Secondary Education Development Programme (SEDP) is the National-wide programme which is run under the umbrella of Education Sector Development Programme (ESDP). The programme is implemented into phases of 5 years each.
SEDP is being implemented by several stakeholders,including: the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEST); the President’s Office –Regional Administration and Local Government (PO–RALG); Regional Secretariats; Local Government Authorities (LGAs); Ward Level officers; School Boards and School Management Teams; Non-State Actors; and Development Partners, including the World Bank (WB).
SECONDARY EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME – PHASE I (SEDP I)
SEDP I was implemented between 2004 and 2009, building on the national goals of secondary education provision. It also builds on national and international reforms regarding the education sector. Some of these reforms are based on key policy documents such as the Tanzania Development Vision 2025, the National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (NSGRP – commonly referred to by its Kiswahili acronym: MKUKUTA), the Education and Training Policy of 1995, the Education Sector Development Programme (ESDP, 2001) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The Overall objectives of SEDP I were to improve access with equity, quality, management and delivery of secondary education in Tanzania. Review of SEDP I implementation has shown that the Programme was most successful in improving access and equity. The number of secondary schools has tripled between 2004 and 2009 to serve different underserved communities and so has the number of enrollees. Despite these successes, there have been a number of challenges, in terms of performance, adequacy of the professional teachers, equality of learning environment among different schools, adequacy of infrastructure, teaching approaches, school management, and low transition rate.
SECONDARY EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME – PHASE II(SEDP II)
SEDP II is a Government project supported by a loan from the World Bank (WB) since 2010. According to the agreement between the World Bank and the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania, the overall Project Development Objective (PDO) is “to improve the quality of secondary education with the focus on underserved areas”. The PDO is being realized through implementation of activities stipulated under four main components:-
1. Upgrading existing schools infrastructure
The objective of this component is to increase the number of secondary schools meetingminimum infrastructure requirements, moving them toward becoming fully functionalper SEDP II.
The component provides support for rehabilitation and completion of existingschool structures, with a minimum cost-effective infrastructure package. Given resourceconstraints, the project finances based on assessed needthe construction, supervision ofworks, and associated furnishing of (i) classrooms, (ii) science laboratories, (iii) teachersresidences, (iv) latrines, (v) water supply, and (vi) electricity supply (through the grid orsolar power). These goals were derived through extensive consultations with variousstakeholders, which determined these to be the most essential infrastructure unitsfor enhancing the teaching and learning environment in schools and for addressingconcerns over teacher deployment as well as the enrollment and attendance of girls.
2. Improving the equitable provision of teachers and the quality of teaching in Mathematics, sciences, and languages.
The objectives of this component areimproved deployment of teachers to ruralareas; improved instruction in mathematics,sciences, and languages; and better teachingpractices. Achievement of the above objectivesare indicated by the following: (i) in teacher deployment, measured increases in the numberof qualified teachers in designated ?hardto reach schools; and (ii) increased supply ofteachers for mathematics and science, measured improvements in student-teacher enrollment incourses on teaching mathematics and science at teacher-training colleges (TTCs).
3. Ensuring adequate financing to secondary schools and improving utilization of resources.
The objective of this component is to ensurethat adequate financing is provided to publicsecondary schools (currently at Tsh. 25,000 per students per year)disbursed timely, and monitored effectively. These objectives are being achievedthrough the provision of goods, technical assistance, and capacity building support.The resources under this component are earmarked for specific learning improvementpurposes: such as improving textbook provision and delivering teaching materials thatbetter match the needs of students (e.g., teacher supplies, teacher manuals, teacherguides; laboratory apparatus, equipment andchemicals). The current level of the government’s capitation grant programme amount is Tsh. 25,000, which was set in 2004 during the preparation of SEDP I.
4. Providing capacity building and technical assistance to implement current and future reforms.
The objective of this component is to strengthen institutional capacity for educationalmanagement; these institutions are ADEM, TIE and NECTA. Sustained inputs to strengthen capacity for planning, management,delivery, monitoring and supervision of education are critical to improving thequality and efficiency of education service delivery. Expansion of the Education Management Information System (EMIS) currentlyunder development to capture data relevant to the secondary education subsectorthat is accurate, easy to retrieve and process, and readily available to all is essentialfor decision-making and to promote transparency and efficiency.