1

EN This action is funded by the European Union

ANNEX

of the Commission Implementing Decision on the Annual Action Programme 2017 part 2 and 2018

part 1 in favour of Bangladesh

Action Document for the Human Capital Development Programme for Bangladesh 2021

(HCDP 21)

1. Title/basic act/ CRIS

number

Human Capital Development Programme for Bangladesh 2021 (HCDP 21)

ACA/2017/39656 and ACA/2018/040-643 financed under Development

Cooperation Instrument

2. Zone benefiting from the

action/ location

Asia, Bangladesh

The action shall be carried out at the following location: Bangladesh

(nationwide)

3. Programming document EU Multi-Annual Indicative Programme (MIP) for Bangladesh 2014-2020

4. Sector of concentration/

thematic area

Priority sector 3: Education and

Skills Development

DEV. Aid: YES1

5. Amounts concerned Total estimated cost: EUR 205 500 0002

Total amount of EU budget contribution EUR 205 500 000 of which:

EUR 200 000 000 for Budget Support

EUR 5 500 000 for Complementary Support

The contribution is for an amount of EUR 163 996 502 from the general

budget of the Union for 2017 and for an amount of EUR 41 503 498 from

the general budget of the Union for 2018, subject to the availability of

appropriations following the adoption of the relevant budget.

6. Aid modality(ies) and

implementation

modality(ies)

Budget Support

Direct Management – Budget support: Sector Reform Contract

Direct Management – Procurement of services

7.a) DAC code(s) 11110 Education policy and administrative management

11220 Primary education

11330 Vocational training

1 ODA is administered with the promotion of the economic development and welfare of developing countries as its main

objective. 2 This is the EU's contribution only. The total estimated cost for Primary Education will consist of the Government and

other development partners' contributions for PEDP 4 (amount only indicative at this stage). The finance plan for

PEDP4 foresees a total amount of 15,1 bn USD which is financed to 86,1% from Government of Bangladesh

(Minsitry of Primary and Mass Education), 10,6 % from all donors (loans and grants) and with a financing gap of

3,3%. TVET expenditure under Ministry of Education's Mid-Term Expenditure Framework for the period 2018-2021

adds-up to an estimated USD 1 billion. The donor contributions are estimated to be about 15 to 17 %.

2

b) Main Delivery Channel 10000 Public sector institutions

8. Markers (from CRIS DAC

form) General policy objective Not

targeted

Significa

nt

objective

Main

objective

Participation development/good

governance ☐ ☐

Aid to environment ☐ ☐

Gender equality (incl. women in

development) ☐ ☐

Trade development ☐ ☐

Reproductive, maternal, new born and

child health ☐ ☐

RIO Convention markers Not

targeted

Significa

nt

objective

Main

objective

Biological diversity ☐ ☐

Combat desertification ☐ ☐

Climate change mitigation ☐ ☐

Climate change adaptation ☐ ☐

9. Global Public Goods and

Challenges thematic flagships

There is no GPGC thematic flagship programme to which this action

contributes.

10. SDGs Main Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): SDG 4 on Quality Education

Secondary SDGs): SDG 5 on Gender Equality, SDG 8 on Decent Work and

Economic Growth, and SDG 10 on Reduced Inequalities.

SUMMARY

The Perspective Plan 2010-20213 of the Government of Bangladesh sets-out a comprehensive

roadmap to translate into reality the country's transition from a, Least Developed Country to a

Middle Income Country by 2021, with the basic needs of the population ensured and their basic

rights respected by that target date. Despite notable progress in human development and poverty

reduction in the last decade, underpinned by high economic growth, the country still faces important

challenges to achieve inclusive and equitable socio-economic development.

Education and skills development are key drivers for growth in productivity, income and

employment opportunities. As such, they remain important parts of the EU's cooperation in

Bangladesh. The EU has been providing budget support in primary education since 2012 and seeks to

continue to actively support the sector with the Human Capital Development Programme for

Bangladesh 2021 (HCDP 21). Building on national policies, the programme will support the

Government of Bangladesh to implement essential reforms on quality, access and governance with

the objective to achieve a better educated, trained and qualified human capital which responds to

labour market needs at national and global levels.

The programme targets education as focal sector4 and focuses on two specific sub-sectors: primary

education (including pre-primary education) and Technical Vocational Education and Training

3 Perspective Plan of Bangladesh 2010-2021: making Vision 2021 a reality, GED, Planning Commission, April 2012 4 Encompassing pre-primary, primary and lower secondary education (currently including grades 6-8), TVET and skills

development and non-formal education (which continues to be very large despite the Government of Bangladesh's

policy of extending public basic education to all)

3

(TVET). It will add value by extending current budget support in primary education5 to TVET under

one single operation with an overall allocation of EUR 200 million complemented with capacity

development (EUR 5 million). Through the programme, the EU will give greater prominence to

policy dialogue, institutional capacity building and joint performance assessment to support policy

reform of shared interest, while ensuring full ownership and sustainability of these reforms. In terms

of impact, the programme will focus on improving policy frameworks, equitable access, quality and

governance of primary education and TVET services. The programme will place emphasis on the

addressing out-of-school children, reduction of regional disparities (notably in Chittagong Hill

Tracts) and other cross-sector interventions such as migration (skilling of out-going and returning

migrants) and the prevention of radicalisation. It will also encourage the Government of Bangladesh

to continue to strengthen governance and PFM systems at sector level, as well as increase budget

oversight and transparency.

To complement the budget support, additional technical assistance will be provided to strengthen

policy development and institutional capacities in the subsectors (with a focus on governance, e.g.

planning and budgeting, sector public financial management, monitoring and evaluation).

1 CONTEXT

1.1 Sector/Country/Regional context/Thematic area

Bangladesh has made commendable progress over the past decades in human development, poverty

reduction and economic growth. GNI per capita has grown tenfold from around USD 100 in 1972 to

USD 1,314 (current prices) in 2015. GDP grew well above the average for developing countries in

recent years, averaging 6.2% since 2010 and GDP growth is expected to further rise in 2017/18.

Notable progress was also recorded in human development indicators with improved health

outcomes, slowing population growth, near universal access to primary education and gender equity

at the primary and secondary education levels. Poverty rates have steady improved with the

percentage of Bangladeshis living in poverty dropping from 49% in 2000 to nearly 25% in 2015.

Despite this progress, the country still faces significant challenges to realise its goals of attaining a

middle-income status by 2021. With nearly 20 million people still living in extreme poverty,

Bangladesh remains one of the poorest countries in South Asia, with constrained public services and

comparatively weak institutions. The country also continues to face challenges in governance and

institutional capacity: rankings in global governance and corruption-related indices6 have seen little

improvements in the last decade, with overall weak revenue collection and public financial

management impeding the country from reaping the benefits of its full potential growth. The main

challenge facing Bangladesh as an aspiring middle-income country is to tap into its demographic

dividend and create more and higher-productivity jobs that contribute significantly to growth and

poverty reduction.

Bangladesh's education system is one of the largest in the world with some 150,000 institutions

catering to about 40 million students and a million teachers. Primary and secondary level

institutions7

form the bulk of the system with around 19 million students in primary education

(including madrasas recognized by the Government of Bangladesh and non-formal programmes).

The sector is complex, encompassing various subsectors (pre-primary, primary, secondary and

5 ACA/2011/22542: Primary Education Development Programme 3 (PEDP3) 6 http://info.worldbank.org/governance/wgi/index.aspx#home and

https://www.transparency.org/news/feature/corruption_perceptions_index_2016 7 Primary education is pre-primary to grade 5 years cycle, while secondary education is a 7-year one with three sub-

stages: 3 years of junior secondary (grade 6-8), 2 years of secondary (grade 9-10) and 2 years of higher secondary

(grade 11-12).

4

tertiary, TVET, non-formal education) and providers (public, private and NGO using formal and non-

formal channels to deliver education in schools, madrasas and community centres).

The primary gross enrolment rate (GER) in 2015 reached 109.2% (up from 108.6% in 2014) while

the net enrolment rate (NER) for the same period was calculated to be 97.9% (up from 97.3% in

2014)8. Enrolment in pre-primary was 2,864,877 in 2015 (compared to 1,222,597 in 2010)

9. The

primary education cycle completion rate has risen from 60.2% in 2010 to 79.6% in 2015 and the

primary education cycle dropout rate has fallen steadily over the last few years to 20.4% in 201510

.

Despite significant success in achieving almost 100% enrolment rate in the primary education

subsector (including pre-primary and grades 1-5), an estimated 2.5 million11

to 4 million12

primary-

age children still remain out of school, with 21% of primary school children drop-out before

completion. The subsector has over 122,000 schools (out of which 52% are public) with nearly

527,800 teachers (60% females). The lower secondary education subsector (grades 6-8) consists of

nearly 10 million students, around 22,500 schools (mostly private) and 263,000 teachers. Non-formal

education is well extended, comprising of literacy and post-literacy and continuing education for

children, adolescents, youth and adults. More than 1.9 million students of primary school age are

supported by around 700 NGO and are enrolled in non-formal primary schools. As regard to gender

equality, Bangladesh has improved school enrolment with spectacular success in the past 25 years,

and today, girls are more likely to go to school than boys. However, the risk of dropping out of

school remains considerable. The World Bank estimates that 32% of the boys and 24% of the girls

who went to primary school in 2010 had stopped going to (secondary) school by 2014. The risk of

dropping out reportedly increases with the girls’ age.

The country's labour force is growing by 3.1% per year and 21 million people are expected to enter

the working age population over the next decade. Catering to age group 14-18 years, TVET is offered

to around 873,000 students (24% females)13

through nearly 6,000 institutions (of which 96% are

private) with around 31,000 instructors (20% females). TVET is comprised of non-formal short

courses (less than 360 hours) and three levels of formal TVET, two secondary certificate levels and

post-secondary diploma or degrees courses. Formal TVET runs parallel to the academic programs

from grade 8 until 12 and continues in post-secondary education. Enrolment rates in TVET

institutions remain low at 13% of the total number of secondary-level enrolled students14

. The TVET

training system is broadly recognized as supply driven, underequipped and under-resourced. Most

notably, it does not provide the skills required by the labour market. Employability of TVET

graduates also remains low. Against this background, the need for linkages between education, skills

development and the labour market remains of central focus.

Challenges also persist across the subsectors with regards ensuring geographical access and reaching

marginalised groups. A comprehensive approach covering the education sector to overcome

fragmentation across subsectors is also lacking.

1.1.1 Public Policy Assessment and EU Policy Framework

8 ASPR report, 2016 9 2015 data is taken from ASPR 2016 report, while 2014 data from ASPR 2015 report) 10 ASPR report, 2016 11 Implementation Plan for Piloting Second Chance Education Models under PEDP 3. Dhaka: Second Chance and

Alternative Education Division, Directorate of Primary Education, Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, 2015 12 Global Initiative on out-of-school children: South Asia Regional Study covering Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri

Lanka. UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia, UNICEF, 2014. 13 Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information and Statistics (BANBEIS), 2016 14 Bangladesh Technical Education Board (BTEB) figures (BANBEIS, 2014). According to MoE, this figure is now

closer to 15%.

5

The development agenda of the Government of Bangladesh underlines commitment to maintain

macroeconomic stability, promote human development (with a focus on education and skills) and

strengthen institutions as essential foundations for sustained growth.

