component will follow the traditional input-based project funding approach to facilitate project

operations. Key intervention areas in this respect include the following:

a) Capacity enhancement for implementation support. This will include recruitment of additional technical staff to support project implementation to ensure quality and timely project execution. This will be complemented by provision of logistical support to facilitate their functioning - (see Implementation Arrangements Annex). In addition, knowledge and skills updating (through short-term training programs and workshops) for government personnel in policy and management of secondary education systems and schools will be supported. This arises from the need to fill staff skill gaps due to evolution of government policies on education and enhanced performance on the job.

b) Strengthening data and information systems data collection, reporting, process monitoring and utilization processes at various end-user points for effective policy dialogue. This will include but not be limited to the following:

i) Development and application of policies and procedures for collecting data in the sector. This will define the roles and responsibilities for collecting, processing and disseminating education statistics as well as provision for resourcing responsible agencies/entities to execute the data function.

ii) Development/upgrade of ICT enabled systems to support data management in the education sector including strengthening EMIS with greater focus on progress made towards improving overall data quality, benchmarked on the global data quality assessment framework; and embracing annual school census data management and utilization.

iii) Development and digitization of school level data – extending the ongoing real-time data initiative supported by the GPE supported MESIP at the primary school level, to the secondary education subsector thereby reforming the whole school sector.

iv) Development of a sound continuous assessment (summative) data system drawing right from the school to the MANEB.

v) Bursary beneficiaries’ management data embracing reforms and linkages with the national Unified Beneficiary Registry (UBR).

vi) Secondary Teacher Management Information System.


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vii) Improved secondary school inspection and advisory services data system conducted by DIAS to monitor effective teaching practices as well as school leadership and management standards.

viii) Beneficiary satisfaction surveys using quantitative and qualitative methodologies. This will complement other citizen engagement approaches that will be used by the project.

c) Project monitoring and evaluation systems development, data collection and reporting. The project embraces opportunities for learning as highlighted in the listed hypothesis in section E of this PAD. The project will support the baseline, mid-line and end-term evaluations whose design is elaborated in the monitoring and evaluation plan of the Project Implementation Manual (PIM). Technical assistance will be provided to work in collaboration with the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) unit of the MoEST. Building of strong collaborative and learning networks with anchorage at the national higher education institutions will be supported for system wide capacity development and sustainability. The results will enable evidence-based scale-up of impactful interventions in the subsequent EQUALS projects.

d) Third-party verification activities for the respective DLIs. MoEST will recruit an independent firm external to the project that will conduct bi-annual evaluations of the progress made against respective DLIs from Year 2 onwards. The reports generated for the respective assessments will inform disbursements to the MoEST upon clearance by the World Bank.

Cross cutting results

34. Gender and Inclusion. The project will respond to gender and inclusion through several approaches including:

a) The adolescent school health, hygiene and GBV mitigation program. This will generate secondary education graduates from low income/remote households with transferrable knowledge and skills on good health & hygiene practices and how to mitigate gender-based violence.

b) Scholarship program (50 percent girls) targeting remote schools which will: (i) generate role-models for remote communities with potential to positively influence young girls; (ii) increase opportunities of beneficiary girls to qualify for university education.

c) Gender friendly sanitation facilities at school to enhance attendance and completion of secondary education. d) Promotion of system responsiveness to gender issues with respect to instructional materials’ development

and development of teacher deployment norms. e) Monitoring girls’ performance improvements in math and sciences at the MSCE as well as new enrollments

for girls and adolescent mothers returning to school. f) Provision of an assorted materials’ kit for students with hearing and sight impairments added to support

towards specialized training on the curriculum for teachers of students with different learning impairments in addition to comprehensive assessments of students with disabilities.

35. Integration of new technologies. The EQUALS Project will lay the foundation for adoption of technology at various

levels for nation-wide adoption over time as shown below:

a) Student level. Use of digitized interactive math and science learning material in the 247 schools with potential for scalability in all other schools should the system capacity allow; and access to low cost secondary education through ODL with digitized curriculum content.

b) School & Classroom level. Construction and equipping of at least 100 ICT laboratories to facilitate the transfer of new pedagogical technologies to in-service math and science teachers by the five teacher training


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institutions. Math and science teachers from the schools will have regular interactions with the cluster lead schools to learn project-based classroom approaches modelled on the MS4SSA initiative through the 80 cluster lead schools (reaching about 247 schools) located in the 13 target districts. Discussions with the Malawi Digital Foundations Project team are still ongoing to explore possibility of extending internet connectivity to EQUALS Project supported schools.

c) Teacher training level. Project-based learning technologies for math and science will be introduced to five teacher training institutions for wider adoption by other teacher training institutions.

d) At the system level. Innovative approaches will be introduced for enhanced efficiency with respect to examinations registration, student selection to secondary education, continuous assessment, school-based data collection and school inspection, as well as student bursaries. An evaluation on how such technologies enhance efficiency and outcomes is one of the learning pilots to be undertaken by the project.

36. Climate change co-benefits. These co-benefits are expected to come through several channels as set out in the

matrix below.

Component Activity Climate Actions

1. Improving the quality of science and mathematics instruction

Teacher orientation to the revised curriculum, appropriate textbooks per grade. and Curriculum revision & textbook development

Mitigation: Support delivery of curriculum content for raising awareness on climate change mitigation (greenhouse gas) in the curriculum, especially in the focus subjects of biology, physics, chemistry and agriculture.

Adaptation: Support delivery of curriculum content on climate change adaptation (education about growing climate change issues, changing patterns of rains and floods, emergency responses to cyclones, floods) in school curriculum, especially in the focus subjects of biology, physics, chemistry and agriculture.

Continuous Assessment (summative)

Mitigation: Assessments will be updated to reflect improvements in the delivery methods of the revised curriculum. Adaptation: Assessments will be updated to reflect improvements in delivery of this content.

Teacher Education and continuous professional development

Mitigation: Include content on climate change mitigation (greenhouse gas) in teacher training materials.

Adaptation: Integrate content on climate change adaptation in teacher training materials, and training of teachers to carry out evacuations at the onset of emergencies such as floods which are very common in Malawi.

2. Enhancing equitable access to secondary education

Need-based Infrastructure

Mitigation: Construction of new or rehabilitated classrooms, WASH blocks and regular maintenance of the education system infrastructure will integrate efficient architectural designs, energy efficient appliances and equipment, renewal energy sources, and building techniques

Adaptation: Adaptation measures, including revision of infrastructure planning guidelines as well as maintenance policy for water supply and sanitation facilities will be integrated in the construction of new or rehabilitated classrooms, WASH blocks. Development and circulation of hygiene manual will be supported.

Educational opportunities for the vulnerable girls

Mitigation: will benefit from revised school curriculum, teacher training materials. In addition, construction of new or rehabilitated classrooms (energy efficient), WASH blocks will support improved survival rate


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Component Activity Climate Actions

and boys Adaptation: secondary education students will benefit from integration of content on climate change adaptation (educating children about the growing climate change issues, changing patterns of rains and floods, emergency responses to those events, training teachers to carry out evacuations at the onset of emergencies such as cyclones, floods) in school curriculum, teacher training materials. In addition, construction of new or rehabilitated classrooms, WASH blocks will support improved survival rate

C. Project Beneficiaries

37. The project will directly benefit the following:

• About 500,000 secondary education students of whom 320,000 would be in CDSS. These will benefit from the supply of instructional materials; some of whom will further benefit from improved learning environments through the expanded and upgraded school facilities, scholarships, improved government bursary scheme, disabled-friendly learning materials, and safer school environments that promote good health practices with functional GBV grievance redressal mechanisms; and the complementary streams that will offer lower cost secondary education through the PPPs and ODL.

• At least 3,000 secondary school teachers of mathematics and sciences teaching in the 701 CDSSs that will benefit from the curriculum orientation, of whom at least 770 will also benefit from the in-service teacher support program implemented in the 43 school clusters.

• At least 700 head teachers of CDSSs and their deputies who will benefit from the school leadership and management program.

• At least 800 teacher trainees that will benefit from the University Certificate of Education (UCE); as well as teacher trainers at the five public teacher training institutions that will benefit from improved science and mathematics program improvements through regional networks with the MS4SSA initiative.

• Public officials at the MoEST and the education divisional officers who will benefit from various forms of capacity development programs that will be supported at various stages of project implementation.


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D. Theory of Change

E. Learning Agenda

38. The learning agenda for the EQUALS project is based on the following hypotheses about key areas central to improvements in student learning and equitable access to secondary education. It is important to note that the agenda has a futuristic dimension where by scalability is envisaged beyond the EQUALS Project either through a series of follow on projects or other government and development partner investments in the secondary education sub-sector.

a) Hypothesis 1. Continuous teacher support improves secondary teacher effectiveness and student assessment and learning in Malawi. Well-designed teacher support programs have the potential to enhance teacher content knowledge and instructional and assessment competencies thereby impacting student learning. A teacher support system will be developed with special focus on sciences and mathematics targeting 43 clusters in 13 remotest districts of Malawi, linking cluster lead schools with teacher training institutions. In addition, continuous assessment in the upper secondary level (Forms 3 and 4) will be piloted in the 13 districts. Key elements to be tested are: design of assessment instruments; making data accessible and usable by teachers; administrative burden placed on teachers; extent to which different subjects require different

COMPONENT INTERMEDIATE OUTCOMES OUTCOMES IMPACTS

Teacher orientation to the revised Sciences

and Mathematics curriculum

Improved capacity of Science and Maths

teachers for curriculum implementation

Provide teaching-learning materials and

equipment in CDSSs for Forms 1-4

Improved student textbook ratios in

Science and Maths at CDSSs

Train school heads in school management

and instructional leadership

Improved school management and

instructional leadership in CDSSs

Implement a teacher support program for

secondary Science and Maths teachers

Improved teacher effectiveness in

Science and Mathematics instruction

Pilot summative Continuous Assessment

(CA) system in two selected subjects

Foundational system for improved

assessment of secondary school learners

Policy and regulatory reforms targeting

expansion of secondary education

Improved environment for secondary

education expansion

Develop and implement a teacher dev't,

recruitment and management strategy

Increased qualified Maths and science

teachers recruited and deployed to CDSS

Reform the secondary schools selection

and placement processes

Improved efficiency in selection and

placement of Form 1 students

Reform and operationalize targeting

system for bursaries and scholarships

Improved progression rates for

disadvantaged students

Implement schools related gender based

violence & adolescent health and hygiene

promotion programs

Increased responsiveness to SGBV &

adolescent health and hygiene in

secondary schools

C2.3: Upgrading

of remote

secondary

schools

Improve infrastructure in public remote

secondary schools

Increased capacity for enrollment in

remote secondary schools

Improved effieciency in project

implementation

Improved quality of secondary education

data and information

Enhanced monitoring and evaluation for

secondary education programs

Component 1:

Improving

quality of

science and

math

instruction

Component 2:

Enhancing

equitable

access to

secondary

education in

target areas

Improved

quality of

instruction in

Science and

Mathematics

Component 3:

Project

Coordination,

M&E and

Learning

Increased

access to

secondary

education in

selected remote

areas

Enhanced

capacity for

delivery of

secondary

education

projects

C.3.2: Review and upgrade data collection, reporting and

process monitoring for secondary education

C.3.3: Develop and implement an M&E system for the project

activities/interventions

C2.1: System

strengthening for

equity and

efficiency

C2.2: Increasing

equitable

opportunities for

secondary

education

SUB COMPONENT AND INTERVENTIONS

C1.1: Minimum

standards for

quality

instruction of

Science and

Maths

C1.2: Piloting

student learning

enhancement

strategies

C.3.1: Capacity enhancement for project implementation

support

Improved

learning and

access to

secondary

education


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approaches; and use of technology to increase accuracy, reduce teacher load and ensure comparability of assessments across schools. Based on the evidence generated, a series of EQUALS Projects and development partner support could potentially scale up the teacher support program and the implementation of continuous assessment across the country in all subjects. The project will support qualitative process evaluation, creating blueprints for the roll out of these programs across the country. A rigorous impact evaluation design will provide insights into the causal impact of teacher support on learning outcomes. The evaluation will have an experimental design with the control group selected using propensity score matching as all public schools in the 43 clusters form the treatment group. Classroom lesson observation data for science and mathematics classes will be collected using a classroom observation tool developed by the Malawi national Directorate of Education Standards.

b) Hypothesis 2. Provision of merit-based scholarships to disadvantaged students from remote areas increases their propensity to enroll and complete secondary education, improves their learning outcomes and long term socio-economic outcomes. EQUALS Project will provide scholarships to the best primary completers from the remotest primary schools in target districts, enrolling them into conventional secondary schools (as opposed to CDSSs). The pilot will be rigorously evaluated using an experimental design where qualifying students will be randomly allocated into a control group, a treatment arm receiving a government scholarship covering all fees, and a second treatment arm receiving a holistic education support program in addition to fees. This will allow the Ministry to analyze the causal impact of the scholarship as well as the cost effectiveness of different implementation modalities.

c) Hypothesis 3. Public private partnerships can increase access to good quality education in remote, underserved communities. EQUALS Project will generate knowledge about public private partnerships and whether they can be more cost-effective and efficient than public schools, including open secondary schools. The Government of Malawi will establish an MOU with selected low-cost purely private schools in the 13 targeted districts, providing them with a capitation grant per student enrolled. MoEST will provide a strong regulatory framework to ensure an adequate standard of education service delivery. The pilot will be evaluated using rigorous impact evaluation.

d) Hypothesis 4. The use of ICT leads to improved efficiency and outcomes. EQUALS Project will introduce new technologies for improved data collection and usage, reduced costs to students through e-registration and payment for examinations, and effective teacher support through digitized training materials and linkages to training institutions. These processes will be assessed and documented to allow for lessons learned to be adopted during subsequent secondary education projects should these be supported in future.

e) Hypothesis 5. Convergence leads to stronger results (see Figure 4). As shown in the Venn-diagram, Chikwawa district for example, will host MESIP, EQUALS and IEYP interventions; while another set of three districts will host either EQUALS and IEYP or EQUALS and MESIP; and four districts will host MESIP and IEYP. This provides opportunity to assess the benefits of the convergence of these interventions in selected district

Figure 4. Mapping of Education Interventions by District.


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settings; or whether administrative and logistical demands of convergence outweigh the benefits.

