For the last two decades, GPE has been working to ensure every child has the hope, opportunity, and agency that a quality education brings.

Our new operating model – GPE 2025 – is designed to strengthen partnerships, sharpen our approach at country level, including context-specific funding options, and promote a "learn and adapt" approach to implementation. Our aim is to better support partner countries to build stronger, more resilient education systems that deliver a quality education for all children.

We checked in with four countries implementing the GPE 2025 strategy to understand how they have been mobilizing in-country partnerships to support large-scale and sustainable change.

Rwanda : Working together to rapidly mobilize critical funds

When Rwanda was introduced to GPE 2025, the country had a time-bound opportunity to leverage GPE Multiplier funding: an innovative finance instrument that provides an incentive and the financial resources to catalyze more and better investment in education. The government and its partners came together and mobilized US$100 million in co-financing from the World Bank to secure a US$30 million Multiplier grant from GPE to support basic education.

Strong coordination among partners enabled Rwanda to conduct an expedited enabling factors analysis. This was followed by an assessment of the analysis by an Independent Technical Advisory Panel and the country’s feedback on the assessment—all in less than a month.

Rwanda submitted its grant application along with a high-quality program proposal, the first among all countries under the new operating model, duly endorsed by Rwanda's Education Sector Working Group. Having obtained and aligned critical resources behind national priorities, partners are committed to deepening sector dialogue and maintaining strong coordination as they continue to engage with GPE 2025.

Next steps include agreeing on priority reforms, developing the partnership compact, accessing the systems transformation grant, and moving to implementation on their pathway to building a more resilient education system.

Guyana : More voices adding greater value to sector dialogue

Since joining GPE in 2002, Guyana has made important progress in improving access to education. While universal primary education has been achieved, the government is working to increase secondary education access, especially among the most marginalized. The need to improve learning outcomes and teaching quality also shapes current reform efforts.

In recent years, Guyana has strengthened sector coordination and created space for inclusive sector dialogue, demonstrating a determination to exercise the power of partnership to achieve ambitious goals.

The local education group – led by the Ministry of Education and bringing together government officials, development partners, civil society, the teacher union, and the private sector – was established in 2019, and the group has embraced the GPE 2025 strategy as an opportunity to coordinate efforts to create lasting change.

Partners are discussing factors that have the potential to enable system-wide improvements, including gender-responsive planning, and the equity and efficiency of domestic financing. Participatory in-depth policy dialogue is helping Guyana hone in on sector bottlenecks and transformative solutions to address them.

Senegal : Improving sector dialogue to achieve results at scale

Prior to joining GPE in 2006, Senegal was already engaging education stakeholders in sector dialogue. Over the years, the government and its partners have worked to make the dialogue more inclusive and effective, and the GPE 2025 strategy is a chance to further strengthen these efforts as well as improve sector coordination.

Senegal’s education sector plan focuses on improving learning outcomes, equity and sector governance. A country-led analysis of sector performance, needs, gaps and existing evidence serves as the foundation for discussions about the barriers to accelerating progress.

For example, Senegal has spent over 20% of total government expenditure on education since 2015, and country-level partners are discussing how to improve the efficiency and equity of domestic financing to address low learning outcomes and ensure the most vulnerable children are not left behind. Such in-depth analysis focuses the attention of all partners on critical factors that enable change at scale.

The inclusive and participatory process is essential to aligning partners, as well as resources, behind bold reforms for sustainable results.

Tanzania : Strengthening coordination to advance system transformation

When introduced to GPE 2025, the government set up an inclusive task force to maximize the benefits of the operating model.

As Tanzania develops its own pathway to transforming their education system, the country is building on years of having implemented a results-based program which has already resulted in large-scale change: improved girls’ transition rates from primary to lower secondary school and a recent reversal of a policy banning pregnant girls from attending school are examples of system-wide progress.

Country-level partners are now working to strengthen sector coordination and identify priority reforms that harmonize their efforts to improve learning and address inequities so that all children receive a quality education.

The government initiated a mapping exercise to take stock of interventions supporting key policy issues, such as improving gender equality and teacher workforce management. Recognizing stakeholder contributions to system transformation thus far provides clarity on how partners can align to collectively advance the reform agenda.

Next steps include finalizing the partnership compact led by the task force in consultation with a wide range of stakeholders.