1. The Challenges of Universal
Primary Education Policy in
Sub-Saharan Africa
by Mikiko Nishimura and Albert Byamugisha
(2011)
Instructor: Che-Wei Lee
ADMPS 3347 Comparative Education, Spring 2012
Thursdays, 12 January 2012, 7:15-9:55 pm
4301 Wesley W. Posvar Hall
University of Pittsburgh
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2. Learning Objects
O To understand Universal Primary Education
Policy
O To identify the common and unique Themes
from these case countries
O To analyze the pro and con factors for the
UPE policy
O To create your own interpretation and
further exploration for this topic
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3. Key Words and Concepts
O Universal Primary Education (UPE)
O Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA)
O Education for All (EFA)
O Fee Abolition
O Capitation Grant
O Free Primary Education (FPE)
O Gross Enrollment Rate (GRE)
O Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, and Uganda
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4. UPE Policy in Ghana
O Could you summarize the contents?
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5. UPE Policy in Malawi
O Could you summarize the contents?
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6. UPE Policy in Kenya
O Could you summarize the contents?
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7. UPE Policy in Uganda
O Could you summarize the contents?
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8. General Impact of UPE Policy
Common Themes
O Increased enrollments in all the four countries
O Overage/underage children flocked in to
schools (overcrowded classroom)
O Low teacher motivation
O Lack of funds (unable to ask parents for fees)
O Parental passive engagement in school
activities and decision-making
O High dropout rate
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9. General Impact of UPE Policy
Unique Themes
O Examination results declined after the
introduction of the UPE policy (Kenya)
O Increased repetition vs. decreased dropouts
(Kenya)
O Declined quality indicators of schools (Malawi)
O Parental cooperative attitude with schools
(Malawi)
O Quality of education depends on how parents’
support education (Malawi)
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10. Administrative Challenges
Common Themes (p. 234)
O Top-down policy implementation
O Unpreparedness of the system for changes
envisaged
O Contradictory scenarios between administration
and implementation of the policy
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11. Administrative Challenges
Unique Themes (p. 234)
O Local politicians’ interference (Uganda)
O District officials’ stronger responsibilities
than SMCs (Ghana)
O Low engagement of parents and mutual
mistrust with SMCs, teachers, &
communities (Kenya)
O Decentralization policies, power, district
councils
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12. Financial Challenges
Common Themes (p. 235)
O Capitation grant disbursement amounts hinge on the
availability rather than the need
O Insufficient amount of the capitation grants
O Delay in fund disbursement
O Late payments have negative effects on school
planning, schedules, & other activities
O Insufficient budget allocation negatively affect the
monitoring of schools
O Demands for regular monitoring of the quality of
education & the quality assurance system
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13. Financial Challenges
Unique Themes (p. 235)
O No capitation grant scheme in Malawi for more
than 10 years (Malawi)
O Education Budget goes toward teachers on
leave, teacher deaths, & transfer of teachers
(Malawi)
O Varied financing at the household, school, and
district levels (Uganda)
O Minimal district resources
O School finance relies on the capacity of the SMC
and parents’ contribution to schools
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14. Perceptive Issues
Positive Attitudes (p. 236)
O Four countries agreed upon the UPE policy
through democratic elections and a domestic
decision-making process.
O The majority of the stakeholders took UPE policy
seriously
O The UPE policy is greatly appreciated by parents
and community members for its equitable nature
of benefit to the poor.
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15. Perceptive Issues
Common Challenges (p. 236)
O Automatic promotion policy is contested by
all stakeholders at the district and school
levels.
O Uneven qualification of the students
O How to improve internal efficiency of
education in large classrooms without
sacrificing students learning
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16. Perceptive Issues
Unique Themes (pp. 236-37)
O A gap between what parents perceive and
what they actually do (Kenya and Uganda,
see table 12.2, p. 237)
O Generally parental negative and passive
attitudes in most schools based on the
observations
O The lack of financial and administrative
preparedness can lead to noncompliance of
the UPE policy
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17. Linkages among Factors
O Administrative and financial constraints have strong
links and mutual effects at both the district and school
levels.
