people and planet

20
new module on equity and inclusion (World Bank, 2013c;
2016c). But neither has been tested extensively at the
country level. Benchmarking and other mechanisms are
needed to assess and compare efforts between countries.
For the purpose of this report, a framework with five
main questions was used as a basis for assessing the
extent to which education financing policies in 10
countries 1 compensated for disadvantage in education
(Table 20.3). The answers were based on analysis of
secondary data on laws, policies and programmes
relating to coverage, targeting and other areas
(Makarova, 2016).
A common finding was that provision of policies and
programmes addressing disadvantage in education was
not integrated. Although some countries had made an
effort to link social and education support programmes,
none had an integrated policy document providing
information on all available mechanisms targeting
disadvantage in education.
While all countries in the sample had made an explicit
general commitment in laws and strategies to address
disadvantage in education, fewer had detailed policies
and regulations, such as the decree on the normative
cost per student and the standard voucher in Georgia,
and the regulation on calculation of the education
subvention in Poland.
All 10 countries had adopted at least one policy or
programme to provide special funding to disadvantaged
students and schools. Diverse interventions aimed
to improve demand for education, including social
protection programmes, such as conditional cash
transfers (e.g. PKH in Indonesia, PATH in Jamaica,
Juntos in Peru), school meals, scholarships (e.g. the
BSM Scholarship programme in Indonesia and the
National Scholarship Program in Poland), disability
benefits (e.g. in Sri Lanka), universal and targeted child
benefit programmes (e.g. in the Netherlands) and full
or partial subsidies for school supplies, transport and
boarding (e.g. in Morocco) (Box 20.2).
To improve the supply of education, formula funding
was used to provide additional resources for students
with special education needs (e.g. in Jamaica and the
Netherlands) and to cover higher operating costs of small
and remote schools (e.g. in Georgia and Sri Lanka). There
are inclusive education programmes, special training for
teachers in disadvantaged schools, school rehabilitation,
and education programmes targeting specific groups
TABLE 20.3:
A framework to assess country commitment to equity through financing
Question
1 Is the legal framework explicit on the obligation of the government to address disadvantage in
education?
2 a. Is the provision of universal and free pre-primary, primary and secondary education a directive
principle of state policy?
b. In the case of payments that can have a detrimental impact on the education opportunity of
disadvantaged children, does the government offer waivers?
3 a. Are there policies to provide more resources to students from disadvantaged households?
b. …and if so what share of total public education and/or social protection spending is being
reallocated…
c. .…and what percentage of the student population does it reach?
d. How are targeting decisions made...
e. ...and is the success of targeting monitored and evaluated?
4 a. Are there policies to provide more resources to disadvantaged schools?
b. .…and if so what share of total public education spending is being reallocated
c. .…and what percentage of schools does it reach?
d. How are targeting decisions made…
e. ...and is the success of targeting monitored and evaluated?
Elaboration
The commitment would be considered strong if the needs of several disadvantaged groups were addressed
through laws, as well as specific regulations on school funding.
The commitment would range from minimum when fees exist in pre-primary, primary and secondary
education to maximum if there is free universal education at each level.
The commitment would be highest if there were waivers or other mechanisms to compensate for costs such
as textbooks, school transport or uniforms.
The commitment would be strong if there were policies that provided resources to students from
disadvantaged households, such as cash transfers, grants, scholarships and in-kind incentives such as
school meals.
i.e. what is the depth of the intervention
i.e. what is the coverage of the intervention
i.e. is there any targeting, are criteria clear and can records be checked
i.e. does the country have a well-developed M&E system analysing beneficiaries and feeding into policy
The commitment would be strong if schools that are disadvantaged due to their student intake, size or
location get extra resources to compensate for their higher costs, through weighted per-pupil funding rules.
i.e. what is the depth of the intervention
i.e. what is the coverage of the intervention
i.e. is there any targeting, are criteria clear and can records be checked
i.e. does the country have a well-developed M&E system analysing beneficiaries and feeding into policy
5 Are there policies to provide more resources to disadvantaged regions? The commitment would be strong if decentralization of education responsibilities to lower tiers of
government were accompanied by additional financial support to regions whose relatively fewer resources
put them at a disadvantage.
Source: Makarova (2016).
2016 • GLOBAL EDUCATION MONITORING REPORT 351