Document of The World Bank FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Report No: 19048 IMPLEMENTATION COMPLETION REPORT REPUBLIC OF GHANA TERTIARY EDUCATION PROJECT (Cr. 2428-GH) March 17, 1999 Human Development 3 Africa Region This document has a restricted distribution and may be used by recipients only in the performance of their official duties. Its contents may not otherwise be disclosed without World Bank authorization. CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS (January 31, 1999) Currency Unit = Cedi US$1.00 = Cedi 2,373 SDR 1 US$1.33 US$1 = SDR.75 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES Metric System FISCAL YEAR OF BORROWER January 1 - December 31 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS AfDB African Development Bank ICR Implementation Completion Report IDA International Development Association JAMB Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board MIS Management Information System MOE Ministry of Education NAB National Accreditation Board NABPTEX National Board for Professional and Technician Examinations NCTE National Council for Tertiary Education PMU Project Management Unit SDR Standard Drawing Rights Vice President: Jean-Louis Sarbib (AFR) Country Director: Peter Harrold (AFC 10) Sector Manager: Helena Ribe (AFTH3) Task Team Leader: William Saint (AFTH3) FOR OMCIAL USE ONLY REPUBLIC OF GHANA TERTIARY EDUCATION PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION COMPLETION REPORT (Cr. 2428-GH) TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE EVALUATION SUMMARY .....................................................................1I INTRODUCTION ......................................................................1 A. COUNTRY CONTEXT ......................................................................1 B. IDA'S ROLE rN THE GHANA EDUCATION SECTOR ...................................................................... I PROJECT OBJECTIVES ......................................................................2 A. STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES ......................................................................2 B. ACHIEVEMENT OF OBJECTIVES ......................................................................2 IMPLEMENTATION EXPERIENCE AND RESULTS ....................................................................5 A. MAJOR FACTORS AFFECTING THE PROJECT ......................................................................5 B. PROJECT SUSTArNABILITY ......................................................................7 C. BANK PERFORMANCE ......................................................................7 D. BORROWER PERFORMANCE ......................................................................8 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, FUTURE OPERATIONS AND KEY LESSONS LEARNED .................8 A. ASSESSMENT OF OUTCOMES ......................................................................8 B. FUTURE OPERATIONS ......................................................................9 C. KEY LESSONS LEARNED ......................................................................9 STATISTICAL ANNEXES Table 1: Summary of Assessments Table 2: Related Bank Credits Table 3: Project Timetable Table 4: Credit Disbursements: Cumulative Estimated and Actual Table 5: Key Indicators of Project Implementation Table 6: Studies Included in the Project Table 7A: Credit Amount (by expenditure category) Table 7B: Project Financing Table 8: Economic Costs and Benefits Table 9: Status of Legal Covenants. Table 10: Bank Resources: Staff Inputs Table 11 A: Bank Resources: Missions Table 1 B: Bank Resources: Supervision Missions Appendices: A. Mission's aide-memoire B. Summary of Borrower's contribution to the ICR C. Map of project sites (IBRD Map No. 24061) This document has a restricted distribution and may be used by recipients only in the performance of their official duties. Its contents may not otherwise be disclosed without World Bank authorization. REPUBLIC OF GHANA TERTIARY EDUCATION PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION COMPLETION REPORT (Cr. 2428-GH) PREFACE This is the Implementation Completion Report (ICR) for the Ghana Tertiary Education Project, for which Credit 2428-GH in the amount of SDR 31.2 million equivalent was approved on October 27, 1992 and made effective on January 8, 1993. The credit was closed on September 30, 1998 after one extension from the original closing date of December 31, 1997. It was fully disbursed by January 31, 1999. The ICR was prepared by William Saint, Human Development 3 of the Africa Region, and reviewed on March 8, 1999 in a meeting chaired by Mr. Peter Harrold, Country Director for Ghana. The Borrower provided its own report which appears as an appendix to the ICR. Preparation of this ICR was begun during the Bank's supervision mission in February 1998 and completed during final discussions with the Borrower and key stakeholder groups in September 1998 and February 1999. It is based on a commissioned project assessment and on materials in the project file. The Borrower helped to prepare the ICR by commissioning its own evaluation of the project's accomplishments, contributing its Project Completion Report and the views reflected in the mission's aide-memoire, and commenting on the draft ICR. IMPLEMENTATION COMPLETION REPORT TERTIARY EDUCATION PROJECT (Cr. 2428-GiH) EVALUATION SUMMARY 1. Introduction. Agreements for a Tertiary Education Project of SDR 31.2 million were signed on November 11, 1992 and became effective on January 8, 1993. The credit was designed as a five-year sector investment project in support of tertiary education reforms proposed under Government's overall education system re-structuring begun in 1986. The project started slowly due to a post-election changes in Ministry of Education (MOE) leadership, but performed normally after that. In September 1997 the closing date was extended for nine months to September 30, 1998 so that local training and installation of a computerized management information system could be completed. 2. Bank's Role in the Sector. The Bank has been an active supporter of national educational reform in Ghana since 1986. A series of 8 operations totaling $291.6 million have progressively addressed all aspects of the educational system. 3. Project Objectives and Components. The project sought to assist the Government of Ghana to improve the quality and relevance of teaching and research among the country's universities and polytechnics, and to sustain these improvements financially through increases in cost-recovery and management efficiency at the level of the institutions. Project components comprised the provision of scientific books and journals, laboratory and teaching equipment, staff development, a research fund, computerized management information system (\4MIS) development for the universities, a new university college of education, several new policy formulation and quality monitoring bodies, classroom construction, and building rehabilitation. 4. Credit Covenants and Special Agreements. Credit covenants bound both the Ministry of Education and the tertiary institutions to performance targets outlined in Government's letter of development policy. These outcome goals were reinforced by parallel memoranda of understanding between the Ministry of Education and the tertiary institutions. These instruments sought greater efficiency in institutional staffing and budget management while increasing institutional revenues from student cost-sharing. 5. Evaluation of Project Objectives. Project objectives were clear and highly relevant to the future development of the country's higher education sub-sector. They were based on considerable prior Government initiated planning and consultation concerning the thrust and extent of the proposed reforms. But as the country moved into more democratic governance in the 1990s, the project's reform agenda failed to maintain the political support needed for it to achieve some of its politically more difficult aims. IMPLEMENTATION EXPERIENCE AND RESULTS 6. Assessment of Project's Success and Sustainability. The prospects for project sustainability are uncertain unless tertiary enrollment growth and tertiary financing can be brought into balance. The rise in university enrollments, the creation of four new polytechnics, slow progress in cost-sharing, and the inability to re-structure the student loan program do not augur well for the sustainability of project inputs to boost educational quality. In this context, increased institutional capacities, better management mechanisms, greater public awareness of key issues, and an improved but still imperfect policy framework may not be sufficient to preserve the project's investment. 7. Summary of Costs and Financing Arrangements. The total project cost was US$ 51.0 million. IDA provided US$ 44.8 million. The Government of Ghana contributed US$ 4.8 million in matching funds and US$ 1.4 million in waivers of duty and taxes. In addition, the African Development Bank awarded US$ 15 million in parallel project financing. 8. Implementation Schedule. The Credit was designed as a five-year investment project. It closed on September 30, 1998 after a nine-month extension from the original closing date of December 31, 1997. It was fully disbursed by January 31, 1999. 9. Analysis of Key Factors Affecting Major Objectives. Achievement of the main project objectives was constrained by five factors. Insufficient political will to control enrollment growth and to increase cost-recovery was the primary constraint. Secondary difficulties included freqjuent leadership changes in the Ministry of Education and the tertiary institutions, inadequate project communications, insufficient matching funds, and delays in a parallel tertiary education project financed by the African Development Bank which led to sequencing problems in the timely provision of inputs. 10. Assessment of the Borrower's and IDA's Performance. The Borrower's performance was barely satisfactory in pursuit of the project's development objectives, but highly satisfactory in the implementation of project activities. IDA's overall performance is judged to have been satisfactory. 11. Assessment of Project's Outcome. The Ghana Tertiary Education Project has produced mixed results. It achieved major objectives related to institutional development, management efficiency, greater autonomy and improved accountability, but failed to attain a key goal--sustainable financing of the tertiary system. On this basis, it is rated as barely "satisfactory." iii SUMMARY OF FINDINGS AND KEY LESSONS LEARNED 12. Key lessons learned from the project experience are summarized below: (a) Tertiary education projects are unusual in that their beneficiary institutions--the universities--are generally stronger, better endowed, and more capable than other public institutions. In addition, they possess an organized and influential constituency of staff, students, and alumni who can act as powerful interest groups. For these reasons, broad consultation and institutional participation is essential not only in project design, but also continuously throughout the implementation of the project. This implies higher supervision costs. (b) Managed expansion of tertiary enrollments is absolutely critical for maintaining educational quality, yet political circumstances often make it difficult for governments to exercise this control--even when bound to do so by legal covenants in the Credit Agreement. For this reason, Bank staff should take strong measures at the first indication that enrollment growth is exceeding government's capacity to finance this expansion. Total recurrent expenditure per student is recommended as a main performance indicator for monitoring the balance between enrollment growth and the capacity to finance expansion without loss of quality. (c) Where improvement in the quality of tertiary education is an explicit project objective, relevant performance indicators which measure student learning (e.g., standard examination results) should be identified or created in order to effectively monitor project impact. (d) It has proven very difficult for the finance arm of government to recognize and affirm education sector and institutional priorities in the allocation of public resources. Both project and Bank staff are therefore advised to foster good communication and close working relationships with the Ministry of Finance and its sister agencies (e.g., Auditor General) throughout the project period. (e) Bank staff recognize the potential of tertiary students to stalemate processes of tertiary reform, particularly with regard to financial issues such as cost-sharing, student privileges, student loans, and scholarships. However, the transitory status of students and frequent turnover in student leadership make effective consensus-building with students difficult to attain. Consequently, any agreements reached are likely to be temporary. For this reason, it is recommended that mechanisms for continuous communication and consultation with student representatives be explicitly incorporated into project design. iv (f) When Bank-supported projects are expected to include parallel financing by another donor, care should be taken to ensure that each donor-financed component can be implemented independent of the other. This is because the difficulties of coordinating procurement, no-objections, and disbursements by two separate funding institutions are nearly insurmountable. (g) The introduction of computerized management information systems was a "tpioneering" experience in Ghana, and numerous lessons were learned: (i) establish essential infrastructure (phone lines; networked computers) before launching the introduction of MIS; (ii) use the above process to identify and foster local "champions"; (iii) familiarize middle managers with computer technology early in the project; (iv) obtain institutional commitments to cover system maintenance costs; and (v) only after the above has been done should the big choices regarding system design be undertaken. This means that the selection of technical assistance for project management should be carried out earlier and separately from the choice of software (which should involve university participation). (h) Government and the Bank acquired useful experience in the management of a Research Fund which can guide similar efforts in the future: (i) research funds should be managed by an institution with a mandate for and commitment to research, not by the project implementation unit or parent ministry; (ii) research proposals should be invited from university departments rather than from individuals to enhance capacity building benefits and to enable greater accountability through involvement of university finance officers; and (iii) technical evaluators of research proposals should be paid enough to ensure timely responses. (i) Short term and in-service training in professional management techniques for staff at all levels of management should be a continuous activity throughout the life of any higher education project. (j) Project accounting lessons are three: (i) maintain project accounts in SDRs from inception in order to avoid exchange rates surprises in the final year; (ii) divide accounting tasks among two or more accountants to ensure internal controls and staffing continuity through illness or departures; and (iii) do not economize on project management funding by skimping on accounting capacity. IMPLEMENTATION COMPLETION REPORT REPUBLIC OF GHANA TERTIARY EDUCATION PROJECT (Cr. 2428-GH) PART I: PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION ASSESSMENT INTRODUCTION A. COUNTRY CONTEXT 1. During the 1990s, the Government of Ghana has given a very high priority to education. Recognizing that human capital fonnation is essential for national economic growth, the Government launched a comprehensive education reform in 1987. Subsequently, it has committed over one-third of its budget annually to the education sector. The reform re-structured primary and secondary education, revised curriculum, and shortened the period of schooling from 17 to 12 years. It also expanded secondary education, established a national adult literacy program, increased the number of universities and polytechnics, and emphasized science education throughout the system. These changes were followed in 1994 by the introduction of "free, compulsory and universal basic education." At the same time, education system management has been steadily decentralized to the district level and greater community involvement has been encouraged. Although performance indicators have improved somewhat in comparison with the pre-1987 period, significant difficulties remain. Learning outcomes for all levels are poor, enrollment growth in basic education is slow, and students are inadequately prepared for employment. B. IDA'S ROLE IN THE GHANA EDUCATION SECTOR 2. The International Development Association (IDA) support for Ghana's education reform program has been substantial, totaling US$ 291.6 million since 1987. Following an initial emergency Health and Education Project (Cr. 1653-GH, US$5 million for education), IDA extended re-structuring assistance through the First and Second Education Sector Adjustment Credits (EdSAC-I, Cr. 1744-GH, US$34.5 million; EdSAC- II, Cr. 2140-GH, US$50 million). EdSAC-I focused on initiating reforms at the primary and junior secondary education levels. EdSAC-II consolidated reforms in basic education and extended them into senior secondary education. Subsequent investment credits targeted specific sub-sector development: primary education (Cr. 2508-GH, US$65.1 million), senior secondary education (Cr. 2278-GH, US$15 million), tertiary education (Cr. 2428-GH, US$45 million), adult literacy (Cr. 2349-GH, US$17.4 million), and vocational training in the informal sector (Cr. 2695-GH, US$9.6 million). In 1996 a multi-donor Basic Education Sector Improvement Program supported implementation of universal basic education (Cr. 2885-GH, US$50 million). Recently, Ghana became a participant in the Bank-led Worldlink and African Virtual University programs which seek to incorporate information and telecommunications technology into secondary and tertiary education. 