Education reform support -- volume two : foundations of the approach

Education Reform Support (ERS) is a six-volume series that creates an operational framework through which educational reform initiatives, particularly in Africa, can (1) counterbalance the political interests that can deter reform, (2) build the capacities of diverse actors to participate in the policy process, (3) foster the role of information in policy making, and (4) create networks and coalitions that support continued and productive policy dialogue. Volume 2 provides some historical background in terms of past donor assistance in the education sector and sets out some of the main lessons learned in order to establish a basis for the procedures and strategies that are described in the following volumes. The volume concludes that current approaches (standard projects, policy-based funding) need to be reinforced with a more participatory, analysis- and dialogue-based emphasis. An annex reviews some issues surrounding conditionality as a mechanism for eliciting changes in educational policy.