Key development policies include the Perspective Plan of Bangladesh 2010-2021 (Vision 21) and the

7th

Five Year Plan 2016-2020 (7FYP). The Vision 21 prioritizes education and skills development to

upskill the labour force in tandem with the promotion and sustainability of key services including

formal education, social welfare, health and nutrition. Recognising the integral role of human

development, Bangladesh has adopted a number of policies and programs towards that aim. Although

there is no separate policy for primary education, the Compulsory Primary Education Act (1990) and

the National Education Policy (2010) govern the primary education system. The Government of

Bangladesh's current education vision is articulated in the National Education Policy (NEP) 2010 and

serves as the primary policy document providing strategic guidance for development and

strengthening of education in Bangladesh. The NEP promotes an inclusive education agenda aiming

at removing all disparities including gender in education.

For TVET, the National Skills Development Policy (NSDP) of 2011 delineates a comprehensive

reform agenda to improve access, quality, relevance and governance (including regulatory aspects) in

the subsector. The 2006 Non-Formal Education Policy (NFE) encourages the provision of non-

formal education through NGO15

. These national policy documents are further reflected in the 7FYP.

There is good coherence between the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Agenda and these

policies which contribute primarily to the progressive achievement of SDG4 on quality education.

Policy priorities are also consistent with the new European Consensus for Development16

and the

objective of the EU's Multi-Annual Indicative Programme (MIP) for Bangladesh 2014-2020 to

contribute to a better educated, trained and qualified human capital through improved education and

skills development. The action is also in line with the Joint Staff Working Document "Gender

Equality and Women's Empowerment: Transforming the Lives of Girls and Women through EU

External Relations 2016-202017

, especially the thematic priority Economic, Social and cultural

Rights: Economic and social empowerment, notably objectives 13 "Equal access for girls and women

to all levels of quality education and TVET free from discrimination" and objective 14 "Access to

decent work for women of all ages".

The Government of Bangladesh has taken full ownership of education and skill development policies

that acknowledge primary, out-of-school children and TVET as priority areas for reform. However,

while the policies recognise the various challenges, the policy frameworks arguably remain too broad

and somewhat fragmented. Comprehensive implementation strategies with clear timeframes and

linkages to budget and financing plans are still lacking. Constraints related to governance, financial

commitments and implementing capacity also need to be considered to ensure the pace of reforms.

The NEP 2010 describes the aims, objectives and strategies amongst others for pre-primary, primary,

adult and non-formal education, secondary education, technical and vocational education, madrassa

education. Furthermore it proposes aims, objectives and strategies for education of children with

disabilities and ethnic minorities. The main focus of the NEP is on establishing one year of pre-

primary education and on expanding compulsory primary education from grade 1-5 up to grade 8

(grade 6-8 are presently not compulsory and considered as “junior-secondary education”). Other

critical areas are the emphasis on minimum quality standards and a common core curriculum for all

primary schools. Although the 2010 NEP lays out the operational objectives and expected results

15 The NFE policy has been updated but the new version has not been approved yet although a NFE Act was passed in

2016. 16 Joint statement by the Council and the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States meeting within the

Council, the European Parliament and the European Commission on the New European Consensus on Development -

"Our Wold, Our Dignity, Our Future", 7 June 2017. OJ C 210. 17 SWD(2015) 182 final; 21.9.2015

6

across the entire education sector, EU sector budget support so far has been and will continue to

focus on the primary education subsector (including pre-primary) and address the challenges related

to quality and equity in primary and pre-primary education. The PEDP programme has de facto

become the implementation strategy of the Government policies for primary education - mainly

through the formal sector.

During the last two-and-a-half decades, educational access has increased significantly, at all levels,

with notable achievements in nearing universal access to primary education and attaining gender

equity at the primary and secondary education levels. Some key reform initiatives to improve the

quality of learning have also been initiated. In addition to a steady fall of the dropout rate, the

primary education cycle completion rate has increased. Strong political commitment of the

government, backed by continued investments in education with multi-donor support, targeted

stipends to bring the poorest and girls into schools, and combination of formal and non-formal

provision of education could be indicated as the major contributor behind these successes. To ensure

equal access for vulnerable groups some key initiatives were taken (text books in mother tongue and

locally recruited teachers for indigenous groups).

In terms of the reforms initiated in systems management, including transparent recruitment of

teachers, improved financial management systems, the introduction of results-based management to

support evidence-based planning and the introduction of school-level improvement plans were

sustained and strengthened during the ongoing subsector programme PEDP3. Other reform agendas,

however, were constrained by a centralised education bureaucracy with a complicated organisational

structure and weak capacity at all levels of implementation. This hampered progress at the district,

sub district and school levels, especially in (i) strengthening government-NGO and other public-

private partnerships in areas such as addressing the out of school children (ii) finalising the proposed

career path for primary teachers and (iii) ensuring equitable access and learning. Moreover, high

turnover of senior officers at the central level and staff vacancies at the field level remain a challenge

in mainstreaming innovations and efforts to devolve functions continue to be limited by the rigid

regulatory framework for government primary schools.

In the TVET subsector, despite the absence of a classic sector programme, projects supported by

development partners have achieved several milestones including the NSDP, the Sector Working

Committees, the Industry Skills Council (ISC) and the provision of access to TVET by underserved

populations. Responding to emerging needs, the NSDP advocates a flexible demand orientation for

skills development and defines the roles of industry and training in the workplace. It calls for

imposing standards and structure on skills development through a qualifications framework and

competency-based training rooted in workplace skill requirements. The NSDP also calls for better

use of data in sector planning and better institutional management. It offers several key prescriptions

to mobilize more resources for skills development and to use resources more effectively. The overall

implementation of the policy has however been hampered by weak implementing capacity, the

absence of a central regulatory authority with supportive legislative and regulatory frameworks and

an overall fragmented approach.

In general, policies and plans in the education sector are not yet adequately supported by

comprehensive cost analysis, and related development and investment plans. The education share of

public expenditure has remained low throughout the last decade. Total Government expenditure has

increased as share of GDP over time. However, expenditure on education relative to GDP has

remained almost the same. Despite the increase in the volume of spending on education as reflected

in the national budget, the trend shows a decrease in the share of the education budget both as

percentage of GDP and of the total budget until 2015/16 – equivalent to around 2.5% and 17%

7

respectively18

. These figures remain below UNESCO’s suggested share of 4-6% of GDP and 20% of

total budget.

In the TVET subsector, the Government finances the majority of the costs of public training

institutions and a significant share of teacher salaries at BTEB-approved private secondary vocational

institutions through subsidies. Different figures have been cited about the proportion of public

financing devoted to TVET, with all studies pointing to an underfunded and under-resourced

subsector. The high growth in TVET enrolment over the last 15 years has not been accommodated by

similar increase in public spending – but was rather driven by the private sector and household

spending. According to the latest available figures19

, TVET budget under MoE receives around 3.5%

of total spending on education, and less than 0.5% of the overall budget. The share should however

increase when the budget allocated to TVET under other Ministries is factored in. There has been a

consistent increase in the TVET budget of MoE20

from EUR 28 million (BDT 2.8 billion) in 2006/07

to EUR 149 million (BDT 13.4 billion) in 2016/17. In the draft budget 2017/18, this amount almost

increases by one third to reach nearly EUR 200 million (BDT 17.6 billion) mainly driven by MoE's

plan to expand its network of Polytechnic Institutes and Technical Schools and Colleges. Donor

funded projects in TVET has remained significant over the years, with a cumulative value of

USD315 million21

. The private sector also plays a crucial role in providing training. As indicated in

the 7FYP, the annual public expenditure in skills development is estimated to be around USD 150

million which is way below the estimate of USD 600 million for annual needs22

.

Plans and policies are challenged by the lack of information about the supply and quality of TVET at

sector level (i.e. public and private). Adequate, system-wide data for policy is not available: no single

set of statistics covers the whole system, public and private, formal and non-formal. In particular,

little information is available on the extent of short-term training, most of which is in the private

sector. Similarly, aggregate and time-series data for planning and managing are not available for

TVET. The planned establishment of an overarching authority with appropriate authority to

coordinate the subsector remains key to address this.

1.1.2 Stakeholder analysis:

The main stakeholders of the programme are MoPME (responsible for pre-primary, primary and non-

formal education) and MoE (responsible for secondary, vocational and tertiary education). However,

their respective capacity in delivering quality education remains limited.

Under MoPME, the Directorate for Primary Education (DPE) is responsible for managing pre-

primary and primary education. Other important bodies are: the National Curriculum and Textbook

Board (NCTB); the National Academy for Primary Education (NAPE); the Primary Teacher Training

Institutes (PTIs), responsible for pre-service and in-service training and the Bureau of Non-Formal

Education (BNFE) in charge of managing different NFE courses for learners beyond the primary

school age. There are other ministries providing also primary education services like the Ministry of

Social Welfare (MoSW) and the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs (MoWCA).

Among the 23 ministries involved in the administration of TVET the Ministry of Education (MoE) is

in the leading role to manage and monitor the provision of TVET and to coordinate with other TVET

18 2015/16 budget figures. Actual figures will likely be lower. Source: Draft EU-financed study on the financing of the

education sector (2017) 19 MTEF 2017/18 20 This budget heading covers the formal, public TVET education system including expenditure of DTE, Technical

Teachers Training College, Polytechnic Institutes, Technical School & Colleges, and other technical institutes under

MoE. 21 National Human Resource Development Fund, Bangladesh: Policy Challenges and International Experience of

Training Funds (draft of 16/05/2016) 22 Idem

8

providing ministries. Under MoE, the Department of Technical Education (DTE) is one of the key

institutions for public provision of TVET and the Bangladesh Technical Education Board (BTEB) is

the apex body responsible for quality assurance through accreditation of training providers,

curriculum development, examinations, and certification. Other relevant bodies include two teacher

training institutes and the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB). There are two teacher

training institutions: the Vocational Teachers Training Institute (VTTI) and the Technical Teachers

Training College (TTTC). Although all teachers and instructors in public institutions are supposed to

receive training, most do not owing to the low capacity of the system.

The National Skills Development Council (NSDC) is responsible for coordination and

implementation of the NSDP. The NSDC, chaired by the Prime Minister, is supported by an

Executive Committee and a Secretariat. The role of the NSDC has remained marginal so far. To

address this weakness, the Government of Bangladesh is considering replacing the NSDC by a

National Skills Development Authority (NSDA) under the Prime Minister's Office. The timeline for

the establishment of the NSDA – as well as its exact scope and responsibilities, remains unknown for

now. Among the ministries providing TVET and skills development, the most important being the

Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment (MEWOE), the Ministry of Youth and

Sports (MYOS) and the Ministry of Industries (MI).

Considering the persisting fragmentation of operations and policy making in the subsector, MoE

(with DTE and BTEB) remains identified as the main institutional counterpart of the Action for the

component related to TVET. MoE is the main player in the field, administers a large part of the

TVET system and has significantly increased the budget for the subsector. In terms of policy

implementation, MoE's Medium Term Strategy and Business Plan 2016-202023

and Action Plan

(developed under the SDG agenda) provide sound implementation strategies that are costed and

prioritised and against which sectoral progress and performance can be effectively monitored. Budget

support will focus on MoE's competences in TVET (which includes key aspects covering the whole

TVET/skills development sector such as curriculum development, qualification framework, quality

assurance and certification and teacher training) with the possibility to expand to the whole sector in

a follow-up phase provided a framework for sector coordination is available and operational (e.g.

with the NSDA).

