Argentina - Third Secondary Education Project

Document of The World Bank Report No. 17498 PROJECT APPRAISAL DOCUMENT ONA PROPOSED LOAN IN THE AMOUNT OF US$119.0 MILLION TO PROVINCE OF BUENOS AIRES WITH THE GUARANTEE OF THE ARGENTINE REPUBLIC FORA THIRD SECONDARY EDUCATION PROJECT March 12, 1998 Human and Social Development Group Argentina, Chile and Uruguay CMIJ Latin America and the Caribbean Region  CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS (Exchange Rate Effective January 1998) Currency Unit = Peso 1.00 Peso = US$ 1.00 US$ 1.00 = 1.00 Peso FISCAL YEAR 1998 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS AIJE School-based Extracurricular Activities Program Programa de Apoyo a las Iniciativas Juveniles en la Escuela COPRET Provincial Council for Technical Education Consejo Provincialpara la Educaci6n Tecnica DEMTyA Secondary Education Department Direccion de Educaci6n Media, Tecnica y Agraria EGB Basic Education Educaci6n General Bcisica EGB3 Third Cycle of Basic Education (from 7th to 9th grade) MCE Federal Ministry of Culture and Education Ministerio de Cultura y Educacion NBI Unsatisfied Basic Needs index Necesidades-Bdsicas Insatisfechas NREE Risk Level of Education Exclusion index Nivel de Riesgo de Exclusi6n Educativo UEP Project Implementation Unit Unidad Ejecutora Provincial PBA Province of Buenos Aires PEI School-based plan Plan Educativo Institucional PIEs School-based Improvement Projects Proyectos Institucionales Especificos DGCyE Directorate General of Culture and Education Direcci6n General de Culturay Educacion de la Provincia de Buenos Aires PTENM Provincial Program for the Polymodal Transformation Programa de Transformaci6n Educativa al Nivel Medio PRISE IDB Program of Reforrn and Investments in Education Programa de Reformas e Inversiones en Educaci6n, IDB ProFEI Institutionally Strengthening Program at the School Level Sub- Component Programa de Fortalecimiento Educativo e Institucional Vice President: Shahid Javed Burki Country Manager/Director: Myrna Alexander Sector Manager/Director: Julian Schweitzer Task Team Leader/Task Manager: William Experton  PROVINCE of BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA Third Secondary Education Project CONTENTS A. Project Development Objectives 1. Project development objectives and key performance indicators 1B. Strategic Context 1. Sector-related CAS goals supported by the project 2. Main sector issues and Government strategy 3. Sector issues to be addressed by the project and strategic choices IC. Project Description Summary 1. Project components 2. Key policy and institutional reforms supported by the project 3. Benefits and target population 4. Institutional and implementation arrangements D. Project Rationale 1. Project alternatives considered and reasons for rejection 2. Major related projects financed by the Bank and other development agencies 3. Lessons learned and reflected in proposed project design 4. Indications of borrower commitment and ownership 5. Value added of Bank support in this project E. Summary Project Analyses 1. Economic 2. Financial 3. Technical 4. Institutional 5. Social 6. Environmental assessment 7. Participatory approach IF. Sustainability and Risks 1. Sustainability 2. Critical risks 3. Possible controversial aspect  G. Main Loan Conditions 1. Effectiveness conditions 2. Other H. Readiness for Implementation I. Compliance with Bank Policies Annexes Annex 1. Project Design Summary Annex 2. Detailed Project Description Annex 3. Project Articulation Description and Graph Annex 4 Estimated Project Cost Annex 5. Cost-Benefit Analysis Summary and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Summary Annex 6. Financial Analysis Annex 7. Social Assessment Annex 8. Procurement and Disbursement Arrangements Table A. Project Costs by Procurement Arrangements Table B. Thresholds for Procurement Methods and Prior Review Table C. Procurement Schedule for Year One of Project Implementation Table D. Allocation of Loan Proceeds Annex 9. Project Processing Budget and Schedule Annex 10. Documents in Project File Annex 11. Statement of Loans and Credits Annex 12. Country at a Glance Map of Argentina Map of the Province of Buenos Aires  PROVINCE of BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA Third Secondary Education Project Project Appraisal Document Latin American and the Caribbean Region Argentina, Chile and Uruguay CMU Date: March 12, 1998 Task Team Leader/Task Manager: William Experton Cotntry Manager/Director: Myma Alexander Sector Manager/Director: Julian Schweitzer Project ID: AR-PE-50714 Sector: Education Program Objective Category: PR Lending Instrument: Investment Loan Program of Targeted Intervention: [Xl Yes [ ] No Project Financing Data [X] Loan [ Credit [] Guarantee [I Other [Specity] For Loans/(Credits/Others: Amount (US$mrSDRm): US$ 119 million Proposed terms: [] Multicurrency [X] Single currency, specify Grace period (years): 5 [] Standard Variable [ Fixed [XJ LIBOR-based Years to maturity: 15 Commitment fee: 0.75% Service charge: - Financing plan (US$m): Source Local Foreign Total Government 51.0 51.0 IBRD 107.0 12.0 119.0 Total 158.0 12.0 170.0 Borrower: The Province of Buenos Aires Guarantor: Argentine Republic Responsible agency(ies): Directorate General of Culture and Education - DGCyE Estimated clisbursements (Bank FY/US$M): 1998 1999 2000 Annual 103.8 10.6 4.6 Cumulative 103.8 114.4 119.0 Financing aLvailable without guarantee?: [] Yes [J No If yes, estimated cost or maturity: N/A Estimated financing cost or maturity with guarantee: N/A Project implementation period: 3 years Expected effectiveness date: July 1, 1998 Expected closing date: December 31, 2001 OSD PAD Form: July 30, 1997  Page 2 A: Project Development Objective 1. Project development objective and key performance indicators (see Annex 1): (1) Increase access to third cycle of Basic Education and Polymodal secondary levell: This objective will be achieved by: (i) increasing coverage of the third cycle of EGB (Basic Education from 7th to 9th grades) and the transition rate between the third cycle of EGB and the new Polymodal level (from 10th to 12th grade); and (ii) improving the capacity of 200 Polymodal schools to attract students by making the school more appealing to the youth. (2) Improve the learning process in the targeted Polymodall schools: This objective will be achieved by: (i) assisting schools in their transition to the new curriculum; (ii) improving school management by supporting the development of school institutional plans (PEI) with an emphasis on educational objectives; (iii) providing educational equipment and in-service training for teachers and school administrators; and (iv) providing more resources at the school level by improving the efficiency of sector administration. (3) Improve the skills of Polymodal graduates in order to facilitate entrance in the labor market: This objective will be achieved by: (i) adopting curricular prograins and providing equipment which are up to date with labor market needs; (ii) improving teachers' knowledge and practices in technical education; and (iii) developing permanent ties between the targeted schools and private sector. The progress made towards these development objectives will be measured using five main indicators with their respective targets: - Enrollment in 9th grade of EGB3 from 216,000 to 240,000 - Transition rate from EGB3 to the Polymodal level from 93% to 980% - Completion rate of Polymodal in Participating Schools from 18.5% lto 50% - Achievement test scores in Spanish and Mathematics in Polymodal l'articipating Schools measured in the last grade of this level. Spanish from 63.60% to 68.05% Mathematics from 64.70% to 67.90% - Repetition rate in Polymodal Participating Schools from 15.6% to 7