1. Education Perspectives on Governance and Equity: Wrap-up Reflections on GEH Partners’ Conference by Kathryn TOURE, Regional Coordinator, Educational Research Network for West and Central Africa (ERNWACA) Governance, Equity and Health (GEH) Partners’ Conference: Focus on “Governance” at the interplay of health, equity and financing 25-30 April 2005 Saly-Pordugal, Senegal

2. GEH Conference participants (rough estimates) 100 participants (about) GEOGRAPHIC spread 64% = Africa (francophones/anglophones) 26% = North America and Europe (francophones/anglophones) 10% = several Latin American countries Georgia India Australia NOTE: 47% = from South Africa, Canada and Senegal INSTITUTIONAL representation 17% = IDRC GENDER breakdown men and women

3. OUTLINE 1. Education sector 2. Conference learnings. So what next? 3. Partnership evaluation working tool

4. Why EDUCATION (research)? Empowers individuals to make personal and social choices Foundation for nation - building, regional integration and development of democratic institutions Improves health Can contribute to sustained economic growth May have lessons for health sector (and vice versa)

5. Education sector in Africa in relation to GEH themes Governance (participatory policy development; implementation problems; parents, parent teacher associations, school management committees, and communities increasingly involved in school management; more public / private partnerships in response to state’s inability to respond to increased demand, mushrooming of community-run schools in rural areas) Quality and efficiency (hiv/aids impacting negatively on access and quality of education; grade repetition rates are 4x higher than the world average; academic years “lost” due to student and teacher unrest in response to system dysfunctions and/or national conflict) Human resources (significant teacher shortages; massive hiring of contractual teachers; vast teacher training needs) …

6. Education sector in Africa (cont.) Equity (in the 1990s, 38% increase in access to basic education in SSA though most countries in W/C Africa will not reach the 2015 goals for quality education for all; gender gap between boys and girls reduced though much progress needed to reach 2015 equity goals; growing inequity between rural/urban populations; richer get a bigger share of public expenditure on education; curriculum does not reflect the needs and aspirations of all groups within society) Corruption (around textbooks, sexual harassment of students, etc.) Power (in donor relations, negotiation capacity, etc.) Plurality (marginalization of traditional/informal education; focus on basic education to detriment of other sub-sectors) Financing (majority of state ed. budget goes toward teacher salaries; high level of dependency on donors for innovation, research and development; incapacity to absorb available finances; debates about whether primary education should be free or not)

7. Some education research trends in Africa Shift from focus on access to quality/pertinence/participation/equity issues Girls’ education: from barriers to promising strategies Teachers and teaching as “entry point” Beyond basic education Preventing hiv/aids and mitigating its impact on the education system Learn - by - doing “praxis” approach to identify/build on promising approaches Implementation matters

8. Who does education research in Africa? Ministries of education Bilaterals, multilaterals United Nations: UNICEF, UNESCO (including IIEP) Regional/African institutions: University students/professors, ERNWACA, ERNESA, SACHES, SAQMEC, PASEC/CONFEMEN, ADEA Working Groups, FASAF, CODESRIA, SchoolNet Africa Private firms EPSI/SADC, UEMOA

9. National-level actors Students and parents Teachers and school directors Education administrators Elected officials Teacher unions, parent teacher associations, etc. Learning institutions Ministries of Education, Research, Planning, Public Service/HR, Finance, Youth, etc.

10. Forums for dialogue / advocacy (beyond national) ECOWAS and SADC Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), www.adea - net.orgwww.adea net.org African Union (and NEPAD?) Forum for African Women Educators (FAWE) Education International (teacher union) Global Campaign for Education Global Education Forum UNICEF and UNGEI Network for Policy Review and Advice on Education and Training (NORRAG), www.norrag.orgwww.norrag.org

11. Questions for the group Would a health sector/research overview have enhanced the meeting? What about co - organization with African institution? Is GEH more than an IDRC program initiative?