A large number of NGOs, women's organizations, parents groups and private sector providers also

deliver skills development services (mainly in secondary level). Industry Skills Councils (ISCs)

consisting of employers, workers and trade unions have been recently established to facilitate

linkages between industry, training providers and government agencies. ISCs enable industry

representatives to participate in the development of competency standards on which new training

programmes are based; provide technical staff as part-time instructors in TVET institutions; take on

board instructors in back to work refresher programmes and generally strengthen links between

industry and the education and training system. They are also important to encourage skills utilisation

and promote initiatives to increase the demand for skills, such as influencing business strategies to

move up the value chain and up the skills ladder. ISCs also play an increasing role in the emerging

system for skills anticipation, by providing demand side information. Although they are supporting

the emerging system for skills development, only few ISCs are active in facilitating employment

placement. Besides the creation of the ISC, the private sector also developed or supported innovative

training centres (e.g. the Centre of Excellence for Leather), adopted the NTVQF, the Competency-

based training curricula (CBT), experienced on-the-job trainings and apprenticeship and established

links with the BTEB to have their training certified and assessed officially. Engagement with the

private sector remains critical for the successful implementation of the NSDP. The EU will continue

to promote close engagement with the private sector and civil society organisations through HCDP

23 4th draft version, October 2016

9

21, in complementarity with Skills 21 – which includes strong involvement of the private sector in all

result areas.

1.1.3 Priority areas for support/problem analysis:

Through the ongoing sector programme PEDP 3 interventions, major improvements have been made

such as better infrastructure, improved teacher recruitment process, timely textbook distribution,

allocation of School Level Improvement Plan (SLIP) grants and more trained teachers. These are

contributing to improved quality of the primary education along with reduced dropouts. While the

main achievement of PEDP 3 has been the gradually improved access and increased enrolment at all

levels of primary education, there are two main issues that remain to be challenging: (i) the lack of

equity (disadvantaged children-urban slum, certain geographical areas) remain vulnerable to

exclusion from educational opportunities, and have a higher risk for dropping out)24

and (ii) the

limited learning outcomes (many students fail to achieve basic competencies in literacy and

numeracy, even after several years of schooling). It can be concluded that the education system is far

more effective at getting children into school than it is at ensuring that children leave school

equipped with the skills and competencies they need to realize their full potential, succeed in labour

markets, and participate in society. The Government has traditionally put more emphasis on

enrolment rate and national examinations pass rate. However, the Government is now keen to focus

and further strengthen the ongoing efforts to improve the quality of primary education while ensuring

equity. The key challenge associated with addressing the equity perspective is specific data

availability and use of data in decision making in relation to planning, budgeting and implementing.

The key focus areas/result areas for the next sector programme will be: (i) enhancing quality and

efficiency, (ii) ensuring equitable access and (iii) strengthened governance and management. The

Government is currently preparing the PEDP 4 programme document.

Regarding the TVET subsector, main constraints of the public system include centralised

organisation and management, weak market responsiveness, quality and relevance of the training,

inadequate number and quality of teachers, disparity in skills development and opportunities, lack of

information and data systems for effective management, inadequate resources and ineffective use of

resources. In addition, weak quality assurance, insufficient financing for instructional materials and

lack of incentives continue to be the major concern about the accreditation process of the TVET

system.

Development partners' support to the TVET agenda has remained significant over the years and was

accompanied by a proliferation of actors and instruments active in the subsector. While this support

made positive contributions, its overall effectiveness was undermined by fragmentation in the policy

development and organisational structure of the sector – translating into stand-alone activities and

projects that failed to address the weaknesses of the system and to strengthen it as a whole. The

added-value of EU's approach through HCDP 21 is that it aims to fill this gap by supporting the

development of the necessary enabling environment for MoE to implement its reform agenda, by

promoting processes at sector level while at the same time strengthening systems and institutional

capacities.

The programme's priority areas for support across sub-sectors include:

(1) Enhancing quality, relevance and efficiency of primary education and TVET: Despite some

progress, the quality of education remains low as a whole. This is the result of a non-conducive

learning environment due to overcrowded classrooms, limited infrastructure and insufficient number

of trained, well-supported and motivated teachers along with the lack of quality textbooks, lack of

adequate quality teaching and learning materials and specifically outdated curricula for TVET. For

24 CAMPE, a coalition of NGOs working to promote the EFA goals, estimates that between 5-10% of primary-school-

age children are out of school.

10

the primary education system, despite addressing all the above during PEDP3, very limited progress

could be noted. According to the "National Student Assessment 2013 for Grades 3 and 5", there is

little improvement in the performance of Grades 3 and 5 pupils in either Bangla or Mathematics since

2011. Further focus on the learning outcome of the children through ensuring quality teachers and

improved teaching learning practice in the classroom will be the main focus of the upcoming primary

education subsector programme. While quality concerns are relevant for the primary and TVET

subsectors, the implementation of the TVET policy needs to be improved by a functioning

relationship with the private sector and, more in general, with the labour market. Specific support is

required for TVET curriculum to become competency-based and ensure its quality and relevance for

meeting the domestic and international labour market demands, with a shift from a supply-driven to a

demand-driven approach. ISC will be instrumental to pursue the reform by bringing together the

major enterprises and industry bodies within an industry sector to discuss skill development issues

affecting their sector with the Government and TVET institutes. Increased public funding should be

allocated to ISC at least in the early stages of their development.

(2) Ensuring access25

and equity: Despite some progress, the inequality of opportunities in

education is still a major concern resulting in a large number of children (3-5 million) still remaining

out of school. Markers of disadvantages include wealth, gender, location and disability. Child labour,

a consequence of poverty, is endemic in both urban and rural areas, and is strongly associated with

education disadvantages. Urban informal settlements also suffer from inadequate coverage and poor

quality provision. Group-based disparities are also significant with ethnic minorities such as the

ethnic groups living in Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) featuring prominently among those left behind.

Disability is another source of disadvantages in education. While some donor funded projects have

been addressing this particular challenge in the subsector, it is now critical that the Government

defines a clear implementation strategy and takes the lead role for longer term sustainability of

ongoing initiatives. Specific support/elements in the next programme are envisaged in this regard.

Bangladesh has surpassed gender parity in primary and lower secondary education. However, there is

a considerable gap between the literacy rate of male and female older than 15 year, which is 64.6%

for men and 58.5% for female older than 1526

. In terms of school participation, it is mainly young

boys from poor households who are being left behind in primary education. Young girls are more

likely to drop out in higher grades of secondary school. For boys, access to TVET is limited in rural

areas as most training is in urban areas and it is constrained for girls throughout the country and

limited to traditional trades. Annually there are 2 million new entrants to the labour market, of which

5% have received a formal training. Access to the labour market of new entrants is further hampered

by the lack of orientation about available labour market opportunities, including (self-) employment

and/or entrepreneurship. As a consequence, it is estimated that 500,000 people migrate annually for

foreign employment. The majority of these migrants (around 52%) has low or no skills.

(3) Improving governance and management: The planning and management of the education

system has been and still is highly centralized and bureaucratically controlled with the concentration

of fiscal and administrative powers in HQ services in Dhaka. Primary education governance is not

only affected by resource constraints but also the lack of capacity in ensuring effective allocation and

utilisation of the available resources. In addition, overall transparency and accountability of roles and

responsibilities at different levels continue to be a concern. This prolonged situation of centralised

governance has weakened community involvement and ownership in primary education. The

strengthening of the Public Finance Management (PFM) systems to provide better quality services

will be continued with specific EU support both at general and sector level. The governance of the

TVET subsector is constrained by fragmented implementation under various Ministries and

Divisions, the support provided by multiple donors and NGOs, and further aggravated by the limited

25 This programme will work primarily on improving access to education and skills development although it will also

have a direct impact on access to the labour market. 26 UNESCO Institute of Statistics

11

coordination between stakeholders causing overlap and duplication. The efficiency of the sector is

also hampered by the lack of capacity within the public and private/ NGO sector to establish links

with the local labour market. As a consequence, training offer is redundant and often not relevant. It

is extremely difficult to monitor the total impact/ outcome of investments made in the sector and to

use that information for planning purposes accordingly. The overall limited coordination among

different ministries in the areas of education and skills poses a challenge in terms of efficient policy

implementation, e.g. in the extension of basic education to grade 8 or better alignment of TVET with

labour market needs.

Through the programme, the EU will give greater prominence to policy dialogue for long-term

strategic development of the sector, capacity building and joint performance assessment to bring

about policy reforms, while ensuring full ownership and sustainability of these reforms. Education

and vocational training will promote equity, inclusion, gender equality, social cohesion and active

citizenship. They also form part of preventive strategies and policies with regard to radicalisation,

violent extremism, and illegal migration. Support to address these issues of common concern is built

into the programme, through policy dialogue and targeted technical assistance: the concept of peace

education will continue to be promoted at all level of the education sector (through support to

curriculum development, teacher training etc.); support to literacy improvement should contribute to

curbing illegal migration; the reform of the TVET system should promote employability locally,

regulate the export of skilled labour and promote the skilling and reintegration of returning migrants

(this is complementarity to actions under Skills 21, the migration dialogue and additional EU support

to the sector). The case of CHT is also given special attention under the programme, with the

objective to ensure equitable access to education and TVET services to its populations. These points

were addressed in the high-level sector policy dialogue meetings in that took place in second quarter

of 2017 with MoPME and MoE in preparation of the programme.

The programme will also encourage the Government of Bangladesh to continue to strengthen

governance and PFM systems at sector level (including budget planning and execution, public

procurement, internal and external audit, corruption and fraud), in complementarity with other EU-

funded programmes in PFM in the country. In parallel to ongoing engagement in the World Bank-

administered Multi-Donor Trust Fund, a bilateral programme in the key areas of domestic revenue

mobilization and domestic accountability is in the pipeline.

1.2 Other areas of assessment

1.2.1 Fundamental values

Bangladesh, a signatory to international treaties related to human rights, faces many challenges in the

implementation of its international obligations. The institutional capacity of the National Human

Rights Commission, created in 2009, is still weak. The lack of gender equity, the high rates of

violence against women (especially women from ethnic and religious minorities) and the proportion

of child marriages remain a concern. More than 60% of girls in Bangladesh are married before age 18

(over one third before 15). Access of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, including women, to

justice remains limited. The restrictions on civil society and their access to foreign funding and

restrictions for the media continue. The parliamentary elections in January 2014 had very low turnout

and were boycotted by the main opposition party. During the local elections in the spring of 2016,

dozens of people were killed and a thousand injured in violent attacks. There is also increased

concern over acts of extremist religious violence towards ethnic and religious minorities, free

thinkers, bloggers, foreigners or those who hold dissenting views resulting in an increased number of

targeted killings. The EU and EU Member States will continue their engagement with international

and national human rights organisations enabling them to fulfil their role to protect and promote

political, civil, socio-economic rights.