F. Collaboration with ongoing initiatives and education development partners

39. The project will leverage and scale up initiatives by other development partners as follows: (i) expansion of the digitized inspection system supported by multiple partners,39 from two districts to 13 remote EQUALS supported districts; (ii) application of the updated secondary education classroom observation tool by the Directorate of Inspection and Advisory Services (DIAS) under the EU supported Improving Secondary Education Management (ISEM) project;40 (iii) EMIS strengthening initiatives with greater focus on progress made towards improving overall data quality benchmarked on the global data quality assessment framework; (iv) updated secondary education classroom designs being applied by EU and USAID supported secondary education projects; (v) existing management and instructional leadership training programs for head teachers offered at Malawi Institute of Management (MIM) and Staff Development Institute (SDI); (vi) dissemination and application of the developed strategy on school related gender based violence, adolescent health and hygiene promotion and complementary material developed by the School Health and Nutrition (SHN) team in partnership with UNICEF. Continued coordination will be ensured using existing platforms especially the Secondary Education Technical Working Group (STWG). Ongoing secondary education development partner supported projects are presented below:

Table 4: Development Partner Support to Secondary Education in Malawi

Development Partner Interventions Funding

European Union Expansion of 21 CDSSs EUR 36.5 million

USAID Construction of 160 to 180 new CDSSs U$90 million

SAVE the Children Expansion of 10 CDSSs in cities U$15 million

World Food Programme Construction of 5 CDSSs U$5 million

UNICEF Provision of bursaries, provision of WASH facilities, formation of Girls' Education Trust Fund

U$5 million

DFID through CAMFED Provision of bursaries

G. Lessons Learned and Reflected in the Project Design

40. The design has been informed by the following lessons:

a) There is high responsiveness to DLIs in the education sector based on lessons learned from the ongoing Skills Development Project (SDP) and the GPE supported Malawi Education Sector Improvement Project (MESIP) which are operating at the tertiary and primary education sub-sectors respectively. Adoption of an IPF with

39 Malawi has in place a digitized inspection system with a platform modeled on the National Education Standards for the school sector (primary and secondary). However, support towards the development of the tool is only for the primary education subsector and was informed by the pilot conducted in two districts of Lilongwe Rural West and Mzuzu City (2 zones each). EQUALS Project will thus support adjustment of the IT based platform to integrate secondary education inspection, capacity development for the regional DIAS through training and logistical support as well as provision of tablets to facilitate inspection processes. 40 MoEST currently conducts inspection on 8 of the 26 standards – learning in lessons (std 1), students’ outcomes in the curriculum (std 2), attainment across the school (std 3), students’ participation in education (std 4), well planned lessons (std 10), teaching for effective learning (std 11), accurate and constructive use of assessment (std 12), and school leadership (std 18).


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DLIs at the secondary education level will generate a comprehensive appreciation of the need to focus on results.

b) The Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) performance report41 on the last Malawi Secondary Education Project (2004-2009) rated the developmental outcome of the project unsatisfactory arising from the following: (i) weak supervision of the civil works, delayed procurement processing, high bid prices and delayed deliveries by contractors, late safeguards processes and poor contract management practices; (ii) leaving textbook purchases to the discretion of schools without appropriate teacher training in their use; (iii) non-implementable large-scale curriculum reforms in the classrooms which compound teaching- learning challenges; and (iv) lack of specific elements for improving learning conditions in schools where the majority of students are. Arising from the above, the lessons provided by the IEG have been taken into consideration in the preparation of EQUALS. This includes but is not limited to: (i) employment of staff with expertise for effective execution of civil works projects to complement the Education Infrastructure Management Unit (EIMU) team; (ii) centrally procuring textbooks with delivery to schools for more coordinated and cost efficient processes; (iii) training teachers on teaching-learning materials use as integral part of the curriculum orientation and teacher support programs including monitoring textbook use by teachers and students; (iv) focusing on the CDSSs which enroll majority of students; and (v) focusing on classroom instruction practices for heightened emphasis on student learning.

c) The Implementation Completion and Results Reports (ICRs) for the 2010-2015 Project to Improve Education Quality in Malawi (PIQEM)42 and the 2005-2010 Education Sector Support Project 143 further stress challenges with civil works and instructional material provision. Regional experience encapsulated in the ‘Facing Forward: Schooling for Learning in Africa’ publication provide insights on the same issues including providing lessons which have been adopted by project.44 The developed EQUALS disbursement linked indicators (DLI) incentivize compliance with procedures and actions that promote value for money as well as timely execution of the projected development results; buttressed by capacity enhancement strategies to ensure timely supervision.

d) Experience in the use of Project Preparation Funds/Advances (PPF/A) for Malawi has been mixed. Lessons learned from the SDP indicate slow absorption of the funds that had been provided under PPA including slow execution. This is compounded by weak financial management practices in the use of such funds in other projects. The PPA45 supported activities for the EQUALS project complement the DLIs to be achieved to ensure their completion as scheduled. This includes but not limited to recruitment of the Project Support Team (PST) and technical assistance to support the MoEST develop the policy reforms to underpin the comprehensive expansion plan for secondary education, preparatory work for civil works and textbook procurements, training programs and materials development for teacher training interventions.

e) Separation of implementation and coordination roles by the MoEST is a challenge especially with the ongoing MESIP. In a bid to empower the secondary education team, project preparation was led by the Secondary and Distance Education Directorate (SDED) which enabled institution of a technical project preparation and implementation team right from the design process; leading to clear separation of the roles of the SDED from

41 Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) (2010); Project Performance Evaluation Report for Malawi Secondary Education Project - Report 5288. Sector Evaluation Division. IEG. The World Bank. 42 World Bank (2015); Implementation Completion and Results Report (ICR) for the Project to Improve Education Quality in Malawi (PIEQM). 43 World Bank (2011); Implementation Completion and Results Report (ICR) for the Malawi Education Sector Support Project 1 (ESSP 1). 44 Bashir S., Lockheed M., Ninan E., Tan J.P. (2018). 45 Malawi Government accessed a PPA of US$2,461,283 through a Letter Agreement No. V2350-MW signed on October 29, 2018 with the International Development Association.


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the Directorate of Education Planning (DEP). The planned capacity development for the two directorates is not only guided by their capacity needs but also consistent with their respective mandates.

f) Citizen engagement. Lessons from elsewhere as well as the ongoing MESIP supported by GPE indicate that engagement of citizens through community awareness meetings about the project and establishment of social media platforms for various beneficiary groups and duty bearers, eases project supervision. These models will be continued in the EQUALS Project buttressed with beneficiary satisfaction surveys every two years.

III. IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS

A. Institutional and Implementation Arrangements

41. The project will be implemented by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) under the leadership of the Directorate of Secondary and Distance Education (DSDE) and the six (6) affiliate divisional offices, along with several education directorates and organs by their statutory mandates in the delivery of education services (see Annex 1 for details). There are legal covenants for filling established Ministry positions which will be monitored during implementation.

42. Additional personnel in form of Project Support Team (PST) will be recruited by the project to complement existing staff as shown in Annex 1. The decision was based on the capacity assessment conducted during project preparation coupled with experience from ongoing projects in the education sector. For capacity development and sustained ownership of project interventions, the respective recruited personnel will report to the heads of directorates or organs whose function they will be complementing. The effectiveness of this model will be assessed at Mid-Term Review (MTR) for appropriate improvements.

43. There are existing committees that will take charge of implementation oversight and decision making consistent with the established Sector Wide Approach (SWAp) for the education sector. Below are highlights of the relevant committees and their responsibilities towards the EQUALS Project.

(a) The Malawi Education Sector Investment Plan (ESIP) Steering Committee will provide overall strategic guidance, including ensuring that all project interventions are fully aligned to the education sector policies and strategic plan. The ESIP Steering Committee shall be chaired by the Principal Secretary of the Education Sector (SEST) and comprises directors/heads of departments including all heads of the implementing entities mentioned above in addition to education development partners and heads of teacher training institutions.

(b) The Secondary Education Technical Working Group (STWG) chaired by the Director Secondary Education comprises key actors on secondary education in Malawi. These include government technical personnel from agencies that support delivery of secondary education, development partners engaged on secondary education, private sector players and civil society. The STWG convenes on a quarterly basis and at every sitting, implementation progress reports on EQUALS will be presented for wider project progress monitoring in addition to decision making powers especially on technical aspects of secondary education. The STWG also provides a streamlined platform where regular updates on collaborative initiatives supported by the different development partners are shared, opportunity for partnerships and synergies.

(c) The Education Division Management Committees (EDMCs). Secondary education service delivery is still centralized. The MoEST through the DSDE delegated secondary education service delivery to six education divisions. The staffing structure for the six divisional offices mirrors that of the MoEST. Divisional staff


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directly report to heads of departments or units in charge of the respective delegated functions, while administratively managed by the Education Division Managers (EDMs) who directly report to the Director of Secondary and Distance Education. The EDMCs convene monthly chaired by EDMs and will be responsible for planning, management, implementation leadership and quality assurance of the school cluster operations, consistent with their day to day responsibilities. Emerging issues at the divisional level will be articulated at the national level through the EQUALS Project Implementation Committee (EPIC) elaborated below.

(d) School Management Committees (SMCs). At the school level, implementation will be led by the head teachers supported by the Heads of the math and science departments. The SMCs will be charged with school level decision making with support from relevant school level committees. Key features of the Malawi secondary schools are the teacher counsellors and mentors who will be involved in the delivery of the adolescent health and hygiene information to students as well as liaising with the health service delivery system to enable access to iron tablets at agreed intervals. In collaboration with civil society, they will also be involved in the implementation of gender-based violence interventions and functioning of the grievances redressal mechanism which would bring together both the school and community structures especially the ‘mother group’.

(e) EQUALS Project Implementation Committee (EPIC). For effective project implementation and

coordination, each of the implementing entities above will assign a ‘focal point officer’ from among their staff to constitute the EPIC, whose foundation has been laid during project preparation. This will be formally established by Project Effectiveness, with clear implementation roles with respect to the project. Beyond the regular implementation engagements, formal meetings of the EPIC will convene monthly (at least in the first year of project implementation) to review project implementation progress including identification and decision making on emerging implementation challenges of a technical nature; or timely identification of emerging policy issues for articulation to the ESIP or STWG committees for appropriate policy guidance.

B. Results Monitoring and Evaluation Arrangements

44. Monitoring of project results will be integrated in the existing monitoring and evaluation systems of the MoEST. The Monitoring and Evaluation Unit under the oversight of the Directorate of Education Planning (DEP) will have the overall responsibility of monitoring and evaluating the project interventions. The Unit will be guided by the EQUALS project Results Framework (RF) which articulates the PDO level and intermediate outcome indicators that have been agreed upon by Government and the World Bank. The RF also has indicator targets that have been agreed upon by the Government and the World Bank as reasonable development milestones to be pursued during the project implementation period. The agreed indicator baselines and progress reporting against the agreed indicator targets in the RF will be furnished by various administrative data sources, with oversight and guidance of the M&E Unit, complemented by the Education Management Information System (EMIS) data managed by the EMIS Unit. The EMIS and M&E Units are represented in the EPIC to ensure that the units not only monitor the project interventions but also integrate project lessons to the wider monitoring and evaluation of MoEST programs. The representation of the two units at the EDM offices will also ensure effective reporting on project activities undertaken in the divisions and schools.

45. Learning from the ongoing World Bank supported projects, the timeliness in collection and processing of administrative data (Annual Schools Census) and other routine data to support project operations on a regular basis


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remains a significant challenge. This is largely due to low resourcing of the EMIS and M&E Units coupled with limited demand and use of school level data in departmental operations, thereby affecting data quality and reliability. Efforts to strengthen EMIS have been initiated with support from the ongoing GPE supported MESIP with special focus on primary education. The EQUALS project will extend similar support towards the improvement of the secondary education – EMIS subsystem which efforts have been initiated through the review of the EMIS questionnaire to embrace elements that will be critical to effective monitoring of progress made in key areas of secondary education including teacher deployment by subjects taught. The M&E capacity development plan integrated in the draft Project Implementation Manual (PIM) will guide focused attention to thematic areas where skill gaps have been identified.

46. A set of Disbursement Linked Indicators (DLIs) with corresponding annual Disbursement Linked Results (DLRs) have been agreed. These draw from the PDO and intermediate results level to ensure focused attention to developmental objectives of the project at all stages of project implementation. Sources of progress monitoring data have been indicated in the DLI protocol along with documentation needed to inform completion status of the respective DLRs. Completion of annual DLRs for the respective DLIs will be validated by an independent Third-Party Verification (TPV) entity or firm, which will be competitively selected through established procurement procedures; except for Year 1 results which will be validated by the World Bank. At least two TPV processes will be conducted annually to safeguard against potential cash-flow challenges that emerge with delayed disbursements during project implementation.

47. The project will support evaluations whose results will inform scale up of impactful interventions in the subsequent series of EQUALS projects. To the extent possible, higher education institution/universities (not individuals) as well as the Center for Education Research and Training (CERT) will be granted opportunities to competitively bid for project evaluations. This is justified by several factors including domestic capacity development; extension of research and data collection opportunities to students as an integral part of their learning process for increased education data use and promotion of education research; sustainability of policy dialogue on secondary education service delivery with leadership from higher education institutions; and bridging the operational gap between higher education institutions, established education research organs and management at the MoEST.

48. In addition to project-based data, the EQUALS project will use and contribute to improvements of the following data systems that are central to effective functioning of the secondary education sub-sector.

(a) Secondary Annual Schools Census including digitization and linkage to the web-based EMIS under development;

(b) Continuous Assessment (summative) data at the MANEB to guide implementation of CA; (c) Need based beneficiary identification system for the secondary education bursaries which will include

digitization of bursaries data at the MoEST and tracking of beneficiaries; (d) Textbook management system which will track deliveries for enhanced accountability in the supply chain

- from the supplier to schools; (e) Secondary education classroom instructional practices data from the DIAS that will track progress made

on the PDO indicator on improvements to instructional practices and whose success will inform scale up of teacher support program;

(f) School inspection data; (g) Teacher Management Information System (TMIS) data through digitization of staff returns including the

teacher tracking system. The system will be a tool for effective planning for teacher supply needs and


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effective teacher deployment; (h) Civil works monitoring data with application of the tablet reporting platform for civil works monitoring

being installed at the EIMU with support from the MESIP. This is expected to consolidate information for all civil works undertaken by the MOEST; and

(i) An integrated data management ecosystem for education in Malawi.