2 PROJECT OBJECTIVES A. STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES 3. The Tertiary Education Project supported the first phase of the Government's educational reform program at the tertiary level. It sought to assist the Government of Ghana to improve the quality and relevance of teaching and research among the country's universities and polytechnics, and to sustain these improvements financially through increases in cost-recovery and management efficiency at the level of the institutions. Its five main components were: (i) to increase educational quality and relevance in tertiary institutions; (ii) to establishfinancing arrangements within the tertiary system capable of maintaining quality as enrollments increased; (iii) to gradually expand access to tertiary education; (iv) to improve management efficiency in resource use; and (v) to establish institutional capacities for system monitoring and evaluation. 4. Project objectives were well defined, but in some cases proved to be beyond the political capabilities of the Ministry of Education. Considerable prior analysis and consultation by the Ministry produced clear project objectives that were highly relevant for the future development of tertiary education and for national capacity-building. Moreover, the objectives were feasible in light of the Ministry of Education's existing plans and manageable within the project's five-year time frame. But in retrospect, the totality of project objectives, when operationalized into numerous discrete (and sometimes politically sensitive) covenanted agreements, exceeded the Ministry's implementation capacities. This was particularly true for cost-sharing and loan scheme re-structuring, as the project was caught up in economic uncertainties and public policy debates accompanying political liberalization. B. ACHIEVEMENT OF OBJECTIVES 5. Arriving at a single summary assessment of project objectives is difficult because they are not of equal importance. Yet the weighting assigned to each objective is frequently a judgment which varies among individuals. To inform this judgment, evidence of what the Government of Ghana achieved is summarized below. It is based on performance indicators incorporated as covenants to the Credit Agreement (see Table 9) and used as tools for project supervision (see Table 5). 6. Educational quality and relevance. The tertiary reform responded to a widely perceived decline in educational quality and relevance during the 1980s, and the project addressed this concern in four ways. First, it provided large inputs of instructional materials (76,108 books, 1,472 annual scientific journal subscriptions, and 4,200 pieces of scientific equipment) to enhance teaching effectiveness and facilitate student learning. Second, it directly addressed the relevance of the polytechnic curriculum through seven technical assistance postings designed to update course objectives, organization and practical training. To the same end, it also undertook a substantial staff development program in the polytechnics (112 beneficiaries) to strengthen the foundation for increased offerings of Higher National Diploma courses. Meanwhile, Government established 3 polytechnic councils with strong private sector representation to oversee the relevance of these institutional programs. Third, the project provided professional development opportunities for 216 university staff and skills upgrading courses in pedagogical techniques. For similar reasons, it established a research fund which sought to introduce greater Ghanaian content into university teaching through support for 32 separate investigations. Fourth, it established a National Accreditation Board to monitor the quality of educational programs on a permanent basis. All of this should have given a noticeable boost to the quality of tertiary education. 7. But Government undermined its investments in quality by reducing the tertiary sub-sector share of the education budget by one-fifth (from 15% in 1992 to 12% during the life of the project) and by postponing politically contentious decisions on student cost- sharing. Resulting cuts in funding during a period of enrollment growth were clearly counterproductive. In 1990, for example, the government expended nearly US$2,500 (755,800 cedis) per university student for recurrent items, and US$180 (70,000 cedis) per polytechnic student. But by 1998, per student recurrent expenditures at universities had fallen to roughly US$900 (2,002,200 cedis), and at the polytechnics to just US$78 (178,200 cedis). Expressed in constant 1990 cedis, the 1998 expenditures were 277,032 cedis for universities and 24,656 cedis for polytechnics - a decline of roughly two-thirds. Over the same period, average salaries for university academic staff fell in real terms by 45%, prompting staff departures and fostering low morale among those who remained. These examples suggest that quality improvements in tertiary education have been much less than they would have been if the Government's budgetary commitment had been maintained. Indeed, world experience indicates that current funding levels for both universities and polytechnics are too low to permit credible tertiary education to occur.' 8. Sustainablefinancing. The key to expanding enrollments while maintaining educational quality is to establish financial arrangements capable of sustaining a balance between growth and quality over time. To this end, the Credit Agreement sought to expand funding for tertiary education by introducing full-cost hostel fees, raising academic charges, and re-structuring the student loan program to reduce public subsidies and increase the repayment rate. These goals were attained only in part. Notably, the non-viable student loan scheme remained untouched at project completion, having generated a deficit of US$16 million for the public purse.2 Nevertheless, Government succeeded, following extensive public debate, in introducing hostel fees of US$65 for the 1998/99 academic year, which cover roughly 25 percent of the full cost of student accommodation. Likewise, polytechnics and universities have gradually established cost- recovery charges of US$50 to US$80 per student. This amount contributes nearly 5 lPer student expenditure is, of course, a rather crade indicator of educational quality. It provides no information on the effectiveness of institutional management, the qualifications of academic staff, the adequacy of teaching equipment and physical facilities, the pertinence of library holdings, or the output of researchers. Still, the decline in per student expenditures has been so dramatic that it is impossible to imagine how educational quality might have remained unaffected. 2 A high level committee has been appointed to recommend appropriate re-structuring of the student loan program; its report is expected in early 1999. 4 percent of overall recurrent costs. Although these cost-sharing gains were achieved in the face of considerable political opposition, they are not sufficient to stabilize a financing problem of the present magnitude. 9. Access. With a tertiary enrollment ratio of less than 3 percent, Ghanaians expect access to higher education to increase substantially. But if enrollment growth is not accompanied by a commensurate rise in budgets and efficiency, educational quality will inevitably deteriorate. For this reason, the project included signed agreements with the Ministry of Education and with the institutions which sought to keep the rate of expansion within manageable bounds. During the project period, however, university enrollments expanded from 14,272 to 27,812 (an increase of 95 percent), surpassing the agreed 1997/98 ceiling of 22,800 for managed system expansion by 22 percent. Polytechnic enrollments of 13,456 in 1997/98 remained under the agreed ceiling of 14,000. The project clearly succeeded in expanding access, although at a rate somewhat faster than was desirable. 10. Management efficiency. The project aimed to increase the efficiency of resource management by improving academic staff/student ratios, reducing the numbers of non- academic staff, providing incentives for institutional income generation, and establishing computerized management information systems. By project completion, academic staff/student ratios had improved from 1: 11 to 1: 18 at universities, and from 1:24 to 1:30 at polytechnics.3 However, enrollment growth produced these gains rather than conscious management intervention. For the same reason, the proportion of non-academic staff to students declined from 49 percent to 28 percent for the university system overall. In 1998, Government agreed to allow the institutions to retain all income generated, instead of deducting it from the following year's allocation as previously. The three main universities have registered good progress in the very complex and long-term undertaking of establishing computerized management information systems. By the end of 1998, these universities had put in place core capabilities for managing an integrated system of student records, personnel, and financial administration. Importantly, Government has undertaken in 1999 to fund the tertiary sector on a block grant basis, thereby encouraging management initiative and enabling the budget process for the first time to align funding with policy objectives and institutional priorities. As a result, the tertiary system is slowly but steadily increasing its management efficiency. 11. Capacities for system monitoring and evaluation. Various institutional capacities for policy monitoring and quality control of the tertiary system have been created. Three of the four new institutions to be set up under the project are now in place and functioning with various degrees of effectiveness. The first, the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE), is staffed, housed, and deeply involved in tertiary financing issues. The second, the National Accreditation Board (NAB), has visited all polytechnics twice during the past three years, providing conditional certification to most programs and identifying several for remedial attention. The third, the National Board for Professional and Technician Examinations (NABPTEX), examined all polytechnic graduates for 1995, 3 The polytechnic ratio is judged too high for the effective transfer of hand skills to take place. 5 1996 and 1997, but has not yet awarded diplomas for these years. This has been due largely to the Ministry's inability to find a suitable candidate for the Board's key leadership position of Executive Secretary. The fourth, a proposed Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), was expected to simplify the admissions process for students while improving its cost-efficiency. However, JAMB legislation has been stalled in Parliament since 1994 by university opposition. This lack of progress recently prompted the NCTE to take steps to set up a joint admissions board under its auspices. In addition to these new agencies, development units have been established within the universities to coordinate institutional data collection and to support strategic planning. Taken together, these various institutional capacities appear likely to become the project's most important legacy. 12. University College of Education at Winneba. In the quest for better quality and reduced costs, Government united five small teacher training colleges on a common campus in the town of Winneba. This fledgling enterprise has evolved well under challenging conditions, and is beginning to play a role in upgrading teacher quality within the country. Of note is its multi-disciplinary approach to curriculum development and its growing capacity to offer in-service distance learning programs to teachers. With an enrollment of 3,400 students, it can be considered a notable accomplishment under the project. 13. Based on the above, project performance in attaining its development objectives is rated as "satisfactory," but barely so. The Borrower achieved much, particularly with regard to institutional capacity development. But its financing reforms did not go far enough to ensure the sustainability of the project's quality achievements. IMPLEMENTATION EXPERIENCE AND RESULTS A. MAJOR FACTORS AFFECTING THE PROJECT 14. Principle risks identified at the outset of the project were accurately anticipated. They were: (a) that the Ministry of Education might lose control of university enrollments in the face of strong social demands for higher education; (b) that efficiency gains would be delayed by staff and student resistance; (c) that end-1992 elections would bring changes in government which might undermine commitments to the project's objectives; and (d) that some combination of the above three factors could produce a budget explosion in tertiary education. In retrospect, all but the last of these risks manifested themselves directly. 15. Various factors limited project achievements. None of these were related to the design of the project or its implementation arrangements. Principal among them were: 16. Political will. Government's two-pronged strategy of boosting educational quality through managed enrollment growth and increased cost-recovery pre-dated the project and was well understood by all parties. It was a key aspect of the 1988 report of 6 the Government's University Rationalization Committee, and was clearly summarized in the Government's Letter of Higher Education Development Policy, dated September 12, 1992. The same strategy was enshrined in the Development Credit Agreement and in associated memoranda of understanding between the Ministry of Education and the tertiary institutions. It was also the focus of the project's Mid-Term Review in 1995 and its subsequent Action Plan. Govemment's inability to honor its pledge to carry out this strategy can only be explained as a widespread reluctance by key public figures, perhaps wary of the more open and less predictable political environment that followed post-1992 re-democratization, to assume responsibility for these commitments. 17. Leadership changes. Numerous changes of leadership weakened the ability of participating institutions to meet their obligations in pursuit of project goals. During the project, the Ministry of Education had three different ministers and deputy ministers for higher education. Two of the main universities had three different vice-chancellors and several of the polytechnics had two or more principals. The NCTE initially operated without an Executive Secretary for two years, and then worked under an acting chairman for two more years once the Executive Secretary was named. NABPTEX has never had a permanent Executive Secretary in its four years of existence. This instability was partially offset by the permanence of the Ministry's Project Manager and the Bank's Task Manager, who both remained unchanged during project implementation. This was not enough, however, to generate full adherence to the project's objectives. 