12

1.2.2 Macro-economic policy

Bangladesh has maintained an average 6% real GDP growth over the last decade and was slightly

above this level in the FY2014-2015 (6.5%) and FY2015-16 (7.1%). In FY2013-14 Bangladesh’s

income level, measured as GNI per head, stood at USD 1,080 and further rose to USD 1,445 in

FY2015-16. This puts Bangladesh in the World Bank’s bracket of Low Middle Income countries

with an income level between USD 1,046 and USD 4,125. Incomes would have to increase fourfold

to move into the next income bracket, which is challenging although the country managed to

graduate into the low-middle income category over 7 years, despite enormous economic and social

interruptions and evolving external factors over the period.

The overall budget deficits (excluding grants) are expected to remain within 5% of GDP over the

next couple of years. In FY2015-16, the overall budget deficit (excluding grants) was 4.2% of GDP.

The Government of Bangladesh has established a good track record and is expected to maintain

macro fiscal stability and the overall budget deficit within sustainable limits.

Along with a situation of low tax-GDP ratio (8.5% in FY 2014-15 and 8.7% in FY 2015-16), the

Government has planned to further strengthen revenue administration and pursue tax reforms with a

view to increasing domestic revenue. The authorities remain optimistic that the proposed revenue

targets could be achieved based on recently introduced additional measures (e.g. awareness

campaigns on tax registration and introduction of e-registration). The projected ratio for FY 2016-17

is 9.6%. Besides, it aims to set limits for public expenditure by containing subsidies. To this end, the

Government passed a new VAT law in 2010, which was only launched late 2016 (under the 3-year

IMF Extended Credit Facility agreement) and is scheduled to start implementation from July 2017.

The effects of lower energy imports are not yet translated to lower domestic prices, and in fact the

household cooking gas tariffs have been increased in 2016. The state-owned petroleum company has

declared that they are trying to make up for the previous loss-making years, despite the heavy

subsidies. Other fiscal reforms are also announced and some are underway. These reform measures

are expected to create space for social spending and other public investment that will promote

economic growth. On the other hand, unemployment remains visibly high (despite underestimated

official figures) and lower income groups in particular will be affected negatively by price

adjustments of energy, fertiliser and electricity prices unless sufficient and targeted social safety net

programmes are in place.

Bangladesh completed its 3-year Extended Credit Facility (ECF), covering the period April 2012-

October 2015. The total amount of the ECF was SDR 639.96 million (about USD 904.2 million) or

120% of its quota. The arrangement was extended first to July 31 and then to October 31, 2015 from

the original deadline of April to allow for the launching of the new VAT Legislation. The Fund's

completion Report, November 2015, considers the country's macroeconomic policies and structural

reforms as prudent.

An update and more detailed account of the country's performance were contained in the IMF Article

IV Report in February 2016. The conclusions of the report by and large confirm a positive account of

the Government of Bangladesh's performance between the previous Article IV Mission (2013) and

the one in 2015. It also indicates a rather promising medium-term outlook and barring the two areas,

closely related, of not meeting the expected results, i.e. revenue mobilization and budget deficit. The

report also highlighted a number of weaknesses and risks in the financial sector. The latest IMF

Article IV mission in March 2017 echoed the same (the Report is expected to be published soon).

The IMF commended the Bangladesh authorities for the strong macroeconomic performance over the

past few years as a result of which they consider the growth performance as robust, external reserves

risen to a comfortable level, inflation restrained (although potentially tilting upwards after the recent

rises in civil service wages) and the public debt-to-GDP ratio remaining stable at a moderate level.

Improvements in social indicators have also been observed. With regard to the latter, the necessity is

highlighted to place priority for public investment in critical infrastructure and strengthening social

13

safety nets, but without risking the current stable, moderate debt-to-GDP ratio. This can be achieved

mainly through implementation of the new VAT, supported by stronger tax administration and an

effective communication strategy. Although there is emphasis on broadening the tax base, it seems

that the focus is more on the automation of the registration, rather than a more fundamental strategy

of employment and income growth to provide a broader tax basis in the medium term.

In the January 2015 Report, IMF stressed the need to improve budget formulation and execution, and

to strengthen the selection of public investment projects by subjecting them to strict cost-benefit

analysis, particularly projects financed by non-concessional external borrowing. The authorities are

encouraged to improve public financial reporting and management of state-owned enterprises, and to

move toward a market-based fuel price regime. The updated Debt Sustainability Analysis (DSA)

reflects the most recent macroeconomic developments and borrowing needs. The update indicates

that, Bangladesh would remain at low risk of external debt distress. In line with the fiscal policy

commitments of the Government of Bangladesh, central government’s debt is projected to remain at

about 34% of GDP over the medium term. With the rather positive medium-term macroeconomic

outlook emerging from the ECF 5th & 6th Review, followed-and mostly confirmed- by the IMF

Article IV published shortly afterwards, there still remain several policy and strategic questions,

which are addressed in the macroeconomic annex.

Based on the analysis above, given the macroeconomic performance in the recent years in terms of

growth, inflation and debt ratio coupled with the reasonable potential and perspectives for

maintaining the Macroeconomic Stability Framework in the medium run, it is concluded that the

authorities pursue a credible and relevant stability-oriented macroeconomic policy aiming at restoring

fiscal and external stability and sustainability.

1.2.3 Public Financial Management (PFM)

According to the PEFA 2015 report, Bangladesh has made positive progress in developing its PFM

systems as compared to the PEFA assessment conducted in 2010. Improvements have been noted in

the scores for 10 PEFA performance indicators (PI).

During the past 5 years, a series of simultaneous PFM reform projects have displayed relevant

progress, particularly in relation to expenditure management and financial auditing. The main recent

PFM reform programme Strengthening Public Expenditure Management Programme (SPEMP), is

extended until December 2021, and is administered by the World Bank with funding from the EU,

DFID and Canada. Under the SPEMP support was provided to the Ministry of Finance in the field of

budgeting, debt management, macro-modelling, to the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General

(OCAG) for strengthening institutional, process-oriented and human resources development, and to

the Parliament Secretariat for strengthening of institutional and process-oriented issues in relation to

legislative oversight. Under the “Strengthening Comptrollership and Oversight of Public Expenditure

(SCOPE) programme” (CIDA funded), additional support was provided to the OCAG on external

audit.

Key achievements of these PFM reform initiatives include: Medium-Term Budget Framework

(MTBF) system rolled-out in all ministries and divisions; development of an Integrated Budgeting

and Accounting System (iBAS++) (operationalization in progress); strengthening of debt

management; development of macro-fiscal model; formulation of new charts of accounts;

strengthening of the institutional and HR capacity of the OCAG, introduction of International

Standards for Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAI) compliant audits, unifying the secretariat for

parliamentary oversight committees, introduction of a management information system for the

business processes and efforts to reduce the backlog in audits. Nonetheless, PEFA 2015 indicates that

further improvement is needed in areas of accounting, reporting, financial management information

system, fragmentation of the recurrent and development budgets, timeliness and quality of annual

14

audited financial statement as well as in internal controls, external oversight mechanism, follow-up to

audit observations and on the revenue collection and tax administration.

PFM in education sector is strengthened by the initiatives taken under PEDP3 in line with the broader

government organisational and operational systems such as accounting and auditing systems,

procurement, external audits. At a sectoral level, commitment towards PFM progress is indicated by

completion of the PFM Action Plan which recaps the main PFM issues of PEDP3. On the other hand,

the implementation modality of PEDP3, the so-called "Treasury Model", implies the use of country

systems and PEDP3 has been instrumental in building the capacity of MoPME on PFM and

procurement.

The Government of Bangladesh has kept PFM reform high in the agenda in its Perspective Plan

2010-2021 and in the Five Year Plans. During 2015 and 2016, The Government delivered on its

commitments in relation to PFM reform by: (i) Completing of a repeat PEFA Assessment during

2015, including a self-assessment by the Government for the first time as part of the exercise; (ii)

Identifying and including PFM-related reform objectives in the 7FYP, which was finalised and

approved in October 2015; and (iii) Formulating a PFM reform strategy based on the findings of the

PEFA 2015.

In August 2016, the Government adopted a comprehensive Public Financial Management Reform

Strategy (PFMRS) 2016-2021, which incorporates the PFM policy guidelines and the PFM related

objectives from the 7FYP and identifies five key overarching goals: (i) maintain aggregate fiscal

discipline compatible with macro-economic stability and pro-poor growth; (ii) allocate resources

consistent with Government priorities as reflected in National Plan; (iii) promote the efficient use of

public resources and delivery of services through better budget execution; (iv) promote

accountability through external scrutiny and transparency of the budget and (v) enhance the enabling

environment for improved PFM outcomes.

The Strategy is well drafted and it is useful to build the essential budget credibility and fiscal

discipline while being implemented. The guiding principles of the PFM reforms remain country

ownership, gradualism, with a stronger focus on getting the basics in place and a change management

or institutional reform. The Government is in the process of formulating an Action Plan/Roadmap for

the implementation of the Strategy.

1.2.4 Transparency and oversight of the budget

The Government of Bangladesh has a relatively good track record of publishing the Government

consolidated budget (and by Ministry), Executive Proposal, as well as the annual financial statements

on the website of the Government27

. A large part of the budget documentation is made available in

both Bangla and English language, and generally budget information is accessible from fiscal year

2005/06 until 2016/17. A budget booklet is available (FY 2012/13 and FY 2013/14), which broadly

explains the definitions used in the key budget document, and some of the main processes in budget

preparation and the sequence of the budget cycle, enhancing the public understanding of the budget.

Unfortunately this practice was discontinued in recent years.

The most recent PEFA conducted in Bangladesh (2015) for transparency concludes that six of the

nine benchmarks were met, i.e. macro-economic assumptions, fiscal deficit, deficit financing, prior

year’s budget out-turn, current year’s budget and summarised budget data. The results of the 2015

PEFA for quality and timeliness of in-year budget reports was C+ which was the same as the 2010

results with improvements in coverage and comparability but with deteriorated timeliness. The

quality and timeliness of annual financial statements deteriorated from C to D+ due to delays in the

submission of annual financial statements.

27 Available through the Ministry of Finance at www.mof.gov.en

15

The latest score of Bangladesh (2015) on the Open Budget Index (OBI) is 56 (out of 100) which puts

the country among those providing limited budget information. Bangladesh’s score 10 points higher

than the world average and outperforms its neighbours. During a mid-year check, the Open Budget

Index concluded mid-2016 that the number of budget documents found to be publicly available

reflects a net decrease compared to the number that the government had published according to the

OBI 2015, since then Bangladesh failed to publish the In-Year Reports in a timely manner and failed

to produce the Citizens Budget and the Mid-Year Report.

2 RISKS AND ASSUMPTIONS

The 2017 Risk Management Framework refers to certain risks associated with budget support in

Bangladesh. Political risks remain substantial and corruption risks are high. Envisaged PFM reforms

will play an essential role in gradually improving accountability, strengthening PFM systems,

reducing opportunities for fraud and leakages, as well as delivering better public services. The EU

will continue to support measures aiming at strengthening external controls and oversight on budget

execution (as part of its support to the PFM reform agenda), accompanied by enhanced engagement

in policy dialogue at various levels and targeted technical assistance.

Risks Risk level

(H/M/L) Mitigating measures

Low levels of budgetary allocations for

education and skills development M

Increased and sustained dialogue between

development partners and the Government of

Bangladesh to substantially increase financing of

education and TVET

Gaps in the development of education

sector/subsector strategies, especially to

address quality related reforms M

Increased and sustained dialogue between

development partners and the Government of

Bangladesh to develop sustainable strategies for

implementation of quality related reforms in line

with SDG commitments. Provision of technical

assistance.

