Maldives

Allocation: US$750,000

Years: 2020-2021

Grant agent: UNICEF

Key documents

• Application and program document
• Ministry of Education’s COVID-19 response plan

The US$750,000 COVID-19 grant supports:

• Distance learning through TV and online platforms
• Increased access to IT resources to enable teachers to produce interactive digital lessons
• In-service teachers training on ICT pedagogy and assessments to support immediate and medium-term educational objectives
• Increased access to online learning for disadvantage students through wi-fi dongles
• A remedial program to mitigate learning loss
• Policy reform around increased use of technology and use of digital devices to improve the quality of learning in the far-flung islands with small schools and relatively small class sizes.

In late March 2020, the UNICEF office in Malawi received a GPE grant of US$70,000 to support the Ministry of Education with preparing an education response and recovery plan for COVID-19. The grant is also used to:

• support safe school operation and risk communication
• analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on education
• training of teachers in distance learning.

Maldives’ education sector plan (ESP) for 2018-22 is a result of comprehensive education sector analysis and consultative work led by the country’s Ministry of Education (MoE). It is the first time that the MoE has developed a comprehensive sector analysis and education plan since 1995.

The education plan has 4 goals:

1. Improved learning for all, through equitable access to quality education
2. Skilled youth and adults for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship
3. Ensure equitable access to lifelong, affordable and quality higher education for all
4. System strengthening for efficiency and quality schools for all.

The ESP covers all key sub-sectors of education including early childhood education, primary and secondary education, higher education and technical and vocational education and training. The monitoring and evaluation framework detailed in the ESP emphasizes the need to develop a number of analytical work using robust data, learning measurements and evaluations.