18. Inadequate project communications. Tertiary institutions the world over, particularly universities, are accustomed to considerable autonomy in the management of their affairs. In this context, they are likely to view each other as competitors rather than potential partners, and they are not in the habit of allowing Ministry officials to take on coordinating roles. Ghana is no exception to this general rule. Consequently, established channels of communication among-middle level managers at the tertiary institutions and the Ministry of Education (and particularly its new Project Management Unit - PMU) did not exist to facilitate project implementation. Communication through the heads of tertiary institutions proved problematic due to their frequent travel, the weakness of delegation of authority arrangements, status differences between university leaders and PMU staff, and limited telephone service on campuses. Although these shortcomings might have been remedied by a strong initial investment of PMU and IDA staff time in building personal relations with staff at each institution, the seriousness of communication problems only became apparent at the Mid-Term Review. Subsequently, PMU staff tried to improve their communications and to organize project implementation committees on each campus. At that time, however, the need for the PMU to cede certain responsibilities to the NCTE as the latter began to play its anticipated coordinating role introduced further complexity into the communications issue. Thus, the lack of initial attention to building strong channels of communication between the project and the tertiary institutions was never corrected. 19. Disarticulation with theAfrican Development Bank (AJDB). In what seemed to be a reasonable division of labor, the IDA-supported project planned to build upon the achievements of an earlier approved AfDB investment of US$15 million in the 7 construction and rehabilitation of teaching workshops at the polytechnics. Specifically, IDA funding provided new workshop equipment and short-term technical specialists to train polytechnic staff in the use of this new equipment and help them to update curriculum. Unfortunately, major re-organization and staffing turnover at the AfDB seriously delayed implementation approvals for its project during several years, thereby disrupting the sequencing of the IDA project. Neither Bank nor PMI staff adjusted adequately to these delays. As a result, the technical specialists arrived to find the new equipment still boxed and uninstalled because the workshops were not ready to receive them. Regrettably, some of the technical specialists concluded their six-month assignments before their workshops could be equipped, and were unable to do more than provide "theoretical" training in their areas of expertise. 20. Matchingfunds. Timely provision of matching funds by Government was a chronic problem throughout the project. Lobbying for these funds absorbed huge amounts of the project manager's time and limited his ability to attend to other important aspects of the project (e.g. communications). Delays in the release of matching funds also slowed completion of project civil works by one year. At project end, Government was US$630,000 short of meeting its commitment to provide US$5.4 million in matching funds. B. PROJECT SUSTAINABILITY 21. At this time, the prospects for project sustainability are uncertain. Unless tertiary enrollment growth is brought firmly under government management, the progress noted above could well be temporary. The rise in university enrollments, the recent creation of four new polytechnics, slow progress in cost-sharing, and the inability to restructure the student loan program do not augur well for the sustainability of project gains in educational quality. In the face of these facts, increased institutional capacities, efficiency gains, greater public awareness of the key issues, and an improved but still inadequate policy framework may not be sufficient to preserve the project's investment. C. BANK PERFORMANCE 22. IDA's overall performance is judged to be satisfactory. It identified a high-priority project in which the Government had previously invested considerable preparation effort. A number of working groups, task forces, consultancies, and on-campus seminars shaped the content of new structures, academic programs, legal frameworks, and quality control mechanisms.4 The resulting project design was feasible and thorough. During implementation, IDA staff regularly shared documentation with institutional and ministry officials on higher education reform experiences elsewhere in the world. They also helped to build stakeholder awareness of the gravity of the tertiary financing problems facing the country through interviews, articles, and radio broadcast discussion. Should staff, Esi Sutherland-Addy, Revival and Renewal: Reflections on the Creation of a System of Tertiary Education in Ghana. AFTHR Technical Note No. 10. (Washington, DC: World Bank, 1993), p. 14. 8 however, have applied the legal remedies at their disposal when Government allowed tertiary enrollments to surge in 1996/97 and failed to introduce off-setting cost-sharing policies as agreed? Bank staff repeatedly raised these issues with Government and reflected its stop-and-go responses in their supervision ratings of project performance. But they judged that direct confrontation on this point would not have been productive for the Bank's broader education sector strategy. Moreover, Bank management was less willing to support a suspension of disbursements at that time than it is today. D. BORROWER PERFORMANCE 23. The Borrower's performance is assessed as barely satisfactory in the policy area. The gains in tertiary system integration, institutional capacities, block-grant funding, institutional autonomy, and various areas of management efficiency are judged to marginally outweigh the failure to maintain previous levels of budget support for the tertiary sector, to introduce full-cost hostel fees, and to re-structure the student loan scheme. However, the Borrower's performance was highly satisfactory in the implementation of project activities. The Borrower completed virtually all activities as planned, and the credit has been 100 percent disbursed. For the most part, the Borrower responded to implementation problems with determination and creativity. SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, FUTURE OPERATIONS AND KEY LESSONS LEARNED A. ASSESSMENT OF OUTCOMES 24. The Ghana Tertiary Education Project has produced mixed results. It is rated satisfactory in the areas of institutional development, educational quality, establishment of the University College of Education, certain management efficiency gains, introduction of the block grant concept, establishment of computerized management information systems, and incipient capacities for institutional strategic planning. It is rated unsatisfactory in its efforts to introduce full-cost hostel fees, to re-structure the student loan scheme, to manage the expansion of tertiary enrollments, and to maintain Government's financial commitment to the sub-sector. These latter limitations place the sustainability of the former accomplishments at risk. 25. On balance, although many of the project's development objectives were achieved, the absence of any assurance concerning controls on tertiary enrollment growth and associated medium term plans for the system's financial sustainability leave the outcome of the tertiary reform process, and the project itself, uncertain. 9 B. FUTURE OPERATIONS 26. As the project entered its final year in 1998, the Borrower proposed a second tertiary education project to IDA in order to consolidate the tertiary reforms now under way. In light of the project experience summarized above, Bank staff judge that the following foundation of policy actions would need to be in place prior to the commencement of any second phase assistance: => Action Plan for financial sustainability of the education sector. => Updated policy framework for tertiary education. z> Agreements on per student expenditure levels needed to improve educational quality and the consequences of non-compliance. => Budgets which reinforce policy goals and institutional strategic plans. > Quarterly block grants for the tertiary sector which include items 1-8. z> Sustainable and targeted student loan scheme. > Participatory mechanism for project design and implementation. = ? Government payment of pending invoices for contracts approved under the current project. If these issues are satisfactorily addressed, a second tertiary education investment could usefully concentrate on the following capacity needs: strategic planning at tertiary institutions, strengthening and streamlining the polytechnic sub-sector, selected graduate training programs, tertiary distance learning, electronic networking for scientific and administrative purposes, and quality assurance. C. KEY LESSONS LEARNED 27. Project experience was assessed separately by Government and IDA at both the Mid-Term Review and at credit closing. The latter includes an MOE-commissioned Report on Evaluation of National Tertiary Policy Objectives. In addition, IDA and MOE jointly organized stakeholder workshops in September 1998 and in February 1999 to take stock of the project experience. 28. Specific lessons drawn from the six-year experience of this project offer instructive guidance to future higher education projects, particularly in Africa: 10 29. Lessons Learned: Development Objectives: * Tertiary education projects are unusual in that some of their beneficiary institutions--the universities--are generally stronger, better endowed, and more capable than other public institutions. In addition, they possess an organized and influential constituency of staff, students, and alumni who can act as powerful interest groups. For these reasons, broad consultation and institutional participation is essential not only in project design, but also continuously throughout the implementation of the project. This implies that supervision of tertiary projects will require more effort and resources than is the norm for Bank projects. * Managed expansion of tertiary enrollments is critical for maintaining educational quality, yet political demands make it very difficult for governments to exercise this control--even when bound to do so by the Credit Agreement. For this reason, Bank staff should make these key project variables a permanent part of their dialogue with Government and be prepared to take strong measures at the first indication that enrollment growth is exceeding government's capacity to finance this expansion. Total recurrent expenditure per student is recommended as the main performance indicator for monitoring the balance between expansion and quality. 3 Where improvement in the quality of tertiary education is an explicit project objective, relevant performance indicators which measure student learning (e.g., standard examination results) should be identified or created in order to effectively monitor project impact. * It has proven very difficult for the finance/budgetary/audit arm of government to accept education sector and institutional priorities in the allocation of public resources. Both project and Bank staff are therefore advised to foster good communication and close working relationships with the Ministry of Finance and its sister agencies (e.g., Auditor General). * Bank staff recognize the potential of tertiary students to stalemate processes of tertiary reform, particularly with regard to financial issues such as cost-sharing, student privileges, student loans, and scholarships. However, the transitory status of students and frequent turnover in student leadership make effective consensus- building with students difficult to attain. Consequently, any agreements reached are likely to be temporary. For this reason, it is recommended that mechanisms for continuous communication and consultation with student representatives be explicitly incorporated into project design. In light of student interests, however, both the Borrower and the Bank should recognize that such consultations may sometimes fail to foster agreements. 11 30. Lessons Learned: Project Design and Implementation: * Parallel Donor Funding. When Bank-supported projects are expected to include parallel financing by another donor, care should be taken to ensure that each donor-financed component can be implemented independent of the other. The difficulties of coordinating procurement, no-objections, and disbursements by two separate funding institutions are nearly insurmountable. Under this project, for example, Bank inputs of workshop equipment and technical assistance to the polytechnics were partially negated by lengthy delays in the rehabilitation of polytechnic workshops under the African Development Bank project. * Management Information Systems. This was a "pioneering" experience in Ghana, and numerous lessons were learned: (i) establish essential infrastructure (phone lines; networked computers) before launching the introduction of MIS; (ii) use the above process to identify and foster local "champions"; (iii) familiarize middle managers with computer technology early in the project; (iv) obtain institutional commitments to cover system maintenance costs; and (v) only after the above has been done should the big choices regarding system design be undertaken. This means that the selection of technical assistance for project management should be carried out earlier and separately from the choice of software (which should involve university participation). Software specifications should be detailed enough to hold the supplier accountable and be based on "good practice" examples. Software choice should emphasize "no frills" products which enable core MIS capacities to be put in place because the inclusion of software "bells and whistles" often generates a need for expensive and time-consuming custom (bespoke) work. Additionally, staffing changes in MIS management positions are very costly in terms of time lost as well as funds expended. * Research Fund. Here the Government and the Bank also acquired useful experience which can guide similar efforts in the future: (i) research funds should be managed by an institution with a mandate for and commitment to research, not by the project implementation unit or parent ministry; (ii) research proposals should be invited from university departments rather than from individuals to enhance capacity building benefits and to enable greater accountability through involvement of university finance officers; and (iii) technical evaluators of research proposals should be paid enough to ensure timely responses. * Management capacity-building. Short term and in-service training in professional management techniques for staff at all levels of management should be a continuous activity throughout the life of any higher education project. * Project Accounting. Here the lessons are three: (i) maintain project accounts in SDRs from inception in order to avoid exchange rates surprises in the final year; (ii) divide accounting tasks among two or more accountants to ensure internal controls and staffing continuity through illness or departures; and (iii) do not economize on project management funding by skimping on accounting capacity. 