Review of NEP and/or the NSDP and

subsequent priorities after elections

during the programme period

L

Continued policy dialogue with all relevant

stakeholders at all levels during the programme

period

Lack of action to institutionalise capacity

development function by MoPME and

MoE and lack of government funds to

finance sustained capacity development L

Complementary support for strengthening the

Government of Bangladesh's capacity at key

Departments to be able to lead the development

process. Increased and sustained dialogue on the

necessary institutionalising of capacity building

functions and a capacity development strategy to

ensure sustainability and further developing of

government's capacity

Delayed/slow implementation in other

areas of governance, particularly in

relation to PFM reform negatively impact

programme implementation

M

Sustained dialogue on importance of PFM reform at

national level and sector level. Forthcoming EU

support to Public Financial Management Reform to

be linked with support to HCDP 21.

Delay (within the limit of the n+1

constraints) in signature of FA and

corresponding project approval from the

Government

L

Regular dialogue and follow-up with the

Government of Bangladesh on the matter (also

linked to PEDP 4 support)

Deteriorating political and security

situation may lead to slow down of

reform process and and/or suspension of

projects

M

Increased and sustained dialogue between

development partners and the Government of

Bangladesh to ensure that education remains a

priority area of reforms in line with SDG

commitments.

16

Shrinking space for civil society to

operate at national and local level may

hamper implementation capacities of

CSOs and could limit programme

implementation.

L

CSOs have been able to continue their education

delivery services in spite of new legal constraints.

the Government of Bangladesh is putting emphasis

on extending the network of public service delivery

which might counter NGO reduced activities.

Limited vision of the government on how

to reach the out-of-school children M

Provision of technical assistance for strategies to

ensure more equity through planned complementary

support. Use lessons learnt from SHARE

programme.

Weaknesses (financial management and

internal controls) in expenditure

management system, including difficulty

in channelling funds down to service

providers are causing fiduciary risk of

potential misuse of funds at field level.

M

Support to PFM, both to wider, national reform and

at sector level. Provision of technical assistance and

provision of safeguards under the programme

(PEDP4 and specific arrangements for TVET in

coordination with ADB and World Bank)

Dynamics and political economies of

development partners hamper agreements

on a genuine Sector Wide Approach. M

Increased and sustained dialogue among

stakeholders, with EU support to establish a sector-

wide approach complemented by external

monitoring where necessary.

Assumptions

Effective cooperation and coordination among different ministries (MoPME and MoE, MoPME and MoF,

MoPME and MoPA) and development partners.

Smooth cooperation between government agencies and non-government bodies (including NGOs and private

sector) responsible for the delivery of education and TVET.

Increase in budgetary allocations for primary education & TVET

3 LESSONS LEARNED, COMPLEMENTARITY AND CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES

3.1 Lessons learned

Some of the most relevant lessons learnt from PEDP3 are related to the absence of a comprehensive

implementation strategy of the NEP as this prevented the Government of Bangladesh from playing a

leading role in the implementation of some key reforms. With the active involvement of the partners

in programme implementation, focus shifted away from the core policy objectives of the sector and

resulted in a fragmented approach of activity implementation. Lack of high level and consistent

policy dialogue on key reform agenda has led to limited progress in the areas of major concern such

as quality and equity. Similarly, technical assistance provided by the development partners, with

limited policy orientation, resulted in mere substitution of role instead of longer term capacity

building. Implementation of programme activities became the main task of the technical assistance

often provided on an ad hoc basis. Addressing the out of school children problem remains a critical

area requiring support at the policy level.

The EU-funded SHARE programme reaffirmed the need to apply a flexible approach to ensure

access to primary education for the hardest to reach children. It also showed the possibility of

mainstreaming these children in the formal system throughout the cycle. Based on these lessons

learnt from the SHARE programme, the Government has acknowledged the different

approach/models used and included two of the models in their strategy for addressing out of school

children.

One of the main lessons from past EU support to the TVET subsector was the importance of

promoting and strengthening governmental systems (rather than isolated activities) and engaging

with the private sector and employers on a larger scale.

17

The need for renewed focus on policy dialogue, policy development and policy implementation

(including governance) is evident in both primary education and TVET. Taking into account the

multiplicity of governmental institutions, donors and stakeholders involved in these two subsectors,

increased effort is necessary to facilitate coordination among Ministries and among development

partners in order to avoid fragmented approaches and duplication of efforts and resources. Key

lessons also concern the need to promote high level Government ownership and leadership through a

sector-wide approach. This involves strengthening the Government of Bangladesh's organisational

capacity through the use of existing structures. Minimising duplication and fragmentation of

activities and enabling a greater focus on governance and systemic issues will enhance sector

efficiency.

Specific PFM interventions in education and TVET, supported by technical assistance in line with the

country's PFM Reform Strategy 2016-2021, can also have a significant role in reinforcing financial

management capacities at sector level - in addition to the planned EU support through a new PFM

project on domestic revenue mobilization and domestic accountability. The focus of complementary

support will be to strengthen financial and human capacity of the relevant Government stakeholders

to implement and sustain the quality-related reforms of the education and TVET development policy.

3.2 Complementarity, synergy and coordination

The programme will build on the experiences of providing budget support under the PEDP328

, its

complementary SHARE programme29

for non-formal primary education and on the TVET-Reform

project30

.

In the subsector of primary education, the programme will be aligned and harmonised with the

upcoming primary education sector programme, which is the main donor-funded programme in

Bangladesh achieving a great degree of synergy. The programme will also make use of experiences

gained by other donor-supported interventions such as the element of interactive teacher and

principal training under English in Action (project funded by DfID), the NFPE experience of the

Reaching Out-of-School Children (ROSC) project (funded by World Bank) and the knowledge on

early grade reading by years of USAID support for improved learning in primary education.

The programme is also complementary to other EU-funded projects in the TVET and skills

development sub-sector, such as the Skills 21 project (with ILO31

) and PRISM32

. Skills 21 is aligned

with the action as it provides technical assistance for capacity development in the areas of access,

quality and governance, with a strong focus on engaging with the private sector in all result areas. It

also will provide the basis for enhanced policy dialogue and the development of a Sector Wide

Approach (SWAP). The programme will be complementary to programmes from ADB (SEIP33

) the

World Bank (STEP34

) and Canada/ILO (B-SEP35

) which provide support in the areas of training,

28 Currently supported currently by 10 development partners, i.e. WB, EU, DfID ,ADB, AusAID, CIDA, SIDA, JICA,

UNICEF, GPE 29 DCI-ASIE/2010/21533 - Support to the Hard to Reach through Basic Education (SHARE), with EU contribution of

€49 million. 30 DCI –ASIE/2006/18135 – Technical and Vocational Education and Training Reform in Bangladesh, completed in

2015 31 DCI-ASIE/2015/038-117: Skills 21 – Empowering citizens for inclusive and sustainable growth 32 DCI-ASIE/2012/022-446: Poverty Reduction through Inclusive and Sustainable Markets (PRISM), EU contribution of

€30 million. 33 Skills for Employment Investment Program (SEIP) 2013-2023 supported by ADB and Swiss Agency for Development

Cooperation to increase the number of trained people and their job placement and to set up a National Human

Resource Development Fund to scale up skills training and financing and to prepare the transition to a Sector

Investment plan and approach. 34 The Skills and Training Enhancement Programme (STEP) seeks to increase the number of students and trainees

enrolled in education and training programmes and the employability of graduates.

18

standard development and accreditation, curriculum development and monitoring mechanisms for

quality assurance. Support is also provided to improve public-private partnership, operationalise the

ISCs, establish centres of excellence and develop a labour market information system. Development

partners such as GIZ, Sweden, South-Korea, the United States and Australia are supporting the sector

with smaller initiatives.36

The programme will be aligned with the PFM reform programme to strengthen Government systems.

The EU has been actively involved with the Government of Bangladesh and development partners to

support the country's PFM reform with financial and technical support as well as participating in

related policy dialogues. To enhance its commitment, the EU is currently preparing a programme in

the areas of domestic revenue mobilization and accountability.

The World Bank welcomed the initiative of developing a SWAP in the TVET subsector, and recently

indicated that it will also engage into budget support ("Programme-for-Result financing") in the

frame of the STEP follow-up project (scheduled for 2019). The design of the programme (including

fiduciary risk assessment and mitigating measures) will take place in 2018. The World Bank has also

prepared a USD 500 million budget support programme targeting the secondary education subsector.

The Local Consultative Group (LCG) provides a forum for dialogue between the Government,

development partners and NGOs to ensure effective and efficient use of external aid in line with the

7FYP and sectoral policies. To facilitate more in-depth dialogue and collaboration on specific

sectors, a number of working groups has been established, namely the Education Local Consultative

Group (ELCG) made of sub-working groups: the PEDP 3 Consortium, the Skills Working Group (co-

chaired by the NSDC Secretariat and ILO) and the Skills for Migration Forum (co-chaired by

MEWOE and IOM). The EU will be chairing the newly-established Task Force on SWAP in TVET

and skills development, with the support of ILO and the active participation of the World Bank and

ADB.

The coordination framework to implement the next Primary Education Programme will continue

through the existing Donor Consortium Group with all development partners.

3.3 Cross-cutting issues

There is a growing comprehension within the Government of Bangladesh that in addition to access,

children have the right to quality education. The programme will emphasize a holistic approach of

this right by taking into account the various cross-cutting issues such as gender equality, good

governance, rights of minorities, people with disabilities, health and nutrition, environment, climate

change and migration.

To address the vulnerability of Bangladesh to climate change and environmental disasters, the

programme through its primary education component will strengthen the implementation of the

School Based Disaster Management within the Education in Emergencies framework. This includes

a number of steps for school safety and Disaster Risk Reduction including for preparedness,

response and recovery following largely the Disaster Risk Reduction response framework.

Bangladesh has achieved the gender parity in primary education. Nevertheless, the programme will

continue to pay special attention to ensure gender balance in both the primary education and TVET

systems to facilitate access and integration of girls at all levels. Gender equality concerns will also

be considered at all levels and will remain an integral part of the planning and decision making

processes. The recommendations contained in the Gender Action Plan 2016-2020 and in the

35 The Bangladesh Skills for Employment and Productivity (2014-2018), jointly funded by Canada and ILO, focuses on

institutional and system development (improved planning and support services, CBT and assessment, quality and

relevance) 36 See Annex 2 Donor Matrix for more details.

19

"Toolkit on Mainstreaming Gender Equality in EC Development Cooperation” will be taken into

account in order to remove barriers hampering the access of girls and women to TVET. Other

interrelated barriers, including socio-cultural constraints, gender stereotypes and facility shortages,

will also be addressed.

The TVET component will take migration aspects into account in all interventions. This will imply

curricula development of good quality and that are relevant to the labour demand in destination

countries. This will be done with the underneath purpose of allowing Bangladeshi migrants to have

access to better jobs and avoid migration-related labour abuses. The Skills 21 project also includes

activities targeting outgoing and returning migrants.

The programme will be based on a conflict sensitive approach and include elements to strengthen

resilience and reduce fragility. Notably, the programme will seek to addresses the challenges related

to access to primary education and skills in CHT where education levels remain low with only 7.8%

of CHT people completing primary education and 2.4% completing secondary education.