C. Sustainability

49. The design of the EQUALS project has in-built mechanisms that will enhance ownership and increase the likelihood of mainstreaming operations in secondary education service delivery system. This includes the following: (a) implementation of project supported interventions using the established institutional framework for secondary education service delivery; (b) provision of core inputs to quality teaching-learning processes which provides the requisite foundation for sustainable implementation of the revised secondary education curriculum; (c) development of a comprehensive secondary education expansion plan which provides opportunity for government to adopt sustainable strategic options informed by evidence from the pilots; (e) skills transfer through the recruited technical expertise and technical assistance to complement existing staff in the implementation of planned interventions; (f) system reforms and development of regulatory frameworks that will be supported are all aimed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of education service delivery in the medium and long-term frameworks; and (g) a teacher support program with anchorage to teacher training institutions that would enable integration of improvements in the pre-service teacher programs positively impacting the quality of teacher trainees over time.

50. Sustaining the quantities or quality of provided inputs is always a challenge in Africa. With the removal of the

Textbook Revolving Fund (TRF) for secondary schools which was contributed to by students, it is not clear whether annual government allocations to instructional material will be sufficient to cater for replenishment of textbook stocks. However, the DLI requirement to have a student to textbook ratio of 1.1 in 90 percent of CDSSs in the sixth year is all aimed to ensure that Government makes ample arrangements to replenish textbook stocks to enable student learning. Textbook utilization and maintenance is one of the modules to be covered in the head teacher management and leadership program; while development of digitized material is an innovative approach expected to lower textbook costs overtime while exposing learners to the use of technology thereby narrowing the digital divide. Promotion of simulated laboratory experiments as one of the innovations to be integrated in the teacher support program eliminates regular purchase of laboratory reagents by schools whose cost is oft-cited as a constraint to science instruction.

IV. PROJECT APPRAISAL SUMMARY

A. Technical Analysis

51. Technical. The technical design has been informed by global knowledge on strategic interventions that enhance equity and quality of secondary education. The 2018 WDR46 provides insights on the three dimensions of the learning crisis, which are real in the Malawi education system – low learning outcomes, schools are failing most learners, and systems are failing schools. The response through the EQUALS project is in line with the three policy areas recommended. The interventions attempt to support the system establish the building blocks for an effective assessment system for learning; integrate learning pilots to act on evidence before taking key interventions to scale;

46 2018 World Development Report


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and strengthen the secondary education service delivery organs and structures to enable the whole system through to the school level work for student learning. In addition, the planned interventions correspond to the identified evidence-based contributors to learning outcomes in the Africa region.47 These were: teacher content and pedagogical knowledge provided through initial teacher education and continuing professional development programs, classroom practices, availability of learning materials and conducive learning environments.

52. The design benefitted from the comprehensive situational analysis of secondary education in Malawi summarized

in the background technical notes on secondary education. The technical design was enriched by intensive and interactive consultations with key stakeholders including technical departments, regional offices, school head teachers, students, teacher educators and education development partners. This has generated high national ownership at all levels. Lessons learned from ongoing education projects have provided useful insights on areas that need improvement for desired quality and timely project implementation.

53. The project, has reasonable inbuilt ambition with sensitivity to contextual challenges. The foundation laid by the

EQUALS project enables the World Bank to contribute to Malawi’s trajectory towards the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals on education. The interventions aim to work at both the system and school level starting with the basic elements of quality and equitable learning, integrating learning to inform improvements. At the same time, focusing on all the subjects in the curriculum menu for improvements in the classroom instructional practices, or all low performing clusters across the country for the teacher support program, or even all subjects for CA roll-out at the outset would not be feasible considering the capacity challenges at hand.

54. The DLIs draw from project intermediate indicators which ensures sustained focus on results, with incentives

anchored to impactful results areas at various levels. In addition, aspects that pose challenges to sustainability and implementation progress have been integrated in the project design.

B. Economic and Financial Analysis

55. Both international experience and Malawi’s national statistics indicate strong benefits associated with investing in secondary education since the country is projected to achieve universal primary education. While there is a need to leverage private delivery modalities, cross country data also demonstrates a positive and significant relationship between government spending and learning outcomes for lower income countries. Government has assumed an important role in promoting skills, science and technology and identified them as national priorities. Malawi’s public secondary education can further expand to meet the demands of the primary school graduates and the EQUALS Project renders the requisite support. Finally, the cost benefit analysis shows an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 13.9 percent with sensitivity test results ranging between 11.2 percent to 13.8 percent, suggesting the expected benefits (i.e. the economic returns to the beneficiaries supported by the project), largely outweigh the project cost, an indication that the development impact of the project is significant. The World Bank’s value addition is through the support to improved learning of the secondary education sub-system that enrolls most secondary education students - CDSSs; equity enhancing demand and supply based approaches specifically targeted at the poor using remoteness as a proxy; gender responsiveness of the interventions to support girls’ completion of schooling; as well as efficiency enhancing reforms at the system and school levels with application of innovative technologies.

47 Bashir S., Lockheed M., Ninan E., Tan J.P. (2018)


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C. Fiduciary

56. Financial Management: The MoEST will be the implementing agency on behalf of the Government of Malawi and financial management (FM) will be centralized at this ministry. A financial management assessment of MoEST was done to determine whether the entity will ensure that: (a) the funds are used for the purposes intended in an efficient and economical manner, and the entities are capable of correctly and completely recording all transactions and balances related to the project; (b) the project’s financial reports will be prepared in an accurate, reliable and timely manner; (c) the assets acquired under the project will be safely guarded; and (d) the project will be subjected to auditing arrangements acceptable to the World Bank. The assessment complied with the (1) Bank Directive: Financial Management Manual for World Bank Investment Project Financing Operations (Catalogue number OPCS5.05-DIR.01) Issued (Retrofitted): February 4, 2015 and effective from March 1, 2010 and (2) Bank Guidance: Reference Material-Financial Management in World Bank Investment Project Financing Operations (Catalogue Number OPCS5.05-Guid.02) Issues and effective February 24, 2015.

57. The FM arrangements of the MoEST have been assessed as moderately unsatisfactory (MU) and the risk is

Substantial. The MoEST has experience with World Bank supported projects. The budgeting arrangements are in place and follow the Integrated Financial Management System (IFMIS) of Government. However, compliance to the inbuilt IFMIS controls is weak across the Government departments in Malawi leading to ineffectual accounting and reporting systems. The weak IFMIS control environment was the leading cause of the 2013 cash-gate corruption scandal in Malawi. Sanctions for noncompliance are almost nonexistent. Other contributory factors to the MU rating include: (i) incidences of ineligible expenses in previous projects; (ii) weak or absence of corruption and fraud deterrence mechanisms; and (iii) lack of dedicated FM staff working on project accounting and reporting functions resulting in delays in reporting which affects timeliness of drawdowns on credits and grants.

58. As mitigation measures, and considering the lessons learned from the ongoing education projects (SDP and MESIP),

the following recommendations have been made: (i) The project will have a Project Support Team (PST) team which will include dedicated qualified FM staff responsible for the accounting and reporting for the project, who will be trained in FM and disbursement for World Bank funded projects; (ii) the project will acquire and install an accounting software to be used for transaction processing and reporting; (iii) a US Dollar Designated Account (DA) and Kwacha accounts will be opened at the central bank or in a commercial bank, acceptable to the World Bank; (iv) the project will submit unaudited interim financial reports 45 days after the end of each quarter, and the IFRs will be reviewed and validated by the World Bank FM team. Subsequent disbursement to the DA will be subject to the acceptable documentation of prior advances; (v) FM will conduct FM supervision for the project at least twice a year for implementation support, including quarterly desk reviews of IFRs and other FM issues; (vi) the Central Internal Audit Unit (CIAU) will review the project transactions at least twice a year. The Government committed to the strengthening of the audit committee of MOEST; (vii) the project’s financial statements will be externally audited by National Audit Office or private auditors, on terms of reference (ToRs) acceptable to the World Bank; (viii) the Anti-Corruption and Governance arrangements will include: (a) an accountability mechanism covering public reporting and use of community volunteers; (b) the use of civil society organizations in social audits and disclosure of project information; and (c) the use of whistle blowers to further combat corruption and other forms of fraudulent activities. There are already several organizations including World Bank funded activities that use anonymous reward mechanisms managed by Deloitte.

59. The selected Eligible Expenditure Programs (EEPs) consisting of secondary school salaries and subventions are separately identifiable in the budget estimates and in IFMIS by specific codes under Vote 250 of the MoEST. In FY17/18, the Government spent 16.9 billion MK (US$23.1 million) on secondary teacher salaries, and 4.9 billion MK


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(US$6.7 million) on subventions to secondary schools, which amounts are significantly above the planned annual project disbursements. The controls around processing of salaries have been strengthened after payroll audit financed under the World Bank administered Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF). The 2018 Public Expenditure and Financial Assessment (PEFA) found payroll controls to be generally sound except for lack of interface between the human resource management information system (HRMIS) and IFMIS. As additional payroll assurance, the National Audit Office will be required to audit secondary school payroll and subventions on an annual basis throughout the period of the project. Subventions to schools are now directly paid to school accounts which makes them easy to track. The audit of the project will be done by the country's Supreme Audit Institution (SAI) and the audit ToRs will require the audit EEPs and express a separate opinion on their validity and reassembles will have to be cleared by the World Bank. In addition to the annual audits, both secondary school salaries and subventions will be reported in quarterly unaudited interim financial reports. Important to note is that the Project Implementation Manual (PIM) includes the above risk mitigating measures and the IFR template agreed with the World Bank.

60. Procurement. Procurement will be carried out in accordance with the requirements in the Procurement Regulations for Borrowers under IPF: Goods, Works, Non-Consulting Services and Consulting Services dated July 1, 2016, Revised November 2017 and August 2018; “Guidelines on Preventing and Combating Fraud and Corruption in Projects Financed by IBRD Loans and IDA Credits and Grants (revised as of July 1, 2016)”; and provisions stipulated in the Financing Agreement. The MoEST has developed a Procurement Plan for the first 18 months to provide the basis for procurement/selection methods. The Procurement Plan shall be updated at least annually or as required to reflect the actual project implementation needs and every update shall require clearance from the World Bank before implementation.

61. A Project Procurement Strategy for Development (PPSD) has been agreed upon, setting out the market approaches

and selection methods to be followed by the Borrower during project implementation in the procurement of goods, works, non-consulting and consulting services financed by the project. In sum, the PPSD indicates that there will be contracts for various types of goods including furniture, vehicles, motor cycles, stationery and ICT equipment and accessories such as computers and tablets. As for consultancy services, the project is expected to sign over fifteen contracts for TAs or consultants of various expertise in all the three components over the entire project period. Capacity gaps in skills and personnel were identified and mitigation measures have been integrated in the project design. The market research findings indicate that the market in the country is competitive enough for the kind of goods to be procured by the project. For books however, the PPSD envisages challenges and lays out proposals on that will be adopted to address past challenges largely associated with the existing book cartels. Competitive market approaches will also be used to ensure value for money. The market for consultants is competitive for individual consultants and firms at local and international levels. The PPSD shall be updated as required to reflect the actual project implementation needs and improvements in institutional capacity.

62. A procurement risk assessment of the capacity of the MoEST to implement procurement activities under the project

was carried out. The assessment included a review of the organizational structure, functions, staff skills and experience, and adequacy for implementation of the project. The assessment revealed a number of issues, including: (a) procurement staff lacking experience in undertaking procurement using the New Procurement Framework; (b) inefficiencies in processing procurement activities in terms of preparation of Terms of References (ToRs), specifications, bidding documents, request for proposals, and bids/proposals evaluations, due to delays from user/technical departments; (c) weak procurement filing and record management system, including lack of staff dedicated to procurement records management; (d) weak contract management leading to delays in completion of contracts more especially delivery of textbooks; and (e) potential collusion amongst textbook publishers. The overall


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project procurement risk rating is assessed as High. The risks identified, and the mitigation measures are detailed in the PPSD, which has also been summarized in Annex 1.

63. The project will use Systematic Tracking of Exchanges in Procurement (STEP), a planning and tracking system, which

will provide data on procurement activities, establish benchmarks, monitor delays and measure procurement performance. The implementing entities shall be oriented and trained by the World Bank team on how to use STEP.

64. Project Implementation Manual (PIM). The MoEST has in place a draft PIM setting out implementation,

organizational, administrative, and monitoring and evaluation (including performance indicators and related targets) to guide project implementation. The draft PIM, which will be finalized by March 30, 2019 shall be reviewed and cleared by the World Bank prior to its adoption. The PIM provides step by step guidelines, tools, instruments and systems for agencies responsible and involved in carrying out the implementation of the project components. The annual costed work plans which guide the project costing also exist and these complement the PIM. Specifically, the manual provides:

• A description of the project components and subcomponents;

• A detailed implementation schedule and timeline for achieving intermediate results and outcomes;

• Roles and responsibilities of the implementing agencies;

• Fiduciary responsibilities;

• Social and Environmental Safeguards responsibilities (including gender, youth and vulnerable groups);

• A detailed road map and framework for implementation based-results;

• Steps and tools for establishing a monitoring and evaluation system; and

• Any other specific reporting requirements required by the Bank.

D. Environmental and Social Safeguards

65. A framework approach to safeguards has been adopted. Potential social and environmental risks and impacts and

subsequent mitigation and management measures have been outlined in the EQUALS Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF). This was prepared, consulted upon and publicly disclosed at the national and the Info-Shop levels on October 2, 2018. The project has been assigned an Environmental Category B. While by its nature and scope it is likely to generate adverse environmental and social risks and impacts, these are predicted to be minimal and easy to mitigate. Construction related social, health and safety impacts associated with labor influx should the contractors employ workers outside the project areas have been addressed in the disclosed ESMF. Once specific sites are identified based on the criteria laid out above, subproject Environment and Social Management Plans (ESMPs) will be prepared and attached to respective site bidding documents.

66. MoEST will be supported by additional personnel including a safeguards specialist who will oversee safeguards

instruments preparation and implementation. MoEST has prior experience in safeguards management from two preceding projects under implementation (MESIP and SDP) and has also committed to designate an Environmental and Social Development specialist to manage the preparation and implementation of environmental and social safeguards in this project.

67. World Bank’s Grievances Redress System. Communities and individuals adversely affected by a World Bank (WB)

supported project may submit complaints to existing project-level grievance redress mechanisms or the WB’s Grievance Redress Service (GRS). The GRS ensures that complaints received are promptly reviewed to address


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project-related concerns. Project affected communities and individuals may submit their complaints to the WB’s independent Inspection Panel which determines whether harm occurred, or could occur, because of non-compliance to policies and procedures. Complaints may be submitted at any time after concerns have been brought directly to the World Bank's attention, and Bank Management has been given an opportunity to respond. For information on how to submit complaints to the World Bank’s corporate Grievance Redress Service (GRS), please visit http://www.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/products-and-services/grievance-redress-service. For information on how to submit complaints to the World Bank Inspection Panel, please visit www.inspectionpanel.org.

