Transforming education in The Gambia

The Gambia has improved education access, equity and quality over the past several years, but the country is far from achieving its policy goal of 80% of children reaching minimum learning competencies.

While the Ministry of Education has improved enrollment at all levels of education, poor performance in literacy and numeracy shows that children are not thriving at school. Only 11% of children ages 7-14 demonstrate foundational reading skills and 9% for numeracy.

Failure to learn basic competencies has led to high rates of repetition and dropout: nearly 29% of Gambian children are out of school.

To unlock large-scale change, The Gambia is working with GPE and other partners to ensure accessible, equitable and inclusive foundational learning. The focus on basic literacy, numeracy and transferable skills, like independent learning and critical thinking capabilities, aims to equip students with the building blocks for a life of learning.

Expanding access to quality pre-primary education will better prepare children for foundational learning in primary education. And better teacher support through professional development, new teaching and learning materials, and assessment methods aligned with the foundational curriculum, will help ensure that all students in The Gambia achieve basic competencies by grade 4.

Result story

How EMIS data drive education reforms: The case of The Gambia

In The Gambia, like in many other countries, EMIS data have been the livewire for education sector managers and stakeholders involved in the decision-making process. Over the years, the country has made great strides in making its EMIS more demand-driven. Read how here.

Grants

(data as of March 19, 2024)

 
  • Type: System transformation and Multiplier

    Years: 2023 - 2028

    Allocation: US$10,860,000

    Utilization: 0

    Grant agent: WB

  • Type: System capacity

    Years: 2023 - 2028

    Allocation: US$1,900,000

    Utilization: 0

    Grant agent: WB

  • Type: Program development

    Years: 2023 - 2024

    Allocation: US$198,750

    Utilization: 0

    Grant agent: WB

Civil society engagement

As part of its investment in civil society advocacy and social accountability efforts, GPE’s Education Out Loud fund is supporting the Education For All Campaign Network (EFANet) for the 2020-2023 period. This builds on previous support from the Civil Society Education Fund (CSEF).

Learn more

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