Enhancing Aid Effectiveness through Education SWAp in Cambodia

1
Enhancing Aid Effectiveness through Education
SWAp in Cambodia

• H.E. Nath Bunroeun
• Secretary of State, Ministry of Education, Youth
  and Sport
  
• Royal Government of Cambodia Richard
  BridleChair of Education Sector Working Group
  
• and Representative of UNICEF Cambodia
• FTI Partnership MeetingCopenhagen, Denmark
• 20-21 April 2009

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Educational Context

• Civil conflicts in the 1970s resulted in complete
  destruction of education system
  
• Emergency relief and rehabilitation of
  educational services in the 1980s and early 1990s
  
  
• More systematic development of the education
  sector began in the late 1990s
  
• Over the past decade Cambodia has achieved
  remarkable expansion of educational services

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Key Achievements (1)

• Consistent progress in childrens access to
  school with a narrowing gender gap
  

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Key Achievements (2)

• Inequality between rich and poor decreasing
  Poorest quintile achieved the largest enrolment
  gain
  

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Key Achievements (3)

• Significant increases in the education sector
  budget
  

Education Budget Amount
Education Budget Share
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Remaining Challenges (1)

• Significant geographical disparities in student
  enrollment
  

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Remaining Challenges (2)

• Low survival rate in basic education

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Remaining Challenges (3)

• Low mastery level of curriculum - Grade 3
  students achieve only 40 in standardised
  achievement tests
  

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Brief History of SWAp in Cambodia

• Different studies and events that took place in
  1999 and 2000 provided impetus for the
  development of a programmatic approach to
  education reform
• Social Sector Working Group Report in 1999
• EFA Country Assessment 2000 Report in 2000
• EFA World Education Forum in Dakar in 2000
• SWAp seminars in the education sector in Cambodia
  in 2000
  
• In the CG meetings in 2000, a shift from
  donor-ship to Government-led ownership and
  partnership was emphasized and the advancement of
  sector-wide approaches was proposed

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Key Instruments and Mechanisms of Education SWAp
(1)

• Education Strategic Plan (ESP) sets out MoEYS
  overall policy framework and direction for
  education reform for the next 5 years.
  
• Education Sector Support Programme (ESSP) defines
  specific programmes and budget to achieve the
  objectives set out in ESP
  
• Education Sector Working Group (ESWG) a formal
  mechanism for donor coordination and
  harmonisation composed of 13 DPs and NEP
  representatives
• NGO Education Partnership (NEP) - an umbrella
  organization representing more than 70 NGOs and
  CSOs working in education
  

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Key Instruments and Mechanisms of Education SWAp
(2)

• Joint Technical Working Group on Education
  (JTWG-Ed) - a forum for regular policy dialogues
  and coordination between the government and
  DPs/NGOs
• Joint Annual Sector Review / Education Congress
  an annual event where sector performance assessed
  and future priority actions identified
  
• Annual Operational Plan (AOP) translates
  medium-term policies and strategies into annual
  actions and targets specifying all funding
  sources (government, DPs/NGOs)
• Aid Effectiveness Adviser a TA position jointly
  funded by multiple DPs to assist MoEYS and ESWG
  in translating AE agendas into concrete actions
  

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Ownership (1)

• Key Achievements
• MoEYS demonstrating increasing ownership and
  leadership in sector reform
  
• Joint annual sector reviews owned and initiated
  by the MoEYS
  
• Second cycle of ESP and ESSP (2006-2010)
  developed under MoEYS leadership
  
• ESP and ESSP used by most DPs as principal frame
  of reference for their support to the education
  sector
  
• MoEYS has effectively led dialogues between the
  government and DPs/NGOs through JTWG-Ed
  

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Ownership (2)

• Remaining Challenges
• ESP and ESSP contain too many priorities
• ESP/ESSP financial plans are overly ambitious and
  not practical as a budget framework
  
• ESP/ESSP lack thorough analysis of financial
  requirements and funding gaps
  
• ESP/ESSP not sufficiently internalised and used
  by MoEYS technical departments and by
  sub-national education offices
  
• JTWG-Ed need further strengthening as policy
  dialogue forum
  

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Alignment (1)

• Key Achievements
• Most DPs assistance has aligned with ESP/ESSP
  frameworks
  
• Two major donors (ADB and EC) have provided
  direct budget support
  
• Several DPs have used the governments
  procurement system and procedures
  
• Multiple DPs have used common approaches and
  instruments based on MoEYS policies and action
  plans (e.g. Child-friendly School Initiatives)
  
• FTI joint mission conducted in conjunction with
  the joint annual sector review (Education
  Congress) in 2009
  

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Alignment (2)

• Remaining Challenges
• Dominant mode of development assistance still
  through project funding
  
• FTI-ESSSUAP opted for a project funding modality
• Most DPs still rely on separate reviews and
  reports for individual projects/programmes.
  
• Each project/programme prepares separate work
  plans using different formats and procedures.
  
• Multiple PIUs exist in education sector and no
  downward trend observed in their use
  

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Harmonisation (1)

• Key Achievements
• Increasing efforts made in enhancing
  harmonisation and coordination among DPs
  interventions
  
• ADB and World Bank have used MoEF Standard
  Operating Procedures for project management
  
• Four UN agencies have adopted a harmonised
  approach to cash transfer
  
• Sida supporting education sector as a silent
  partner by channeling funds through UNICEF
  
• Joint support to MoEYS priority programmes e.g.
  Child-friendly School Initiative, Life skills for
  HIV/AIDS etc.
  
