1. 13th Regional Meeting of National EFA Coordinators Lessons from EFA Assessments & Reviews
Ko-Chih Tung, former Regional Advisor
Roshan Bajracharya, Assist. Program Officer
UIS-AIMS Asia-Pacific Regional Office, Bangkok
Devashish Dutta, UNICEF

2. Logframe for M&E of EFA2000 Goals & Targets
Measurable Indicators
Targets by 2000
Attained year xxx
Remaining gaps
Goal 1 ECCE
Goal 2 UPE
Goal 3 Youth Life skills
Goal 4 Adult Literacy
Goal 5
Gender Equality
Goal 6
Quality 2

3. Lessons of the EFA First Decade (Dakar 2000) Africa country assessments, others agencies Disparities in Access to Quality Education
… and lack of data and analysis on
Early Childhood Care and Education
Essential and life skills development
Literacy (3 R’s)
Quality and learning outcomes
The excluded: learners with disabilities & minorities
Demographic and household socio-economic data
Public/Govt education finance & expenditure
Private/household expenditure on education
Urban/rural and residential patterns
Geographical data for School Mapping 3

4. Institutionalize Dakar Follow-Up Strategy 11 EFA HLG Task Force 2002: Systematically monitor progress towards EFA goals and strategies at the national, regional and international levels.
EFA Global Monitoring Report (GMR)
Regional Bureaux on sub-regional and regional issues
National monitoring and assessment of national and sub-national issues for setting priorities, resource allocation, accountability between EFA partners;
Build capacity in statistics, policy-related analysis, monitoring, evaluation, and assessment of impact on all learners and targeted segments of the society.

5. 5

6. Lessons in Conceptual and Analytical framework, not simply head-count for Logframe stocktaking
Measurement and Analytical dimensions
Lifelong Development Phases
ECCE
UPE/ UBE
Youth skills & adult literacy
Quantity: “head-count” Logframe stocktaking
Quality: content & standards of inputs, T-L materials & process, outputs, outcomes
Equality and equity: variation/ disparities across target groups by normative criteria
Cost, budget and finance: resources to implement and sustain

7. Lessons in procedures, techniques and methodology embedded in technical guidelines, application toolkits and training programs
Technical Guidelines for EFA Assessment and Review
Systematic Monitoring of Education for All: training modules for Asia-Pacific
School Records Management System
Design and Analysis of Annual School Census
Indicators and data analysis
EMIS
Analysis of Household Survey, esp. out-of-school school-age population
Module for Survey of Household Literacy Environment and Behavior
Guidelines for Inclusion of Children with Disabilities
Measuring Educational Participation: Analysis of Data Quality and Methodology …
Handbooks, Manuals, etc. on the analysis of Gender and Social Inequality in Education
Multivariate analysis of disparities in access to quality education (to be developed)
MDG Good Practices

8. GATHERING INFORMATION Lessons in country level coordination of
Lessons in Evidence-based policy formulation
GATHERING INFORMATION
on indicators, policies & plans from
surveys, research documents, reports
ANALYSIS
of root causes &
their linkages
POLICY DECISION
on areas of
Education Reform
Lessons in country level coordination of
Joint UNCCA  UNDAF

9. Lessons in structure of country-level EFA coordination and resource sharing
Government
EFA MDA
Task Force 1.
ECCE 2.
UPE
/UBE
Youth 3.
Adult NFE 4.
Gender
equality 5.
Literacy
Quality 6.
education UN
Regional &
CT EFA TWG
UNESCO/UNICEF
Donors
EFA supporting
Donors Group
The World Bank
NGOs
Experts
Research
Institutes
Consultants

10. Lessons in Regional Ministerial Collaboration

11. Lessons in How to Do Things Together UNDP 2010 MDG Good Practices In the Asia and the Pacific region, EFA Reaching the Unreached
Assisted 29 countries to conduct sub-national, national, and sub-regional assessments
reviewed the progress & gaps in achieving EFA goals, MDGs 2 and 3.
Identified the unreached and marginalized groups & addressing the multiple levels of their exclusion.
Produced 29 national reports and sub-regional synthesis reports for
Central Asia,
Insular Southeast Asia,
Mekong, and
South Asia.
Facilitated planners and policy-makers to reach marginalized and under-served groups.
Widened the coverage of monitoring and evaluation, using and analyzing more indicators.