V. KEY RISKS

68. The Overall Risk Rating for the EQUALS Project is ‘Substantial’ as summarized in Table 5, along with the narrative in the sections below.

69. Political and governance risks (substantial). With the presidential and parliamentary elections slated for May 2019, implementation take-off is within the campaign period. There is a likelihood of parliamentarians pushing for the following: (a) to broaden the project scope to include other subjects; and (b) inclusion of teacher houses and boarding facilities for girls in the school expansion package for CDSSs. The dialogue around equity-enhancing secondary education financing reforms could be difficult; as well as rationalization of teacher deployments in public schools. As a mitigation measure, technical notes have been prepared analyzing the status of service delivery and identifying areas where improvements are needed for enhanced equity and quality of secondary education. Dissemination of these notes will continue beyond the project preparation period for wider appreciation of the strategic areas that need urgent attention.

Table 5: Risk Ratings Summary

70. Macro-economic risks (substantial). Although Malawi’s macro-economic situation has exhibited relative stability in recent years (predictable exchange rate, tamed inflation etc.), the real GDP growth has been erratic and significantly affected by the climatic conditions which affect agricultural productivity. The prolonged energy crisis continues to dampen investor confidence affecting key economic sectors. The resultant rising inflation, exchange rate instability and continued currency depreciation greatly weaken economic activity including ever rising prices of key inputs with special focus on civil works. Expeditious procurement processing has been enabled through the PPA to avoid extended periods of such processes which weakens bidders’ confidence.

Risk Category Rating

Political and Governance Substantial

Macroeconomic Substantial

Sector strategies and Policies Moderate

Technical design of Project or Program Substantial

Institutional capacity for implementation and sustainability High

Fiduciary Substantial

Environmental and social Substantial

Stakeholders Moderate

Others Overall Risk Rating Substantial

http://www.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/products-and-services/grievance-redress-service

http://www.inspectionpanel.org/


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71. Fiduciary risks (substantial). Arising from weaknesses in the public financial management environment, the

education sector has in place a Common Financing Mechanism (CFM). This embraces a competitively and jointly (Education Partners and Government) recruited fiduciary oversight agency to enhance MoEST’s capacity to manage primary education development funds in compliance with established procedures. Additional mitigation measures to be instituted include: (a) recruitment of financial and procurement specialists to complement existing staff but reporting directly to the heads of the respective fiduciary departments for capacity development; (b) integration of key procurement processes in the DLIs schedule for enhanced value-for-money; (c) involvement of the World Bank fiduciary team in pre-bid meetings for comprehensive bidder awareness; and (d) adoption of the electronic bills of quantities to allow automatic computation of costs based on supplied unit rates by the bidders thereby reducing computational errors and bid-evaluation time. Where qualifying information is required, the electronic bid document allows for a precoded list of options that bidders select from. It is important to note that no funds will be going to any school.

72. Sector strategies and policies (moderate). The sector strategies and policies that posed a risk to the design include: (a) Low staffing levels for school teachers and staff at the MoEST; and (b) Secondary education could be decentralized during project implementation, which may introduce an additional decision-making layer and duty bearers in the project implementation structure. It is important to note that key positions had been filled by appraisal including Director for Education Planning along with support Unit of M&E and EMIS, Director for Teacher Education and Deputy Director SDED. Staffing in the accounts and procurement departments had also been significantly increased with the presence of substantive Heads of Units. However, arising from the high staff turnovers and transfers, dated covenants on the presence of key staff will be maintained throughout the project implementation period to avoid slippages on staffing. Should secondary education be decentralized during project implementation, awareness raising activities about this reform will be supported by the project specially targeting the 13 remote districts.

73. Technical design of the project (substantial). The secondary education system is faced with many challenges as

described above. The EQUALS Project has inbuilt piloting with gradual scaling up of interventions through either follow on EQUALS Projects or other support channeled through Government to enable sustained focus on the overall medium-term objective of ensuring increased access and student learning.

74. Institutional capacity and sustainability (high). Implementation of interventions under the respective results will

span over institutional levels including national/system level and affiliated regional offices and/or agencies, teacher training institutions as well as school levels. Although such an implementation framework would ease project implementation, understaffing at various levels together with conflicting mandates of some line agencies pose high risks. The capacity assessment exercise enabled consensus on the type of support to be provided by the project and reporting lines to ensure mainstreamed operations. Adherence to statutory mandates in the assignment of roles and responsibilities for officials has been ensured during the project preparation cycle and will be monitored throughout the project implementation period.

75. Environment and social (substantial). The project will institute necessary safeguards policies and complementary

capacity development efforts for all duty bearers including dedicated safeguards officers to ensure compliance to policies and operational frameworks. Incidence of gender-based violence is high. The project, using school platforms as entry points will support establishment of confidential grievances redressal mechanisms for school related gender-based violence using existing school personnel and community policing systems where appropriate.


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76. Stakeholders (moderate). Initial discussions with key stakeholders revealed the intense desire and push for

construction of boarding facilities for students especially girls, as well as teachers’ houses. Added to this is the likely demotivation of teachers of non-science and mathematics subjects, along with low staffing levels of key departments which may affect timely provision of identified inputs like infrastructure expansion and instructional materials. Wider engagement with stakeholders at the subnational levels will be done to enable broader appreciation of the importance of science and mathematics to national development. The cost implications of

providing boarding facilities in resource constrained environments were also shared.

.


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VI. RESULTS FRAMEWORK AND MONITORING

Results Framework COUNTRY: Malawi

Equity with Quality and Learning at Secondary (EQUALS)

Project Development Objectives(s)

The Project Development Objective (PDO) is to improve quality of science and mathematics instruction in Community Day Secondary Schools (CDSSs) and increase access to secondary education in selected remote areas.

Project Development Objective Indicators

RESULT_FRAME_T BL_ PD O

Indicator Name DLI Baseline Intermediate Targets End Target

1 2 3 4 5

Improve the quality of mathematics and science instruction

Percent of CDSS meeting selected minimum standards for quality science and mathematics instruction (Text)

The baseline will be furnished by June 2019

Not yet due for measurement

10 percent increase from baseline





Learning achievement in standardised assessment in science and math (Text)

Baseline will be available in 2021 when Malawi will participate in the first round of PISA

To be determined by the values of the next round of assessments

Increase access to secondary education in selected remote districts

Primary to secondary transition rate in remote schools from 13 selected districts (Percentage)

32.00 0.00 33.60 35.20 41.60 44.80 48.00


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RESULT_FRAME_T BL_ PD O


1 2 3 4 5

Female Students (Number)

60,000.00 90,000.00

PDO Table SPACE

Intermediate Results Indicators by Components

RESULT_FRAME_T BL_ IO


1 2 3 4 5

C1. Improving quality of science and mathematics instruction

Percent of CDSSs with student textbook ratio of 1:1 for maths and science (Percentage)

DLI 1 0.00 0.00 25.00 40.00 60.00 75.00 90.00

Number of interactive Science and Mathematics modules available for use by students (Text)

No

Number of modules for each subject defined; TA to support development of modules procured

100% of the prescribed Mathematics modules for Form 1 developed and or adopted

100% of the prescribed Mathematics modules for Form 2 and 100% of modules in a selected science subject for Form 1 developed and or adopted

100% of the prescribed Mathematics modules for Form 3 and 100% of modules in the selected science subject for Form 2 developed and or adopted

100% of the prescribed Mathematics modules for Form 4 and 100% of modules in the selected science subject for Form 3 developed and or adopted

100% of modules in the selected science subject for Form 4 developed and or adopted

% of CDSSs with students using interactive workbooks in math and science (Percentage)

0.00 0.00 0.00 75.00 75.00 75.00 75.00

Percent of CDSS meeting prioritized leadership and management standards (Text)

Baseline to be established by June 2019

Leadership training material reviewed and updated

50% of CDSSs have head teachers and deputy head teachers trained on

100% of CDSSs have head teachers and deputy head teachers trained on

25% increase from baseline in the share of CDSSs meet prioritized leadership

40% increase from baseline in the share of CDSSs meet prioritized leadership

50% increase from baseline in the share of CDSSs meet prioritized leadership and


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1 2 3 4 5

management and instructional leadership

management and instructional leadership

and management standards

and management standards

management standards

Percent of CDSS teachers in 43 targeted clusters with good professional, subject and curriculum knowledge in science and math (Text)

DLI 2 Baseline established by June 2019

Framework that maps TTIs to the 43 cluster lead schools developed

3 percentage point increase from baseline





Foundational system for continuous assessment established for maths and biology (Text)

No TA procured using QCBS modality; and contract signed

Costed action plan for secondary education CA; teacher guidelines developed; teacher training programme endorsed

Selected Maths and Biology teachers trained at cluster level; 1st round of pilot CA data submitted to MANEB; action plan for improvements developed

Action plan for CA improvement implemented; Teacher refresher training conducted; 2nd round of pilot CA data generated; 1st round data integrated into MANEB's system

CA foundations established for maths and biology in Forms 3 and 4 integrating 2nd round data. Report and action plan prepared on roll out to other subjects.

CA foundations established for maths and biology in Forms 3 and 4 integrating 2nd round data. Report and action plan prepared on roll out to other subjects.

C2. Increasing access to secondary education

Complementary streams for delivery of secondary education established (Text)

DLI 3 No

Secondary delivery streams (OSS, ODL, Double-Shift, Public Private Partnership schools) and financing formula/model reviewed and clear policy direction provided to inform expansion plan

Secondary education sustainable expansion plan finalized and endorsed for implementation

7,500 additional students admitted to complementary stream of secondary education in the 13 remote districts




% of CDSS in the 13 remote districts meeting teacher establishment in Science

Baseline established by June 2019

Secondary Teacher Management Information System

Secondary teacher development, recruitment,

20% of CDSSs meet Science & Maths teacher



50% of CDSSs meet Science & Maths teacher establishment


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1 2 3 4 5

and Mathematics (Text) developed and operationalized

deployment and management strategy and implementation plan endorsed

establishment requirements defined in STDMS



requirements defined in STDMS

% of public secondary schools conforming to class size range of 45-55 in Form 1 in the 13 selected districts (Text)

DLI 4 Baseline established by June 2019

ICT enabled examination management system developed; school selection digitized with flexibility in admissions at school level established

50% of public secondary schools conform to class size of 45-55 students in Form 1

60% of public secondary schools have average class size of 50 students at Form 1.



90% of public secondary schools conform to the average class size of 45-55 students in Form 1.

% of CDSSs in 13 remote districts with functional GBV redressal and adolescent hygiene support systems (Text)


Dissemination of guidelines and materials on GBV and adolescent health and hygiene to the developed/revised and endorsed for implementation by schools

20% of CDSSs in 43 selected clusters have functional GBV redressal and adolescent hygiene support system





Progression rate for disadvantaged students benefiting from scholarships (Text)

0.00

TA procured and contract signed; digitized bursary targeting and tracking system with scholarships for students from remote schools established

85% of supported students progress to the next grade/form





% Female (Percentage) 0.00 80.00


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1 2 3 4 5

Number of schools expanded or upgraded based on agreed minimum infrastructure package (Text)

DLI 5 0.00

100% compliance to civil works procurement procedures that enhance value for money; and environmental and social management plans for each site cleared

100% contracts signed and civil works commenced

60% of target schools are expanded/upgraded

100% of target schools are expanded/upgraded

75% of expanded schools are adequately maintained

75% of target schools are adequately maintained

Stakeholder satisfaction in delivery of secondary education in the 13 remote districts (Text)


Design/Adopt a service delivery mechanism for feedback from citizens/stakeholders;

Establish baseline satisfaction

Not due for measurement


Not due for measurement


IO Table SPACE

UL Table SPACE

Monitoring & Evaluation Plan: PDO Indicators

Indicator Name Definition/Description Frequency Datasource Methodology for Data Collection

Responsibility for Data Collection

Percent of CDSS meeting selected minimum standards for quality science and mathematics instruction

Proportion of CDSSs meeting the minimum standards in selected four national education standards - 10, 11, 12 and 18. The selected standards have 3, 5, 4 and 5

Annually

Project schools, Administrative data

DIAS adapts the selected standards to an online platform and collect baseline data in a nationally representative sample (without replacement)

MoEST/DIAS


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observable criteria respectively. For the purpose of the project 5 criteria (10.10, 11.12, 12.11, 18.9 and 18.12) have been selected for measurement. The criteria are aligned to good classroom practices and instructional coaching by school head or a senior teacher in the school. A CDSS where the selected criteria are observed to be taking place will be considered to have met the minimum standards for science and math instruction.

in at least 20% CDSSs in Oct/Nov 2019. In the sampled schools a head teacher will respond to school level criteria while classroom observation will be done to assess effective teaching. Classroom observation to be done in randomly selected classes covering all sciences and math but the selected class representing all classes in the sampled school. The randomization is to be done in the tablet to mitigate bias. Data collection to be replicated every Oct/Nov and analysis to be ready by mid Jan of every project year.

Learning achievement in standardised assessment in science and math

Average student scores in Math and a selected science subject in Form 2. MANEB will subscribe to any available international assessments (preferably PISA).

Trienally

National Learning Assessment

Assessment conducted on Form 2 students randomly sampled to represent the country. The sample to be made big enough to allow for analysis in the 13

MANEB


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remote districts. For the purpose of the project, the assessment will be carried out twice at baseline and end line. The project recommends institutionalization of the assessment for future learning.

Primary to secondary transition rate in remote schools from 13 selected districts

The number of new students enrolled in Form 1 expressed as a percentage of the number of pupils enrolled in the Standard 8 in the previous year in the 13 remotest districts. This represents a proxy indicator as students may be selected into national secondary schools.

Annual

Administrative Records/Annual School Census

EMIS conducts the Annual Schools Census in Oct/Nov 2018; Preliminary analysis completed by April every year; Baseline provided based on 2018/19 Form 1 and 2017/18 Standard 8 enrolments; Process replicated annually;

EMIS Unit

Female Students

The number of new female students enrolled in Form 1 expressed as a percentage of the number of pupils enrolled in the Standard 8 in the previous year in the 13 remotest districts. This represents a proxy indicator as students may be selected

Data collected annually in Oct/Nov; validation and prelimiary analysis completed by

Annual School Census

Annual School Census data collected by EMIS in the first project year, followed by ASC data self reported by HTs through digitized platform in subsequent project years with data validation conducted by

EMIS Unit/MoEST


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into national secondary schools.