O Limited resources and lack of administrative capacity
constrain the capacity of the schools to fully and
adequately implement UPE and maintain a high level of
school performance.
O The overall perception of parents and SMC members of
UPE was positive (Kenya, Uganda, and Ghana).
O There are no capitation grants to replace school fees,
stakeholder reactions varied indicating that they can
create positive/negative changes to the way school
perform (Malawi).
O No clear regional difference within these four countries
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18. Popular Policy, Responsibility Deficit?
O The sustainable popularity of UPE depends on the
support of strong commitment of stakeholders in the
implementation of the policy.
O From teachers and head teachers’ perception:
O Increasing passive attitudes among parents toward
participation in school activities and management.
O Most teachers from four case countries showed that
parents and community members interpret fee
abolition as a message from the government that the
government is in a position to take care of everything.
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19. Popular Policy, Responsibility Deficit?
O From parents and SMC members’
viewpoints:
O They value schooling for boys and girls as
important.
O The majority regard their contribution to
schools as important.
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20. Why is there such an evident gap?
O Key point: how parents perceive quality of
education under the UPE/FPE policy
O Most satisfaction on quality of education:
Ghana, Kenya, & Uganda (Except in Malawi)
O Malawi: Parental dissatisfaction and
disappointment with a UPE policy
implementation that was not accompanied
by additional public expenses to replace
withdrawn fees, which was the case for 13
years in Malawi.
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21. Why UPE/FPE policy fails?
Perspectives from the majority of education
administrators, teachers, and head teachers
O “Fee abolition policy is good but not well
implemented” (p. 239).
O Reasons: top-down manner without prior
consultation or preparation for
administrative and financial mechanisms.
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22. Why UPE/FPE policy fails?
A complex nature of parental reaction for the
UPE/FPE policy
O Some parents feared a decline in the quality of
education after the implementation of the FPE
policy in 2003 and transferred their children into
private schools (Kenya).
O Households at all asset levels followed the trend.
O The poorest children who were to be among
those who most benefited from the FPE policy
chose to attend private schools by paying school
fees.
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23. Two Critical Issues
O First: Substantial parental participation is
hard to obtain unless their perceptions are
clearly noted (p. 240).
O Second: Even if parents have some
perceptions on the quality of education,
their acts are not necessarily consistent with
their perceptions (p. 240).
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24. Findings
O Positive or passive attitudes of parents and community
members are rooted in a more complex phenomenon
than a mere equation of “not paying school fees equals
termination of their roles.”
O Top–down implementation and divisions among
stakeholders’ perceptions and their behaviors
O Lack of proper and wise consultation with stakeholders
O Lack of clear implementation process and
accompanying monitoring and evaluation of the
program’s overall impact
O Parental passive perceptions led to a responsibility
deficit of the local public
O Neglect of downward accountability
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25. Conclusion
O Widespread consultations with all stakeholders
as a key ingredient of effective education policy
implementation.
O How parents voice their opinions when fees are
no longer required is a key question to be
pursued in order to make UPE sustainable.
O A need for an effective system of monitoring and
tightening accountability of UPE policies and
implementation effectiveness
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26. Questions for Discussion
O As one of the insiders, how will you solve the
issues? Why or why not?
O As one of the outsiders, how will you provide
your effective assistance or suggestion? Why or
why not?
O Pick up some issues in which you are
interested.
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27. Reference
Nishimura, Mikiko, and Albert Byamugisha.
2011. “The Challenges of Universal Primary
Education Policy in Sub-Saharan Africa.” In
Policy Debates in Comparative, International,
and Development Education, edited by John N.
Hawkins and W. James Jacob, 225—45. New
York: Palgrave Macmillan.
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