Nepal: Supporting the School Education Sector Plan

Sovereign Project | 49424-002

The results-based lending (RBL)program will assist the Government of Nepal in reforming the school education system through the implementation of its School Education Sector Plan (SESP) in a sector-wide approach (SWAp) supported by eight development partners, including the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The RBL program will strengthen equity, quality, and resilience of school education by helping the government (i) enhance learning provisions for basic and secondary schools; (ii) strengthen teaching and learning in basic and secondary schools; (iii) accelerate the recovery from learning losses caused by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic; and (iv) improve the capacity of governments, especially local governments, for education planning, monitoring, and reporting.

Project Details

Related Projects

Project Name Supporting the School Education Sector Plan
Project Number 49424-002
Country / Economy Nepal
Project Status Active
Project Type / Modality of Assistance Grant
Loan
Technical Assistance
Source of Funding / Amount
Grant: Supporting the School Education Sector Plan
European Union US$ 15.39 million
ATF - Norway TA Grant US$ 6.76 million
United States Agency for International Development US$ 6.38 million
Government of Finland US$ 7.51 million
United Nations Children's Fund US$ 940,000.00
Loan 4269-NEP: Supporting the School Education Sector Plan
Concessional ordinary capital resources lending US$ 200.00 million
Loan: Supporting the School Education Sector Plan
World Bank US$ 160.00 million
TA 10012-NEP: Enhanced Policy and Program Implementation in School Education
Technical Assistance Special Fund US$ 1.00 million
ATF - Norway TA Grant US$ 600,000.00
Strategic Agendas Environmentally sustainable growth
Inclusive economic growth
Drivers of Change Gender Equity and Mainstreaming
Governance and capacity development
Knowledge solutions
Partnerships
Sector / Subsector

Education / Education sector development
Gender Equity and Mainstreaming Gender equity
Description The results-based lending (RBL)program will assist the Government of Nepal in reforming the school education system through the implementation of its School Education Sector Plan (SESP) in a sector-wide approach (SWAp) supported by eight development partners, including the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The RBL program will strengthen equity, quality, and resilience of school education by helping the government (i) enhance learning provisions for basic and secondary schools; (ii) strengthen teaching and learning in basic and secondary schools; (iii) accelerate the recovery from learning losses caused by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic; and (iv) improve the capacity of governments, especially local governments, for education planning, monitoring, and reporting.
Project Rationale and Linkage to Country/Regional Strategy Reducing inequities in access and participation and improving the quality and resilience of school education are essential steps to better prepare Nepal's youth for higher education and the acquisition of skills that employers require. In line with Nepal's long-term vision and its commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MOEST) approved the SESP for 20212030, and prepared a costed program for the first 5 years (FY2023FY2027) The JFPs will tackle the remaining inequities and constraints that lead to low learning by prioritizing and sequencing required results from the SESP. The RBL program is aligned with its Strategy 2030 and the operational priorities of (i) addressing remaining poverty and reducing inequalities; (ii) accelerating progress in gender equality; (iii) tackling climate change, building climate and disaster resilience, and enhancing environmental sustainability; and (iv) strengthening governance and institutional capacity. The RBL contributes to pillar 2 (improved access to devolved services) of ADB's country partnership strategy, 20202024 for Nepal; and to Sustainable Development Goals 4, 5, 10 and 13.
Impact

Competent and qualified citizens increased
Project Outcome
Description of Outcome

Equity, quality and resilience of the school education strengthened.
Progress Toward Outcome
Implementation Progress
Description of Project Outputs

Learning provisions for basic and secondary schools enhanced.

Teaching and learning in basic and secondary schools strengthened.

Learning recovery accelerated.

Local governments' education planning, monitoring, and reporting improved.
Status of Implementation Progress (Outputs, Activities, and Issues)
Geographical Location Nation-wide
Safeguard Categories
Environment B
Involuntary Resettlement C
Indigenous Peoples B
Summary of Environmental and Social Aspects
Environmental Aspects The RBL program is categorized as B for environment. In accordance with the ADB and the World Bank's respective safeguards policies, Environmental and Social Systems Assessment (ESSA) is completed upon examination of Nepal's existing legal, regulatory, and institutional framework for environment and social management systems (Annex 4 [to be replaced by website address once MOEST publishes]). Site specific and temporary construction-related environmental impacts are anticipated from upgrading of secondary schools which will include GESI friendly features and disaster and climate resilient design standards.
Involuntary Resettlement