4 DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTION

4.1 Objectives/results and options

This programme is relevant for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It contributes

primarily to the progressive achievement of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 Quality

Education but also promotes progress towards SDG 5 Gender Equality, SDG 8 Decent Work and

Economic Growth, and SDG 10 Reduced Inequalities. This does not imply a commitment by

Bangladesh benefiting from this programme.

The overall objective (impact) of the programme is to support the Government of Bangladesh in the

implementation of its development policies aiming at a better educated, trained and qualified human

capital by 2021 as laid down in its national strategic development plans.

The specific objectives (outcomes) focused on primary education and TVET are to contribute

towards:

Improved quality, relevance and efficiency of the primary education and TVET subsectors;

Improved and equitable access to primary education and TVET services, and;

Improved management and governance of the subsectors.

For primary education, the result areas will be in line with the sector programme PEDP 4 and will

be reviewed once the final list of outputs and outcomes is available.

For TVET, the results areas will be aligned with MoE's Medium-Term Strategy and Business Plan

2016-2020 and MoE's Action Plan developed in the framework of the SDG agenda.

4.2 Main activities

The main activities to implement the Sector Reform Contract are regular policy dialogue (Minister,

Secretary and technical levels), financial transfers, performance assessment and strengthening the

institutional capacity of MoPME and MoE.

4.2.1 Budget support

Continuous policy dialogue will take place with the Government of Bangladesh to monitor the

following topics (the list is indicative)

Improvement of policy frameworks for the primary education and TVET subsectors,

responding to international commitments and standards;

20

Establishment of oversight mechanism(s) to drive reforms at national level and adoption of key

legislation for the education and TVET subsectors;

Increase of budgetary allocations to achieve stated policy targets (including gender budgeting);

Improved overall public financial management (with a particular focus on the relevant

subsectors) notably with respect to budget comprehensiveness, budget planning and execution,

public procurement, internal and external audit, corruption and fraud;

Rationalisation of the institutional framework and systemic architecture of the education,

TVET and skills subsectors;

Focus on inclusive and accessible education by addressing out-of-schools children and

disadvantaged groups (poor, vulnerable, ethnic minorities, disabled, etc.) and reduced

geographical disparities (specifically in CHT);

Increase institutional capacity to plan, implement (including financial management), monitor

and evaluate policies and reforms in the education and TVET subsectors. This includes

comprehensive performance-based Action Plans with linkages with budgetary allocations and

M&E frameworks;

Creation of scope and incentives for an increased role of the private / industrial sector in TVET

and skills development in policy development and implementation, notably through forums

such as the NSDC and upcoming NSDA and ISCs where the private sector is fully engaged;

Compliant regulatory systems and improved quality standards and accreditation frameworks;

Improved coordination inside and across the education subsectors;

Promotion of peace education at all levels in the education system as a preventive measure

against radicalisation;

Increased role of the TVET to address the root causes of migration.

Policy dialogue will be an important mitigating measure for the majority of risks identified under

Section 2 on Risks and Assumption (see page 11). It will take place in various forums, including

bilateral meetings between the EU and the Government of Bangladesh at various levels (Minister,

Secretary and technical); meetings of the Education Local Consultative Group (ELCG), the primary

education Donor Consortium, the Skills Working Group and other relevant ad-hoc working groups.

Policy dialogue on overall PFM reforms and budget transparency will take place in the framework of

the Working Group on PFM. The overall policy dialogue will be substantiated with minutes/reports

of meetings to assess and record progress.

Transfers of a total EUR 200 million in 4 annual disbursements over the period 2019-2022 against

progress on the four eligibility criteria (fixed tranche), key indicators (variable tranches) and policy

dialogue.

Regular performance assessment, including through an annual formal assessment to monitor

progress in the four eligibility criteria and indicators linked to the variable tranche.

4.2.2 Complementary support

Complementary support will be provided in the form of technical assistance for capacity

development to MoPME and MoE (including DTE, BTEB and teacher training centres). Support will

focus on developing the necessary enabling environment and providing well-defined and relevant set

of interdisciplinary and evidence-based tools to foster reforms with a focus on policy planning,

implementation and monitoring.

21

While addressing the critical elements of policy dialogue, the technical assistance will support the

decision makers in policy development. They will also assist to monitor progress in the design and

implementation of sectoral policies/strategies, the improvement of key indicators of service delivery

(also with respect to reduced geographical and gender disparities of access and quality) and

improvements in the quality of sector public financial management. Cross-cutting issues such as

peace education, migration and mainstreaming of primary education and TVET services across the

country will also be considered.

Main activities will include:

a) Capacity development in primary education and TVET to move towards a performance-based

policy approach in support to the respective reform agendas, with a focus on policy analysis,

development and implementation (notably defining costed and time bound implementation

strategies). This will also include support to enhance donor coordination and to develop a sector wide

approach (SWAP) in TVET, in complementarity to the activities under Skills 21;

b) Institutional capacity building of primary education and TVET stakeholders (e.g. MoPME, MoE,

DPE, DTE, BTEB, etc.) with targeted technical assistance support in the areas of:

- evidence-based policy planning and budgeting;

- sector governance and financial management (including improved transparency and oversight);

- monitoring (including data system with appropriate disaggregation) and evaluation.

Other specific, targeted areas of support may also include:

- In primary education: curriculum/ textbook development; materials development and

procurement; development of teacher guides for grades 1-5; etc.

- In TVET: competency-based curriculum; qualification frameworks and quality standards;

promotion of demand-supply linkages to ensure that the skills and competences available

match those required by the economy at global and local levels; improved framework for

public-private partnership including regulatory and quality aspects but also incentives and

financing arrangements. These activities will be implemented in addition or in

complementarity to the support provided by Skills 21. Approximately one-fourth of the total

Skills 21 programme amount is allocated for capacity development activities of TVET bodies –

adding up to the amount available for complementary support under this Action.

c) the monitoring of progress against the agreed performance plan in the framework of the budget

support programme, policy advisory recommendations and substantial inputs for sector policy

dialogue (including sector/financial reviews and studies), implementation of safeguard measures and

of communication and visibility activities between the EU and the Government of Bangladesh.

The scope and activities of the technical assistance are designed in close cooperation and

coordination with MoPME and MoE, on the basis of identified needs and priorities for capacity

development to support their respective reform agenda. Given the type of aid delivery method (i.e.

budget support which includes policy dialogue), hands-on support to the Ministries will be crucial to

create the basis and environment for following an appropriate policy approach.

With the aim to launch the procurement in 2018 (see 5.4.1.1 below), a formulation mission will be

carried out to further assess the specific needs and implementation requirements (also in the light of

new developments in the subsectors) and to draft the terms of reference. The preferred modality will

be long-term technical assistance.

The technical assistance component will align with other EU-funded projects, notably the upcoming

PFM programme (on domestic revenue mobilisation and accountability), SHARE (for non-formal

education) and PRISM on cottage industry development.

22

4.3 Intervention logic

Bangladesh's education system is in need of significant improvement and change. The need for

reform has been clearly identified by the Government of Bangladesh. HCDP 21 is designed to

facilitate and accelerate these reforms by acting as a "change agent" through knowledge sharing and

capacity development. The programme will add value by extending the current budget support

modality in primary education to the area of TVET under one single operation. Through the

programme:

This budget support programme will provide additional fiscal space to the Government of

Bangladesh, with associated policy dialogue and capacity development (inputs),

contributing to the following outputs:

advancements at sector level in terms of: improved quality of teaching and learning in the subsectors;

improved relevance and quality of system components of TVET; reduced disparities in the

subsectors; increased capacity in TVET; increased share of the subsectors in the national budget;

improved TVET sector coordination and oversight mechanism; improved curriculum supported by

appropriate teaching learning materials (including textbooks) in the subsectors; increased number of

trained teachers in the subsectors; improved learning environment in the subsectors; strengthened

system of quality assurance in the subsectors; reduced out-of-school children in Primary Education;

increased female students and students with disability in TVET; evidence-based policies and costed

action plans supporting the implementation of NEP and NSDP; enhanced performance measurement

and M&E procedures practices in the subsectors; strengthened institutional management at the local

level in Primary Education; strengthened coordination and management for TVET; and enhanced

fiduciary management in the subsectors,

contributing to the following outcomes:

Improved quality, relevance and efficiency of Primary Education and TVET; improved and equitable

access in Primary Education and TVET services; and improved governance and management in the

subsectors, contributing to the following impact:

A better educated, trained and qualified workforce leading to improved socio-economic development.

5 IMPLEMENTATION

5.1 Financing agreement

In order to implement this action, it is foreseen to conclude a Financing Agreement with the partner

country, referred to in Article 184(2)(b) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012.

5.2 Indicative implementation period

The indicative operational implementation period of this action, during which the activities described

in section 4 will be carried out and the corresponding contracts and agreements implemented, is 60

months from the date of entry into force of the financing agreement.

Extensions of the implementation period may be agreed by the Commission’s authorising officer

responsible by amending this decision and the relevant contracts and agreements; such amendments

to this decision constitute technical amendments in the sense of point (i) of Article 2(3)(c) of

Regulation (EU) No 236/2014.

5.3 Implementation of the budget support component

5.3.1 Rationale for the amounts allocated to budget support

23

The amount allocated for budget support component is EUR 200 000 000, and for complementary

support is EUR 5 000 000. This amount is based on assessments of the needs in the sector and

technical assistance for capacity building necessary for a successful implementation of the

programme. The amount for the technical assistance has been estimated by taking into account the

presence of both the Government of Bangladesh and DP managed TA funds in PEDP4 for education

and the complementary role of Skills 21 for TVET.

5.3.2 Criteria for disbursement of budget support

a) The general conditions for disbursement of all tranches are as follows:

Satisfactory progress in the implementation of the primary education policy (i.e. PEDP 4) and

TVET policy (i.e. MoE's SDG Action Plan) and continued credibility and relevance thereof;

Implementation of a credible stability-oriented macroeconomic policy;

Satisfactory progress in the implementation of the PFM Reform Strategy 2016-2021;

Satisfactory progress with regard to the public availability of timely, comprehensive and sound

budgetary information.

b) The specific conditions for disbursement that may be used for variable tranches indicatively

include:

For primary education:

Improved curriculum supported by appropriate learning materials

Increased share of teachers with teacher diploma

Reduced number of out of schools children

Reduced disparities in primary education

Enhanced procurement and financial management

For TVET:

Increased number of TVET trainers certified

Development and implementation of a National Qualification Framework

Increased enrolment rates in TVET (total and disaggregated by gender, minorities and people

with disabilities)

Enhanced planning, performance measurement and M&E practices in TVET

The aforementioned specific conditions are indicative and may be modified later to align with PEDP

4 and MoE's SDG Action Plan for the primary education and TVET subsectors, respectively. They

will be further refined and targets defined in the financing agreement.

The amount of the variable tranches will depend on the performance related to each indicator. Yearly

annual performance reviews will be performed by the EU in coordination with the Government of

Bangladesh. Government counterparts will report on sector performance and progress in policy

implementation and on jointly-agreed outputs/outcomes.