12 STATISTICAL ANNEXES Table 1: Summary of Assessments Table 2: Related Bank Credits Table 3: Project Timetable Table 4: Credit Disbursements: Cumulative Estimated and Actual Table 5: Key Indicators of Project Implementation Table 6: Studies Included in the Project Table 7A: Credit Amount (by expenditure category) Table 7B: Project Financing Table 8: Economic Costs and Benefits Table 9: Status of Legal Covenants Table 10: Bank Resources: Staff Inputs Table 11A: Bank Resources: Missions Table 11 B: Bank Resources: Supervision Missions 13 Table 1: Summary of Assessments A. Achievement of Objectives Substantial Partial Negligible Not applicable Macro Policies o 0 El Sector Policies E ol l n Financial Objectives 5 5 3] Institutional Development 0 E E E Physical Objectives 5 5 Poverty Reduction E El E 0 Gender Issues i 0 E E Other Social Objectives Environmental Objectives 0 Public Sector Management ] El El Private Sector Development E E E 0 B. Project Sustainability Likely Unlikeb Uncertain El [1 El C. Bank Performance Hig_y Satisfactory Satisfactory Deficient Identification El Preparation Assistance E 0 Appraisal 0 5 Supervision ] El D. Borrower Performance Hhly Satisfactory Satisfactory Deficient Preparatwon 0 E E Implementation E 0 0 Covenant compliance E. Assessment of Outcome Hihly Satisfactory Satisfactory Unsatisfactory El 0 El 14 TABLE 2: RELATED BANK CREDITS Credit Title Objectives Year of Status approval Preceding Operations Cr. 1744-GH Education Sector Adjustment. To support education 1987 Completed system reform. Cr. 2140-GH Education Sector Adjustment II. To consolidate 1991 Completed education system reform and extend it to the senior secondary level. Cr. 2278-GH CommunitySecondarySchool Construction. To 1992 Completed support rural communities in constructing 140 new SS schools. Cr. 2349-GH Literacy and Functional Skills. To support 1990 Completed Government' mass literacy program. Cr. 2508-GH Primary School Development.. To increase learning 1993 Completed achievements and enrollments. FoUlowing Operations Cr. 2695-GH Vocational Skills and Informal Sector Support. To 1995 Ongoing improve informal sector productivity and reorient vocational training to a demand-driven system. Cr. 2885-GH Basic Education Sector Investment Program. To 1996 Ongoing improve the teaching and learning outcomes; access to primary and junior-secondary education (especially for girls and the poor); efficiency in resource management and financial sustainability. i 15 TABLE 3: PROJECT TIMETABLE Steps in Project Cycle Date planned Actual Date/ latest estimate Identification Not Available July 15, 1991 Preparation Not Available November 18, 1991 Appraisal Not Available March 16, 1992 Negotiations Not Available August 17, 1992 Letter of Development Policy (if app.) Not Available September 16, 1992 Board Presentation Not Available October 27, 1992 Signature Not Available November 9, 1992 Effectiveness January 8, 1993 January 8, 1993 Project completion December 31, 1997 September 30, 1998 Credit closing December 31, 1997 September 30, 1998 16 TABLE 4: CREDIT DISBURSEMENTS: CUMULATIVE ESTIMATE AND AcTuAL AMOUNTS (US$ Million) Fiscal Year Appraisal estimate Actual amount Actual amount as % of estimate 1993 7.8 3.2 41% 1994 15.0 3.8 25% 1995 25.0 12.0 48% 1996 35.0 24.2 69% 1997 42.0 39.6 94% 1998 45.0 43.8 97% 1999 n.a. 44.8 100% n.a.: not applicable Source: SAR for the appraisal estimate and Loan database (March 10, 1999) for the actual amnounts. Date of final disbursement: February 26, 1999. Note: Credit original closing date was December 31, 1997, and therefore disbursements should have continued until April 30, 1998. The total credit amount is based on the exchange rate US$/SDR when credit was approved. At the time of the closing, 100% of the SDR amount was disbursed. Note: The total amount disbursed in this table differs from the one given in tables 7A and 7B because the source of the information is World Bank Loan database for Table 4 and Project's accounts for Tables 7, and therefore different exchanges rates at different times have been used. 17 Table 5: Key Indicators for Project Implementation Government: 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 Ceiling Tertiary/Total MOE RecurrentBudget % 15 11 12 11 12 12 12 18.3 Tertiary/MOE PIP Budget % 39 32 32 16 23 38 24 40.0 UDS Investment a $0.1m $0.3m $0.3m $0.3m $0.4m $0.2m $0.4m $1.3rm/yr. 1991/92 1992/93 1993/94 1994/95 1995/96 1996/97 1997/98 Cost Recovery: Application Fees a Univs. 0 0 5000 5000 N.A. 5000 5000! Guide 1500 2000 4000 20,000 Others ? ? 1000 5000 N.A. 90,000/ 150,000/ Guide -- 1000 1000 2000 100,000 170,000 Hostel Fees/Costs % actual 0 0 0 0 N.A. 0 25 target - - 100 100 100 100 100 Registration + Application Fees/ % actual ? ? ? 2 N.A. 3 4 Academic Costs target - -- -- 5 S 5 5 Student Loans (max) a Resident 80,000 163,000 200,000 350,000 N.A. 600,000 800,000 target 80,000 90,000 90,000 Non- Resident 80,000 150,000 200,000 350,000 N.A. 600,000 800,000 Key: Italics = target figures * Based on FTE calculations in which all HND Non-Italics = actual figures students equal 1.0 FTE and all non-tertiary students represent 0.5 FTE. NA - The 1995/96 university year was lost due to an extended strike by academic staff, but the polytechnics continued to function. 18 Table 5: Key Indicators for Project Implementation (continued) Tertiary Institutions: 1991/92 1992/93 1993/94 1994/95 1995/96 1996/97 1997/98 In-takes No. UG 2048 2458 2087 3583 N.A. 2682 2578 UST 1909 881 1645 1967 N.A. 2088 2177 UCC 803 800 1143 1673 N.A. 1972 2511 Total Univs. 4760 4139 4875 7223 N.A. 6742 7266 Guideline 4475 4500 4500 5500 5500 5500 5500 Enrollments No. UG 4698 5447 5594 6951 N.A. 8495 8606 UST 4754 4374 4451 4890 N.A. 6079 6876 UCC 2404 2562 3190 4273 N.A. 5342 7264 Total Univs. 11,856 12,383 13,235 16,114 N.A. 19,916 24,387 Guideline 13,124 14,500 15,500 17,250 18,500 19,500 20,000 UCEW -- 1889 1820 1748 N.A. 2955 3425 Guideline 2400 2500 2800 2800 2800 2800 2800 TotalPolys* 10,953 10,604 11,407 11,682 12,619 13,141 13,456 Guideline 10,000 10,500 11,000 11,500 12,000 13,000 14,000 Female Students/ Total Enrollments % UG 24 24 25 25 NA 31 26 UST 18 18 18 20 NA 21 20 UCC 23 25 24 25 NA 27 26 UCEW - 24 26 29 NA 29 27 Total Polys 30 29 29 23 NA 21 24 Students/ Academic Staff No. UG 7 9 10 12 NA 16 15 (Average) UST 11 9 10 10 NA 13 15 UCC 16 13 16 21 NA 28 32 UCEW -- 19 18 13 NA 16 28 Guideline -- -- 15 15 15 15 15 Total Polys* 25 24 27 24 30 27 30 Guideline 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 Non-Academic Staff/Students % UG 59 53 46 39 NA 31 35 UST 44 53 50 46 NA 27 31 UCC 45 50 39 26 NA 24 17 Guideline - -- -- -- 30 30 30 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 Library Acquisi- tions/Total % UG 3.0 3.7 3.4 2.0 2.9 2.6 n.a. Recurrent UST 2.3 2.4 2.4 1.5 2.4 3.1 n.a. UCC 0.3 5.5 4.9 2.9 2.7 2.3 n.a. Guideline -- -- -- 5.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 Maintenance/ Total Recurrent % UG 3.0 3.0 3.0 4.0 3.5 10.3 n.a. UST 8.5 7.4 7.6 6.7 6.0 5.1 n.a. UCC 0.0 0.0 0.0 4.1 2.3 2.0 n.a. Guideline -- -- -- 5.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 19 Table 6: Studies Included in Project Purpose as defined at Year Study appraisal/redefined Status Impact of study 1995 Developing Feasible Strategies To identify ways that the project and completed Limited. The idea of special bridging to Increase Female the MOE might increase female courses for girls was incorporated into Participation in Tertiary participation in higher education. several polytechnics. Impact was Education limited in part by the inability of NCTE to edit and publish the study. 1995 Private Tertiary Education in To assess the potential for private completed Significant. Six private institutions have Ghana provision of tertiary education. now been authorized by the National Accreditation Board to offer degree programs. 1995 Income Generation in Tertiary To assess recent experience and the completed Negligible. The study was poorly done. Education future potential for budget supple- menting income generation activities. 1995 Manpower Survey of Tertiary To assess the labor market demand completed Negligible. The study was poorly done. Graduates by academic field for university graduates. 1995 Socio-Economic Background To ascertain the resources available completed Negligible. The study was poorly done. of Students in Tertiary to tertiary students as the basis for Institutions. making decisions concerning student fees and student loans. 20 Table 6: Studies Included in Project (Continued) Purpose as defined at Year Study appraisal/redefined Status Impact of study 1995 Review of Tertiary Education To provide an independent completed Lirnited. The study was superficial. Project Performance assessment of the project performance for the Mid-Term Review. 1995 Financing of Tertiary To ascertain prevailing patterns of completed Substantial. Prompted a series of Institutions tertiary education financing. constructive discussions and policy debate regarding government funding processes and shares. 1996 Staff and Curriculum To identify ways in which the completed Limited. Funds for implementation of Development pedagogical skills of academic staff these recommendations were not might be strengthened. available. 1998 Current and Future Demands To obtain empirical evidence to guide Not for Tertiary Level Manpower decisions regarding tertiary completed enrollment growth, the relative importance of polytechnics, and curriculum emphasis. 1998 Information and To develop a technically sound long Not Communications Technology term plan for an electronic completed Plan for Tertiary Education information and communication Institutions network linking all tertiary institutions. 21 TABLE 7A: PROJECT COSTS (US$ Million) Category Appraisal estimate Actual costs Local Foreign Local Foreign Costs Currency Total Costs Currency Total 1. Civilworks 8.7 5.7 14.4 12.1 5.7 17.8 2. Equipment, Computers, Vehicles 0.0 15.4 15.4 0.0 14.4 14.4 3. Books and Joumals 0.0 3.7 3.7 0.0 5.5 5.5 4. Training 1.1 1.0 2.1 0.7 0.6 1.3 5. Consultancy Services 2.3 2.5 4.8 3.5 4.0 7.5 6. Research Fund 0.5 0.5 1.0 0.2 0.2 0.4 7. Studies 0.5 0.1 0.6 0.3 0.1 0.4 8. Incremental Recurrent Cost 0.3 0.3 0.6 1.1 1.2 2.3 9. Duties and taxes 1.4 0.0 1.4 1.4 0.0 1.4 10. Unallocated 2.3 5.1 7.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 TOTAL 17.1 34.3 51.4 19.3 31.7 51.0 Source: SAR for the appraisal estimates and Project accounting for the actual costs. n.a.: data not available. TABLE 7B: PROJECT FINANCING (US$ Million) Appraisal Estimate Actual Costs Source Local Foreign Local Foreign Costs Currency Total Costs Currency Total IDA 12.0 33.0 45.0 13.0 31.8 44.8 Government & 5.1 1.3 6.4 4.8 1.4 6.2 Beneficiaries TOTAL 17.1 34.3 51.4 17.8 33.2 51.0 Source:: SAR for the appraisal estimates and Project accounting for the actual costs I 22 TABLE 8: ECONoMIC COSTS AND BENEFITS No attempt was made at appraisal to estimate net present value (NPV) or economic rate of return (ERR) and therefore there is no baseline against which to judge a re-estimate for evaluation purposes. 23 TABLE 9: STATUS OF LEGAL COVENANTS Original Revised Covenant Fulfill. Fulfill. Section Type Date Date Status Description of Covenant Comments 2.02 (b) 01 C The Borrower shall open and maintain in dollars a special deposit Done. account in a commercial bank. 2.03 09 C The closing date shall be December 31, 1997 or such later date as the Project completed on September 30, Association shall establish. 1998 with a nine month delay. 3.01 (a) 05 CP The Borrower shall carry out the Project with due diligence and Net shortfall in the provision of efficiency and in conformity with appropriate administrative, financial, counterpart funds at the end of educational and environmental practices, and shall provide, promptly as projects. needed, the funds, facilities, services and other resources required for the Project. 3.01 (b) 10 CD The Borrower shall carry out the Project in accordance with the Implementation program satisfactorily Implementation Program set forth in Schedule 4 of the Credit completed. Agreement. 3.01 (b) 01 C The Borrower shall: (a) Open and maintain in a commercial bank a Government ordered the project Tertiary Education Project Account on ternls and conditions satisfactory account transferred from the to the Association, to be used exclusively for the purpose of meeting commercial bank to the Bank of expenditures under the Project which are not financed out of the Ghana in August 1993; one result is proceeds of the Credit; that the account no longer earns interest. 3.01 (b) 04 CP (b) In addition to the initial deposit referred to in Sec.6.0 1(b) of the Cred. The project concluded with a net Agreement, deposit into said account, promptly before each fiscal quarter shortfall in government's counterpart starting after the effectiveness date, sufficient funds to pay the contribution obligations of $630,000. Borrower's contribution to the financing of the Project required for such fiscal quarter, as estimated by the Borrower in consultation with the Association. 24 Original Revised Covenant Fulfill. Fulfill. Section Type Date Date Status Description of Covenant Comments 3.04 (a) 12 NC The Borrower shall: (i) contain intakes and enrollments within the The PMU updated data on these ceilings set forth in the Policy letter; indicators in September 1998. Current enrollments are over the agreed project ceilings for universities, including the University College of Education at Winneba, by 22%. However, enrollments for the polytechnics are in compliance with the agreed project ceilings. 3.04 (a) 12 C (ii) adjust student/academic staff ratios to the levels provided for in the Rising enrollments have enabled Policy Letter; compliance. 3.04 (a) 12 CP (iii) implement the cost-recovery mechanisms described in the Policy Student hostel fees equivalent of 25% Letter; and of the estimated full cost of* maintaining student residences were introduced in August 1998. 3.04 (a) 11 C (iv) limit the percentage of the Borrower's recurrent budget for education Education allocation for 1998 is allocated to and subsequently expended on tertiary education to the level reportedly 34 % of the Government's set forth in the Policy Letter. budget. However, tertiary education's share of this is only 12% which is well below the agreed ceiling. 3.04 (b) 12 NC The Borrower shall cause the Universities, Polytechnics and University At project closing, University College to: (i) contain intakes and enrollments within the ceilings set enrollments and UCEW enrollments forth in the Policy Letter; were each 22% above the agreed enrollment ceilings. Polytechnic enrollmcnts were in compliance. 3.04 (b) 12 C (ii) adjust student/academic staff ratios to the levels provided for in the Rising enrollnents have enabled Policy Leter; compliance. 25 Original Revised Covenant Fulfill. Fulfill. Section Type Date Date Status Description of Covenant Comments 3.04 (b) 02 CP (iii) implement the cost-recovery mechanisms described in the Policy Student hostel fees equivalent to 25% Letter. of estimated full cost of maintenance were introduced in August 1998. Various user fees introduced in the last two years now represent roughly 5% of recurrent costs. 3.05 11 C The Borrower shall: (a) adopt a public expenditure program for Tertiary Done. Education for FYs 93/94/95 and 96 acceptable to the Association and shall ensure that actual expenditures under such program do not deviate by more than 10% from amounts budgeted thereunder (except for higher actual expenditures resulting from salary increases not budgeted for in such program); 3.05 03 C (b) review with the Association, not later than Sept. 30 of each year, the Done annually, including during ICR budgetary allocations required for the succeeding FY to implement the mission. project; 3.06 02 NC The Borrower shall implement and shall cause the Social Security and The student loan program is running a National Insurance Trust to implement, in a timely manner, the action large deficit and is unsustainable. No plan for modifying the Tertiary Education student loan scheme agreed action has been taken, although a upon with the Association. government committee is reportedly studying the problem. 3.07 (a) 09 11/18/95 C The Borrower shall carry out, jointly with the Association, not earlier Done. than Sept. 30, 1994 and no later than March 31, 1995, a Mid-Term Review of the progress described in the Policy Letter. This review shall cover, among other things: (i) enrollment levels,(ii) budgetary allocations and expenditures,(iii) cost recovery mechanisms; (iv) the operation of the student loan scheme, (v) student-to-academic staff ratios, (vi) non- academic staff numbers,(vii) time/space/facility utilization ratios, (viii) maintenance and library acquisition budgets, and (ix) the effectiveness of the technical assistance provided under the Project in transferring skills. 26 Original Revised Covenant FulfilL Fulfill. Section Type Date Date Status Description of Covenant Comments 3.07 (b) 05 CD Based on such review, the Borrower shall, where necessary to ensure the Action Plan for Project done; Policy effective implementation of the Project and the program set forth in the Action Plan agreed in June 1996 and Policy letter, promptly prepare an Action Plan, acceptable to the largely implemented by February Association, for the further implementation thereof and shall thereafter 1997. By end of project, all 15 items implement such Action Plan. of the Policy Action Plan had been implemented in full or in part. 4.01 (a) 01 C The Borrower shall maintain or cause to be maintained records and Reviewed during each supervision accounts adequate to reflect, in accordance with sound accounting visit, including ICR mission. practices, the operations, resources and expenditures in respect of the Project of the departments or agencies of the Borrower responsible for carrying out the Project or any part thereof. 4.01 (b) 01 C The Borrower shall: (i) have the records and accounts referred to in Audit for 1997 submitted before June pan. (a) of this Section, including those for the Special Account for each 30,1998. fiscal year, audited in accordance with appropriate audition principles consistently applied, by independent auditors acceptable to the Association. 