CAPACITY STRENGHTENING FOR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT IN EDUCATION IN GHANA

CAPACITY STRENGHTENING FOR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT IN EDUCATION IN GHANA JOPHUS ANAMUAH-MENSAH VICE CHANCELLOR, UEW & DIRECTOR OF SACOST CENTRE Email: jam@uew.edu.gh

Focus • Introduction • Importance of capacity strengthening to government • Examples of successful and unsuccessful capacity strengthening • Factors affecting capacity strengthening • Key issues for successful stregthening for gov’t, schools, NGOS • Role of research in helping to understand CS

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE ABILITY OF EDUCATION SYSTEM HELPING STUDENTS TO MEET CHALLENGING GOALS

Introduction • Over the last decade, the Government has received considerable funding from development partners to support the education sector. In spite of this, overall achievements have not been impressive. One serious constraint has been the inadequate provision for capacity building.

Introduction • In 1996, a national capacity building assessment • identified the following capacity constraints: • Inadequate human and institutional capacity • Inefficient utilization of existing national capacity • Underperforming of education service de-motivated by low pay, inadequate incentives, corruption and lack of transparency in promotion; • Over reliance on long-term expatriate technical assistance • Weak in policy analysis and research capacity as well as translating policy into practice

Introduction • In this presentation, Capacity will be defined as the ability • of the education system to help all students to meet more • challenging outcomes. Three Dimensions of capacity building • can be identified: • HUMAN CAPACITY - knowledge, skill, attitude, views of • their roles and themselves; • ORGANIZATIONAL CAPACITY - identifiable groups of • people governed by goals,and procedures be it department, • school, or district; areas include vision and leadership, • commitment to students, organizational structure and • resources • INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY - i.e. policies, procedures legal • instruments and incentives

Dimensions and effect of cs Organizational capacity Student Outcomes Capacity Strengthening Human capacity Institutional capacity

Why capacity strengthening is important for Government • Poor education indicators such as CRT, BECE, PMT, schools without teachers,and de-motivated teachers suggest poor service delivery; • Flight of skilled workers from Ghana; • Poor pay for teachers and other education workers;

Why capacity strengthening is important for Government? • Human resource development is one of the three pillars the Government is relying on for moving the country into a middle income status • Recognition that knowledge is power

Importance of capacity strengthening • Builds confidence • Improves performance • Provides skills and competencies • Builds knowledge base (increase knowledge) • Encourages/promotes effectiveness and efficiency • Leads to effective and efficient planning and implementation

Importance of capacity strengthening (cont’d) • Addresses waste and mismanagement • Promotes management efficiency • Increases work output

Examples of un/successful capacity strengthening(World bank, 2005)

Examples of un/successful capacity strengthening

Factors affecting capacity strengthening • Identification of needs/needs assessment • Identifying solutions • Developing effective and efficient training strategies • Selection of competent participants • Identifying participants capable of benefiting from training • Identifying those capable of sharing/utilising knowledge

Factors affecting capacity strengtheningcont’d • Selection of motivated participants • Identifying willing participants • Selection of competent resource persons • Competent trainers • Motivated trainers/trainers with passion • Selection of appropriate training venue • Venue with less attraction to participants

Factors affecting capacity strengtheningcont’d • Addressing participants’ expectations • Provision of training packs/handout/etc • Delivery should provide opportunity for sharing knowledge, group work, hands-on, minds-on activity • Proper definition of roles and functions of consultants/participants/ administrators

Factors affecting capacity strengtheningcont’d • Definition of implementations hierarchical structure • Minimizing obstruction to implementation programmes • Ensure adequate funding for the training programme

Factors affecting capacity strengtheningcont’d • Ensure that goals of the project were in line with national strategic goals; • Effective and efficient use of scarce resources • Avoiding wastage • Maximum use of resources • Maintain reasonable number of participants, i.e. avoid large numbers

Key issues for successful capacity strengthening Government • Government must ensure that capacity strengthening interventions are based on systematic needs assessment; • Government must avoid over optimism about her level of commitment to projects. Their commitment must be based on critical assessment of the political economy and peoples’ commitment to change; • Ensure adequacy of funding.

Key issues for successful capacity strengthening (cont’d) • Support results-based approach to project design so that implementation will be based on explicit targets and indicators; • Support interventions that are piloted beforehand; • Select appropriate/competent consultants - local and foreign- use more local ones; • Avoid projects with over-ambitious designs and which are largely consultant-led

Key issues for successful capacity strengthening (cont’d) • Ensure proper planning and management of programmes • Effective monitoring and evaluation of progress as part of every project; • Non-politicization of issues- minimize interference (political); • Ensure effective and efficient collaboration and coordination between partners/agents and implementing units; • Address issues of sustainability of project.

Key issues for successful capacity strengthening (cont’d) • Project goals should align with national priorities/objectives; • Project design should show clarity, feasibility and impact.

Key issues for successful capacity strengthening (cont’d) Schools: • Participate in the provision of data for needs assessment; use personal starting points of teachers; • Schools’ strategic plans should support results-based interventions; • Ensure ownership of project; • Engage in open and frank discussion of problems;

Key issues for successful capacity strengthening (cont’d) • Ensure talented educationalists in the institutions and communities are involved in all stages of capacity strengthening- planning, implementation and evaluation. • Ensure clarity of objectives

Key issues for successful capacity strengthening (cont’d) Donors/NGOs: • Ensure projects follow a client-driven agenda and not a donor-driven one; • Play a supporting and facilitating role; • Ensure projects have in-built monitoring and evaluation component; • Move progressively to a sector-wide approach • Involve all major stakeholders in entire project cycle

Role of research in understanding capacity strengthening issues • Provides evidence of nature of problem (reality under ground) • Provides facts and figures for effective planning; • Makes recommendations for solution of problems; • Throws light on the impact of capacity strengthening interventions on service delivery and outcomes; • Provides information on how available resources are used to improve efficiency and effectiveness

Challenge/Conclusion • Pursue a holistic approach to capacity strengthening; • Place learning for students and the educational system as a whole at centre of all capacity building; • Educate the public on teacher and organizational capacity strengthening efforts • Change the sporadic INSET to a regular comprehensive INSET • Ensure accountability and continuity in projects

CAPACITY STRENGTHENING CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

THANK YOU

CAPACITY STRENGHTENING FOR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT IN EDUCATION IN GHANA