Country Presentation for EFA MDA – Maldives 1 Dec 2006

Background Population: 300,000 Language: Dhivehi Religion: Islam No. of islands: 1200 Inhabited: 199 Schools: 337 Main Occupation: Tourism, Fisheries Capital: Male’

Education System Preschool 3-5 yrs Primary 6-12 yrs Lower Secondary Higher Secondary 16-18 yrs Tertiary Education Non-formal education

The EFA plan of action in the Maldives is congruent with EFA Action Plan The EFA plan of action in the Maldives is congruent with the national development priorities, the millennium development goals, vision 2020, the Sixth National Development Plan and the current education sector master plan.

Country Specific EFA goals The most important EFA objectives for the Maldives are: Inclusive education especially for children with special needs; Expanding and improving ECCE; Access to basic education; Continuing education for all; Equitable access to appropriate learning and life skills; and Enhancing the quality of education.

EFA National Committee An EFA national committee was established and inaugurated in March 2006. The purpose of this committee is to provide the necessary advice to the MOE, identify what each stakeholder can do, and revise the EFA national plan of action and get the plan endorsed.

We have achieved the goal of UPE. Primary Education We have achieved the goal of UPE. We have at least one primary school in each of the 199 inhabited islands. Currently we have three different special needs programs in three different primary schools in Male’. for mentally challenged children, for the hearing impaired and for the visually impaired.

Gender Parity Maldives has reached gender parity in both primary and secondary education. Government policies to encourage girls’ schooling, mothers’ education, and changes in societal perception have contributed to the Maldives achieving gender parity in education.

Early Childhood Care And Development The Maldives National ECCD Strategy is built on the principle that the healthy foundation of psychosocial, emotional and cognitive development must be laid in the early years of life. The objective of a current UNICEF-funded project is: to establish demonstration centres of good practice in early childhood care and development. These centres will be based on the principles of developmentally appropriate play-based learning

Early Childhood Care And Development Another project funded by UNICEF is ‘the quality learning environment in priority schools’ project The 22 Under Served Schools Project emerged in 2000 following a strategy document on Support for Under-served Schools “The 22 School Project” for the schools that are most disadvantaged due to their remoteness and small size have now been expanded to 105 schools

A life skills program is also being conducted by MOE / UNFPA. Non-Formal Education Special programs are conducted by the Centre for Continuing Education (CCE). A second chance for secondary school dropouts. A vocational program is also run by the CCE. A pilot project has been conducted this year to introduce a vocational stream. A life skills program is also being conducted by MOE / UNFPA. Life skills programs are also conducted for students of grade 10, grade 6, school leavers, and the youth.

Secondary Education With UPE achieved, the highest educational priorities currently for Maldives include the need for the expansion of secondary education. It is not possible to establish secondary schools where only few students live in a particular island. However, if lower secondary school is not available at an island government plans to provide assistance

Improving Quality in Education The main difficulty in improving the quality of the schools is the remoteness and the small size of a major number of schools in the country. Another major hindrance for quality education is the shortage of trained teachers. 40 percent of teachers are untrained, with heavy reliance on expatriate teachers

Administrative challenges A total of 337 schools are dispersed widely over 199 island communities, affecting supervision, distribution of education materials and professional development opportunities An increase in human resource capacity and administrative reform is essential

MDA Preparation For the MDA, firstly a Framework MDA Plan of Action which identifies the outputs of EFA in Maldives which have been or are proposed for action in 2006-2007, was prepared and approved. The Plan of ACTION includes 18 outputs, identifies the activities required to achieve these outputs, and indicates the timing, responsible agency, budget required and assistance needed to complete the activities.

The Framework MDA Plan of Action

The Assessment Process The EFA Assessment Task Force will: a) Prepare an assessment work plan; b) Mobilize technical working groups; c) Prepare a country assessment (draft); d) Finalize a country assessment for submission to the National Technical Committee; e) Prepare other documentation, such as advocacy modules, in support of EFA goal achievement

Assessment/Reporting The following stages will be followed: a) A full technical report with detailed data analyses; b) A narrative report stressing policy implications for the Cabinet, the Council of Ministers, the Parliament and the National Education Council; c) A summary version using non-technical language for the press, local school committees and the public; d) A report to the Regional Thematic Working Group on EFA for a sub-regional and regional synthesis report for the international community.

National Mid-decade Assessment - Key issues, opportunities and challenges

MDA Maldives Report Suggested Outline

Time line for MDA report Feb 2007 March 2007 May 2007 June 2007 Draft report Draft report for Minister’s comments Final evaluation Submission