4.01 (b) 01 C (ii) furnish to the Association, as soon as available, but in any case no Audit for 1997 submitted before June later than six months after the end of each such year, a certified copy of 30, 1998. the report of such audit by said auditors, of such scope and in such detail as the Association shall reasonably request; 4.01 (b) 01 C (iii) furnish the Association such other information concerning said Done. records, accounts and the audit thereof as the Association shall from time to time reasonably request. 4.01 (c) 01 C (iii) enable the Association's representatives to examnine such records; Examined in September 1998. 4.01 (c) 01 6/30/94 6/28/98 C (iv) ensure that such records and accounts are included in the annual Acceptable audit submitted on time. audit referred to in para. (b) of this Section and that the report of such audit contains a separate opinion by said auditors as to whether the statements of expenditure submitted during such FY, together with the procedures and internal controls involved in their preparation, can be relied upon to support the related withdrawals. 27 Original Revised Covenant Fulfill. Fulfill. Section Type Date Date Status Description of Covenant Comments 3 (b) 03 3/22/94 C Under Category (6) until the Borrower shall have established terms and These disbursement conditions were conditions acceptable to the Association for the operation of the met on March 22, 1994. Research Fund, including criteria for the selection of research proposals and arrangements for its management; 3 (c) 03 12/22/93 C Under Category (8) until: (i) the University College shall have been These disbursement conditions were established by an instrument acceptable to the Association; (ii) the met on December 22, 1993. Principal of the University College shall have been appointed; and 3 (c) 03 12/22/93 C (iii) a memorandum of understanding between the University College These disbursement conditions were and the Borrower shall have been executed, setting forth their respective met on December 22, 1993. rights and obligations with respect to the Project and the program set forth in the Policy Letter. 1 05 C Increasing the institutional capacity of MOE to manage tertiary Done. education, in particular in connection with the Borrower's implementation of the Tertiary Education reform program, including: (a) training staff; 1 05 C (b) establishment of a management information system; First phase completed; used for on- I I I ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~line student registration this year. 1 05 7/19/95 C (c) preparation of labor market demand and other studies. See Schedule 4 (4) below. Studies I ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~completed in July 1995. 2 05 3/22/94 6/15/95 C Establishment and operation of the following tertiary education boards: Done. (a) a board of accreditation; 2 05 CP (b) a joint admissions and matriculations board; The National Council for Tertiary Education recently decided to establish a joint admissions and matriculation board under its auspices, thus saving some administrative costs and avoiding the long-standing political imnpasse on this matter in the Parliament. 28 Original Revised Covenant FulfilL FulfilLD Section Type Date Date Status Description of Covenant Comments 2 05 08/29/95 C (c) a board for technical and professional examinations. Done. 1 10 C Rehabilitation and expansion of the buildings at the Universities and Done. Polytechnics, including: (a) at the Universities: construction and rehabilitation of libraries, lecture theaters, laboratories, workshops, campus facilities for non-resident students, and sanitary facilities; I 10 C (b) at the Polytechnics: construction and rehabilitation of laboratories, Done. workshops, classrooms, campus facilities for non-resident students, and sanitary facilities. 2 10 C Improving the laboratory and workshop facilities at the Universities and Done Polytechnics through the acquisition and maintenance of equipment; 3 10 C Increasing student access at the Universities and Polytechnics: (a) to All deliveries completed. reference and resource material through the acquisition of textbooks and other reference books, and through subscriptions to journals; 3 10 C (b) to computers; All deliveries completed. 4 10 C Improving the institutional capacities of the Universities and Done. Polytechnics to provide educational services through, inter alia: (a) training of staff, including the provision of fellowships; 4 10 C (b) the computerization of administrative, planning and library services; Done 4 10 C (c) the acquisition of vehicles for administrative purposes and student All deliveries completed. field trips; 4 10 C (d) the acquisition of teaching aids; Done. 4 10 CP (e) the development and operation of a centralized system for time- All MIS software, hardware, and tabling and space allocation, and of a management information system at training have been provided as agreed each institution; under the project. However, some institutions are making better use of it than others. 29 Original Revised Covenant Fulfill. Fulfill. Section Type Date Date Status Description of Covenant Comments 4 10 CP (f) the establishment of student career advisory services; TA completed; service is operational at two institutions. 5 10 3/22/94 C Establishment and operation of a fund to support research by the Disbursement conditions for this Fund Universities (The Research Fund); were met on March 22, 1994. 6 10 6/15/96 C Strengthening the education services of the University College of Done. Winneba through: (a) completion of the science block building, library refurbishing and construction, and rehabilitation of sanitary facilities; 6 10 C (b) improvement of laboratory and workshop facilities (including the Done. acquisition and maintenance of equipment); 6 10 C (c) increase of student access: (i) to reference and resource materials Done. (including the acquisition of textbooks and other reference books and subscriptions to joumals); 6 10 C (cXii) to computers; Done. 6 10 C (d) training of staff, including the provision of fellowships; Done. 6 10 CP (e) the computerization of administrative planning and library services; All MIS software, hardware, and training provided as agreed under the project; however, not all institutions are making effective use of these new capacities. 6 10 C (f) the acquisition of vehicles for administrative purposes and student Done. field trips. 6 10 C (g) the acquisition of teaching aids; Done. q 6 10 CP (h) the development and operation of a centralized system for time- All MIS software, hardware, and tabling and space allocation, and of a management information system; training provided as agreed under the project; however, not all institutions are making effective use of these new capacities. 30 Original Revised Covenant FuUDL Fuliln Section Type Date Date Status Description of Covenant Comments 6 10 CP (i) the establishment of a student career advisory service. TA completed; however, this service is operational at only two institutions. 1 05 06/10/94 C The Borrower shall continue to operate the CU under terms of reference, Done. and with staff with qualifications and experience, acceptable to the Association. 2 10 C MOE shall employ procurement agents for equipment, and architectural Done. and engineering consultants, each with qualifications and experience and under terms and conditions acceptable to the Association. 3 10 CP In carrying out Part A.l of the Project, MOE shall establish and operate a All software, hardware, and training management information system for tertiary education. provided as agreed under the project; however, not all institutions are making effective use of these new capacities. 4 05 7/15/95 C In carrying out Part A of the Project, MOE shall prepare and complete by Done. December 31, 1994 the following studies, under terms of reference agreed upon with the Association: (a) a manpower survey study; 4 05 07/15/95 C (b) an analysis of the socio-economic composition of the student body in Done. tertiary education; 4 05 07/15/95 C (c) an evaluation of possibilities for private provision of tertiary Done well. education; 4 05 07/15/95 C (d) a study of prospects for income generation by tertiary education Done. institutions; 4 05 07/15/95 C (e) study of the scope of female participation in terdary education; Done well. 5 05 C The Borrower shall cause the Universities, Polytechnics and the Done. University College to carry out Part B of the Project: (a) under the coordination set forth in Section 3.01 (a) of this Agreement; 31 Original Revised Covenant Fulfill. Fulfill. Section Type Date Date Status Description of Covenant Comments 6 10 C In carrying out Part B of the Project, MOE shall establish, to the Done. satisfaction of the Association: (a) a work program identifying the civil works to be carried out under Parts B. 1 and B.6 (a); 6 10 C (b) a list identifying the laboratories and workshops to be equipped under Done. Parts B.2 and B.6 (b); 6 10 C (c) guidelines for selecting the textbooks and reference books to be Done. acquired under Parts B.3 and B.6 (c); 6 10 C (d) guidelines for identifying the computers to be acquired under Parts Done. B.3 and B.6 (c); 7 10 CD In carrying out Parts B.4 and B.6 (d) of the Project, the Borrower shall Done. cause the Universities, Polytechnics and University College to prepare, by January 31, annual programs for staff training for the following academic year satisfactory to the Association. 8 10 03/22/94 C In carrying out Part B.5 of the Project, the Borrower shall, except as the Done. Borrower and the Association shall otherwise agree, operate the Research Fund under the terms and conditions established in accordance with para. 3(b) of Schedule I to this Agreement. 32 Key: Covenant Type: 1. = Accounts/audits 8. = Indigenous people 2. = Financial Performance/ revenue generation 9. = Monitoring, review and reporting from beneficiaries 10. = Project implementation 3. = Flow and utilization of project funds 11. = Sectoral or cross-sectoral budgetary or 4. = Counterpart funding other resource allocation 5. = Management aspects of the project or 12. = Sectoral or cross-sectoral policy/ executing agency regulatory/institutional action 6. = Environmental covenants 13. = Other 7. = Involuntary resettlement Present Status: C = Complied with CD = Complied with Delays CP = Complied with partially NYD = Not yet due NC = Not complied with SOON = Compliance expected in reasonably short time. 33 TABLE 10: BANK RESOURCES: STAFF INPUTS -t .t . . .e. , . Preparation to appraisal n.a. n.a. 33.0 97.9 Appraisal n.a. n.a. 13.1 39.1 Negotiations to Board n.a. n.a. 17.4 50.0 Presentation Supervision 62.5 212.3 103.9 329.2 Completion 11.3 40.8 7.1 37.3 TOTAL 73.8 253.1 174.5 553.5 n.a.: not available Source: World Bank Cost Accounting System (FACT) January 20, 1999. 34 TABLE l1A: BANK RESOURCES: MISSIONS Performance Evaluation Month/ Number of Number of Specialized staff implementation Development Types of Stage of Project cycle Year persons Days skills represented Status Objectives problems Identification through 7/15/91 3 165 PP, PE to Preparation 11/18/91 2 PP, PE Appraisal 3/16/92 4 65 PP, PE, A, SES Negotiations to S/17/92 to 2 85 PP, PE Effectiveness 1/8/93 Total 315 Supervision 121/93 to 30 112 E A,F P 1.9 2.2 AOF, 2/98 SES, SPO, FAS, CLC, LE, HEP Completion 9/98 2 5 SES; HEP 1.9 2.2 AOF, CLC, PDO Specializations: PP: Principal Planner, ES: Education Specialist; A: Architect; PS: Procurement Specialist; SPO:Sr. Project Officer; FA: Financial Analyst, LE: Labor Economist; SOO: Senior Operations Officer; PO: Projects Officer; SES: Senior Education Specialist(TTL); HEP: Higher Education Policy; MIS: Management Information Specialist; PE: Principal Economist Types of problems for performance: AOF: Availability of Funds; CLC: Compliance with Legal Covenants; DL: Disbursement Lag; OS: Overall Status; PDO: Project Development Objectives; PMP: Project Management Performance; PP: Procurement Progress; SP: Studies Progress; TAP: Technical Assistance Progress; TP: Training Progress. Performance Rating: 1: Highly satisfactory; 2: Satisfactory; 3: Unsatisfactory; 4: Highly Unsatisfactory; n.a. = data not available 35 TABLE 11B: BANK RESOURCES: SUPERVISION MISSIONS State of Project MonJ Number Days Specialized Performance Rating by Type Cycle year of in Staff Sklls persons Field Represented OS PDO CLC PMP AOF PP TP TAP SP DL % Supervision I 11/93 2 16 PP, ES 2 2 2 2 n.a 2 n.a. n.a. n.a 93% Supervision 2 5/94 2 12 A; ES 2 2 2 2 n.a. 2 n.a n.a. n.a 91% Supervision 3 10/94 2 5 PS; SES 2 2 2 2 1 2 n.a. n.a n.a 84%. Supervision 4 7/95 3 8 SPO; PS; 2 2 2 2 1 2 n.a. n.a n.a 74% SES Supervision 5 11/95 5 15 SPO; SES, 2 2 2 2 3 2 n.m n.a. n.a 67%. A(3) Supervision 6 6/96 3 13 SPO; SES 2 3 2 2 3 1 n.a. n.a n.a 53% Supervision 7 2/97 4 15 SES, SPO, 2 2 2 2 2 1 n.m n.. n.a 20%/ PS, MIS Supervision S 5/97 3 5 SOO, PO, 2 2 2 2 3 1 2 2 2 14% FA Supervision 9 2/98 4 13 LE; SOO; 2 3 2 2 2 1 2 2 2 3% PO, SES Supervision 10 9/98 2 10 SES; HEP 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 2 2 1% TOTAL 30 112 2.0 2.2 2.0 2.0 23 1.6 2.0 2.0 2 0% Specializations: PP: Principal Planner, ES: Education Specialist; A: Architect; PS: Procurement Specialist; SPO:Sr. Project Officer; FA: Financial Analyst, LE: Labor Economist; SOO: Senior Operations Officer; PO: Projects Officer; SES: Senior Education Specialist(TTL); HEP: Higher Education Policy; MIS: Management Information Specialist; PE: Principal Economist Types of problems for performance: AOF: Availability of Funds; CLC: Compliance with Legal Covenants; DL: Disbursement Lag; OS: Overall Status; PDO: Project Development Objectives; PMP: Project Management Performance; PP: Procurement Progress; SP: Studies Progress; TAP: Technical Assistance Progress; TP: Training Progrss. Performance Rating: 1: Highly satisfactory; 2: Satisfactory; 3: Unsatisfactory; 4: Highly Unsatisfactory; n.a. = data not available World Bank User \\StreetTalk\Projects@Files@AFRICA\GHANA\HR\EDUC\TERFIN17.DOC 03/18/99 10:22 AM AIDE MEMOIRE Tertiary Education Project (CR. 2428-GH) World Bank Project Completion Mission September 12-22, 1998 A completion mission for the Ghana Tertiary Education Project (Cr. 2428-GH) was conducted on September 12-22, 1998 by William Saint (Sr. Education Specialist), and Alison Girdwood (consultant, Commonwealth Secretariat), with assistance from Jan Leno (Sr. Education Specialist) and Tsri Apronti (Projects Officer). The purposes of the completion mission were: (a) to review overall performance in meeting the project's development objectives for the tertiary sector; (b) to assess project impact, successes, and shortcomings in a two-day workshop for higher education stakeholders; (c) to advise and support the Ministry of Education in the preparation of its contribution to the project's Implementation Completion Report; (d) to agree with the Projects Management Unit on outstanding payments under the project; and (e) to discuss studies and activities which could help lay the foundation for eventual Bank assistance to the Government of Ghana for development of the country's tertiary education system. Bank staff met with the Honorable Minister for Education, Dr. Christina Amoako-Nuama; Dr. M. lbn Chambas, Deputy Minister of Education responsible for higher education; Mr. F. A. Ben- Eghan, Chief Director of the MOE; Prof. C. Ameyaw-Akumfi, Policy Adviser to the Minister; Prof. George Benneh, Chairman, Prof. Adrian de Heer-Amissah, Executive Secretary, and members of the National Council for Tertiary Education; Ms. Araba Korsah, Director General of the Ministry's Projects Management Unit; and Mr. Victor Nortey, PMU Manager for the Tertiary Education Project. Ver)' informative discussions were held with numerous representatives of the universities, polytechnics. tertiary students, and the private sector during a two-dav project evaluation workshop for project participants which was organized by the PMU/MOE. The mission acknowledges the interest, guidance, and support generously extended to it by the Honorable Minister for Education, Dr. Amoako-Nuama, and by the Deputy Minister, Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas. It recognizes Prof. de Heer-Amissah and his NCTE colleagues for their professional contributions and reference materials. It expresses its particular appreciation to Mr. Nortey for the fine organization of both programme and logistics throughout the visit. Overall Assessment The Tertiary Education Project sought to implement major reforms in Ghana's higher education system during a period of considerable political change and economic stringency. In this context, the project's objectives were clearly ambitious, and vulnerable to the influence of national election cycles associated with newly introduced democratization. The implementation of tertiary reforns was therefore slowed initially by changes in ministerial leadership following the first presidential