Policies

Education for Out of School Children in Bangladesh

Context and Issue

Despite extensive endeavors by the Government of Bangladesh and various development partners in recent years, approximately 10% of primary school-aged children in the country still face significant barriers to accessing education, particularly those living in impoverished households in remote rural areas and urban slums. While over 17 million children have been enrolled in primary schools, high enrolment rates obscure systemic challenges, with up to half of grade one enrollees failing to complete their primary education. In 2010, nearly 8 million children either dropped out of school or never enrolled, underscoring the persistent disparities in educational access.

Solution 

Implemented in collaboration with EAC, the Gonoshahajjo Sangstha (GSS) Education for Out of School Children (OOSC) in Bangladesh project endeavors to address the educational obstacles encountered by low-income families and children residing in rural and urban marginalized areas. By employing cost-effective primary education methods utilizing active learning techniques, the project aimed to achieve two primary objectives: reopening 575 underutilized schools to provide primary education to 104,700 OOSC and enhancing the schools' overall communication, documentation, and management capabilities. To achieve this, GSS conducted activities such as repairing and reopening 575 three-room GSS schools, training 1,800 teachers, establishing 575 School Development Committees (SDCs), providing textbooks and course materials, refining the curriculum, and aiming for over 86% learner excellence in critical competencies. The project was also involved hiring program administration staff, forming a secretariat for fundraising and stakeholder relations, recruiting management staff, and conducting annual workshops on primary education capacity building.

Impact 

GSS has successfully reopened 575 schools and provided primary education to 109,482 out-of-school children over four years, surpassing enrolment targets by 4.5%. Notably, the Primary Education Completion Exam (PECE) success rates for 14,676 children reached 100%, underscoring the quality of education offered in GSS schools. However, challenges have emerged, particularly in securing additional funding, leading to the closure of some schools since January 2018.

Analysis

Despite efforts to explore various funding avenues, including collaboration with the government and corporate social responsibility (CSR) funding, GSS has yet to secure sustainable financial support for future implementations.