• Preparation of joint funding to Aid Effectiveness
  Adviser position underway

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Harmonisation (2)

• Remaining Challenges
• One of the most fragmented sectors - formidable
  coordination challenge
  
• 22 DPs and over 80 NGOs active in the sector
  supporting some 350 discrete projects/programmes
  
  
• No real division of labour among DPs by
  sub-sector or ESP/ESSP component only EU
  (Commission and Member States) have started to
  organise DoL
• Major co-financing schemes yet to be developed
• Coordination of capacity development support
  remains a significant challenge
  
• Over 400 person-months of TA in 2008 no
  downward trend observed over the past three years

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Managing for Results (1)

• Key Achievements
• Comprehensive ME framework established in
  ESP/ESSP Policy Action Matrix and Sector
  Performance Milestones and Targets
  
• Robust Education Management Information System
  established
  
• Joint annual sector review / Education Congress
  institutionalized
  
• Joint Monitoring Indicators (JMIs) and Aid
  Effectiveness Priority Actions agreed for
  2009/2010 through JTWG-Ed

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Managing for Results (2)

• Remaining Challenges
• Vast majority of DPs continue to conduct their
  own independent monitoring and studies to
  supplement MoEYS monitoring systems
  
• Content, process and outcomes of Education
  Congress need further improvement for more
  analytical sector review
  
• Reliability and timeliness of EMIS data and its
  linkage with other information systems need
  further improvement
  
• Evidence-based policy formulation still weak
• Insufficient data/information on educational
  quality (e.g. learning outcomes and teaching
  practice)

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Mutual Accountability (1)

• Key Achievements
• Government and DPs/NGOs consultation mechanism
  well established through JTWG-Ed
  
• Joint annual sector review / Education Congress
  institutionalized
  
• Comprehensive AOP developed in 2009 incorporating
  both government and DP annual budget in a single
  plan
  
• CDC ODA database updates information on
  projection and disbursement of DP support to
  education sector

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Assessment of AE in Education in Cambodia -
Mutual Accountability (2)

• Remaining Challenges
• JTWG-Ed need further strengthening as policy
  dialogue forum
  
• Participation of sub-national levels still
  limited in joint annual reviews
  
• AOP preparation process need to be synchronised
  with the governments regular budget planning
  process
  
• Accuracy and timeliness of ODA database data need
  further improvement
  
• Currently NGO data not captured in ODA database
• Global economic crisis posing threat to meeting
  education related MDGs and predictability of
  future financing

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Future Directions

• Stronger Ownership through improved quality of
  sector policy/programme frameworks
  
• Greater Alignment through strengthening national
  planning, budgeting, auditing, procurement,
  monitoring and reporting systems
  
• Greater Harmonisation among DPs through
  multi-donor joint funding and programming and
  coordinated capacity development support
  
• Stronger Management for Results through more
  analytical joint sector reviews and
  evidence-based policy formulation
  
• Stronger Mutual Accountability through improved
  information flow on government budget and
  external assistance
  

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Priority Actions for 2009/2010 (1)

• Upgrade and update ESP/ESSP for 2011-2015 through
  prioritisation of strategies with more robust
  financing plan
  
• Explore effective means among development
  partners and with MoEYS to reduce aid
  fragmentation in the sector based on new
  ESP/ESSP
• Strengthen joint annual review so that it will
  function as a primary monitoring and reporting
  requirement for all DPs
  
• Prepare comprehensive, realistic and
  results-based AOP in synchronisation with
  governments budget planning process
  

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Priority Actions for 2009/2010 (2)

• Strengthen MoEYS financial management capacity
  for greater use of national systems by DPs
  
• Develop harmonised financial arrangements among
  DPs through joint funding modalities
  
• Develop medium-term capacity development
  strategies for more coordinated capacity
  development support including technical
  cooperation
• Develop joint cooperation mechanisms at
  sub-national levels based on MoEYS
  decentralisation and deconcentration policy and
  strategies

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FTI Contributions to Aid Effectiveness (1)

• Harmonised financing through global multi-donor
  pooled funds
  
• Appraisal, endorsement and programme preparation
  of FTI made through genuine joint efforts among
  DPs and MoEYS
  
• FTI-ESSSUAP fully aligned with ESP/ESSP and all
  planned activities incorporated in AOP
  
• Joint FTI monitoring mission partially aligned
  with Education Congress in 2009
  

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FTI Contributions to Aid Effectiveness (2)

• FTI-ESSSUAP uses existing Programme Management
  Committee (PMC) to oversee programme
  implementation no parallel PIU established
  
• FTI-ESSSUAP supports strengthening of MoEYS
  financial management capacity as part of PFMR
  
• FTI-ESSSUAP supports development and
  implementation of harmonised performance
  incentive scheme
  

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FTI Implementation Challenges

• Tight timeframe particularly for school
  construction component (60 of total grant)
  
• Slow and complex work procedures (e.g. ICB and
  IPA) have affected overall programme
  implementation progress
  
• FTI joint monitoring not fully aligned with
  annual sector review transaction costs high as
  both require substantial time for preparation
  
• PMC need further strengthening to undertake more
  efficient and effective management of ESSSUAP
  implementation
  

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