No involuntary resettlement will occur under the RBL since minor civil works will be within existing school premises. Permanent and temporary involuntary resettlement impacts will be assessed. Program activities will be screened for such impacts. If any additional land is required, either negotiated settlement in compliance with para. 25 of ADB's SPS Safeguard Requirements 2 will apply, or voluntary donations following best practices to establish that the donation is indeed voluntary and not subject to any coercion, including from the community. Guidelines will be prepared that comply with SPS Safeguard Requirements 2 on involuntary resettlement for negotiated settlement and best practices on land donation processes. The program will ensure that failure of negotiation will not result in acquisition under eminent domain.
Indigenous Peoples The indigenous peoples (Adivasi and Janajatis) are expected to benefit from the program's affirmative actions, which will increase their participation and improve their learning outcomes. No major negative impacts on indigenous peoples are expected. The education curricula and teaching pedagogy should be relevant, nondiscriminatory, and child-centric. Their positive impact on indigenous peoples will be monitored. Affirmative actions will be adopted to enable the participation of indigenous peoples' children, such as incentive schemes relating to scholarships, free textbooks, residential facilities in remote locations, equity-index-based resource allocation, education in mother tongue, and allocation of quota for marginalized indigenous students. An environmental and social management framework was prepared to avoid any adverse impact while delivering program activities. It includes provisions to ensure that indigenous students receive culturally appropriate education benefits, do not suffer from adverse impacts, and can participate in and benefit from program activities.
Stakeholder Communication, Participation, and Consultation
During Project Design MOEST approved the SESP after 250 consultation meetings with more than 8,000 stakeholders. The RBL program factors in representation from CSOs such as AIN, NCE, National Federation of Disabled People Nepal, and Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities; and beneficiaries' participation in all three tiers of government. Such continuous engagement and participation, a standard practice already under previous programs, will continue during implementation and is built into the SWAp.
During Project Implementation CSOs played an active and crucial role during consultations for SESP preparation and finalization. AIN Nepal, through its member organization on education, and NCE will continue to play a key role in supporting the implementation and monitoring of SESP, including in the Local Education Group. Other CSOs and development partners will be consulted as part of the SWAp and will remain engaged throughout SESP implementation.
Business Opportunities
Consulting Services ADB will engage the consultants following the ADB Procurement Policy (2017, as amended from time to time) and its associated project administration instructions and/or staff instructions. The total TA inputs include 146 person-months (18 person-months of international inputs and 128 person-months of national inputs). The single source selection (SSS) for the recruitment for examination and item banking software team is proposed. The justification for SSS for open assessment technologies (OAT), S.A, Luxemburg in partnership with National Education Foundation Research, United Kingdom are (i) the tasks are continuation of the work that was initiated from the ongoing TA9215 with phase one related to software installation completed while phase two entail completion of customization of test generation module in the same software installed by OAT, S.A, Luxemburg; (ii) the OAT,S.A, Luxemburg was selected for first phase through competitive selection using consulting qualification selection ; and (iii) the OAT, S.A, Luxemburg is proven its technical competence in installation of the examination software and capacity development and is considered as a one of the leaders in the world in improvement of examination system.
Procurement The program will be jointly financed by seven other JFPs and financial resources of each financier will be co-mingled and administered by the borrower for the program. Under such an arrangement, OCR resources and financiers' resources will be used to jointly finance procurement packages and universal procurement is applicable.
Responsible ADB Officer Gyawali, Smita
Responsible ADB Department South Asia Department
Responsible ADB Division Human and Social Development Division, SARD
Executing Agencies
Ministry of Education, Science and Technology
Timetable
Concept Clearance 19 Jul 2022
Fact Finding 15 Aug 2022 to 30 Aug 2022
MRM 04 Oct 2022
Approval 06 Dec 2022
Last Review Mission -
Last PDS Update 06 Dec 2022

Loan 4269-NEP

Milestones
Approval Signing Date Effectivity Date Closing
Original Revised Actual
06 Dec 2022 27 Dec 2022 27 Dec 2022 31 Jul 2028 - -
Financing Plan Loan Utilization
Total (Amount in US$ million) Date ADB Others Net Percentage
Project Cost 3,386.12 Cumulative Contract Awards
ADB 200.00 17 Jan 2023 0.00 0.00 0%
Counterpart 3,186.12 Cumulative Disbursements
Cofinancing 0.00 17 Jan 2023 0.00 0.00 0%

TA 10012-NEP

Milestones
Approval Signing Date Effectivity Date Closing
Original Revised Actual
06 Dec 2022 31 Dec 2022 31 Dec 2022 31 Dec 2027 - -
Financing Plan/TA Utilization Cumulative Disbursements
ADB Cofinancing Counterpart Total Date Amount
Gov Beneficiaries Project Sponsor Others
1,000,000.00 600,000.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1,600,000.00 17 Jan 2023 0.00

Project Data Sheets (PDS) contain summary information on the project or program. Because the PDS is a work in progress, some information may not be included in its initial version but will be added as it becomes available. Information about proposed projects is tentative and indicative.

The Access to Information Policy (AIP) recognizes that transparency and accountability are essential to development effectiveness. It establishes the disclosure requirements for documents and information ADB produces or requires to be produced.

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Title Document Type Document Date
Loan Agreement (Ordinary Operations [Concessional]) for Loan 4269-NEP: Supporting the School Education Sector Plan Loan Agreement (Ordinary Resources) Dec 2022
Supporting the School Education Sector Plan: Technical Assistance Letter Technical Assistance Letter Dec 2022
Supporting the School Education Sector Plan: Report and Recommendation of the President Reports and Recommendations of the President Nov 2022
Enhanced Policy and Program Implementation in School Education: Technical Assistance Report Technical Assistance Reports Nov 2022
Supporting the School Education Sector Plan: Program Implementation Document Project/Program Administration Manual Oct 2022
Supporting School Education Sector Plan: Initial Poverty and Social Analysis Initial Poverty and Social Analysis Jul 2022

Safeguard Documents See also: Safeguards
Safeguard documents provided at the time of project/facility approval may also be found in the list of linked documents provided with the Report and Recommendation of the President.

Title Document Type Document Date
Supporting School Education Sector Plan: Summary Environment and Social Safeguards System Assessment Program Safeguard Systems Assessments Sep 2022

Evaluation Documents See also: Independent Evaluation

None currently available.

Related Publications

None currently available.

The Access to Information Policy (AIP) establishes the disclosure requirements for documents and information ADB produces or requires to be produced in its operations to facilitate stakeholder participation in ADB's decision-making. For more information, refer to the Safeguard Policy Statement, Operations Manual F1, and Operations Manual L3.

Requests for information may also be directed to the InfoUnit.

Tenders

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Contracts Awarded

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Procurement Plan

None currently available.