NEPAL: AN CHALLENGE IN EDUCATION

Nepal faces large challenges in better educating its citizens:

Building capacity and local oversight of schools

Schools that have already devolved to community management have achieved improvements in overall educational attainment of students, increased accountability, and increased enrollment of students from disadvantaged groups such as dalits (lowest Hindu caste) and janajatis (indigenous groups). Community-managed schools also see involvement by a wider array of stakeholders, including parent-teacher associations, civil society, representatives of the local governments, and women’s groups.

- As of February 2008, 16 percent of public primary schools were community-managed compared to less than 1 percent in 2002. Similarly, public lower secondary schools and secondary schools are also being transferred to community management.

Increasing learning in public schools

This would also improve efficiency through higher completion rates and lower repetition rates.
- Only 38 percent of public school students passed the School Leaving Certificate Examinations in 2003, compared to 85 percent privately-schooled children.
- Just 24 percent of public school students who complete Grade 10 do so without having to repeat at least one grade.

Providing education opportunities to the poor

- Only 51 percent of children from the lowest income-quintile attend primary education, compared to 87 percent from the richest income-quintile.

The World Bank supports the Nepal Government in the education sector with the following projects:

Strengthening Community Management of Schools:

The Community School Support Project has helped to significantly improve primary school access for children from disadvantaged communities. The project supports the reform initiative of the Nepal Government by testing whether community management of schools contributes to higher participation rates and increased quality, efficiency, and accountability of schools. Community-managed schools are run by elected committees that are accountable to parents. Based upon a survey of 30 schools between 2004 and 2006, the results are:

- The share of out-of-school children of primary age decreased from 41 percent to 15 percent
- The share of out-of-school girls of primary age decreased from 42 percent to 15 percent
- The share of out-of-school dalit children decreased from 50 percent to 18 percent
- The share of out-of-school janajati children decreased from 44 percent to 15 percent

Increasing Access to Schools:

The objective of the Education for All Project is to improve primary school access, especially for girls and children from disadvantaged groups. The project supports construction of classrooms, scholarships to girls and disadvantaged groups to cover household costs of education, teacher training and certification, and expansion of adult literacy programs to poor and disadvantaged adults.

Improving Higher Education:

Through the Second Higher Education Project, the Bank assists the Government with improving the quality and relevance of higher education and research, and increasing access to higher education for academically qualified underprivileged students. Besides working to strengthen system capacity, the project provides reform grants and student financial assistance towards this end.