Tunisia - Education and Training Sector

 Education & Training Sector Report No; Type: Report/Evaluation Memorandum ; Country: Tunisia; Region: Middle East And North Africa; Sector: Education Adjustment; Major Sector: Education; Project ID: P005715 The Tunisia Education and Training project supported by Loan 3054-TUN for US$95 million, was approved in FY89. After extensions totaling two years, the loan was closed on September 30, 1996, and a balance of US$1.9 million was canceled at that time. The Implementation Completion Report (ICR) was prepared by the Middle East and North Africa Regional Office. The borrower's report on the implementation and achievements of the project was received but not included in the ICR. The project aimed to support the government’s reforms in education and training sectors. The main objectives were to: (a) increase access to education to meet the country’s medium-term development needs; (b) provide education more equitably and cost-effectively; (c) promote pre- and in-service training in collaboration with industry, and (d) mobilize additional resources for vocational training. The project financed construction and rehabilitation of primary- and lower-secondary education schools, equipment, books and materials, teacher and staff training, technical assistance, and studies for sectoral reform. The project met or surpassed most of its quantitative targets, in part due to a very committed implementation unit. Particularly in education, construction activities were quickly completed and equipment was purchased. New buildings increased access to lower secondary education. Eight vocational training centers were successfully established and equipped, and they gave students the skills demanded by labor market. Overall, textbooks were distributed, teacher training was expanded, and new curricula were developed. However, the project’s qualitative inputs were achieved much more slowly due to a reluctance to use technical assistance and to carry out training activities. Tracer studies of vocational graduates were not completed. Cost effectiveness was to be an important performance criterion for the project; however, the indicators that would have allowed a clear assessment of cost changes were not defined at the time of the appraisal. Hence, appropriate data were not collected. Instead of increasing spending on quality-enhancing instructional inputs in education, teacher salaries were increased. Overall, the project’s main achievements were much more quantitative than qualitative. The Operations Evaluation Department (OED) agrees with the ratings in the ICR. Project outcome is rated as satisfactory, institutional development as substantial, sustainability as likely, and Bank performance as satisfactory. The project highlights the importance of using technical assistance effectively and paying balanced attention to “software