March and reported on by April. Baseline calculated using 2018/19 Form 1 and 2017/18 Std 8 enrollments.

EMIS.

ME PDO Table SPACE

Monitoring & Evaluation Plan: Intermediate Results Indicators

Indicator Name Definition/Description Frequency Datasource Methodology for Data Collection

Responsibility for Data Collection

Percent of CDSSs with student textbook ratio of 1:1 for maths and science

Proportion of CDSSs with student textbook ratio of 1:1 Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry and Physics. The ratio is measured on the total enrolment per subject divided by total number of student textbooks available for the revised curriculum.

Annually

Administrative reports

EMIS conducts the Annual Schools Census in Oct/Nov 2018; Baseline provided based on the number of textbooks by subject and respective enrolment; Results Framework to be updated April every year; Process replicated annually;

EMIS


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Number of interactive Science and Mathematics modules available for use by students

Animated materials that support learning. For example, in math interactive materials would show stepwise solutions of mathematical problems. In sciences, the materials are expected to animate experiments. These increase the chances of learning. MIE will establish the scope of development of modules. The project will track the incremental development of the modules in mathematics and a selected science subject for the entire secondary school cycle (F1-F4)

Annual

Adminsitrative reports, project monitoring data

MIE develops a framework for development of interactive materials in the first year of the project detailing the number of modules to be digitized per subject and the capacity required. MIE reports on the number of modules develoepd and released for student access. M&E validates this through school visits and inparticular establishes availability of the modules in students' devices/tablets.

M&E/DIAS

% of CDSSs with students using interactive workbooks in math and science

Percentage of schools with students (of at least 1 stream) of a specific grade for which material has been developed and or adopted; found using the developed interactive materials during the DIAS school monitoring exercise in the 43 school clusters.

Bi-annual

M7E/DIAS administrative reports

The sample of schools will be similar to the one used for PDO indicator 1.

M&E Unit/DIAS


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Percent of CDSS meeting prioritized leadership and management standards

Proportion of CDSSs meeting all the 5 minimum criteria set out in National Education Standard (NES) 18. The baseline will be established in the first project year.

Annually


Same as PDO 1 but this indicator covers all the criteria set in the minimum standard

DIAS

Percent of CDSS teachers in 43 targeted clusters with good professional, subject and curriculum knowledge in science and math

Proportion of mathematics and sciences teachers in CDSSs meeting the three criteria of the minimum NES 9 as well as criterion 9.7.

Bi-annually

Project schools' administrative data.

DIAS/TTIS/SED develops an assessment relevant to the NES 9.7. Collects baseline data from a representative sample of the 247 schools targeted in the 43 clusters stratified by subjects. The targeted sampled teachers will be observed for minimum content knowledge in the respective subjects. Data to be collected between Oct/Nov in each of teh project years. Analysis to be ready by February.

DIAS

Foundational system for continuous assessment established for maths and biology

Guidelines/procedures, tools and data management system including capacity readiness for conducting

Bi-annually

Administrative records/ Reports on internal

MANEB in consultation with the MoEST team to design process indicators for functional

MANEB


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continuous assessment in mathematics and biology subjects

consultations

CA system. MANEB to provide monthly reports on progress achieved on annual work plan.

Complementary streams for delivery of secondary education established

This indicator refers to the development and endorsement of policies and strategies supporting lower cost options of secondary education expansion. These include OSS, ODL, and Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) including regulation and revised financing formula;and credible secondary expansion plan. As from the third year, the indicator will track the number of students enrolled in the complementary streams

Annual

Administrative data/EMIS

The MOEST/DSED will report on the endorseent of the developed/revised policies/strategies/plans. Beginning the third year of the project, the annual schools census will be used to establish the number of students enrolled in the complementary education delivery mechanisms (ODL/OSS/PPP etc.).

M&E/EMIS Units

% of CDSS in the 13 remote districts meeting teacher establishment in Science and Mathematics

Proportion of CDSS that have been supplied with adequate science and mathematics teachers based on the staffing norms defined in the teacher development, recruitment, deployment and management strategy.

Annual

Administrative data

Data source is from the to-be-established Teacher MIS database. Consider changing to pct growth YoY with baseline determined from the teacher supply projections in the Secondary Expansion

MOEST/SDED


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Plan

% of public secondary schools conforming to class size range of 45-55 in Form 1 in the 13 selected districts

Proportion of secondary schools filling up their form 1 capacity in the range of 45-55 students per stream as a result of the reformed and automated selection and placement system. Measured as (# Form 1 Students / # of Form 1 Streams) for each public school in the 13 selected districts, and the proportion of schools for which this ratio is greater than or equal to 50

Annually


EMIS conducts the Annual Schools Census; baseline provided based on the number of schools in the 43 clusters with a minimum class size of 50 and taken a s proportion of all the schools in the 13 districts. Analysis to be completed by January of every year. Process replicated annually;

EMIS

% of CDSSs in 13 remote districts with functional GBV redressal and adolescent hygiene support systems

Proportion of CDSSs that have operational GBV redressal and adolescent hygiene support system based on NES 6 and provisions of the School Health Hygiene and Nutrition. The system will include but not limited to annual student sensitization, annual MG sensitization, sensitization of the teacher code of conduct, presence of male and female councilors in

Bi-annual.

Administrative data

MOEST develops/reviews the checklist of items compounded to a school GBV redressal and adolescent hygiene support system. MOEST enters into an MOU with credible CSO/CBO to track implementation of the system in the 247 schools. The The SP reports twice a year on the number of school

M&E Unit


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schools, gender clubs meeting at least once a quarter, existence of anonymous complaints reporting, demonstrable evidence of accepting, investigating, and addressing complaints; demonstrable evidence of provision of nutrition supplements to adolescents. The MOEST will develop the compounded mechanism in the first year of the project.

meeting all the criteria in the checklist taken as a proportion of all the CDSS in the 13 districts.

Progression rate for disadvantaged students benefiting from scholarships

Proportion of students benefiting from the reformed bursary program through EQUALS who are promoted to successive grades in secondary education. Measured as number of bursary recipients who are promoted / number of bursary recipients

Annual


Bursary recipients drawn from the new bursary tracking system; the grade wise progression is tracked every October when students are expected to have moved to the next grade. The progression of each cohort will be tracked independently and aggregated. Report to be provided every April

MOEST/SED, EMIS

% Female Proportion of female students benefiting from the reformed bursary

Bursary MIS to be endorsed

Bursary tracking and monitoring

DSDE presents operational bursary recipient tracking


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program through EQUALS who are promoted to successive grades in secondary education. Measured as number of female bursary recipients who are promoted / number of bursary recipients

by June of project year one. M&E reports on progression rate for EQUALS bursary beneficiaries annually in April.

system triangulated against ASC data.

system for endorsement by ESIP Steering Committee; M&E reports on progression rate for female EQUALS scholarship recipients using bursary MIS developed through EQUALS.

Number of schools expanded or upgraded based on agreed minimum infrastructure package

CDSS where additional academic facilities have been provided by the project. The envisaged facilities include: classrooms, libraries, laboratories, electricity, water/sanitation etc

Quarterly

Online civil works monitoring platform

Data collected by the Clerks of Works (CoWs), and reported in the online platform. Reporting on the indicator will be quarterly.

EIMU

Stakeholder satisfaction in delivery of secondary education in the 13 remote districts

Feedback from parents and students in the delivery of education in the project resourced areas

Annual

Annual client satisfaction surveys

Sample from the PTA and students selected from the beneficiary schools in the 43 school clusters

M&E Unit

ME IO Table SPACE


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Disbursement Linked Indicators Matrix

DLI_T BL_MATRIX

DLI 1 Percent of CDSSs with student textbook ratio of 1:1 for maths and science

Type of DLI Scalability Unit of Measure Total Allocated Amount (USD) As % of Total Financing Amount

Intermediate Outcome Yes Percentage 15,500,000.00 17.22

Period Value Allocated Amount (USD) Formula

Baseline 0.00

FY20 0.00 3,000,000.00 see Annex 4

FY21 25.00 4,000,000.00 see Annex 4

FY22 40.00 3,500,000.00 see Annex 4

FY23 60.00 2,500,000.00 see Annex 4

FY24 75.00 1,500,000.00 see Annex 4

FY25 90.00 1,000,000.00 see Annex 4

DLI_T BL_MATRIX

DLI 2 Percent of CDSS teachers in 43 targeted clusters with good professional, subject and curriculum knowledge in science and math


Intermediate Outcome Yes Text 12,510,000.00 13.90


Baseline 0.00


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FY20 Framework that maps TTIs to the 43 cluster lead schools developed.

3,000,000.00 see Annex 4

FY21 3 percentage points increase from baseline 2,280,000.00 see Annex 4





DLI_T BL_MATRIX

DLI 3 Complementary streams for delivery of secondary education established




Baseline 0.00

FY20 Secondary delivery streams (OSS, ODL, Double-Shift, Public Private Partnership schools) and financing formula/model reviewed and clear policy direction provided to inform expansion plan

1,000,000.00 see Annex 4

FY21 Secondary education sustainable expansion plan finalized and endorsed for implementation

3,000,000.00 see Annex 4

FY22 7,500 additional students admitted to complementary stream of secondary education

2,500,000.00 see Annex 4


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in the 13 remote districts

FY23 7,500 additional students admitted to complementary stream of secondary education in the 13 remote districts

2,450,000.00 see Annex 4


1,050,000.00 see Annex 4


1,050,000.00 see Annex 4

DLI_T BL_MATRIX

DLI 4 % of public secondary schools conforming to class size range of 45-55 in Form 1 in the 13 selected districts




Baseline 0.00

FY20 ICT enabled examination management system developed; School selection digitized with flexibility in admissions at school level established

1,000,000.00 see Annex 4

FY21 50% of public secondary schools conform to class size of 45-55 students in Form 1

4,500,000.00 see Annex 4


1,800,000.00 see Annex 4


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1,800,000.00 see Annex 4


900,000.00 see Annex 4


900,000.00 see Annex 4

DLI_T BL_MATRIX

DLI 5 Number of schools expanded or upgraded based on agreed minimum infrastructure package




Baseline 0.00

FY20 100% compliance to civil works procurement procedures that enhance value for money; and environmental and social management plans for each site cleared

2,800,000.00 see Annex 4

FY21 100% contracts signed and civil works commenced

10,080,000.00 see Annex 4

FY22 60% of target schools are expanded/upgraded 7,560,000.00 see Annex 4

FY23 100% of target schools are expanded/upgraded 7,056,000.00 see Annex 4

FY24 75% of expanded schools are adequately maintained.

1,000,000.00 see Annex 4


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FY25 75% of expanded schools are adequately maintained.

1,000,000.00 see Annex 4

Verification Protocol Table: Disbursement Linked Indicators

DLI 1 Percent of CDSSs with student textbook ratio of 1:1 for maths and science

Description See Annex 4.1a

Data source/ Agency see Annex 4.1a

Verification Entity See Annex 4.1a

Procedure See Annex 4.1a

DLI 2 Percent of CDSS teachers in 43 targeted clusters with good professional, subject and curriculum knowledge in science and math

Description See Annex 4b

Data source/ Agency See Annex 4b

Verification Entity See Annex 4b

Procedure See Annex 4b

DLI 3 Complementary streams for delivery of secondary education established

Description See Annex 4c

Data source/ Agency See Annex 4c

Verification Entity See Annex 4c


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Procedure See Annex 4c

DLI 4 % of public secondary schools conforming to class size range of 45-55 in Form 1 in the 13 selected districts

Description see Annex 4d

Data source/ Agency see Annex 4d

Verification Entity see Annex 4d

Procedure see Annex 4d

DLI 5 Number of schools expanded or upgraded based on agreed minimum infrastructure package

Description see Annex 4e

Data source/ Agency see annex 4e

Verification Entity see Annex 4e

Procedure see Annex 4e


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VII. ANNEXES

Annex 1a: Implementation Arrangements

1. EQUALS Project implementation will be led by Department of Secondary and Distance Education (DSDE) in the

MoEST supported by the six divisional offices of the North (NED), Central East (CEED), Central West (CWED), Shire Highlands (SHED), South East (SEED) and South West (SWED) of Malawi. For effective technical leadership of project implementation, the DSDE will work in collaboration with the Directorate of Education Planning (DEP) that is charged with the coordination of development projects in the education sector.

2. In the execution of project activities, the DSDE will work with line organs and training institutions consistent with

their statutory mandates. These include Malawi National Examinations Board (MANEB); Malawi Institute of Education (MIE); Directorate of School Health and Nutrition (SHN); Directorate of Inspection and Advisory Services (DIAS); Directorate of Human Resource Management (DHRM); and Directorate of Teacher Education and Development (DTED) which will also coordinate the 5 teacher training institutions – Malawi University Chancellor College, Malawi University Polytechnic, Mzuzu University, Domasi College of Education and Nalikule College of Education. Support organs include the Directorate of Education Planning (DEP) along with associated technical units of Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E); procurement and disposal; Education Management Information Systems (EMIS); Education Infrastructure Management Unit (EIMU); accounts and audit departments.

