General Education Development Program (GEDEP)
Project / Program Summary

1. Background and Overview
   After decades of civil strife and economic stagnation, Mozambique is experiencing rapid economic growth. Following the peace agreement in 1992 and the liberalization of the economy, growth has averaged more than 7% annually over the three last years.
2. Despite these favorable circumstances, Mozambique is one of the poorest countries in the world (GNP per capita - 90), and long-term economic growth is threatened by the low education and skills level of the population. This is fully recognized in Mozambique, and various governments since independence have given high priority to the development of education. Following independence in 1975, the education system was rapidly expended, and the gross enrollment ratio (GER) for the first five years of primary education surpassed 100% during the 1978-1980 period. These achievements were possible because of the strong demand for education, which was met through a combination of public investment and community efforts. But these gains were quickly eroded during the civil war that followed independence, when over 3,400 schools were destroyed or closed. Education in approximately 58% of the lower primary school network and for over 1.3 million pupils was disrupted by the civil war between 1983 and 1991.
3. After the peace agreement the Government, again with the collaboration of communities, moved quickly to improve education services. Between 1992 and 1996 the gross enrollment ratio in primary education increased from 54% to 79%, partly as a result of the rapid expansion in the number of primary school classrooms, mostly built by rural communities. Despite serious weaknesses, the quality of education also began to improve when resources were shifted to school inputs and school schedules returned to normal.
4. Educational Development in Mozambique
   In the new Education Sector Strategic Plan (1997-2001), the Mozambican government aims to increase the gross primary enrollment ratio from 795 in 1997 to 86% in 2003. In addition, the government aims to:
   • Provide expanded and more equitable access, including higher enrollment rates in primary and secondary education, mainly in rural areas, with special emphasis on enhancing the participation of girls and populations living in undeserved regions and districts.
   • Improve quality of general and secondary education, resulting in better student academic achievement and improved internal efficiency by reducing repetition and drop-out rates.
   • Strengthen institutional capacity of the Ministry of Education, including increased decentralization of responsibilities and resources to provincial and district offices.
5. These goals are likely to be achieved because the government has made education a top priority, the economy is on the upswing, the communities are responsive and external funding agencies are backing up government programs with resources.
6. The government is allocating an increased share within its internal budget and the recurrent education costs have risen from 12% in the early 1990s to 17% in 1997-1990. In its strategic plan for 1997-2001, the government estimates that it has to almost double its internal financing from about $55 million to $100 million by year 2003 if its GER goal is to be reached, and about $112 million by year 2015 to reach universal primary education. This implies that the education share in GDP has to rise to about 6.8% or GDP has to grow by about 7.9% every year.
7. The World Bank is one of several external agencies that is supporting the Mozambican General Education Development Program. This is a government-led sector wide program.

Donal Hamilton, Task Term Leader for The Mozambique General Education Development Program, Human Development Unit, Eastern and Southern Africa, World Bank.
Telephone: 202-458-4218; facsimile: 202-473-8239.
His Excellency Arnaldo Nhavoto, Minister of Education, The Republic of Mozambique.
Telephone: 258-1-49-02-49; facsimile: 258-1-49-09-79.