The review should make use of existing monitoring and reporting systems which may be upgraded

through complementary support (see 5.8 below). For the TVET subsector, MoE will be required to

regularly provide specific reports on financial execution (e.g. 6-month certified financial statements

and annual audit report). Safeguard measures should be aligned with the ongoing PFM reform and

take into account the reporting requirements of main development partners (such as World Bank and

ADB) to ensure coherence in approach and avoid increased reporting costs.

The chosen performance targets and indicators to be used for disbursements will apply for the

24

duration of the programme. However, in duly justified circumstances, the Government of Bangladesh

may submit a request to the Commission for the targets and indicators to be changed. The changes

agreed to the targets and indicators may be authorised by exchange of letters between the two parties.

In case of a significant deterioration of fundamental values, budget support disbursements may be

formally suspended, temporarily suspended, reduced or cancelled, in accordance with the relevant

provisions of the financing agreement.

The indicative schedule of disbursements is summarised in the table below:

Year 2019(*) 2020 2021 2022 Total (EUR)

A. PRIMARY EDUCATION SUBSECTOR

Assessment March/April March/April March/April March/April -

Disbursement Q3 2019 Q3 2020 Q3 2021 Q3 2022 -

Fixed tranche (EUR) 15 000 000 15 000 000 15 000 000 15 000 000 60 000 000

Variable Tranche (EUR) 20 000 000 20 000 000 20 000 000 30 000 000 90 000 000

Total subsector A 150 000 000

B. TVET SUBSECTOR

Assessment March/April March/April March/April March/April -

Disbursement Q3 2019 Q3 2020 Q3 2021 Q3 2022 -

Fixed tranche (EUR) 8 000 000 6 000 000 6 000 000 6 000 000 26 000 000

Variable Tranche (EUR) 6 000 000 6 000 000 6 000 000 6 000 000 24 000 000

Total subsector B 50 000 000

TOTAL A + B 200 000 000

(*)The last disbursement under PEDP 3 is due in the first half of 2018.

The annual assessment of the general conditions (four eligibility criteria) and specific conditions

(specific performance indicators) will start each year in the first quarter of each year. It will review

performance made in the previous year (n-1). The annual assessment and request for disbursement

will be made at the same time for both sub-sectors (primary education and TVET) with the objective

to process only one payment per year. However, compliance will be assessed separately for the two

subsectors to avoid penalising a well-advancing subsector if progress is lagging behind in the other

one.

5.3.3 Budget support details

Budget support is provided as direct untargeted budget support to the national Treasury. The

crediting of the euro transfers disbursed into Bangladeshi Taka (BDT) will be undertaken at the

appropriate exchange rates in line with the relevant provisions of the Financing Agreement.

5.4. Implementation modalities for complementary support of budget support

5.4.1 Procurement (direct management)

Subject in generic terms, if possible

Type (works,

supplies,

services)

Indicative

number of

contracts

Indicative trimester

of launch of the

procedure

Technical assistance for capacity building Services 1 Q4 2018

25

5.5 Scope of geographical eligibility for procurement and grants

The geographical eligibility in terms of place of establishment for participating in procurement and

grant award procedures and in terms of origin of supplies purchased as established in the basic act

and set out in the relevant contractual documents shall apply.

The Commission’s authorising officer responsible may extend the geographical eligibility in

accordance with Article 9(2)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 236/2014 on the basis of urgency or of

unavailability of products and services in the markets of the countries concerned, or in other duly

substantiated cases where the eligibility rules would make the realisation of this action impossible or

exceedingly difficult.

5.6 Indicative budget

EU contribution

(amount in EUR)

Indicative third party

contribution, in currency

identified

5.3. – Budget support Sector Reform Contract 200 000 000

5.4.1 – Total procurement (direct management) 5 000 000

5.9 and 5.10 – Evaluation and audit 300 000

5.11 – Communication and visibility 200 000

TOTAL 205 500 000

5.7 Organisational set-up and responsibilities

In primary education, most of the work regarding the sector performance will be continued through

the donor consortium and Ministry of Primary and Mass Education in the light of the Joint Financing

Arrangements. Led by the main implementation agency, the Directorate of Primary Education

(DPE), the coordination mechanism will engage also other responsible agencies like National

Textbook and Curriculum Board (NCTB), National Academy for Primary Education (NAPE) and

Local Government Engineering Division (LGED). High level policy dialogue will take place at the

MoPME level. However, specific mechanisms of performance assessment and related policy

dialogue will have to be detailed down with respect to the EU specific policy agenda.

For TVET, the EU is the first development partner to use budget support with the aim to build the

necessary enabling environment for MoE to implement its reform agenda by strengthening the policy

framework and organisational structure of the subsector. The EU Delegation (with the support of

Skills 21 and, where relevant, complementary support under this action) will play an active role to

develop a common sector policy approach and coordinate with other donors in the subsector –

notably ADB and the World Bank. Where possible, the approach should be supported by a common

results-based framework in alignment with national priorities, and under the leadership of MoE. The

EU will chair the newly-created Task Force to establish a SWAP in TVET and skills development,

with the support of ILO and the active participation of ADB and the World Bank.

Annual performance review meetings will take place bilaterally with MoE (more specifically its

Technical and Madrassa Education Division (TMED)) to review performance and conditions for

yearly tranche release, as well as agree on strategic priorities and plan of action for the following

years. These performance review meetings will take place in the second quarter of each year during

the assessment phase (tentatively in April/May; see table under 5.3.2 above), and before the request

for disbursement is submitted. Joint-assessment with ADB and the World Bank will be envisaged.

Regular policy dialogue will take place at various levels with MoPME and MoE (Minister,

Secretariat, technical). At least two high level policy dialogue meetings (at the level of the Minister

26

and EU Representative) are foreseen annually, to follow-up on the progress of reforms and shared

priorities. Two high level policy dialogue meetings already took place in 2016 and 2017 in

preparation of the programme.

Increased coordination in the education sector will also tentatively be pursued with EU Member

States in the context of the EU Joint programming exercise in Bangladesh (notably through joint

analysis and monitoring).

5.8 Performance monitoring and reporting

The day-to-day technical and financial monitoring of the implementation of this action will be a

continuous process and part of the implementing partner’s responsibilities. To this aim, the

implementing partner shall establish a permanent internal, technical and financial monitoring system

for the action and elaborate regular progress reports (not less than annual) and final reports. Every

report shall provide an accurate account of implementation of the action, difficulties encountered,

changes introduced, as well as the degree of achievement of its results (outputs and direct outcomes)

as measured by corresponding indicators, using as reference the logframe matrix (for project

modality) or the list of result indicators (for budget support). The report shall be laid out in such a

way as to allow monitoring of the means envisaged and employed and of the budget details for the

action. The final report, narrative and financial, will cover the entire period of the action

implementation.

The Commission may undertake additional project monitoring visits both through its own staff and

through independent consultants recruited directly by the Commission for independent monitoring

reviews (or recruited by the responsible agent contracted by the Commission for implementing such

reviews).

The Government of Bangladesh is preparing action plans for the implementation of the SDG in

alignment with the 7FYP. The lead Ministries are working towards translating the respective targets

into actionable projects/ programmes/ activities. The action plan of the SDG will be reportedly

finalised in June 2017. GED is determining the financing needs, with a view to mobilising internal

and external resources accordingly. The Planning Commission is finalising the related monitoring

and evaluation framework. The framework will reportedly have a macro-level web-based data

repository system to facilitate data collection, analysis, progress tracking and monitoring.

At subsector level, MoPME will be entrusted with monitoring and reporting on the specific

performance indicators of the primary education. The Monitoring and Evaluation Division of the

DPE is responsible for preparing the Annual Sector Performance Report (ASPR). Overall

performance of the primary education subsystem over the past years has been systematically

monitored and is well documented and the reports are publicly available. Evidence on learning

outcomes is the responsibility of the National Assessment Unit at DPE. The ASPR describes the

status and achievement trend of primary education in Bangladesh. The primary data sources of the

ASPR are the Annual Primary School Census (APSC), the National Student Assessment (NSA, once

every two year), the Primary Education Completion Examination (PECE) result, the Household

Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES), the Education Household Survey (EHS), reports from DPE

line divisions and data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information and Statistics

(BANBEIS), the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) and the Education Watch Survey of the

Campaign for Popular Education (CAMPE). In addition to the regular data collection, surveys have

been done which have provided valuable complementary data that show that some critical issues

need to be addressed in terms of reducing access and quality disparities within the primary education

system. The Government of Bangladesh and development partners triangulate a number of sources to

strengthen the monitoring and evaluation process.

MoE will be entrusted with monitoring and reporting on the specific performance indicators of the

TVET subsector. BANBEIS currently reports on student enrolment in TVET institutes, disaggregated

by gender and subject matter. Furthermore, it reports on number of teachers employed as well. Data

27

is publicly available. The framework currently employed can be upgraded to serve as a basis for

budget support data requirements. The bureau is used to the concept of SMART indicators and the

setting of targets in relation to various indicators and has experience in conducting compliance

research with a number of donor funded programs, such as the World Bank funded SEQUAP

program, a stipend program for secondary education students. MoE is currently developing a

comprehensive performance-based Action Plan in the framework of the SDG Agenda. The document

should be time-bound (with specific yearly targets), costed and prioritised. MoE (including DTE and

other agencies) will be monitoring the implementation of the Action Pan (specific reporting

requirements should be confirmed when the Action Plan is available).

Additional support will be provided through capacity development to strengthen the monitoring

framework where relevant, including recommendations for process, output and outcome indicators as

well as relevant baselines, with detailed definitions.

5.9. Evaluation

Having regard to the importance of the action, a mid-term and final evaluations will be carried out for

this action or its components via independent consultants contracted by the Commission.

Mid-term evaluation will be carried out for learning purposes, in particular with respect to

performance indicators (update where required) and monitoring processes and complementary

support (relevance and impact of activities).

Final evaluation will be carried out for accountability and learning purposes at various levels

(including for policy revision), taking into account in particular the fact that the intention to is to

launch a second phase of the Action.

The Commission shall inform the implementing partner at least 30 days in advance of the dates

foreseen for the evaluation missions. The implementing partner shall collaborate efficiently and

effectively with the evaluation experts, and inter alia provide them with all necessary information and

documentation, as well as access to the project premises and activities.

The evaluation reports shall be shared with the partner country and other key stakeholders. The

implementing partner and the Commission shall analyse the conclusions and recommendations of the

evaluations and, where appropriate, in agreement with the partner country, jointly decide on the

follow-up actions to be taken and any adjustments necessary, including, if indicated, the reorientation

of the project.

Indicatively, two contracts for evaluation services shall be concluded under a framework contract in

2020 and 2023, respectively.

5.10 Audit

Without prejudice to the obligations applicable to contracts concluded for the implementation of this

action, the Commission may, on the basis of a risk assessment, contract independent audits or

expenditure verification assignments for one or several contracts or agreements.

Indicatively, one contract for audit services shall be concluded under a framework contract in 2022.

5.11 Communication and visibility

Communication and visibility of the EU is a legal obligation for all external actions funded by the

EU.

This action shall contain communication and visibility measures which shall be based on a specific

Communication and Visibility Plan of the Action, to be elaborated at the start of implementation and

supported with the budget indicated in section 5.6 above.

28

In terms of legal obligations on communication and visibility, the measures shall be implemented by

the Commission, the partner country, contractors, grant beneficiaries and/or entrusted entities.