3. Implementation modalities and timelines are elaborated in the Project Implementation (PIM) along with costed

annual work plans. The sections below highlight the lead implementation organs for the respective subcomponents. a) Sub-component 1.1. Ensuring minimum standards for quality instruction of sciences and math targeting all

CDSSs. Implementation of the strategic interventions will be led by the mandated institutions and departments including: (a) five public secondary Teacher Training Institutions (TTIs) coordinated by the Directorate of Teacher Education (DTED) who will orientate teachers to the revised secondary education curriculum for sciences and math; (b) The Procurement Unit that will undertake procurement of the teaching-learning materials under the coordination of the SDED; and (c) Malawi Institute of Management (MIM) and Staff Development Institute (SDIs) that will offer certificated short courses to CDSSs head teachers and deputies in instructional school leadership and management. In the execution of these interventions, external assistance has been planned as follows: (a) development of an electronic standardized secondary education classroom observation tool with parallel financing from the EU-ISEM project; (b) project management personnel (one per TTI) for well-coordinated curriculum orientation programs for teachers including maintaining regular liaison with the education division management teams; and (c) tracking of textbook procurement processing for enhanced transparency and accountability right from bid development to delivery to the respective schools – which has potential for support from the Global Partnership for Social Accountability (GPSA). Adherence to procurement processes that enhance value for money will be strictly monitored to ensure effective completion of the associated DLRs. Third-party verification processes will complement project monitoring and evaluation systems.

b) Sub-component 1.2. Student learning enhancement strategies targeting 43 school clusters in 13 remote districts. For effective take-off of the in-service teacher support program to complement the curriculum orientation program, the five TTIs will secure technical assistance from globally established institutions that enhance teacher capacities in secondary education mathematics and sciences; drawing from the regional


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MS4SSA Initiative of the World Bank. These will complement national institutional capacities in materials development and digitization; adoption of ICT in science and mathematics instruction by both TTIs and in-service teachers; as well as innovative approaches of experiment-based learning. Requisite technical assistance will also be extended to MANEB to facilitate development of an electronic data system to facilitate CA data capture from schools enabled by tablets. The planned TAs for the two areas will enable systems capacity development at the TTIs and MANEB respectively for nation-wide scale up over the subsequent series of the EQUALS Projects.

c) Subcomponent 2.1. System strengthening for equity and efficiency reforms targeting secondary education sub-system. Two TAs are planned to support the SDED as follows: (a) conduct comprehensive review of secondary education service delivery models including ODL and PPPs, financing framework, policy frameworks governing public service delivery and inherent drivers of inequality; propose reform areas based in regional good practices that would guide reviews to the existing policies; and develop sustainable & costed secondary education expansion plan integrating projected student enrolments and all inputs; and (b) development of a secondary education teacher development and management strategy (embracing recruitment and deployment). When developed and approved, implementation of the two will be rolled out in a phased manner depending on education sector financing. It is anticipated that the quality of the processes undertaken, and the strategic intervention areas will be central to the resource mobilization drive and phased roll-out of the strategic priorities there-in over time.

d) Subcomponent 2.2. Increasing equitable opportunities for secondary education. Planned TAs for this subcomponent will enable: (a) system transition from manual to electronic student selection processes linked to the MANEB Primary School Certificate Leaving Examinations (PSCLE) data facilitated by tablet enabled registration of Standard 8 pupils by primary school head teachers; (b) linking the bursary schemes with the national UBR for improved and household linked beneficiary targeting. However, implementation of the scholarships program for the best Standard 8 students from the remotest primary schools in the 13 remote districts will be done by CAMFED48 using an already existing Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) – also used by other partners like DFID and EU. Implementation of adolescent school health and hygiene promotion activities including SRGBV will be led by the Directorate of School Health and Nutrition (DSHN) using teacher counsellors, mentors and mother group school structures along with student clubs supported by existing girls’ education civil society coalitions using existing MoUs. For school health and hygiene programs, linkages with community health workers will be established to facilitate schools’ access to public commodities like folic acid tablets. The already ongoing UNICEF led capacity building programs for the school teams will be extended to the EQUALS 43 school clusters. For SRGBV, the community assistants’ and policing structure will be linked to the school system to enable functional structures linked to the community-policing systems. Materials to be used in the training of school teams are already in place having been developed with support from UNICEF.

e) Subcomponent 2.3. Upgrading of remote secondary schools. Procurement of contractors will be centrally done led by the Education Infrastructure Management Unit (EIMU). The existing secondary education team for civil works will be complemented by an engineering team of experts (2 Architects, 2 Civil Engineers and 2 Quantity Surveyors) all supervised by the Head of EIMU. Additional TA will be needed to facilitate the adoption of existing on-line civil works monitoring system used for the MESIP. A team of Clerks of Works (CoWs) will

48 Camfed is an international non-governmental, non-profit organization founded in 1993 whose mission is to eradicate poverty in Africa through the education of girls and the empowerment of young women. Camfed programs operate in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ghana, Tanzania and Malawi.


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also be recruited to support regular site-based supervision with tablet enabled electronic reporting to populate the on-line civil works reporting system based on site specific reports.

f) Subcomponent 3.1. Capacity enhancement for project implementation support. Arising from the staffing capacity assessment exercise, the following personnel will be hired by the project to complement the existing staff for smooth and timely implementation. All project recruited personnel will be housed in the directorates/departments they will be supporting, directly reporting to the respective directors or heads of departments. The additional staffing arrangements are summarized in the Table 1.1 below.

Table 1.1: Staffing arrangements # Expertise to be recruited by EQUALS Reporting Lines

a Project Manager (1) Director SDED

b Procurement Officer General (1) Head of Procurement

c Procurement civil works with engineering expertise (1) Head of Procurement, EIMU

d Financial Management Specialist/ Accountant (1) Head of Accounts

e Monitoring and Evaluation (1) Director DEP/M&E

f Communications Specialist (1)

g Engineering Team (2 Architects; 2 Civil Engineer; 2 Quantity Surveyors) Head of EIMU

i Safeguards Specialist (1)

j Education expertise to support the following specialized organs

• Teacher education specialist (1) Director Teacher Education

• Program officers (5) – 1 per TTI Heads of Teacher Education Departments/Focal Point Officers in the TTIs

• Education pedagogical technologies specialist - 1 Director SDED

g) Subcomponent 3.2. Strengthening data and information systems. TA would be needed to develop a

comprehensive framework to support improvements in data management and information systems including peer learning from regional counterparts. It is expected that this will sustain continuity of these efforts with greater improvements in data quality and utilization processes.

Annex 1b: Selection of the 13 Beneficiary Remote Districts and Corresponding Schools

4. Selection of intervention districts is based on a composite index of the gap in access and the quality of education (with MSCE pass rates used as a proxy). Two districts with the lowest composite score in each of the six divisions were selected. Mangochi was dropped due to heavy concentration of donor partner projects in the district. Neno and Mwanza will be treated as one district as they are individually very small. It is important to note that Government may raise the number of districts from 13 to 15 at MTR based on implementation progress and availability of resources using the same criteria. The final list of 13 intervention districts by education division is presented in Table 1.2 below.

Table 1.2: Targeted districts

Central East Education

Division (CEED)

Central West Education Division

(CWED)

North East Education

Division (NED)

Shire Highlands Education Division

(SHED)

South East Education Division

(SEED)

South Western Education Division

(SWED)

Kasungu; Salima Mchinji; Lilongwe Rural East

Chitepo; Karonga Phalombe; Mulanje Zomba Rural; Balaka Chikwawa; Mwanza; Neno


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5. The average access ratio (measured as the ratio between the number of PSLCE graduates and the number of new entrants in secondary) is 27.6 percent in the 13 districts, compared to 37.1 percent in the remaining districts (and a national average of 33.4 percent). The average MSCE pass rate is 59.8 percent in the 13 districts versus 61.8 percent in the remaining districts (and 61 percent nationally). In the 13 districts, approximately 32 percent of primary schools are category A remote schools, compared to 30 percent nationally and 29 percent in the remaining districts.

6. All the 43 secondary school clusters in the 13 selected districts will be targeted by various sub-component interventions as indicated below:

• All public secondary schools in the 43 clusters will be targeted for teacher support and GBV redressal components.

• All primary schools identified as Category A (most remote) in the 13 selected districts will nominate the best girl, boy and children with disabilities that will benefit from the scholarship program.

7. The at least 100 public secondary schools to benefit from the upgraded/expanded school facilities in the 13 selected districts will be selected as follows: (i) 18 schools from each of the two largest divisions (CWED and NED); 15 schools from the other four divisions excluding schools that are supported by the EU/ISEM and USAID supported projects; and the four national secondary schools in Malawi. (ii) Priority will be given to day cluster lead schools due to the catalytic role they will play in the implementation of the teacher support program and complementary ICT innovations for in-service teacher training; as well as district day schools because of their potential to provide quality secondary education with additional student enrolments. (iii) After consideration of criteria (i) and (ii), any remaining schools per division will be selected based on the ranking of schools by Student to Classroom Ratio (SCR) prioritizing schools with highest SCRs per cluster. (iv) The civil works upgrade/expansion package per school will be determined by the school specific needs assessment conducted by the EIMU. The civil works menu comprises two classroom blocks of two classrooms each, one laboratory block with two laboratories; a library and ICT laboratory block; two gender and disabled friendly ablution blocks with hand washing facilities (one for girls and one for boys); and solar power installations for schools off the main-power grid.

Annex 1c: Procurement

8. Procurement under the project will be carried out in accordance with the Procurement Regulations for Investment Project Financing (IPF) Borrowers: Goods, Works, Non- Consulting and Consulting Services dated July 1, 2016, Revised November 2017 and August 2018, ‘Guidelines on Preventing and Combating Fraud and Corruption in Projects Financed by IBRD Loans and IDA Credits and Grants’, dated October 15, 2006 and revised in January 2011 and as of July 1, 2016; and the provisions stipulated in the Financing Agreement and the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act, 2016. As a requirement for all IPF Projects, the PPSD dated January 28, 2019 was prepared by the MoEST and approved by the World Bank. The project prepared a simplified PPSD as there are no complex contracts to be undertaken by the project. The PPSD addresses how procurement activities will support the development objectives of the project and deliver the best value for money under a risk-based approach. The World Bank core procurement principles of value for money, economy, integrity, and fit for purpose, efficiency, transparency and fairness must be observed throughout the procurement process. The PPSD also provided adequate justification for the selection methods for the various goods, works and services presented in the procurement plan. The level of detail and analysis was found proportional to the risk, value and complexity of procurements.

9. Government through the MoEST also prepared a Procurement Plan (PP) dated January 28, 2019 approved by the World Bank. The PP: (i) provides a brief description of the activities/contracts for the goods, works, non -consulting


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services and/or service; (ii) the selection methods and market approaches to be applied; (iii) estimated cost of each individual contract; (iv) time schedules; (v) World Bank review requirements; and (vi) any other relevant procurement information. The MoEST shall update the PP as needed throughout the project implementation period. The updates will be agreed upon and approved by the World Bank.

10. Procurement under the project will be carried out and led by the MoEST. A dedicated PST will be recruited by effectiveness and will comprise two procurement specialists (one general and one for civil works) reporting to the Head of Procurement in MoEST. An Internal Procurement and Disposal Committee (IPDC) exists in the MoEST and will also be responsible for award of contracts under the project. For each contract to be financed under the project, various procurement or consultant selection methods, the need for pre-qualification, estimated costs, prior review requirements, and time frame have been agreed between MoEST and the World Bank as stipulated in the PPSD and Procurement Plan (PP). The PPSD and PP will be updated at least annually or as required to reflect the actual project implementation needs and improvements in institutional capacity.

11. An open, competitive approach to the market is the World Bank’s preferred approach. This provides all eligible bidders/proposers timely and adequate advertisement of project requirements and provides equal opportunity to provide the required goods or services. The use of World Bank Standard Procurement Documents for contracts under Open International Bidding Procedures beyond thresholds defined in the PP will be mandatory. For procurements involving national competition below the defined thresholds, Government of Malawi Procurement Law and associated bidding documents, which have been reviewed and found acceptable by the World Bank would be used.

12. All procurements below US$7 million for Works and below US$1 million for Goods and Non-Consulting Services will use National Procurement Procedures (NPPs) as agreed in the PP and will be carried out in accordance with the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act, 2016, which governs public procurement in Malawi. The Act decentralizes procurement to the ministries including the MoEST. Requirements for national open competition shall include: (i) open advertising of the procurement opportunity at national level; (ii) the procurement is open to eligible firms from any country; (iii) the request for bids/request for proposal shall require to present a signed acceptance at time of bidding to be incorporated in any contract confirming compliance with the Bank’s Anti-Corruption Guidelines including the Bank’s right to sanction, inspection and audit rights; (iv) Procurement Documents include provisions, as agreed with the Bank, intended to adequately mitigate against environmental, social, health and safety risks and practices; (v) contracts with appropriate allocation of responsibilities, risks and liabilities; (vi) publication of contract awards; (vii) rights for the Bank to review procurement documentation and activities; (viii) an effective complaints mechanism in place; and (ix) maintenance of records of the procurement process. Other national procurement arrangements such as limited/restricted competitive bidding, request for quotations/shopping, direct contracting is consistent with the World Bank’s Core Procurement Principles, Anti-Corruption Guidelines and Sanctions Framework and justified in the PPSD. All procurement of goods above and non-consulting services above US$1 million will use International Competitive Procurement. Goods to be procured will include text books, vehicles, furniture and IT related equipment. All items to be procured are in the Procurement Plan. Based on the risks identified above the following procurement arrangements are proposed:


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13. Approach to Market: Based on previous experiences, and available local market capacity, the following thresholds (Table 1.3) will be used for open national/international and RFQ bidding: (All figures in million US$).

Table 1.3: Thresholds for procurement approaches and method (US$ millions)

Works Goods, IT and Non-Consulting Services Shortlist of National Consultants

Open International

≥

Open National

<

Request for Quotation

≤

Open International

≥

Open National

<

Request for Quotation

≤

Consulting Services

≤

Engineering & Construction Supervision

≤

7 7 0.2 1 1 0.1 0.2 0.3

14. For consultancy services, open international advertisement shall be done for all cases equal and above US$300,000. An open competitive procurement approach to market is the preferred method for selection of consulting services including advertisement of Expression of Interest. This provides all eligible prospective firms or individual consultants with adequate time to participate in the bidding process, provides equal opportunity and has fairness to all eligible entities. Consulting Services to be procured have been defined in the PP. All ToR for selection of consultants regardless of value will be reviewed by the World Bank prior to start of an assignment.

15. The World Bank sets mandatory prior review thresholds based on project procurement risk levels. This may include contracts below mandatory thresholds if it is determined the contract is risky and includes negotiations in a competitive procurement process as identified in the PPSD. In cases where risk is assessed as low, the World Bank may determine that such procurements be subject to post review and be included in the PP, but such procurements shall use the World Bank Standard Procurement Document. An independent consultant may be hired to do the prior review clearances on behalf of the World Bank. Prior review contracts will include: (i) all contracts estimated to cost the equivalent of US$5 million or more for works and US$1.5 million or more for goods and non- consulting services; (ii) consulting service contracts provided by a firm estimated to cost the equivalent of US$500,000 or more; and (iii) each contract for the employment of individual consultants estimated to cost the equivalent of US$200,000 or more.

16. The MoEST shall publish the PP, its updates and all awarded contracts on the World Bank’s website, its own website and in at least one newspaper with national circulation. Details of contract awards shall also be published through STEP in accordance with the World Bank Regulations and using World Bank templates. Procurement monitoring reports shall be submitted on a quarterly basis as part of the quarterly project progress reports.

17. The World Bank undertook a procurement capacity and risk assessment of MoEST during preparation of the project to check their readiness and capacity to undertake procurement under the project. The procurement risk rating using PRAMS is high as staff are not familiar with the IPF Regulations which the project will be using, and record keeping is poor and procurement of civil works and textbooks have not been properly handled in the past. The following risks were identified under the project and mitigation measures agreed with Government as presented in Table 9.

