Rwanda is the first country to be approved for COVID-19 funding and received US$10 million to address the immediate education challenges posed by the pandemic and contribute to building a more resilient education system for future crises.
Allocation: US$10 million
Years: 2020-2022
Grant agent: World Bank
Key documents:
The GPE program supports the equitable expansion of remote learning opportunities by broadcasting curriculum-aligned radio lessons, along with promoting the use of alternative audio-visual materials on TV and on social media.
To ensure the safe return to school of all students when the lockdown ends, the existing model of school grants will be revised to include COVID-19 response measures:
These initiatives are based on the Ministry of Education’s COVID-19 response plan.
In late March 2020, the UNICEF office in Rwanda received a GPE grant of US$70,000 to support the Ministry of Education with the overall development and implementation of remote learning, as well as overall coordination of the education sector response to school closure.
Rwanda has made great strides in education over the past couple of decades. The government has shown considerable commitment to the sector through various initiatives, including through providing free and compulsory education for nine years of basic education. Free education is now being expanded to 12 years of education.
The government has also undertaken the major reform of changing the curriculum, switching from knowledge to competence-based, and thus make it responsive to the needs of learners, society and the labor market.
Despite these successes, Rwanda is still facing challenges in ensuring better learning outcomes, building teacher capacities, improving gender equality, and reducing dropouts and repetition rates.
The Education sector strategic plan covers the period 2018-2024. It has been developed through collective efforts of the ministry of education and relevant stakeholders in the education sector, keeping in mind these challenges. Its conception is based on a wide consensus and the plan is linked to Rwanda’s long-term strategy for development called the National Strategy for Transformation and Prosperity, in which education is one of the central pillars.
The overarching objective of the strategy is to develop skills to strengthen the quality and relevance of education, and to better prepare students to meet the demands of the labor market.
The new curriculum requires major changes in the teaching methodology and the use of a wider range of assessment techniques. In response, the sector plan proposes 9 strategic priorities:
The Rwanda Education Sector Program Implementation Grant (RESPIG), funded by a $30.8 million grant, is premised upon the Education Sector Strategic Plan (ESSP 2018-2023) priorities and has four components:
All amounts are in US dollars.
| Grant type | Years | Allocations | Utilization | Grant agent | |
| Multiplier | 2022-2026 | 30,000,000 | 0 | WB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| COVID-19 | 2020-2022 | 10,000,000 | 0 | WB | |
| Program implementation | 2020-2024 | 30,800,000 | 10,744,264 | UNICEF | |
| 2015-2018 | 25,200,000 | 25,200,000 | FCDO | Completion report | |
| 2011-2014 | 70,000,000 | 70,000,000 | FCDO | ||
| 2007-2010 | 70,000,000 | 70,000,000 | WB | ||
| 2009-2010 | 35,000,000 | 35,000,000 | WB | Completion report | |
| Sector plan development | 2017-2018 | 301,659 | 301,659 | FCDO | |
| System capacity | 2022 | 1,177,715 | 0 | UNICEF | |
| Program development | 2019-2020 | 111,928 | 111,928 | FCDO | |
| 2018 | 78,223 | 78,223 | FCDO | ||
| Total | 272,669,525 | 211,436,074 |
As part of its investment in civil society advocacy and social accountability efforts, GPE’s Education Out Loud fund is supporting the Rwanda Education For All Coalition (REFAC) for the 2019-2021 period.
This builds on 11 years of Civil Society Education Fund (CSEF) support to national education coalitions for their engagement in education sector policy dialogue.
GPE had provided the Rwanda Education For All Coalition (REFAC) with a grant from the CSEF to support its engagement in education sector policy dialogue and citizens’ voice in education quality, equity, and financing and sector reform.