The Board of Directors of the World Bank have approved US$150 million in financing to support government’s efforts to improve the quality of education for over two million children in low performing basic education schools, and to strengthen the country’s education system.
“The project focuses on underserved areas and on improving the quality of education for increased human capital. It supports the World Bank’s twin goals of ending poverty and promoting shared prosperity” said Pierre Laporte, World Bank Country Director for Ghana.
The Ghana Accountability for Learning Outcomes Project (GALOP)
The term for the project is Ghana Accountability for Learning Outcomes Project (GALOP). It will support teaching and learning through modern in-service teacher training, and provision of learning materials.
It will further strengthen, and improve community engagement and Improve teaching and learning assessments and accountability to enhance Ghana’s human capital.
The project builds on the findings of Ghana’s Systematic Country Diagnostic which identifies education as key for increasing labour productivity and building Ghana’s human capital.
The timing and objectives of the GALOP is aligned with the current focus on learning and the project’s implementation is expected to lead to an improvement in learning outcomes at the basic level.
While interventions for accountability under the GALOP will be national in scope, learning interventions will target schools identified with major challenges in learning outcomes and resources.
Key expected outcomes include improved teaching practices in targeted schools, including targeted instruction, structured pedagogy and continuous coaching and mentoring support, decreased absenteeism among teachers, effective allocation of teachers across schools, and increased utilization of the accountability dashboard to improve learning.
In addition, the project will support capacity development of three newly instituted semi-autonomous government structures in curriculum and assessment, inspections and teacher management, to ensure sustainability and institutionalization of interventions.
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“The GALOP is estimated to benefit 2.3 million children, including 1.2 million girls from direct interventions, as well as over 70,000 teachers, head teachers, circuit supervisors, and national, regional and district education officers.” said Halil Dundar, World Bank Education Practice Manager for West and Southern Africa.
This project scales up several successful pilots supported by the World Bank as well as other development partners. These include: the innovative delivery of in-service teacher training on targeted instruction and structured teaching; digitized data collection and accountability systems; strengthened school resourcing for learning; and enhanced school-based management and citizen engagement.