Appropriate contractual obligations shall be included in, respectively, the financing agreement,

procurement and grant contracts, and delegation agreements.

The Communication and Visibility Manual for European Union External Action shall be used to

establish the Communication and Visibility Plan of the Action and the appropriate contractual

obligations.

Indicatively, one contract for audit services shall be concluded under a framework contract in 2018.

29

APPENDIX - INDICATIVE LIST OF RESULT INDICATORS (FOR BUDGET SUPPORT)37

The inputs, the expected direct and induce-d outputs and all indicators, targets and baselines included in the list of result indicators are indicative and may be updated during

the implementation of the action without an amendment to the financing decision. The table with the indicative list of result indicators will evolve during the lifetime of the

action: new columns will be added for intermediary targets (milestones), when it is relevant and for reporting purpose on the achievement of results as measured by

indicators. Note also that indicators should be disaggregated by sex whenever relevant.

Results chain Indicators Baseline (Incl. reference

year)38

Targets (Incl. reference

year)36

Sources and means of

verification

Overall

objective:

IMPACT

To support the Government

of Bangladesh in the

implementation of its

development policies aiming

at a better educated, trained

and qualified human capital

by 2021

i) Human development Index**

ii) Primary Education cycle completion

rate**

iii) Literacy rate among 15-24 years old

iv) TVET completion rates by gender

v) Rates of migration/labour migration

i) 0.579 (2015)

ii) 80.8% (2016)

iii) 86% (2014)

iv) 2017 figures

v) 2017 figures

i) TBC by 2023

ii) TBC

iii) TBC

iv) 98% by 2021

v) x% decrease

Human Development Report

by UNDP; Annual Sector

Performance Report;

Country monitoring and

evaluation report; BBS

reports; NIPORT reports

Specific

objectives:

OUTCOMES

1.Improved quality, relevance

and efficiency of Primary

Education and TVET

i) Primary cycle dropout rate (PE)

ii) Rate of occupation of TVET

graduates (TVET)

i) 19.2% (2016)

ii) 2017 figures (TBC)

i) TBC

ii) x% increase

Annual Sector Performance

Report

Education Household

Survey;

County monitoring &

evaluation reports; Survey /

Tracer study

2. Improved and equitable

access in Primary Education

and TVET services39

i) Net enrolment rate in primary

education (PE)

ii) Net enrolment rates in TVET**

(TVET)

i) 97.96%

ii) 2016 net enrolment 14%

(TVET)

i) TBC

ii) TBC

iii) 20% by 2020 (TVET)

Annual Sector Performance

Report;

County monitoring &

evaluation reports;

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

reports and data

3. Improved governance and

management in Primary

i) Status of planning, budgeting and

performance-based M&E at sub-sector

i) MoPME SDG Action

Plan

i) MoPME's policy

implementation plan(s)

County monitoring &

evaluation reports; MoE

37 Mark indicators aligned with the relevant programming document mark with '*' and indicators aligned to the EU Results Framework with '**'. 38 Baselines and targets will need to be updated at the start of implementation of the programme 39 The indicators will be disaggregated by sex, disability and geographical are where possible to address equity.

30

Results chain Indicators Baseline (Incl. reference

year)38

Targets (Incl. reference

year)36

Sources and means of

verification

Education and TVET level (TVET and PE) ii) MoE SDG Action Plan

and Business Plan

developed, implemented

and monitored by 2023

ii) MoE's policy

implementation plan(s)

developed, implemented

and monitored by 2023

annual performance

reporting MTEF/MTBF

Induced

Outputs:

1.1 Improved quality of

teaching and learning in

Primary Education and

TVET

i) % of grade 3 students achieving

grade 3 competencies in Bangla and

Mathematics (PE)

ii) Number of specialties with

Competency-Based Training (CBT) in

training institutes (TVET)

iii) Peacebuilding / conflict resolution

in curricula (PE)

i) Bangla 65%, Math 41%

(2015)

ii) 120 CB learning

material developed in 2016

(TVET)

iii) Not addressed in

curricula

i) TBC

ii) All new curricula is

competency-based

iii) Peace building/conflict

resolution maintained in the

curricula at all levels of

education

National Student

Assessment Survey; Study

through TA by EU;

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

reports and data; EU TA

reports

1.2 Improved relevance and

quality of system components

of TVET

i) Number of TVET trainers trained

and certified** (TVET)

ii) Labour Market Information System

(LMIS) (TVET)

iii) Upgraded regulatory framework

(TVET)

iv) Upgraded accreditation framework

(TVET)

v) Number of ISC (TVET)

i) 1,192 NTVQF certified

trainers in 2017

ii) No LMIS

iii) Draft National

Qualification Framework

(NQF) in 2016

iv) TBC

v) 12 Industry Skill

Councils established in

2017

i) 100% of trainers trained

ii) Fully functional by 2023

iii) Legally binding norms

for NQF issued/applied;

NQF developed and ready

for implementation by 2019

iv) 80% of public

institutions and 20% of

private intuitions accredited

by 2023

v) 15 additional ISC by

2023

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

reports and data

2.1 Reduced disparities in

Primary Education and

TVET37

i) % of primary school age children

never enrolled or drop out (PE)

ii) Number of children with disability

enrolled (PE)

iii) % of female students (TVET)

iv) % of students with disability

(TVET)

i) never enrolled 9.67%

(2014); dropped out 8.74%

ii) 67022 (2016)

iii) 20% female (2016,

TVET)

iv) less than 1% PwD

(2015, TVET)

i) TBC

ii) TBC

iii) 30% by 2021 (TVET)

iv) At least 2% by 2021

(TVET)

Annual Sector Performance

Report

Education Household

Survey

Annual School Census;

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

reports and data

2.2 Increased capacity in

TVET i) Capacity in TVET infrastructure and

human resources (TVET)

i) 36% districts not served

with Polytechnic Institutes

i) 100% Districts served

with PI and TTC; one

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

reports and data

31

Results chain Indicators Baseline (Incl. reference

year)38

Targets (Incl. reference

year)36

Sources and means of

verification

ii) Number of new entrants having

received formal training (TVET) (PI) and 10% districts not

served with Technical

Schools and Colleges

(TSC)

ii) 5%

Centre of Skills Excellence

established in CHT by 2021

ii) 10% by 2023

3.1 Increased share of

Primary Education and

TVET in national budget

i) % of total public expenditure

allocated to Primary Education (PE)

ii) % of total public expenditure

allocated to TVET (TVET)

i) 2017 figures

ii) less than 0.5% (2017)

i) TBC

ii) TBC

The Government of

Bangladesh annual budget,

MTEF / MTBF

3.2 Improved TVET sector

coordination and oversight

mechanism

i) National Skills Development

Authority (NSDA) (TVET)

i) for Cabinet approval

(2017)

i) NSDA established and

fully functional by 2018

NSDA work plan, annual

performance reports and

annual expenditure reports

Direct

Outputs

1.1.1 Improved curriculum

supported by appropriate

teaching learning materials

including textbooks in

Primary Education and

TVET

i) Status of introduction of Early grade

reading test and early grade

mathematics test introduced (PE)

ii) Number of TVET curricula and

textbooks revised following standards

defined together with the private sector

(TVET)

i) No mechanism for early

grade learning assessment

is in place (PE)

ii) 2017 figures

i) National level assessment

on reading and numeracy

with grade 2 completers

have been conducted

ii) TBC

MoPME reports

1.1.2 Increased number of

trained teachers in Primary

Education and TVET

i) % of teachers completed Diploma in

education in Primary Education (PE)

ii) Number of TVET trainers trained

and certified under NTVQF (TVET)

i) 8% (2016)

ii) 2017 figures (TBC)

i) TBC

ii) 50% by 2023

Annual School Census

Reports from DPE and

MOPME

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

reports and data

1.1.3 Improved learning

environment in Primary

Education and TVET

i) % of schools that meet the student

teacher ratio standard of 46:1

ii) Number of newly recruited teachers

in Primary Education

iii) Number of newly recruited trainers

in MoE's public and publicly-funded

private institutes (TVET)

i) 61.8% (2016)

ii)

iii) 2016 figures (TBC)

i) TBC

ii)

iii) 20,000 trainers by 2021

Annual Sector Performance

Report

Annual School Census

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

reports and data

1.1.4 Strengthened system of

quality assurance in Primary

Education and TVET

i) An institution is responsible for

assessments and examination at the

primary level with clearly defined

i) No institutional setup

existing for different types

of examination at the

i) An institution is

established

ii) 100% increase by 2023

Reports from DPE and

MoPME

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

32

Results chain Indicators Baseline (Incl. reference

year)38

Targets (Incl. reference

year)36

Sources and means of

verification

standard operating procedures

ii) BTEB staff in NTVQF cell

primary level

ii) 20 staff (2017)

reports and data

2.1.1 Reduced out-of-school

children in Primary

Education

i) Number of out of school children

enrolled through public operated

system (PE)

i) N/A i) 1,000,000 by 2022 Annual Sector Performance

Report

Annual School Census

Reports by DPE and

MoPME

2.2.1 Increased female

students and students with

disability in TVET

i) Implementation of MoE's gender and

disability strategies

i) Strategies available i) Action plans developed,

implemented and

monitored

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

reports and data

3.1.1 Evidence-based policies

and costed action plans

supporting the

implementation of NEP and

NSDP in Primary Education

and TVET

i) Increased use of data for decision

making through trainings (PE and

TVET)

ii) MoE's TVET Action Plan with

sufficiently developed performance

assessment framework (TVET)

i) No information

ii) Draft Action Plan

(2017) and Business Plan

(2016)

i) Increase use o

ii) MoE's performance-

based policy

implementation plan(s)

implemented and

monitored by 2023

Baseline and end-line survey

by EU TA

3.1.2 Enhanced performance

measurement and M&E

procedures practices in

Primary Education and

TVET

i) Status of Integrated data

management system of primary

education system (PE)

ii) Status of MoE's M&E framework

for TVET (TVET)

i) Fragmented system

ii) Fragmented system

i) Fully functional data

management system at all

levels

ii) Fully functional system

Reports by DPE and

MOPME

BANBEIS, DTE and BTEB

reports and data

3.1.3 Strengthened

institutional management at

the local level in Primary

Education

i) Number of primary education

regional offices with financial

functions devolved (PE)

ii) % of schools receiving grants based

on performance (PE)

i) TBC

ii) schools receiving block

amounts irrespective of

performance

i) TBC

ii) Fully functional, with

annual reporting

3.1.4 Strengthened

coordination and

management for TVET

i) Sector Wide Approach in TVET and

skilles (TVET)

ii) Methodology to measure

investments in TVET (public-private)

(TVET)

i) No SWAP

ii) No methodology in

place

i) A SWAP is developed

and fully functional by

2020

ii) Methodology to measure

investments (public-

private) in place and

functional

SWAP reports

BANBEIS and DTE reports

and data

3.1.4 Enhanced fiduciary i) % of audit observation resolved i) TBC i) TBC MoE and MoPME audit

33

Results chain Indicators Baseline (Incl. reference

year)38

Targets (Incl. reference

year)36

Sources and means of

verification

management in Primary

Education and TVET

within x months after the end of the

respective fiscal year for primary

education (PE and TVET)

ii) Status of audit observation resolved

ii) 2017 figures ii) % increase (TBC) reports