election in 1992, and delayed similarly during the election hiatus of 1996. For this reason, a number of the policy actions envisioned to take place in the course of the project were only undertaken during 1998. TEP Completion Mission September 22, 19.98 The primary goal ofthe project was to improve the quality of education provided at the tertiary level. Using this measure, the project clearly cannot be considered a success. Expenditures per student have declined sharply over the past six years, and the academic community readily admits that quality has suffered as a result. However, if the project had not existed, educational quality would have suffered far greater losses. At the same time, significant gains have been registered with regard to hostel fees, block grant funding, management efficiencies, and institutional capacity building which hold genuine promise for improvements in financial stability, educational quality, and system management during the years ahead. On this basis, and given that the management, procurement, and disbursement of the project itself were very good, this mission assesses overall TEP project performance as "marginally successful." Project Development Objectives Since 1990, tertiary education policy and practice in Ghana have been guided by the govemment's "White Paper on Reforms to the Tertiary Education System." The goals of these reforms were incorporated into the development objectives of the Tertiary Education Project: * to reverse system deterioration, falling standards, and declining quality of education; * to expand access to tertiary education; * to establish a stable and sustainable basis for the financing of tertiary education; - to create institutional capacities for quality monitoring and policy evaluation in the tertiary education sector. Sustainable financing was clearly seen as a necessary condition for achieving the stated goals of improved quality and expanded enrollments. This was to be achieved through the twin strategies of cost-sharing and efficiency gains. On the former, the White Paper states "It is intended to develop el SI' on c cost-sharing betvween government, the student population, and the private sector. " It was explicit in stating its expectation of "gradual assumption of the responsibilityfor the payment offull costx j 'lodging and incidental expenses " by the student population. On the latter, it prescribed " increased efficiency in the uitilisation of space, resoutrces, and personnel" in conformity with "admiiinistrative, financial, and staffing norms which will be laid down by the Ministry of Education. " The development objectives of the project were monitored through the use of Key Performance Indicators that have been recorded during the past six years (Attachment 1). Limited progress towards the project's development objectives was the focus of the project's Mid-Term Review in November 1995, where much of the discussion centered on the problems of tertiary education financing. When the Mid-Term Review did not produce an Action Plan to accelerate progress towards these objectives as required by the Development Credit Agreement, a Bank supervision mission classified this performance as "unsatisfactory" in June 1996. The same mission worked out with the Ministry of Education and the National Council for Tertiary Education a 15 point Policy Action Plan to improve performnance in meeting the project's development objectives. Actions on cost-sharing were not included in this Policy Action Plan because the Ministry of Education asserted that the matter was too politically sensitive to be addressed at that time. - 2 - TEP Completion Mission September 22, 1998 By February 1997, substantial progress on 12 of the 15 policy action targets and some gains on two-of the remaining three points (only the establishment of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board was not advanced) enabled the project's development objectives performance to be upgraded to "satisfactory." A year later, however, backsliding on this performance again led to an "unsatisfactory" classification. Areas where earlier gains were reversed included the agreements on block funding of the tertiary institutions through the National Council on Tertiary Education, the controlled growth of tertiary enrollments, retention of income eamed by the tertiary institutions, and improved budgetary resources for the polytechnics. An updated status report for this 15-point Policy Action Plan appears in Attachment 2. As this project reaches its conclusion, project performance in achieving its development objectives is judged to be "marginally satisfactory." This assessment is supported by data from Attachments 1 and 2, and by discussions during the project evaluation workshop. A short summary of what the Govemment of Ghana achieved during the project follows. Educational quality. The tertiary reform responded to a widely perceived decline in educational quality during the 1980s. In 1990, government expended nearly $2,500 per university student for recurrent items, and $180 per polytechnic student. If used efficiently, this amount was still enough to provide an acceptable standard of tertiary education. By 1997, per student recurrent expenditures at universities had fallen to roughly $900. At polytechnics, the 1997 recurrent expenditure per student was about $74. These figures suggest that in spite of the tertiary education reforms launched in 1990, the quality of tertiary education in Ghana during the 1990s has continuouslv declined. Indeed, world experience indicates that the current funding levels for both universities and polytechnics are too low to permit credible tertiary education to occur. The drop in expenditures per tertiary student was the combined effect of two factors. First and foremost, tertiary education?s share of the education budget was reduced in an unplanned way from 15% to 12% of the MOE allocation. The assumption that Government would maintain its previous funding commitment to tertiary education during the project therefore proved unfounded. Second, enrollment growth in the universities exceeded the agreed ceiling by 15%. Per student expenditure is, of course, a rather crude indicator of educational quality. It provides little or no information on the effectiveness of institutional management, the qualifications of academic staff, the impact of pedagogical techniques, the availability of adequate teaching equipmiient and physical facilities, the pertinence of library holdings, or the output of researchers. Nevertheless, the decline in per student expenditures has been so dramatic that it is impossible to imagine how educational quality might have risen at the same time. Access. With a tertiary enrollment ratio of less than 3%, it is reasonable for Ghanaians to expect access to higher education to increase over time. However, if these increases are not accompanied by a commensurate rise in budgets, the result--as noted above--will compromise educational quality. For this reason, the project was predicated oii signed agreements with the Ministry of Education and with the institutions which sought to keep the rate of expansion within manageable bounds. During the project period, university enrollments expanded from 14,489 to 26.30() (an increase of 82%), surpassing the agreed 1997/98 ceiling of 22,800 for managed system cxpanlsion bv 15%. Polytechnic enrollments of 13,456 in 1997/98 remained under the agreed ceiling of 14.000. Overall tertiarv enrollments (universities and polytechnics together) were therefore 8% above the targets agreed under the project. -3 - TEP Completion Mssion September 22, 1998 Sustainablefinancing. The key to expanding enrollments while maintaining standards of educational quality is to establish financial arrangements that will prove capable of sustaining the balance between growth and quality over time. To this end, the Credit Agreement sought to supplement the tertiary allocation from the national budget by introducing hostel fees, raising academic charges, and restructuring the student loan program to reduce public subsidies and increase the repayment rate. At the same time, it aimed to increase the efficiency of resource management by improving academic staff/student ratios, reducing the numbers of non-academic staff, providing incentives for institutional income generation, and establishing computerized management information systems. Important progress has been achieved in laying a foundation for sustainable financing of the tertiary system. Following public debate and consultation with stakeholders, Government introduced significant hostel fees of approximately $65 in August 1998. This amount covers roughly 25% of the estimated full cost of student accommodation. While the levying of tuition fees is reportedly proscribed by the country's constitution, polytechnics and universities were able to establish various cost-recovery charges which averaged from $50 to $85 per student according to the institution. The student loan scheme remains untouched to date, generating a deficit of some $16 million for the public purse. (A high level committee has been appointed to recommend appropriate re-structuring of this program and its report is expected by the end of the year.) Management efficiency has gotten better, driven as much by enrollment growth and staffing losses as by strategic management. Academic staff/student ratios have improved from 1:11 to 1:18 at universities, and from 1:24 to 1:30 at polytechnics. The proportion of non-academic staff to students has declined from 49% to 28% for the university system overall, although the universities at Legon and Kuinasi still remain above the agreed ceilings for this indicator. As of this year, government has agreed to allow the institutions to retain all income generated, instead of deducting it from the following year's allocation as had been the previous practice. Finally, significant progress has been registered in the very complex and long-tenn undertaking of establishing computerized management infonrmation systems within the three main universities. By the year's end, core capabilities for manlaginig ain integrated system of student records, personnel, and financial administration are expcctcd to be operational. Capacities for system monitoring and evaluation. Three of the four new institutional capacities to be created under the project for system monitoring and evaluation are now in place and fuLnctioniing with various degrees of effectiveness. The National Council for Tertiary Education is staffed, housed, and deeply involved in tertiary financing issues. Since May 1998 its key leadership positions of Chairman and Executive Secretary have been filled simultaneously for the first time since January 1996. It has now, after almost three years of negotiations, been given responsibility for managing government's subvention to tertiary education on a block grant basis. The National Accreditation Board has visited all polytechnics twice during the past three years, providing conditional certification to most programs and identifying several for remedial attention. The National Board for Professional and Technician Examinations examined all polytechnic graduates for 1995, 1 996 and 1997, but has not yet awarded diplomas for these years. This has been due largely to the Ministrv s inability to find a suitable candidate for the Board's key leadership position of Executive Secretary. Legislation to create the proposed Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has been pcnding in Parliament since 1994. Lack of progress recently prompted a decision the National Council for Tcrtiary Education to establish a joint admissions board under its auspices, thereby creating a badly nceded capacity for streamlining admissions. -4 - TEP Completion Mission September 22, 1998 Lessons Learned: Development Objectives Tertiary education projects are unusual in that some of their beneficiary institutions--the universities--are generally stronger, better endowed, and more capable than other public institutions. In addition, they possess an organized and influential constituency of staff, students, and alumni who can act as powerful interest groups. For these reasons, broad consultation and institutional participation is essential not only in project design, but also continuously throughout the implementation of the project. Specific lessons can be drawn from the six-year experience of this project which offer instructive guidance to future higher education projects, particularly in Africa: (a) Managed expansion of tertiary enrollments is absolutely essential for maintaining and improving educational quality, yet various circumstances make it nearly impossible for govemments to effectively exercise this control--even when bound to do so by legal covenants in the Credit Agreement. For this reason, Bank staff should be prepared to take strong measures at the first indication that enrollment growth is exceeding government's capacity to finance this expansion, or else omit such targets from the Credit Agreement. Total recurrent expenditure per student from both public and private contributions can be a useful perfornance indicator for monitoring the balance between quality and expansion. (b) It has proven very difficult for the finance/budgetary/audit arm of government to recognize and affirm education sector and institutional priorities in the allocation of public resources. Both project and Bank staff are therefore advised to foster good communication and close working relationships with the Ministry of Finance and its sister agencies (e.g., Auditor General) throughout the project period. (c) The scope for policy actions is very much conditioned by national politics and processes of political change. In Ghana, recent democratization has led to some loss of control by the Ministry of Education over policy implementation as the need to forge agreements on policy initiatives with Parliament and other interest groups has increased. Consequently, the degree of trust existing among the various stakeholder groups will determine the rate of progress in implementing tertiary reforms. (d) Bank staff recognize the potential of tertiary students to stalemate processes of tertiary reform, particularly with regard to financial issues such as cost-sharing, student privileges, student loans, and scholarships. However, the transitory nature of the student body and the frequent turnover in student leadership mean that effective consultation with students is difficult to organize and that any consensus reached will be temporary at best. For this reason, it is recommended that mechanisms for regular communication and consultation with student representatives be explicitly incorporated into project design. In light of student interests, however, both the Borrower and the Bank should recognize that such consultation may frequently prove insufficient to forge agreement. In such cases, the Borrower should seek first to de-link tertiary admissions from any guarantee of accommodation, and then move fimlly to implement carefully considered policies. (c) Reforms which require changes in the locus of power or control will generate significant resistancc. -5 - TEP Completion Mission September 22, 1798 Project Implementation Status Disbursement Status Credit fnds. As of September 15, 1998 the Bank's Loan Status Report showed an undisbursed balance under the credit of SDR 242, 026 ($322,923). All of this amount is committed for final payments to suppliers. The PMU's financial closing plan appears in Attachment 3. At this point, it is expected that 100% of project funds will be spent. Counterpart funds. The original Credit Agreement called for the Government of Ghana to contribute $6.3 million of its own funds to the implementation of the Tertiary Education Project. Agreements reached during the Akuse III discussions with the Bank led this amount to be reduced to $5.4 million. At present, Government is in arrears with regard to meeting this commitment. It has so far contributed $3.37 million in counterpart funds plus an additional $1.40 million through the waiver of various import taxes on project procurements. An amount of $630,000 in counterpart funds therefore remains to be paid before the closing of project accounts on January 31, 1999. The PMU is currently holding supplier invoices totaling this amount (cedis 1.4 billion), which can only be met through the fulfillment of Government's counterpart fund obligation to TEP. Procurement Status All civil works financed under the project have been finished and handed over. Shipments of all books and scientific joumals are complete. Equipment deliveries are concluded with the exccption of several small supplemental orders made in August 1998. Staff development is complete apart froni onc person studying in South Africa who will finish in December. . U flit .StIZtUS An independent audit of project accounts was submitted to the Bank in timely fashion on lunlie 29. 