18. Selection method: For goods, works and non-consultancy, RFB, RFQ and DC will be used as appropriate. For Consultancy services, the preferred method would be QCBS, however, other methods including Direct Selection


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would be used, as stipulated in the procurement plan. For National Open Competitive Procurement, National Procurement Procedures will be used, subject to conditions as laid down in the procurement plan.


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Table 1.4: Identified procurement risks and proposed mitigation measures Sr. No

Risk Risk Factor Mitigation Measure Time frame Responsibility

Impact Likelihood

1 Fiduciary Risk relating to main principles of the Bank Procurement Guidelines not being followed

Major Unlikely Recruit dedicated Procurement Specialists experienced in Bank Procurement Guidelines

Prior to effectiveness

GoM

Provide training in new Bank procurement procedures; regular supervision support and monitoring

Life of project GoM/Bank

2 Record Keeping and documentation not maintained

Major Unlikely Maintaining procurement records; utilization of STEP to upload, submit and store data will aid in record keeping.

Project Duration GoM

3 Evaluation reports and awards of contracts do not always contain all information necessary for approvals, including adequate justification for decisions taken during evaluation such as rejection of bids. Wrong award decision may be made because of inadequate information, and due diligence is not routinely carried out

Major Likely Enhancing quality of evaluations and awards of contracts requires enhancing; using electronic Bills of Quantities to reduce computational errors and omissions; staff training in good evaluation practices which base decisions on pre-disclosed criteria

Life of project GoM

4 Delays in delivery of textbooks due to lack of capacity of suppliers

Major Likely Open tender to suppliers rather than targeting publishers to attract even non-publisher consolidators with capacity to deliver; preparation of Contract Management Plans for textbook procurement contracts

Bidding Documents Preparation and contract management period

GoM

5 Falsification/forgery of textbook delivery documents

Major Likely Verification of sample of deliveries through use of verification teams before final payment


6 Inefficiencies and delays in procurement process especially preparation of terms of references (ToRs) and bid solicitation documents and IPDC approvals.

Major Likely Procurement plan monitoring; train technical staff in preparation of ToRs and bidding documents; ensure timely preparation of ToRs and specifications for requirements; sensitization of IPDC to prioritize meetings for approving procurement decisions; taking IPDC out to a conferencing venue to process project procurement proposals quickly

Project Duration GoM and World Bank

Engagement of Engineering Team (two Architects; two Civil Engineers; two Quantity Surveyors)

Within three months of Project Effectiveness

GoM

7 Delays in granting of approvals and No Major Likely Sensitization of the PPDA staff on timeliness of Project Duration PDU, IPDC,


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Sr. No

Risk Risk Factor Mitigation Measure Time frame Responsibility

Impact Likelihood

Objections by PPDA procurements. World Bank

8 Insufficient competition in bidding process Major Unlikely Correct procurement packages to ensure attractiveness of expected contracts; Ensure fair bidding periods, terms of contract and timeliness in payment; Encourage standardization of specifications for requirements and use of generic specifications.

Project Duration PDU and GoM

8 Contract management not properly fulfilled. Major Likely Train users and procurement staff in Contract Management; Preparation of Contract Management Plans for complex contracts such as supply of textbooks and Contract Implementation Schedules for all contracts; Use of CSO’s in tracking of delivery of contract deliverables

Project Duration PDU/GoM

9 Procurement staff turnover in Government Common Service

Major Likely Principal Secretary to continue dialogue with Government to retain trained staff in the PDU.


10 Collusive practices amongst textbook publishers

Major Unlikely Opening competition to textbook consolidators; keeping an eye on events happening in the industry.


11 Fraud and Corruption risks (including collusion and outside interference in contract processing)

Major Likely Disclosure of procurement plan, contract awards, fraud and corruption incidences; ensuring evaluation team members sign Declaration of Interest or Oaths of Secrecy; regular reviews such as post procurement review (PPR), internal audit and external audit.

Project Duration PDU and GoM

12 Late hearing and resolution of complaints. Major Likely • Enforcement of rules and regulations to fast track hearing and resolution of complaints.

• Disclosures of complaint redress procedure available in the PPDAA; and quarterly reporting of all complaints received, and actions taken.

Project Duration GoM and PDU


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Annex 2: Implementation Support Plan

Time Focus Resource Estimate (in staff weeks – SWs)

Partner Role

First 12 months.

Leadership and Coordination Technical supervision of Overall coordination and supervision of project activities for quality preparation and timely start of implementation.

• TTLs (30 SWs)

Fiduciary preparations and oversight

• Training for client teams (financial management and procurement)

• Disbursement planning and monitoring.

• Training of client procurement team including EEPs.

• Support towards preparation of procurement documents.

• Procurement reviews for EEPs including procurement of textbooks, equipment for ICT and science labs and civil works activities under Component 2

• Financial Management Specialist (5 SWs)

• Procurement Specialist (6 SWs)

Technical guidance and oversight at start of project strategic interventions:

• Curriculum orientation and training

• Textbook review, procurement and delivery

• School management and instructional leadership training

• ICT for teacher pedagogy training

• Summative continuous assessment

• ICT enabled examination systems

• Digitization of school inspection

• School health and GBV redressal programme

• Policy on secondary education expansion, financing reform, selection reform, bursary reform and teacher management

• School civil works through districts

• Education Specialist (20 SWs)

• Assessment Specialist (4 SWs)

• Education Economist (8 SWs)

• ICT Specialist (3 SWs)

• Consultant Engineer/s (10 SWs)

• Consultant/s – school inspection specialist (3 SWs)

• Consultant/s – policy and institutional development specialist (8 SWs)

EU technical support on cluster system policy

Safeguards

• Social safeguards

• Environmental safeguards

• Social Safeguards Specialist/s (5 SWs)

• Environment Specialist/s (5 SWs)

Monitoring (including budget allocations) and evaluation

• Systems for reporting against results framework

• ICT based school level data systems

• Reporting for DLIs

• External validation

• Impact evaluations

• M&E systems strengthening

• Project monitoring specialists/consultants (5 SWs)

• Impact Evaluation Specialists & Education Economists (5 SWs)

• Consultants – external validation (10 SWs)

• ICT based school-based data systems (8 SWs)

EU technical support on development of strategy for digitized school based EMIS

Governance & Anti-corruption (GAC)

• Establishment of GAC mitigation systems delivery mechanisms • Public Service Management

Specialist (3 SWs)



UNICEF’s U-Report through parallel financing;

13-60 months

Leadership and Coordination

• Overall coordination and supervision of project activities.

• Ensuring timely assessments of progress made on the DLIs.

• Regular support supervision to implementing teams.

• Field work to implementing sites.

• TTLs (90 SWs)


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Technical guidance and oversight at start of project strategic interventions:

• Ensuring timely procurement, delivery and utilization of textbooks and other learning materials

• Quality implementation and monitoring of school leadership and cluster-based training

• Continued support to ICT enabled examination systems and summative continuous assessment

• Ensuring quality of school inspection data collection and utilization

• Continued support to school health and GBV redressal programme

• Review of respective TA products results from policy development and reform

• Continued support and monitoring of school civil works including utilization of additional spaces created

• Education Specialist (80 SWs)

• Assessment Specialist (16 SWs)

• Education Economist (32 SWs)

• ICT Specialist (12 SWs)

• Consultant Engineer/s (40 SWs)

• Consultant/s – school inspection specialist (12 SWs)

• Consultant/s – policy and institutional development specialist (10 SWs)

Fiduciary Oversight

• Ensuring timely procurement & adherence to norms.

• Ensuring compliance to financial management guidelines including audits and post audit actions.



Monitoring (including budget allocations) and evaluation

• Progress made on against results framework

• Reporting for DLIs

• Ensuring functional and timely external validation

• Mid-line and end line impact evaluations

• Functionality of established education sector school-based M&E systems

• Validation of budget allocations

• Project monitoring specialists/consultants (20 SWs)

• Impact Evaluation Specialists & Education Economists (20 SWs)

• Consultants – external validation (40 SWs)

• ICT based school-based data systems (32 SWs)

Safeguards

• Social safeguards

• Environmental safeguards

• Social Safeguards Specialist/s (30 SWs)

• Environment Specialist (30 SWs)

Governance & Anti-corruption (GAC)

• Monitoring performance of GAC mitigation systems delivery mechanisms and actions taken.

• Public Service Management Specialist (18 SWs)



Skills Mix Required

Skills needed Number of Staff Weeks (SWs)

Number of Trips Comment

Task Team Leadership

120 Minimum of 10 over 5-year period including support

2 technical missions per year are envisaged in addition to regular technical supervision support including preparation of the EQUALS Phase 2. This would enable smooth project implementation take-off and timely identification and resolution of emerging challenges.

Economics 70 At least 6 over 5-year period Implementation supervision is needed with respect to the envisaged strategic reforms including development of the secondary education expansion plan, teacher deployment and management strategy,


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financing reform and bursary scheme reforms.

Education 100 At least 6 over 5-year period Regular interaction with implementation teams is expected to enable timely support. This will include regular field trips to project sites as and when required.

Procurement 60 Based in country Support in the development and timely approval of procurement documentation. Field trips to project sites as and when required.

Financial Management

49 Based in country Field trips to project sites as and when required.

ICT 55 Based on contract specifications.

Field travel will be required as part of contract execution – whether or local or international.

School inspection 15 Based on contract specifications.

Assessment 20 Based on contract specifications.

Engineering 50 Based on contract specifications.

Policy and Institutional Development

18 Based on contract specifications.

Public Service Management


Social Safeguards 35 Based in country Field trips to project sites as and when required.

Environmental Management


Monitoring and evaluation

100 Based on contract specifications.

A firm may be needed to undertake the external validation.


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Annex 3: Environmental and Social Safeguards

1. The project is classified as Category B and triggers Environmental Assessment (OP 4.01) through construction of

laboratories, additional classrooms, gender friendly sanitation facilities and water sources in Community Day and Open Secondary Schools (CDSS/OSS) in the selected 13 districts. The exact schools by location have been selected based on the agreed criteria and site validations are yet to be undertaken to confirm their eligibility for support. Therefore, a ‘framework approach’ to safeguards has been adopted and potential environmental and social risks and impacts and subsequent mitigation and management measures outlined in the Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF), which was participatory prepared, consulted upon and publicly disclosed on October 2, 2018. The Government has developed a Grievances Redress Mechanism (GRM) for the EQUALS Project as an integral part of the ESMF. This will provide a first avenue to resolving grievances expressed by project beneficiaries. The ESMF and GRM will be disseminated to project beneficiaries at the start of project interventions in schools. It is important to note that all civil works will be done in already existing schools and hence no voluntary resettlement is expected.

Table 3.1: Safeguards policies triggered Safeguards Policies Triggered Yes No

Environmental Assessment OP/BP 4.01 X

Natural Habitats OP/BP 4.04

Forests OP/BP 4.36 X

Pest Management OP 4.09 X

Involuntary Resettlement OP/BP 4.12 X

Physical Cultural Resources OP/BP 4.11 X

Indigenous Peoples OP/BP 4.10 X

Safety of Dams OP/BP 4.37 X

Projects on International Waterways OP/BP 7.50 X

Projects in Disputed Areas OP/BP 7.60 X

2. Environmental Social Health and Safety (ESHS). Construction and occupation health and safety plans will be prepared

by the contractors derived from the project ESMPs, with detailed requirements for contractors during construction to ensure worker and community health and safety, implementation of mitigation measures and continuous monitoring of appropriate actions.

3. Labor Influx. By its nature and scope the project’s capacity to attract labor is insignificant. It is however assumed that

contractors will bring in labor force from outside the project areas, and these are likely to be housed near the project sites during construction. The ESMF takes into consideration and recommends rules for contractors to be incorporated into the civil works contracts including measures for managing the potential impacts associated with the presence of outside workforce on the local community which include possibility for increase in communicable disease transmission (mainly HIV/AIDS); risk of social conflicts; possibility of gender-based violence, sexual exploitation and abuse; as well as the exploitation of children. A code of conduct will be developed for the management of these social risks.

4. Gender Aspects and Vulnerable Groups. The ESMF identifies potential gender related impacts of the project and impacts on vulnerable people, disaggregate data by gender, age, vulnerability and outline inclusivity measures


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including employment opportunities for women and youth, representation of women, youth and vulnerable groups in consultations and committees; and safeguarding of project benefits against male and/ or elite capture.

5. Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM). The project has developed a GRM framework approved by the World Bank that will guide establishment of a transparent, simple and confidential project level grievance redress mechanism, to facilitate individuals and communities to voice, express, or raise complaints, queries and concerns specifically related to the project and outline ways that these will be resolved and monitored. In addition, project contractors will be expected to establish simple grievance redress procedures specifically for project workers.

6. Capacity to manage safeguards. The MoEST will recruit a project safeguards specialist who will be responsible for overseeing preparation of the ESMPs and overall safeguards implementation oversight. This will be complemented by lessons learned from the ongoing MESIP and SDP projects in the education sector. With the safeguards training undertaken by MoEST teams to date, the environmental and social safeguards capacity is considered adequate. However, it is recommended that MoEST should build the capacity of contractors as well.

7. Stakeholder Engagement and Beneficiary Feedback. Effective stakeholder engagement will be key to successful implementation of the project and sustainability. Key stakeholders that will be targeted are: parents and local communities through Parent Teacher Association structures (PTA); students through student assemblies and clubs as well as teachers. Additional stakeholders will include the parliamentary committee on education and civil society. As part of the broader citizen engagement process, the project will support the establishment of a project level grievance redressal mechanism at the targeted secondary schools, to facilitate individuals, local communities and the public to raise complaints, queries and concerns and provide a framework for resolution and a feedback process. In addition, an indicator on beneficiary satisfaction has been integrated in the results framework which will be updated through beneficiary satisfaction surveys conducted at agreed intervals. The findings will be used to guide improvements in project implementation as will be considered appropriate.


