India - District Primary Education Project

Domenmt of The World Bank FMI OFfLIAL USE ONlY Rqiut NIL P-6378-IN ORAN4DUM AND RECOMMENATION OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE DlERIIATIONAL DEVELOPlM ASSOCIATION TO TE EDECUTIVE DIRECTORS ON A PROPOSED CREDIT OF SDR 180 MIION TO INDIA FOR A DISTRICT PRMRY EDUCATION PROJECT NOVEMBER 2, 1994 D.eCF Ort P - - TN Ty pe: . ueP This docesnt hs a resticted dsti_bu and may be used by recipie aly in the prformane of dteir official duties. Its conten may anot otedwe be dised widthot World 8ak andmitiou.  C ,RE,CY EQUIVALET (as of May 1, 1994) Cency Unit = Rupee Rupee 32.00 = US$1.00 Rupee 1.00 = US$0.031 1 Meter (m) 3.28 Feet (ft) 1 Kilometer (jn) 0.62 miles FISCAL YEAR Aprfl 1 - March 31 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS AWPB Annual Work Plan and Budget BRC Block Resource Center CABE Central Advisory Board for Education DEr Distric Institute of Education and Training DPEP District Primary Education Program DPEPPB DPEP Project Board EC Europen Community ECE Early Childhood Education GOI Government of India ICDS Integted Child Development Scheme MIS MInagement iformation System MLL mum Levels of Learning NCERT National Council of Education Research and Training NFE Non-formal Education NGO Non-Government Organizaton NIEPA National Institute of Education Planning and AdmistraXo NLM National Literacy Mission OBB Operation Blackboard PWD Public Works Department SC Scheduled Caste SCERT State Council of Educational Research and Taining SDI Sub Deputy Inspctor SIEMr State Insitute of Educationa Management and Training ST Scheduled Tribe TLC Total Literacy Campaign TRG Training Resource Group VEC Village Education Committee  FOR OMFCIAL USE ONLY Lim: DCI DARX EIUC KO ER0 xIndia, acwtn by its Pesident. SneXiaxis: Government of nldia and the Goverments of Assm, Haryana,, Karata, Keia, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. AmounI: SDR 180 Mffion (US$260.3 million equivalent). Terms: Stadard, with 35 years maturity. EJnau~Plan: Local Foreign Total TUS$ lon- IDA 246.9 13.4 260.3 GOI 50.2 - 50.2 Total Project Cost 297.1 13.4 310.5 conomic Rate of Retun: Not Applicable Povsrq Xgo: Propam of LTmgL d Interventiona. One of the project's main objectives is to imprve quality and access in primar education for tb popuations, scheduled castes and girls. The project contains specific srategies for interventions targeted for these groups. Staff Appraisal Report: 13072-IN s cum as a residced d and mabeusd b reipiens oy i d offcial duties. Its cotes may not othewis be ditslosed without Wold ht* autl oi  MEMORANDUM AND RECOMMENDATION OF TIE PRESIDENT OF TBE INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCTIAON TO THE EXEC DIRECORS ON A PROPOSD CREDIT TO INDI- FOR A DISTRICT PRIMARY EDUCATION MPROJEC 1. -iohe following mm m and reon on a propsed credt to India is submtd fbr approvd. lhe credit, for SDR 180 million on standard IDA tms with 35 years maturity, wold be for a project to help fince the newly estblished Distict Primary Educadon Piogram (DPEP) of the Govem of Idia (GOi). The DPEP would rapidly and substntially expand the GOrs technical and fiancial support to stae for primay education development. IDA stanc for, this project would provide the financing and tehnicalcollaboration needed to establish nd develop national, state and disict capaciy for program planing and management, as well as to lauch the DPEP in an inial 23 districts in six stes. 2. Count ector Inacuu. h Idia, the outcomes of primary education, as measured by lteracy siics, dropout rates and leanig achievement, are highly unsfacory. Variation on these indicators, both between and win states, demonstrat a subsantW degree of regionl inequt. 'The effects of these disparities are readily seen in socia indicators. For example, in the high literacy sta of Keala, there are 1016 fmaes for every 1000 males, and infat mortality is 28 per thousand births. By contast, in a low literacy state such as Bihar, there are 930 females for every 1000 males, and the infant mortality rate is 117 per tmsand births. 3. At a national level, household sample survey data show ta completig primary education is ascated with significant Improvement in contraceptve use, pre-natal care and child immunizaton among rural women On e basis of dropout rates alone, more than half of rural gwils are leaving sdcool l-ped to take advantage of these import development services. Although gaps in accss and completion have been closing in recen yeas, a isproportIonate number of non-eolled and drop-outs natonwide are from the poorest houseolds, gils, and members of Schedued Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Trie (STs). 