1998. The Bank's audit review concurred that the audit report was satisfactory, but rcquestcd that an ineligible payment of $2,704 be refunded to the project. Audit of the final nine months of project activity in 1998 will be initiated by the Ministry of Education during September and concluded before the year's end. Payment will be made from Govemment counterpart funds currentlv ow ed to the TEP. Receipt by the Bank of an acceptable TEP audit for 1998 will be necessary prior to the initiation of any formal discussion between the Government and the Bank regarding possible future assistance to the tertiary sector. Operational Plan No operational plan was required in the Development Credit Agreement for this project. Ti,nietable of Key Actions A timetable of key actions related to project completion and closing was discussed and rccorded in Attachment 4. -6 - TEP Completion AMssion September 22, 1998 Lessons Learned: Implenentation (a) Parallel Donor Funding. In the design of Bank projects which include the expectation of parallel financing by another donor, care should be taken to ensure that each donor-financed component can be implemented independent of the other. The difficulties of coordinating procurement, no-objections, and disbursements by two separate funding institutions are nearly insurmountable. Under the current project, for example, Bank inputs of workshop equipment and technical assistance to the polytechnics were largely negated by considerable delays in the construction and rehabilitation of polytechnic workshops which were to be undertaken with funding from the African Development Bank. (b) Management Information Systems. This was a "pioneering" experience in Ghana, and numerous lessons were learned: (i) establish essential infrastructure (phone lines; networked computers) before launching the introduction of MIS; (ii) use the above process to identify and foster local "champions"; (iii) familiarize middle managers with computer technology early in the project; (iv) obtain institutional commitments to cover system maintenance costs; and (v) only after the above has been done should the big choices regarding system design be undertaken. This means that the selection of technical assistance for project management should be carried out earlier and separately from the choice of software (which should involve university participation). Software specifications should be detailed enough to hold the supplier accountable and be based on "good practice" examples. Software choice should emphasize "no frills" products which enable core MIS capacities to be put in place because the inclusion of software "bells and whistles" often generates a need for expensive and time-consuming custom (bespoke) work. Additionally, staffing changes in MIS management positions are very costly in temis of time lost as well as funds expended. (c) Research Funid. Here as well useful experience was acquired which can guide similar efforts in the future: (i) research funds should be managed by an institution with a mandate for and commitment to research, not by the project implementation unit or parent ministry; (ii) research proposals should be invited from university departments rather than from individuals to enhance capacity building benefits and to enable greater accountability through involvement of university finance officers and fund administrators; (iii) technical evaluators of research proposals should be paid enough to ensure timely responses. (d) Civil Works. Project experience was that in spite of being ear-marked in the approved MOE budget, it is very difficult to protect counterpart funds for their intended purpose. Closer monitoring and stricter enforcement of the Credit Agreement provisions for counterpart funding could be one solution. An alternative would be to design a project so that the counterpart find requirement does not exceed 5% of the project budget. Another lesson was that the supervising architects for civil works should be selected as a condition for project effectiveness so that technical drawing, communications with contractors, and progress evaluation procedures can be adcquately considered. -7 - TEP Completion Mission September 22, 1998 (e) Management capacity-building. Short term and in-service training in professional management techniques for staff at all levels of management should be a continuous activity throughout the life of any higher education project and informed, if possible, by a thorough review of existing management and decision making structures. (f) Pedagogic skills development. Programs to improve the pedagogy of academic staff should be tied directly into the academic management procedures of the institution(s). (g) Project Accounting. Maintain project accounts in SDRs from inception in order to avoid exchange rates surprises in the final year. Divide accounting tasks among two or more accountants to ensure internal controls and staffing continuity through illness or departures. Do not economize on project management funding by skimping on accounting capacity. Future Operations TIhe Honorable Minister for Education has expressed a desire for a second phase of Bank assistance to the tertiary sector. The focus of this assistance would include: consolidation of the newly established institutions for monitoring educational quality and institutional performance, finding a solution to the "polytechnic question," devising cost-effective altematives to expand tertiary access, improving curriculum relevance, and integrating the tertiary sub-sector with both secondarv education and other post-secondary alternatives. In response, the Bank has indicated its willingness to support the continued development of Glhana's tertiary education system within the parameters of an overall education sector policy framework and expenditure plan. However, the Bank is not prepared to consider a free-standing "Tertiary Education Project 11" in the absence of these important reference points. In the judgment of the Bank mission, the following foundation of policy actions would need to be in place prior to the commencement of any second phase assistance: =r' Updated policy framework for tertiary education. => Action Plan for financial sustainability. r Agreements on enrollment growth and the consequences of non-compliance. > Budgets which reinforce policy goals. Block grant for the tertiary sector which includes items 1-8. Sustainable student loan scheme. - 8 - TEP Completion Mfission September 22, 1998 Preparations If the above six foundation stones can be firmly put in place, then various other building blocks can be mounted upon them to support a second phase of assistance. Many of these do not require any additional resources for their implementation. * Participatory mechanism for project design and implementation. * Strategic plans for individual tertiary institutions. * Various studies and reviews: a. Labor market demand for tertiary graduates. b. Expert visitation committee to assess the viability of the polytechnic system and propose altematives for its future. c. Costed feasibility study for electronic networking among tertiary institutions. d. Socio-economic background of students, ability to pay, and an equitable formula for cost-sharing. * Assessment of ways to improve space utilization on campuses. * System-wide equipment maintenance program. * Detailed assessment and prioritization of campus rehabilitation needs. Appreciation The World Bank team would like to recognize the commitment, professionalism, and hard work demonstrated by the TEP Project Manager and PMU staff involved in the implementation of this project. During the early years of the project, they functioned virtually without telephone service. In 1995/96, the entire academic year was lost to industrial action by university staff. Periodic scheduled and unscheduled leadership changes at the Ministry of Education, the National CLouncil for Tertiary Education, the Projects Management Unit, the universities, and the polytechnics interrupted project momentum and necessitated a continuous process of participant education and consensus-building around the project's main objectives. At various times, particularly during the final year, the entire project struggled in the face of nationwide electricity rationing. In spite of these and other substantial obstacles, the project team succeeded in spending the entire project budget within essentially the agreed time period. The short nine-month extension of the closing date in 1997 was prompted by delays occasioned by the university staff strike of 1995/96 rather than by any significant project management shortcomings. Accra, September 22, 1998 Williarn Saint Sr. Education Specialist Human Development 3 Africa Region -9- Attachment I Page 1 of 3 TERTIARY EDUCATION PROJECT Key Performance Indicators Government: 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 Ceiling Tertiary/Total MOE ReciurrentBudget % 15 11 12 11 12 12 12 18.3 Tertiary/MOE lPIP Budget % 39 32 32 16 23 38 24 40.0 U)S Investment a $0.1m $0.3m $0.3m $0.3m $0.4m $0.2m $0.4m S1.3mlyr. 1991/92 1992/93 1993/94 1994/95 1995/96 1996/97 1997/98 Cost Recovery: Application Fees a Univs. 0 0 5000 5000 N.A. 5000 5000/ Gutide 1500 2000 4000 20,000 Others ? ? 1000 5000 N.A. 90,000/ 150,000/ Gutide 1000 1000 2000 100,000 170,000 l lostel Fees/Costs % actual 0 0 0 0 N.A. 0 25 target -- - 100 100 100 100 100 Registrationl + Application Fees/ % actial ? ? ? 2 N.A. 3 4 Academic Costs target -- - -- 5 5 5 5 Stuidenit Loans (max) a Resident 80,000 163,000 200,000 350,000 NA. 600,000 800,000 target 80,000 90.000 90.000 Non- Resident 80,0()() 150.(0() 200,00() 350,(0() N.A. 600,000 800,000 KcN: Italics = target tiglires * Based on FIE calculations in whichi all I-IND Non-Italics = actual figures students equal 1 .0 FEE and all non-tertiary students represent 0.5 FTE. NA - 'lle 1995/96 university year was lost due to an extended strike by academic staft, but the polytechlics contitiued to tunction. Attachment I Page 2 of 3 Tertiary Institutions: 1991/92 1992/93 1993/94 1994/95 1995/96 1996/97 1997/98 In-takes No. UG 2048 2458 2087 3583 NA. 2682 2578 UST 1909 881 1645 1967 NA. 2088 2177 UCC 803 800 1143 1673 NA. 1972 2511 Total Univs. 4760 4139 4875 7223 NA. 6742 7266 Guideline 4475 4500 4500 5500 5500 5500 5500 Enrollments No. UG 4698 5447 5594 6951 NA. 8495 8606 UST 4754 4374 4451 4890 NA. 6079 6876 UCC 2404 2562 3190 4273 NA. 5342 7264 TotalUnivs. 11,856 12,383 13,235 16,114 NA. 19,916 24,387 Guideline 13,124 14,500 15,500 17,250 18,500 19,500 20,000 UCEW - 1889 1820 1748 NA. 2955 3425 Guideline 2400 2500 2800 2800 2800 2800 2800 Total Polys* 10,953 10,604 11,407 11,682 12,619 13,141 13,456 Guideline 10,000 10,500 11,000 11,500 12,000 13,000 14,000 FIemale Students! Total Enrolilnents % UG 24 24 25 25 NA 31 26 UST 18 1 8 18 20 NA 21 20 UCC 23 25 24 25 NA 27 26 UCEW - 24 26 29 NA 29 27 Total Polys 30 29 29 23 NA 21 24 StudetLs! Academic Staff No. UG 7 9 10 12 NA 16 15 (Average) UST I1 9 10 10 NA 13 15 UCC 16 13 16 21 NA 28 32 UCEW - 19 18 13 NA 16 28 Guideline - - 15 1i 15 15 15 Total Polys* 25 24 27 24 30 27 30 Guiideline 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 Non-Academic Staff/Students % UG 59 53 46 39 NA 31 35 UST 44 53 50 46 NA 27 31 UCC 45 50 39 26 NA 24 17 Guidelitne -- -- -- - 30 30 30 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 Libnrr Acquisi- tionsrrotai % UG 3.0 3.7 3.4 2.0 2.9 2.6 Rectirrent UST 2.3 2.4 2.4 1.5 2.4 3.1 UCC 0.3 5.5 4.9 2.9 2.7 2.3 Guideline -- - -- 5.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 Maiiteinance/ Total Recurrent % UG 3.0 3.0 3.0 4.0 3.5 1().3 UST 8.5 7.4 7.6 6.7 6.0 5.1 UCC 0.0 0.0 0.0 4.1 2.3 2.0 Guideline - - -- 5.0 5.0 5.0 5.0 Attachment 1 Page 3 of 3 Polytechnics: 1991/92 1992/93 1993/94 1994/95 1995/96 1996/97 1997/98 Enrollments* No. Accra 2441 2058 2623 2853 3246 3164 3426 Cape Coast 346 361 532 799 741 867 970 Ho 1434 1404 1453 1303 1060 1728 1769 Kumasi 2242 2686 2781 2725 3104 2818 2885 Takoradi 3408 2935 2610 2446 2707 2842 2726 Tamale 1082 1160 1408 1509 1761 1722 1680 TOTAL 10,953 10,604 11,407 11,682 12,619 13,141 13,456 Academic Staff No. Accra 78 79 73 69 78 75 70 CapeCoast 15 16 23 25 21 33 38 Ho 81 73 80 79 76 83 81 Kumasi 95 96 88 85 93 97 111 Takoradi 90 89 86 93 75 75 78 Tamale 74 81 80 64 65 71 59 Academic Staff/ Studenit Ratio* No. Accra 22 19 26 20 36 42 49 Cape Coast 23 23 23 32 35 26 26 Ho 18 19 18 17 19 21 22 Kumasi 24 28 32 32 33 29 26 Takoradi 37 33 30 24 36 28 31 Tamale 15 14 18 28 22 22 28 Non-academic/ studetLs * % Accra 4 5 4 3 4 3 3 Cape Coast 8 11 9 5 7 6 8 Ho 4 3 5 4 4 5 3 Kumasi 3 2 2 4 3 3 .4 Takoradi 2 2 2 3 4 4 6 Tamale 6 6 5 4 5 3 6 Female Students % Accra 30 29 26 23 21 24 26 CapeCoast 28 28 29 32 18 17 21 Ho 34 35 33 33 27 35 27 Kumasi 35 31 33 23 27 23 24 Takoradi 26 24 24 22 22 25 24 Tamale 15 13 11 13 14 15 19 22-Sept-98 Attachmont 2 Page 1 of 2 FINAL SUMMARY 15 Point Policy Action Plan (Agreed wvith the Ministies of Educadon and Finance in June 1996) 1. Maintain intakes within agreedparameters. Intakes exceeded agreed parameters of 5.500 per year for the three main universities by 23% in 1996/97 and by 32% in 1997/98. 2. Maintain enrollments within agreed ceilings. As a result of the recent rapid rise in university intakes (see above), tertiary enrollments now exceed the agreed ceilings by 8%. 3. Academic fees to increase towards contributing 3% of recurrent budgets. Acadcrnic fees at the universities and polytechnics have been increased notably over the past two ycars, and now contribute 4.3% of recurrent budgets according to NCTE calculations. 4. Annual adjustments to the student loan scheme to be less than 30%. Loan amounts evcrc increascd by 43% in 1996/97, and by 8% in 1997/98. The 1998/99 adjustment will reportedly be well under 30%. 5. 7ertiary institutions to receive block granIfirnding via NCTE in accordance with exiablishedMOE norms. This was requested in 1995, accepted by the Ministry of Finance in 1996, and partially opcrationalized in 1997. At present, however, this agreement is not being observed by Govenmcnmt. Repeated assurances have been given that the arrangement will be permanently established in 1999. 6. Tertiary institutions be formally permitted to retain all income generated. Thiis was agreed to by the Ministry of Finance in 1997, but only became operative for the government's fiscal year of 1998. 7. Budget share received by Polytechnics to significantly increase in 1997. Corresponding increases were recommended by the National Council for Tertiary Education for 1997 and again for 1998. In neither year was this recommendation recognized by Govemment in its allocation decisions. The traditional funding pattems continue to prevail. As a result, the polytechnics financial position has deteriorated fiirther. Whereas polytechnics were funded at 10% of the university level in 1995, their proportionate share in 1998 is less than 9%. 8. Staff/student ratios in each university to be reviewed against the norm of 1: 15 and tic-wion plans developed where necessary. Enrollment growth over the past two years has pushed this ratio into compliance with the MOE norm at all tertiary institutions. Attachment 2 Page 2 of 2 9. University non-academic staff to equal no more than 30% of gross student enrollments. Here again, sharply increased enrollments have enabled significant improvements at all tertiary institutions, and full compliance at 8 out of the 10 institutions covered by the project. 10. The two new polytechnics (Sunyani and Koforidua) will not be upgraded at the expense of the existing tertiary institutions. This has so far not been the case in the 1998 budget. The establishment of a further two new polytechnics (for a total of ten) has been promised publicly by govemment officials. II. Efforts will be made to identify understaffed polytechnic departments and to include Jinancial provision for additional staff in the budget. An audit of the staffing situation in the polytechnics was conducted by NCTE in late 1996 and used to inform the 1997 budget request for polytechnics. But the recommended budget increase to cover this need was not recognized. Likewise, agreement by Government to allow the salary provisions for numerous vacant posts to be ised to hire part-time instructors from business and industry has not been observed. As indicated by the unacceptably high staff/student ratios of 1:35, the polytechnics remain significantly understaffed. 