12. 7th meeting of the Global Working Group on EFA, 19-21 July 2006
Review and Stocktaking of EFA Progress (RASEP)
A framework to support national capacity building
Give coherence to the monitoring activities at different levels
Provide complementary data to GMR under the Global Action Plan to Achieve the EFA Goals (GAP)
Reference for the operationalization of the GAP for
Country plans for achievement of EFA goals
Partners to better align their programme interventions (UNCA/UNDAF)
7th meeting of the Global Working Group on EFA Global Action, July 2006, Proposed the Review and Stocktaking of EFA Progress (RASEP)
A framework to support national capacity building
Give coherence to the monitoring activities undertaken at different levels
Provide complementary data to the annual GMR under the framework of the Global Action Plan to Achieve the EFA Goals (GAP)
Reference for the operationalization of the GAP for
country plans for achievement of EFA goals
partners to better align their programme interventions (UNCA/UNDAF)
However, due to change of leadership both at UNESCO Education sector and the UIS, there was a discontinuity in the follow-up.
Now re-incarnated for EFA 2015 12

13. The First and the last Lesson
“Remember this,
the bottom line for success or failure
in this line of business is …”
“the enhanced capacity of the participants themselves to lead and manage their own development. Has there been any significant change?
Show me the results!”

14. Evaluation of Asia-Pacific MDA process “Bangkok model” or the “Asian model”
Conducted by MARTINJENKINS in 2010
Developing national capacity in
statistics, indicators and policy analysis
M&E and Assessment
Country-led MDA and Policy Review Process
How MDA Process helped
Problem-solving approach
Analyzing disparities, locating “unreached” groups, identifying obstacles, bottlenecks
Supported by
On-the-job training ( workshop), Technical Support Groups organized by the regional TWG

15. Independent evaluation findings
Overwhelming support for the EFA MDA process from countries – increased relevance of EFA
Described as hugely relevant, beneficial, invaluable, important and effective process
30 countries completed MDA and 23 coutnries published a report;.
Many countries made strategic and/or operational policy changes as a result of the MDA findings
Thematic focus on reaching the unreached huge impact on getting countries to think about the marginalised groups
‘ It shifted the emphasis from pride on enrolment rate to concern for those not enrolled’
Efficient as it built on existing data structures
Flexible as it allowed countries to develop structure for analysis – Nepal added a 7 thematic group on language; India did thematic reports around 6 goals plus some 15 15

16. Key achievements - MDA
Provided a framework and structure for data collection and monitoring against EFA
MDA an instrument of change– built capacity of people and systems
Partnership between UNESCO and UNICEF and other EFA partners to create a movement around EFA MDA
It was not seen as a one-off assessment as most countries had initiated subsequent assessments on their own initiative – Uzbekistan, India, China, Indonesia, Cambodia 16

17. Key challenges at the national level
Political challenges surrounding disaggregation and definitions
Data collection (goals 1, 3 and 6 very challenging, gaps, inconsistencies, access to data)
Data analysis (definitions, complex indicators, variable capability)
Inter-Ministry coordination (politics; logistics; getting buy-in to EFA)
Need for greater involvement of planners and policy advisers to identify policy implications and ensure findings inform policy
Capacity:
Skills and knowledge
Limited financial and human resources
Workload (same individuals involved in most national initiatives)
Staff turnover
Sustaining engagement and commitment of those involved – most worked as volunteers; over and above their regular work; tension between political and professional commitment of members
Gaps - ‘unreached’ groups; goals 1,4 and 6 particularly challenging
Inconsistencies - administrative data and household data; national and sub-national level data
Access - held by different agencies

