| General Information |
Project/Program |
Project |
| Project Name |
Education Quality Improvement Project |
| Duration |
Board of Approval: 8/31/1999 Closing Date(original): 03/31/2004, (actual): 03/31/2004 |
| Donor |
World Bank |
| Implementiong Organization |
Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport |
| Sector and/or Subsector Classification |
Education |
| Region |
Starting as a pilot program in the Takeo Province (1998-99), the project had spanned to two neighboring districts of Kampot and three districts of Kandal provinces. |
| Financing |
During project appraisal, project costs were estimated to USD 5.55 million dollars; actual costs are USD 5.43 million dollars. Project was funded by the World Bank with USD 1.26 million dollars, the government funded USD 0.09 million dollars, and co-financiers funded USD 1.35 million. |
| Analytical Information |
Stakeholders |
Department for International Development (DFID, U.K.), District Office of Education, Local School Cluster Committee, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, National Committee for the Development of General Education, Non-governmental Organization, Provincial Grant Management Committees, Project Implementation Unit, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, United Nations Children's Fund, Voluntary Service Overseas (U.K.), Royal Government of Cambodia, IDA, World Bank, Participating Schools, Affected People (Students and teachers). |
| Cross-cutting Issue |
Environment |
Project had major impact in decentralizing local communities; it was considered a "groundbreaking project" by the Implementation Completion Report. |
| Gender |
No gender information was to be found in the Implementation Completion Report. |
| Impact Analysis |
Project aligns with the Priority Action Programs, 2000 Education Sector Support Program and Education Strategic Plan 2004-2008. |
| Effectiveness |
Ownership/Partnership |
Evaluation |
MOEY had high participation with the World Bank, provinces, districts, and schools. Project staff had demonstrated high commitment and great dedication. ICR notes the project had benefited from partnerships with the World Food Programme, the UK Department for International Development and VSO. In addition, the project was very important as it enabled high decentralization leading to high commitment, strong leadership with good administrative behavior. |
| Rating |
4/5 |
| Policy Coherence/Harmonization |
Evaluation |
According to the ICR, the network of school directors, cluster based teachers and community members allowed the MOEY and project staff to share a common goal while taking benefits of the economies of scale. |
| Rating |
4/5 |
| Evaluation Framework |
Evaluation |
To increase monitoring and evaluation, the project established Project Implementation Units and provided food support, work shops, study tours, and worked closely with the Bank Task Team. According to the ICR, there had been education management data available at school and cluster levels which enabled clusters to monitor indicators of enrollment, repetition, and dropout. However, these indicators were not used or monitored previously. |
| Rating |
4/5 |
| Alignment/Composition of Finance |
Evaluation |
Disbursements were all completed at the closing phase with SDR 3.7 million. Delayed counterpart funding was resolved during mid term by making upfront deposits. Project sustainability was rated high; future collaborations with the European Commission and the Asian Development Bank have further worked to strengthen the PAP system. |
| Rating |
4/5 |
| Other Remarks |
Project had institutional impact: decentralizing central government and strengthening local communities, districts, and provinces. Implementation Completion Report has stressed the importance of communication among policy makers and leaders. Like in other project Implementation Completion Reports, the salary for Cambodian staff is a constant problem; the report notes salary supplements and similar incentive practices (which were not mentioned in the ICR) are a double edged sword. |