12. Proportion offemale tertiary students to gradually increase. Over the past six years, female participation rates in the universities remain essentially unchanged. At the polytechnics, female participation has actually declined as non-HND courses, which attracted higher female enrollments, wvere gradually phased out under the tertiary reform program. 13. At least 5% of recurrent budgets to be spent on library acquisitions. These proportions have rarely exceeded 3%. 14. At least 5% of recurrent budgets to be spent on maintenance. With the exception of UST, which has averaged 7%, this proportion has generally not surpassed 4% at the other universities. 15. Establish .Joint Admissions and Matrictulation Board. Legislation to establish JAMB has been on the Parliamentary agenda for more than three years. Sustained opposition to this lcgislative proposal by the universities recently prompted the National Council for Tertiary Education to establish a joint admissions board under its own auspices. Attachment 3 Financial Closing Plan AGREED REMAINING PAYMENTS 1. Jos Hansen $11,000 2. Dennis Lee 22,400 3. Sherwood 39,947 4. Kennedy International 36,339 5. Blackwells 42,000 6. Commonwealth Higher Education Management Service - CHEMS 103,000 7. Feedback, UK 17,627 8. John Laing 7,309 9. African Virual University equipment 42,000 TOTAL $321,622 Attachment 4 Timetable of Key Actions for Project Closing ACTION RES~~~~~PON SIBIIT DLUEDATE: Initiate 1998 audit. PMU October 1, 1998 Initiate studies on labor market for NCTE October 15, 1998 tertiary graduates, student socio- economic background, information technology development, and institutional strategic plans. Establish external visitation committee NCTE November 1, 1998 to advise on policy and priorities for development of the polytechnic sub- sector. Obtain all final research reports from PMU November 1 5, 1 998 researchers and make payments. Submit 1 0-page project completion MOE/PMU December 15, 1998 report to World Bank. Submit 1 998 audit to World Bank. PMU/MOE December 31, 1999 Organize seminar to review the draft NCTE January 26-27, 1999 Implementation Completion Report. Complete Financial Closing Plan PMU January 31, 1999 (see Attachment 3 above) PROJECT COMPLETION REPORT 1.0 Introduction This is the project completion report for Ghana Tertiary Education Project for which Credit 2428-Gh in the amount of SDR 31,200,000 (equivalent to USS45m) was approved on 30th September 1992, signed on November 9, 1992 and became effective on January 8 1993. The credit was to close on December 21"S 1997 but was extended to September 301h 1998 to allow a number of pipeline activities to mature. The project's first disbursement was made in March 1993. By end of September 1998,-the project had disbursed the credit funds and had also largely achieved most of the elements in the development objectives set for it although, sustainable finar eYng remained an issue. 2.0 Development Objectives of the Project The Tertiary Education Project was designed to help accomplish Government's stated policy goals for the tertiary sector. Policy since 1991 has been largely guided by the White Paper on reforms to the Tertiary Education System. Its principal goals are restructuring, consolidation, and upgrading of tertiary institutions; improved educational quality and relevance through curriculum revision and quality monitoring; managed expansion of the system to increase access and equity, particularly for women; diversification of funding sources to stabilize and sustain the system; and more efficient management. Selected performance indicators were established and monitored throughout the project in order to assess policy impact in the areas of quality enhancement, management efficiency, controlled expansion, female participation, institutional capacity building and sustainable financing. It was agreed at the Mid Tern Review (November 1995) to accelerate the progress towards the achievement of the policy objectives. A 15 point policy action plan was therefore agreed to this effect. By early 1997 considerable progress had clearly been made in achieving 12 out of the 15 action plans, with slower progress on three. We assess briefly the project perfomnance in attaining these objectives. 3.0 Assessment of Performance in Aligning Development Objectives 3.1 Oualitv Enhancement & relevance The tertiary reforms responded to a perceived decline in educational quality during the 1980s. This was due to a combination of a long period during which capital goods such as equipment and structures deteriorated, and teaching materials, especially books and joumals, were hardly available. However sufficient government recurrent expenditures were provided to enable the institutions run from year to year. The project therefore provided support for capital goods in the form of civil works, equipment, books and journals. In addition, considerable training of both academic and non-academic staff was undertaken. There were a number of consultancies to improve teaching methods and review of curriculum. All these interventions had positive impact on the quality of education and thereby halted the decline in quality. Indeed more could have been achieved if govermnent resources committed to the sub-sector had not been reduced from 15% of the education budget to 12%. 3.2 Management Efficiencv Management efficiency improved considerably. However, this was driven by enrollment growth and staffing losses rather than strategic management. Academic staff/student ratios have improved from 1:11 to 1:18 at universities, and from 1:24 to 1:30 at polytechnics. The proportion of non-academic staff to students declined from 49% to 28% for the university system overall, although the universities at Legon and Kumasi still remain above the agreed ceilings for this indicator. As of this year, governnent has agreed to allow the institutions to retain all income generated instead of deducting it from the following years' allocation as had been the previous practice. Significant progress has been registered in the very complex and tong`-term undertaking of establishing computerized management information systems within the three main universities. By the end of 1998, core capabilities for managing an integrated system of student records and personnel had become operational. A financial administration system would be operational in February 1999. 3.3 Controlled Expansion Government policy is to improve access to higher education and raise the tertiary enrollment ratio above the present 3%. However any increase must be accompanied by a commensurate rise in budgets in order not to compromise quality. For this reason, it is important to keep the rate of expansion within manageable bounds which the project sought to do. During the project period, however, university enrollments expanded from 14,489 to 26,300 (an increase of 82%), surpassing the agreed 1997/98 ceiling of 22,800 for managed system expansion by 15%. Polytechnic enrollments of 13,456 in 1997/98 remained under the agreed ceiling of 14,000. Overall tertiary enrollments (universities :'t(d polvtechnics together) were therefore 8% above the targets agreed under the project. In the 1999 budget therefore the government's allocation to the tertiary sector has been increased from 12% to 15% in order to maintain quality. Again, government in 1997 and 1998 allowed extra budgetary allocation of US$6.6m to shore up quality. 3.4 Female Participation Female participation increased only marginally from 24% to 29% during the project period. Substantial improvement in female participation in the tertiary sector is being pursued through an affirmative action programne in favour of female university applicants. 3.5 Institutional Capacity Buildinv The National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE), the National Accreditation Boar-d (NAB) and the National Board for Professional and Technician Examination (NABPTEX). Three of the five new institutions to be created under the tertiary reforms 2 for system monitoring and evaluation are now in place, staffed, housed, and actively functioning. Responsibility for managing govemment's subvention to tertiary education on a block grant basis is being implemented by the NCTE. The NAB has visited all polytechnics twice during the past three years, providing conditional certification to most programmes and identifying those which require remedial attention. The NABPTEX examined all polytechnic graduates for 1995, 1996 and 1997, but is yet to award diplomas for the three years. This has been due largely to a difficulty in finding a suitable candidate for the Board's key leadership position of Executive Secretary. The NCTE is now to establish the forth institution a Joint Admissions Mechanism, under its auspices, thereby creating a badly needed capacity for streamlining admissions. This will be operational for the next academic year. The fifth institution, the National Teaching Council will be established in 1999. 3.5 Sustainable Financinz The key to expanding enrollments while maintaining standards of educational quality is to establish financial arrangements that will prove capable of sustaining the balance between growth and quality over time. To this end, the Credit Agreement sought to supplement the tertiary allocation from the national budget by the introduction of hostel fees, raising academic charges, and restructuring the student loan programme to reduce public subsidies and increase the repayment rate. At the same time, it aimed to increase the efficiency of resource management by improving academic staff/student ratios, reducing the numbers of non-academic staff, providing incentives for institutional income generation, and establishing computerized management information systems. Important progress has been achieved in laying a foundation for sustainable financing of the tertiarv svstem. Following considerable public debate and consultation with stakeholders, Govermnent introduced hostel fees of approximately S65 per student per academic year in August 1998. This amount covers roughly 25% of the estimated full cost of student accommodation. While the levying of tuition fees is not encouraged by the country's Constitution, polytechnics and universities were able to establish various cost- recovery charges which averaged from S50 to $85 per student per academic year according to the institution. The student loan scheme remains untouched to date, however, and has generated a deficit of some $16 million to date from the public purse. A high level committee has been appointed to recommend appropriate re-structuring of this loan package and its report is expected by the end of 1998. 4.0 Implementation Arrangements Three institutions (the PMU, NCTE and MOE) have played key roles in the implementation of the project. The Project has been implemented by the Projects Management Unit of MOE which was set up to operationalise the disbursement of donor and GOG earmarked funds for effective and timely execution of projects. The Unit has three main sub-units: Disbursement, Procurement and Civil Works. The Project Manager plans and facilitates the execution of the project. The NCTE, which is the main channel between the tertiary institutions and the MOE, has been closely involved in the project and has fully participated in decision making for the Project. 3 The role of the MOE has been paramount as it provided leadership, not only in the attainment of policy objectives, but also for ensuring that the right momentum existed for timely execution of the project. 5.0 Implementation Performance 5.1 Civil Works Civil Works which began in November 1994 was planned to be completed in 24 months. In the event it took 36 months to complete. Part of The delay was due to the need to have the 20% GOG matching funds available in good. time for settlement of bills as these fell due. 80%'o of contracted funds was nornally paid from project funds within the required period of 28 days. However, the remaining 20% (i.e. the counterpart funds) sometimes took 5 to 8 months to come through. Nonetheless, all works had been completed by end of project. The original planned cost was S17.8m; final cost amounted to $16.74 million. A key lesson leamed from this experience is that there is need to improve and update skills in works monitoring in order to perform better next time round. 5.2 Books & Journals The original budget in the category of Books & Joumals was over-spent. This was necessary to ensure an additional year's supply of journal subscriptions beyond the planned S4.3m. In the end, S5.24 million was disbursed. 5.3 Equipment There were three sub-categories: laboratory/workshop equipment, computers and accessories; and vehicles. Thle procurement of the planned 514.5m worth of laboratory and workshop equipment was most challenging. Messrs Crown Agents was sub-contracted to assist with the specifications and the evaluation of the bulk of the equipment. This was efficiently done and as a result $11.5 million was spent instead orS 14.5 million to procure equipment. On computers, expenditure of $2.2 million was planned but only $1.9 million was disbursed. Vehicles did not play a major part in the procurcii;ent exercise with a total expenditure of $0.5m. There is a need to develop a standard equipment list for the various categories of equipment for tertiary institutions and have this accepted for use by the NCTE. This would remove the arguments which color the procurement process particularly as the Heads of Departments who put in the specifications are not usually those who receive them. Also there is no reason why specifications could not be settled during appraisal to expedite procurement and delivery of the equipment in the institution during the tenure of the Heads who initiate the process. 4 5.4 Staff Development The importance of upgrading the administrative, academic and academic support staff of tertiary institutions cannot be overemphasized. For this reason the project undertook a combination of training programmes: upgrading courses overseas for administrative, technical and academic staff; and conferences on science and technology, development and new approaches to teaching and learning and research in the universities. Local and overseas training was also provided for the polytechnics, including 2 to 3 years degree programmes provided at UST. Short courses were also undertaken. Indeed, there has been substantial investment in training for the polytechnics. A resource center to support M.Tech programmes has been created at School of Engineering, UST. Thus, the capacity and the equipment to deliver M.Tech Ed. programmes in various specialized skills is available to the School anicTian be used-well beyond the polytechnic level. Finally, credit funds were invested in creating role models in science-based post-graduate female students. In all, 20 female science based post-graduates benefited. The impact of this investment can only be assessed when the candidates graduate and begin to take up positions in the tertiary institutions and in industry. 3.D Technical Assistance The second component under the institutional support arrangement of the project is the xvide field described as technical assistance. The use of consultants under this project has not been excessive. The project has used a good mix of local and foreign consultants. The results have generally been the same, that is, when the consultants are supervised closely, the results are better. Thus, substantial benefit was gained from the services of Crown Agents, British Council, Linesman, and MUSIA. The allocation made for the NCTE to strengthen its capacity could have been better applied, though. In this broad area, assistance was acquired in the areas of civil works supervision; equipment specification writing, evaluation, installation, manuals development and training in new tecinologies in six fields of engineering in polytechnics; career advisory services; and management information system covering purchase, installation and training. Two of these areas are evaluated:- Ch.i; V,ork s Three firms were appointed to supervise the 14 civil works contracts in the nine institutions country wide. The sites were zoned into three to take supervision closer to the sites. Although the supervisors have done reasonably welt, they have tended to take on too many jobs and thereby become part of the civil works problems. We cannot in the future afford the cost of this class of consultancy. 5.6 !f anazement Inforrnation System (MIS) One great challenge has been in the area of MIS for the three older universities. What the MIS seeks to do is to provide technological skills and support for making informed financial decisions based on hard data. 5 A budget of $451,000 was originally proposed. However
Группа Всемирного банка · Implementation Completion and Results Report
Ghana - Tertiary Education Project
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