18. Lessons learnt for end of 2015
Inclusion/involvement of National Statistics office early on in the process
Focus on ownership, quality and accuracy
Training modules for provincial and state level
Increased support for interpretation and policy analysis
Countries at different phases of development with different needs and different levels of capacity – creates need for tailored training
Success at policy level requires engagement at Ministerial level forums – SEAMEO, Pacific Leaders Forum
Process for ‘end-of-EFA’ needs to start very soon, particularly for countries that did not complete the MDA – the time involved is significant

19. Technical Modules and Training Programmes Capacity building modules for EFA 2015 Assessment
Technical Guidelines for EFA Assessment and Review
Systematic Monitoring of Education for All: training modules for Asia-Pacific
School Records Management System
Design and Analysis of Annual School Census
Indicators and data analysis
EMIS
Analysis of Household Survey, esp. out-of-school school-age population
Module for Survey of Household Literacy Environment and Behavior
Guidelines for Inclusion of Children with Disabilities
Measuring Educational Participation: Analysis of Data Quality and Methodology …
Handbooks, Manuals, etc. on the analysis of Gender and Social Inequality in Education
Multivariate analysis of disparities in access to quality education (to be developed)
MDG Good Practices

20. Preparation of EFA End-of-Decade Notes: Processes and Lesson Learned

21. Why End of Decade Notes ?
EFA Mid Decade Assessment ( EFA-MDA) :
Evaluation of MDA process was still ongoing.
Opportunity to take stock and document achievements and challenges in EFA by end of the Decade

22. EFA EDN was conducted to
Maintain momentum, energy and interest in EFA and the themes of “Reaching the Unreached in Education” and “EFA with Equity” as we approach 2015.
Serve as an end-decade review
Point the way to meeting EFA by 2015 by highlighting disparities in education and their causes, and identifying strategic directions to achieve EFA and MDGs with equity.
Serve as foundation for end-of-EFA (2015) assessment report(s)
Agency Driven
Based on existing data/information
Regional Picture

23. The initiative…
11th EFA Coordinator’s meeting discussed contents and helped to shape the EDNs and 12th EFA Coordinator’s meeting to review the reports
Countries were encouraged to provide their inputs: Regional, sub-regional and national civil societies/NGOs were consulted through regional, sub regional and national networks. However, unlike EFA MDA, EFA Country Reports were note considered mandatory but optional
EFA coordinators’ meeting and other regional and sub-regional workshop, forums have been used to increase participation of concerned experts, practitioners, government and non governmental officers in the process

24. Partners and Their Roles at different levels
Lead and coordination
UNICEF
Resources
UNESCO Bangkok
Internationally comparable data
UIS-Bangkok
TWG members
Information, data, case studies, relevant studies etc.
Members (Advising, Consulting and
Disseminating)
Other partners/civil societies
Regional/sub regional goal specific networks
Country cases/ Reports ( EFA coordinator’s meeting)
Countries
Experts/practitioners

25. Lessons learned
Important information, experiences from countries have been missed out as there was no proper consultation with countries.
Civil Societies/NGOs role is crucial for getting balanced information and data – both at national and regional level
Need to encourage countries to systematize data/information for each of the Goals in a balanced way. (Not enough data and information for Goals 3, 4,and 6)
UIS data is very useful for the regional, sub-regional and country comparison. But for sub-national data for analysis of disparity and equity, EMIS and household surveys could be a better source.
Country driven processes for upcoming Review of EFA for 2015 are essential to ensure country progress, achievements, issues and lessons learned are well presented
Partnership among the agencies especially UNESCO, UNICEF and UIS and others (e.g., NGOs, Networks) under the EFA TWG was crucial in successfully completing EFA-End Decade Notes - and should be continued for EFA 2015 Review.