4. Hisly, prmary educaion has been prmariy a responsibility of state goverments, which continue to provide more than 90 percent of system financimg. However, begminng with the Nadonal Poicy on Education (NPE) in 1986, the cent govenment has taken steps to re ize and strnhen prmary education programs in the stes. Included have been grant programs such as Opeon Blackboard (OBB), which pays for additional teachers and basic learting materals for sigle teacher schools; District hiues of Educaion and Tragiing (DIETS), which provide in-evice tng and oer professional support to schools; and Minmum Leveds of Leaning (MLL), a national curiculum renew R&D program. S. The Revised NPE and National Program of Action issued in 1992 recognize ta additional inveqtme from the GOI would be requied to reach medium term goals for enrollments an learing ahievement, especialy for girls and SC and Sr students. The DPEP has been established to implement the mvised policy in disricts with below average female lieracy rates. Eight Plan alcatons for primary education have been increased four fold to support DPEP, whih r s an investm program without precedent in India. Ihe proposed project would be the fir in an anticipated series of thee or more additional credits  -2- over the nen 6-10 years that would support the DPEP. Additional parallel financing for DPEP b being provided by the European Community and is under consideaion by ODA. 6. e . his projet nrporates key lessons lered from past-and Ongoing DA social sector iesents, firom the implemenation of donor-assisted state primary education projects in Andhra Pradesh (ODA), Bibar (UNICEF), _Rajastha (SI)A) and Uttar Pradesh (IDA), and from eadier GOI schemes such as OBB: (a) the need for integred education development programs that address biter-related costras on the availability and quality of basic services; (b) the usefulness of formal annual reviews and work program proposas- for eme coutrol; (c) the viability of regter societies as anisms for project mplementation; and (d) the importance of strenghing the quality of ealy chidood educato, tetbok and learning materas, and teacher in-service training. Expience with IDA-assisted popWation and human resources projects in India has dtad he imoancto efoctive project magement of. (a) annual budget financing to cover anicipte project exptre; 0) clear medms for the advace of funds and for timely compledon of disburement requests; and (c) supportive pervision from IDA, particularly in start-up phases of projects. 7. IDA StW An RgknB iQ for Involvement. Background on the economy and on Bank operations was distriuted in the Country Assistance Strategy Paper to the Board on Apri 21, 1994. Promoting economic reform, speeding economic growth and alleviating poverty are central to IDA's country assistance strategy. Human resource development ls a key element of his overall strategy, with education development playing a central role. IDA aims to Improve the access of the poor, SCs, STs and women to invesment in uman resource developmen and to improve the quality, efficiency and efectiveness of those investme. Low educatonal achievement is a major constraint to social and economic improvement for the poor and socialy disadvantaged groups. IDA's segy for education is to focus mediumterm assistance exclusively on primary education, given its underdeveloped status in India, its high reuns, and its importance to the poor. Previosm support for basic education in da, consistet with the objectives of this project, has been provided by IDA through the Socia Safety Net Adjustmet Programi (Credit 2448-IN) and ftrough the Uttar Pradesh Basic Education Project (Credit 2509 IN). In the absece of contied IDA invlvement, the proposed DPEP mecms for management, supervision and evaluation would be less well developed, and the quality of stae and district-level project implementtion reduced. S. . The project woud assist the Depatment of Education to buid national, state and district _ial and professional capaciiy for sustanable primary education development It would support districtbased activities aimed at decreasn dropout, iaing learig achievement, and improving access to p y education. Prority would be give to female and SC/ST stdents thrugh both targeting and special strateges, and to enhanced community participation. 