FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Alexandra Humme at ahumme@globalpartnership.org

Kinshasa – February 11, 2014. Alice Albright, Global Partnership for Education’s Chief Executive Officer, has laid the first stone for a new school in Gemena in the northwestern province of Equateur in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The new school is part of a US$100 million support package from the Global Partnership for Education to get more children in hard-to-reach areas in the DRC in primary school.

With the funding, a total of 153 schools are planned to be built or rehabilitated in two of the most deprived provinces (Equateur and Kasaï West), allowing 75,000 children per year to go to school. There are 3.5 million children of primary school age who are not in school in the DRC. Poverty and vulnerability are the major causes for school dropout.

“Countries cannot emerge from poverty without strong advances in education. It is a critical element of national and regional economic growth. That’s why we have to focus on helping children in the most disadvantaged areas, like here in Equateur province, acquire a quality education,” Albright said during the stone-laying ceremony.

The US$100 million education grant provides critical funding and momentum toward quality education in the DRC. In addition to school rehabilitation and construction in some of the most disadvantaged areas, the funding will also improve student learning through better learning materials and strengthened teacher training. These resources will also help improve management in the education sector. The grant is implemented through the World Bank.

The impact of decades of internal conflict continues to affect education services even today in many parts of the DRC. The country is one of 28 post-conflict or fragile countries supported by the Global Partnership for Education, which focuses on ensuring that children in these countries are not forgotten and receive an education. Overall, the partnership operates in 59 low-income countries.

In Kinshasa, the country’s capital, Albright met with Prime Minister Matata Ponyo Mapon, Education Minister Mwangu Famba and Finance Minister Kitebi Kibol Mvul to discuss education challenges and funding needs.

“Quality education is not only a right for all children because their future depends on it, but also a duty for our leaders that will guarantee that our country can prosper,” said Mwangu Famba, Minister of Education. “The funding from the Global Partnership for Education is instrumental in reforming our country’s education system and getting more disadvantaged children in school. The partnership has helped us bring the most relevant partners around the table to develop a solid education sector plan, which we are now implementing. We see this as a transformative moment not only for DRC’s education sector but also for our overall social and economic development.”

The Global Partnership for Education is the only global multilateral partnership devoted to getting all children in school for a good quality education. It is made up of governments, civil society organizations, international institutions, teachers, private foundations and the private sector. It provides funding to develop and implement high-quality education sector plans in the world’s poorest countries. In June 2014 it will host its second replenishment conference to solicit resources for the period 2015-2018.