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Annex 4: Disbursement Linked Indicators Schedule

Disbursement Linked Result Indicators

Disbursement Linked Results Indicator Targets

Year 1 Year 2 Year3 - 6

DLI 1. % of CDSSs with student textbook ratio of 1:1 in Math and Science (SDR 11,160,000/ US$15,500,000)

1.1. 100% compliance to procurement methods that enhance value for money (SDR 2,160,000/ US$3,000,000)

1.2. 25% of CDSS with student textbook ratio of 1:1 in at least two of the four subjects (SDR 2,880,000/ US$4,000,000)

1.3.-1.6 Percentage of CDSSs having a student textbook ratio of 1:1 in Math and three Science subjects. (SDR 6,120,000/US8,500,000)

Scalable: SDR 23,760/US$33,000 for DLI 1.3-1.6 disbursed for every percentage point achieved above 25% for each of the four subjects up to a maximum of SDR 6.12 million /US$8.5 million corresponding to 90%

DLI 2. % of CDSS teachers in 43 targeted clusters with good professional, subject and curriculum knowledge in science and mathematics (SDR 9,002,000/ US$12,510,000)

2.1.1. Framework that maps TTIs to the 43 cluster lead schools developed (SDR 360,000/US$500,000)

2.2 – 2.6 Percentage of CDSS teachers in 43 targeted clusters with good professional, subject and curriculum knowledge in science and mathematics (SDR 6,842,000/US$9,510,000).

2.1.2. Baseline established based on selected national education standard (SDR 1,800,000/US$2,500,000)

Scalable: SDR 328,320/US$456,000 disbursed for every percentage point improvement on teacher professional, subject and curriculum knowledge up to a maximum of SDR 6.842 million/US$9.51 million corresponding to 20 percentage points increase from established baseline

DLI 3. Complementary streams for delivery of secondary education established (SDR 7,956,000/US$11,050,000)

3.1. Secondary delivery streams (OSS, ODL, Double-Shift, PPP schools) and school financing formula/ model reviewed (SDR 720,000/US$1,000,000)

3.2. Secondary education sustainable expansion plan finalized and endorsed for implementation (SDR 2,160,000/US$3,000,000)

3.3- 3.6. Number of additional students enrolled in the complementary streams of secondary education. (SDR 5,076,000/US$7,050,000).

Scalable: SDR 169/US$235 disbursed for every additional student enrolled in the complementary stream of secondary education up to a maximum of SDR 5.08 million /US$7.05 million corresponding to 30,000 additional students in the pilot stream

DLI 4. % of public secondary schools conforming to class size range of 45-55 in Form 1 in the 13 selected districts (SDR 7,848,000/ US$10,900,000)

4.1.1. ICT enabled examination management system developed; (SDR 360,000/US$500,000)

4.2 – 4.6. % of public secondary schools conforming to class size range of 45-55 in Form 1 in the 13 selected districts (SDR 7,128,000/US$9,900,000).

4.1.2. School selection digitized and flexibility in admissions at school level established (SDR 360,000/US$500,000

Scalable: SDR 177,840/US$247,000 disbursed for every percentage point improvement on the proportion of schools meeting the prescribed class size in Form 1 up to a maximum of SDR 7.13 million/US$9.9 million corresponding to 90% of CDSS meeting this norm

DLI 5. Number of schools expanded or upgraded based on agreed minimum infrastructure package (SDR 21,234,240/US$29,496,000)

5.1.1. 100% compliance to civil works procurement procedures that enhance value for money (SDR 720,000/US$1,000,000)

5.2.1. 100% contracts signed (SDR 3,654,720/US$5,076,000)

5.3. Number of schools expanded or upgraded (SDR 10,523,520/ US$14,620,000)

5.4. Number of newly expanded schools adequately maintained (SDR 1,440,000/US$2,000,000).


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5.1.2. Environmental and social management plans for each site cleared (SDR 1,296,000/US$1,800,000)

5.2.2. Civil works commenced at 90% of the sites (SDR 3,600,000/US$5,000,000)

Scalable: SDR 105,235/US$146,160 disbursed for every school that is completed up to a maximum of SDR 10.5 million/US$14.62 million corresponding to 100% completion of civil works

Scalable: SDR 19,440/US$27,000 disbursed for every school that is well maintained up to a maximum of SDR 1.44 million/ US$2 million corresponding to 75% of the CDSS meeting this norm


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Annex 4a: Disbursement Linked Indicator 1 Verification Protocol

Disbursement Linked Results

Scalability Data Source Reporting and

Verification Entity Disbursement Procedure

DLR 1.1 100% compliance to procurement methods that enhance value for money

No

Administrative reports from the MOEST including signed

contracts

Report by MOEST and reviewed by the World

Bank

The MOEST compiles report on the textbook re-assessment exercise and the outcome together with contract bidding documents and signed contracts for textbook delivery; Report submitted to the World Bank for Review; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.

DLR 1.2 25% of CDSS with student textbook ratio of 1:1 in at least two of the four subjects

Yes. SDR 192,000 for every percentage point

achievement above 10% up to a maximum

of 25%.

Textbook inventory in CDSSs; Enrollment registers in CDSSs; Textbook delivery

returns; ITPV sample based data

Report by the MOEST/SED and verification by

Independent Third Party Verification Firm

Each supported school reports on the number of textbooks in Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics by grade and the number of students enrolled in each of the subjects also by grade; MOEST prepares a report on the Textbook Ratios for two best supplied subjects; ITPV Firm verifies reported achievement in 10% of the CDSSs for the two identified subjects; Verification report submitted to the World Bank for review; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.

DLR 1.3. 40% of CDSS with student textbook ratio of 1:1 in all four subjects


achievement in each subject above 25% up to a maximum of 90%.

Textbook inventory in CDSSs; Enrolment registers in CDSSs; Textbook delivery




Each supported schools reports on the number of textbooks in Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics by grade and the number of students enrolled in each of the subjects also by grade; MOEST prepares a report on the Textbook Ratios for all the four subjects; ITPV Firm verifies reported achievement in 10% of the CDSSs all the four subjects; Verification report submitted to the World Bank for review; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.


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DLR 1.4 60% of CDSS with student textbook ratio of 1:1 in all four subjects







Each supported school reports on the number of textbooks in Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics by grade and the number of students enrolled in each of the subjects also by grade; MOEST prepares a report on the Textbook Ratios for all the four subjects; ITPV Firm verifies reported achievement in 10% of the CDSSs all the four subjects; Verification report submitted to the World Bank for review; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.


















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Annex 4b: Disbursement Linked Indicator 2 Verification Protocol

Disbursement Linked Results

Scalability Data Source Reporting and


DLR 2.1 1 Framework that maps TTIs to the 43 cluster lead schools developed;

No Inspection reports from

DIAS

Report by MOEST (M&E) and reviewed by

the World Bank

The MOEST (M&E) provides agreed frameworks linking TTIs to cluster lead schools; Report submitted to the World Bank for Review; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.

DLR 2.1.2. Baseline established based on selected national education standard

No Inspection reports from

DIAS

Report by MOEST (M&E) and reviewed by

the World Bank

The MOEST (M&E) provides a baseline report on teachers meeting minimum professional, subject and curriculum knowledge in science and mathematics finalized; Report submitted to the World Bank for Review; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.

DLR 2.2 Percentage of CDSS teachers in 43 targeted clusters with good professional, subject and curriculum knowledge in science and mathematics Target: 3 percentage points increase from baseline

Yes. SDR 328,320 for every percentage point improvement from 3 up

to a maximum of 20 percentage points.

Classroom observation data in 43 selected

clusters; ITPV data from sample schools

Report by MOEST (M&E) and verification by Independent Third Party Verification Firm

MOEST DIAS administers a classroom observation tool covering a representative sample of at least 20% of all CDSSs in the 43 selected clusters twice a year. M&E consolidates data bi-annually to report on the results framework; ITPV firm observes classrooms in 10% representative sampled CDSSs bi-annually; ITPV Firm verifies reported achievement in representative sample of CDSSs; Verification report submitted to the World Bank for review; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.


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improvement above previous year’s

performance up to a maximum of 20

percentage points.









percentage points.









percentage points.






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improvement from previous year’s


percentage points.






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Annex 4c: Disbursement Linked Indicator 3 Verification Protocol

Disbursement Linked Results Scalability Data Source Reporting and Verification

Entity Disbursement Procedure

DLR 3.1 Secondary education delivery streams (Open Secondary Schools, double shift, ODL, Public Private Partnership schools) and financing formula/model reviewed and clear policy direction provided to inform expansion plan

No Policy documents

submitted by MOEST

Reports/Frameworks presented by MOEST and endorsed by ESIP Steering Committee and reviewed

by the World Bank

The DSDE presents finalized reports/frameworks to the Secondary TWG for review. The ESIP Steering Committee endorses them. Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.

DLR 3.2 Secondary education sustainable expansion plan finalized and endorsed for implementation

No Policy documents

submitted by MOEST

Reports/Frameworks presented by MOEST and endorsed by ESIP Steering Committee and reviewed

by the World Bank

The MOEST presents finalized expansion plan for review to the Secondary TWG. Secondary expansion plan integrated in NESP II; NESP II endorsed by Steering Committee. Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.

DLR 3.3 Number of additional students enrolled in the complementary streams of secondary education. Target: 7,500 additional students

Yes. SDR 169 for every additional student enrolled

in the complementary stream of secondary

education up to a maximum of 30,000

students.

MOEST (M&E) implementation

monitoring report; ITPV implementation

monitoring report

Report presented by MOEST M&E, verified by ITPV and reviewed by the

World Bank

The MOEST collects data through the ASC and compiles a report on operationalization of the complementary stream showing additional students admitted to secondary aside from the CDSS and conventional schools; ITPV verifies report on sample of schools in the complementary stream. Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.





students.

Policy documents submitted by MOEST

Report by MOEST (M&E) and verification by


The MOEST compiles a report showing additional students admitted to secondary aside from the CDSS and conventional schools; ITPV verifies report on sample of schools in the complementary stream. Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank.


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students.



monitoring report








students.



monitoring report





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Annex 4d: Disbursement Linked Indicator 4 Verification Protocol

Disbursement Linked Results Scalability Data Source Reporting and


DLR 4.1.1 ICT enabled examination management system developed;

No Administrative reports

from the MOEST

Reports/Frameworks presented by MOEST and reviewed by the

World Bank

The MOEST (DSDE) presents report of the finalized ICT system at MANEB, reformed student selection framework and the automated student selection system to the World Bank; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank

DLR 4.1.2. School selection digitized and flexibility in admissions at school level established


from the MOEST

Reports/Frameworks presented by MOEST and reviewed by the

World Bank

The MOEST (DSDE) presents report of the automated student selection system to the World Bank with clear steps to be followed in the placement and replacement of students into secondary schools; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank

DLR 4.2 % of public secondary schools conforming to class size range of 45-55 in Form 1 in the 13 selected districts Target: 50%


improvement on schools conforming to the norm

up to a maximum of 90%. Minimum

achievement to trigger disbursement is 50%

percentage points improvement.


Report by the MOEST/DSDE and

verification by Independent Third Party

Verification Firm

The MOEST (M&E) prepares a report on the average class size in Form 1 in all CDSSs and the share of schools with class size of at least 50 students in Form 1; ITPV Firm verifies reported achievement in representative sample of CDSSs; Verification report submitted to the World Bank for review; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank




over previous year’s performance up to a

maximum of 90%. Minimum achievement to trigger disbursement

is 50% percentage points improvement.




Verification Firm



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maximum of 90%.




Verification Firm






maximum of 90%.




Verification Firm






maximum of 90%.




Verification Firm



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Annex 4e: Disbursement Linked Indicator 5 Verification Protocol

Disbursement Linked Results Scalability Data Source Reporting and


DLR 5.1.1 100% compliance to civil works procurement procedures that enhance value for money


from the MOEST

Reports prepared by MOEST (EIMU) and

reviewed by the World Bank

The MOEST (EIMU) presents the finalized BoQs on the planned infrastructure improvement; copies of approved procurement documents submitted to the World Bank; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank

DLR 5.1.2 Environmental and social management plans for each site cleared


from the MOEST

Reports prepared by MOEST (EIMU) and

reviewed by the World Bank

The MOEST (EIMU) presents finalized environmental safeguard Management Plans; publicly disclosed ESMF; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank

DLR 5.2.1 100% contracts signed

No

Civil works monitoring reports generated by

Online Monitoring System and compiled by MOEST

Reports prepared by MOEST and reviewed by

the World Bank

The MOEST submits copies of the signed contracts to the World Bank; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank

DLR 5.2.2 Civil works commenced at 90% of the sites

No


Online Monitoring System and compiled by MOEST

Reports prepared by MOEST and reviewed by

the World Bank

The MOEST submits bi-annual civil works monitoring reports to the World Bank; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank

DLR 5.3. Number of schools expanded or upgraded Target: 60% of target schools

Yes. SDR 105,235 for every school completed to 100% up to a maximum of

100 schools. Minimum completion to trigger

disbursement is 60 schools completed to

100%


Online Monitoring System and compiled by MOEST; ITPV verification report

Report by the MOEST/EIMU and


Verification Firm

Clerks of works submit bi-annual progress report to the MOEST through the online monitoring system; M&E (through civil works M&E specialist) compiles report of the completion rate; ITPV Firm verifies reported achievement in at least 20% of beneficiary CDSSs; MOEST presents report to the World Bank; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank


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DLR 5.4 Number of schools expanded or upgraded Target: 100% of target

Yes. SDR 105,235 for every school completed to 100% up to a maximum of

100 schools. Minimum completion to trigger

disbursement is 60 schools completed to

100%





Verification Firm

Clerks of works submit bi-annual progress report to the MOEST through the online monitoring system; M&E (through civil works M&E specialist) compiles report of the completion rate; ITPV Firm verifies reported achievement in at least 20% of beneficiary CDSSs; MOEST presents report to the World Bank; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank

DLR 5.5 Number of newly expanded schools adequately maintained 75% of schools completed in the 3rd Year

Yes. SDR 19,200 for every school that is well

maintained up to a maximum of 75 schools.





Verification Firm

Clerks of works submit bi-annual maintenance report on defects liability to the MOEST through the online monitoring system; M&E (through civil works M&E specialist) compiles report of the maintenance status (defects liability period); ITPV Firm verifies reported achievement in representative sample of CDSSs; MOEST presents report to the World Bank; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank

DLR 5.6 Number of newly expanded schools adequately maintained 75% of schools completed in the 4th year.

Yes. SDR 19,200 for every school that is well

maintained up to a maximum of 75 schools.





Verification Firm

Clerks of works submit bi-annual maintenance report on defects liability to the MOEST through the online monitoring system; M&E (through civil works M&E specialist) compiles report of the maintenance status (defects liability period); ITPV Firm verifies reported achievement in representative sample of CDSSs; MOEST presents report to the World Bank; Eligible resources released upon confirmation by MoFEPD to World Bank


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Annex 5: Map of Malawi including the 13 high-intensity/remote districts