WB funding targets learning crisis in schools
The World Bank has approved $300 million in concessional financing to strengthen Bangladesh’s primary education system, improve classroom learning and enhance basic literacy and numeracy skills among 26 million children from pre-primary to Grade 5.
The World Bank Group’s Board of Executive Directors approved the financing on Friday under the Learning Enhancement and Acceleration in Primary Education Programme, according to a press release.
The programme aims to improve the quality of pre-primary and primary education, ensuring that children acquire essential reading, writing and mathematical skills appropriate to their grade levels.
It will also support the implementation of the government’s Fifth Primary Education Development Programme.
Despite achieving near-universal access to primary education, Bangladesh continues to face significant challenges in ensuring effective learning outcomes.
Around 50 per cent of 10-year-old children in the country cannot read and understand a simple, age-appropriate text.
The corresponding figures are 42 per cent in Malaysia and 47 per cent in Brazil, highlighting the gap in foundational learning.
“Quality primary education is one of the building blocks for a globally competitive workforce,” said Jean Pesme, World Bank Division Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan.
He said the World Bank Group had supported Bangladesh over the past two decades in bringing almost all children into the education system.
The latest financing, he added, would help children learn more effectively and remain in school, creating a stronger foundation for better employment opportunities in the future.
Bangladesh has one of the world’s largest primary education systems, with more than 20 million children enrolled in government schools, NGO-run institutions, kindergartens and madrasas.
Under the programme, a foundational literacy and numeracy package will be introduced, comprising teaching materials, structured lesson plans and training for teachers.
The initiative will also provide leadership training to headteachers in 90 per cent of government primary schools and strengthen school management systems.
“Strong foundational learning is a critical step towards the accumulation of skills for better jobs,” said Tashmina Rahman, World Bank Senior Education Specialist and Team Leader for the programme.
She said the programme would support remedial learning for children falling behind academically, with particular attention to districts facing the greatest educational challenges, to ensure that no child was left behind.
It will also seek to improve teacher and school leadership, ensure greater accountability in budget utilisation and strengthen the use of data in educational planning and decision-making.
The programme will provide training and other support to primary school teachers to improve the delivery of foundational literacy and numeracy lessons in government schools.
It is also expected to raise the quality of pre-primary education in government primary schools, enabling young children to develop stronger learning foundations and become better prepared for formal schooling.
The programme is envisaged to generate 843,000 additional and better-paid jobs in government primary schools.
The financing is being provided by the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank Group’s concessional financing arm for lower-income countries.
The IDA financing carries a maturity period of 25 years, including a five-year grace period.