9. SAgh. Ihe proposed IDA credit is a specific investment loan th woud finance the development and opation of the DPEP Bureau in the G0I Deatment of Education to cel technical and financia resources to states and disticts for locally planned prmary school and system qualty improvement activies. DPEP woud provie sngle widow enty for most external a t toprimay education he crneit would also fiance an iitial set of state capacitq building and district acvies in 23 districts (3-5 per state) in the states of Assam, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Marasbtra, and Tamil Nadu.  -3- 10. Dli et project compone would be8: () g J Institutional CANgb to appraise, fina, monitor and evlua state and district sub-project by estabshing a sghend stonl framwork for nat_onal and professiona techncal assistance; (0) Bli S ntate to appnri, supervise and manage district-evel instuton and activities for imoving the qualiqt d eeciveness of primary educaton and to provide techncal support for program management, texbook developmt, impoved tching, Wpoved plig and management ad re c and evaluation; nd (l) Imrvig Ouait and AcceW in Pr Education ftrough ehanced district insutioal. capacity, stretened community partcpation and awarene, improved f4cilites, teacher in- service traig, leaning materil and tecng aids, targetd intervendtons for S SC and ST stuent, early childhood education and conucto of new schools and dassrooms. 11. Teect Ml estimated tot prject cost of US$310.5 mi equivalet would be financed by an IMA credi of SDR 180 million (US$265.3 milo equlvalewl. -'5 1 would cover 86.6% of costs net of taxes. 'Me Q01 and stat would finne the remaling cmSt of US$50.2 million and dll taxes. The ne of tax cost of the project woWld - -.`S$300.5 m0lijn. Retoactive fhimcig in the amount of SDR 5.54 million (US$8 milLion eivalent) is ed to cover eligble startup exedires from March 1, 1994. A breakdown of project costs and the financig plan are shown in Schedule A. Credt proceeds would be provided from the GOI to the state imple on societies as grants; neither Project states nor state implementaton societies would have repayment obligatons ascied with the credit Amounts and methods of procement and the disbuement schedule are shown in Schedule B. A timetable of key project processing events and the status of Bank Group Operatio In India are presented in Schedules C and D. the Staff AppraisW Report, No. 13072-IN, dated November 2,1994, is being disbu separately. 12. Projet implementation would be marked by inremental ansion of national, se and distict components on the basis of performance. Developent objectives and indicators woudd provide the overall framework for measurig pebmac. Annual tional, state and disticts work plans would provide the basis for annual resource allocations and monitoring. The central cotol mechaism would be review of progress repot coveing physical targets for civil works, procurement, and training; sfware and system development; and expendite. The initia year of the project would be based on work plans and budgets reviewed by IDA at appais, and would emphasize project lauh and start-up activities. Project launch workshops would be caried out in each state and district Progm magement tiing would be provided for national, state and distr management teams. The DPEP Bureau would participat in joint supervision missions widt program donors, and in addiion cry out igs own superon missions to participating states and disrices twice a yea; repors woud be made avalable to program donors. DPEP Guidelines would be reviewed periodically. 13. Poia biuity. The budget inaes required to nsus the project wold average 1.4 percent of average non-lan budgets in the six states, and should be sustainable in all cases. For Kanatka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Mabahtra, ihe increases required would be less tham half of recent anmull increases. In Assam the cost requremt would be somehat hiwer, requirig more significant budget adjustmet. The most sbst required increase woud be in Hayana, but would be wel withi the reach of Inas third-richest stae.  -4- 14. A At negotation, the GOI provided thac : (a) tem of ref and tender docents for nation technical assistance program of O) pdagogial mprovemet,iI) edatioa plntg and mament and (ll ST ducatio developmnt would be provided for IDA review by Jqany 15, 1995; ) IDA concuercawould be sought for preparation of any sate or district o-pojets additio- to the Ii 23 p _posed for the craet (wit l appraisa by DPEP ad IDA apprasal of a sample of proposd statedistrict pnsion sbrojects); (e) the project woud be implemented in acodance wit DPEP Guidines, and proposed chaunes in DPEP Guid s would be discussed with IDA; (d) DIETS would be established, Wlly stafd and fucBt in all project disti by Janay 31, 1996; (e) the GOI would ensure t wat studies are carried ut in all project 4istricts In the third and sith year of the project usig methods. sasctory to IDA; (e) the GOI woud codt a mid-term review of project implIton and impact, i g dbunts, Improvement In dropout rates, learing achievement scores, and n with IDA by June .30, I99; and M an independen management review of the fucioning of state implemn socies would be conducted under terms of refe satisctory to IDA by December 1, 1997. 15. At negotiations, the project states provided surances that: (a) reised strategis for each state and district for improvhg primary educaim for girls and ST sudents, together with Implementation plans and budgets for the second year of the projec, woud be prted for IDA review by January 15, 1995: and (b) states shal allocate Project resources at leat in proportion to the share of te tb in the distict populton. Ihere are no special cond of effetiveness. 16. PogMM Obecive CUMft. pv_M. The projet would cotribe to poverty alleviaton by esablifn the institonl capacity for sustained national, state and disrict progms and by imrovwing primary education outcomes in 23 districts in six states. eneficiaries of the project woud overwh.em y be poor chldr There is a special focus on girls, ST and SC students, through strategies to reduce dropout, increase a-cess and enhance leaning achievement g. Female liacy in all project districts are below natonal averages, and al disrict plans include stategkv 0 impwve girls' enrollmet and retenton; some include strategies that would improve girls' learnig achievement as well. A study of girs' educatn needs has been completed and the results used to refine targed sategies. leol (Scheduled Tribes) would benedt in proportion to their r tn in each project district; trib populations range from about 10,000 persons to about 350,000 persons in project districts, and from less than 1 percent to over 50 percent of the total district popuaton. A study of ST educational needs has been completed and would be discsed with project benficiaries prior to finalizing plans for implementing targeted stategies. lfi is a major criteria for state participation in DPEP and 60,000 persons participated i 800 planing discussions for the project at block, village and school leves. The project does not raise any 17. Project Benefits. The proposed credit would be a fir investment in a longer-term program to improve the lieracy and m acy skillb of the cizens of India, pariculay the ra poor, and hence increse their producty and welfare. It would establish the Institonl framework necessary for the impleme n of the District Prmary Education Program over the medium term. I would provide access to priy education for an estmated 1.4 million additiona chidren, enable more than 1.5 miUion chl;dren to complete prary education by rducing dropout, and improve dte quality of insucon and leg for  10~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1 I F~~~~1 Ii~~~~~~~~~~~~~~r  -6 Schedule A bmk*, e-bit ftb FM9 eaad Ptoect CostsW Esad Platn (USS Million) Local Foreign Total USS Minion Build National lnstitutional Capacity 17.8 2.7 20.5 Build Stae stiional Capacity 23.8 0.9 24.7 move Quality & Access in Primary Bducation Build District Institutional Capacity 12.0 0.5 12.5 Improve Retention 41.4 1.3 42.7 Increase Access 93.7 3.8 97.5 Improve Leaning Achievemerts v M 7 Subtotal Improve Quaity & Access 217.4 7.7 225.1 TOTAL BASE COST 259.0 11.3 270.4 Contingencies 38.1 2.0 40.1 TOTAL PROWEC COST 297.1 13.4 310.5 Einsmcig ElGm: Local ForeiP Total USS Mion IDA 246.9 13.4 260.3 GOI 50.2 - 50.2 TOTAL PROJECT COST 297.1 13.4 310.5  :~~~~* -~ e~ e i~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * SS * I I 7~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I 3t 53l ''' IeR '' 1X Q~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~ S I I ' 6 .S - Ii