My name is Tunde Onakoya. I am a professional chess player and a national master of chess. I’m also the convener of Chess in Slums Africa, a non-profit organization that uses the game of chess as a framework to give children skills who do not have access to education. We are a strong believer in children’s potential, basing our work on the belief that children can do incredible things when they are given the chance, and the skills to know how. This is why we are joining the #BorntoLearn campaign started by the UNESCO GEM Report to rectify the fact that, in Africa at present, only one in five children can read with understanding and have acquired mathematical literacy. We join the call for all children to be given access to foundational learning. 

 Education for me is the capacity for thought. And a lot of the children we work with in Nigeria are not enabled to think for themselves because they are not in schools. Chess is a medium to teach them skills and enable them to be able to help themselves. Chess is helping them find expression. 

I knew that chess would give them a new identity that other people would respect. Instead of simply looking at a child’s poverty, or clothes, people would respect what that child was able to do. We have seen what children are able to do with chess when they are shown how; if all children had access to foundational learning in school, we would be astounded at what they’re able to do.  

The children we meet with have dreams and ambitions. Some of them want to become doctors or teachers. Some of them want to become lawyers or accountants. But, for them, and for the other 118 million children and youth out of school on the continent, it is very unlikely that these dreams will become a reality because of their present circumstances.  

For the longest time, many of them have been deprived of opportunities. #BornToLearn calls on governments to imagine what could be achieved if all children were to be given access to an education; access to skills that are relevant to their future. We hope this partnership will help bring the world to these children – to show them that it’s possible to dream beyond the confines of their community.  

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1. Be more specific about what SEL programs are

In program design and evidence reviews, the broad term “SEL programs” is used frequently. We can advance the field by seeking greater clarity about four aspects of SEL programs. 

a. Be clearer about what SEL programs are trying to achieve 

Advocates say SEL programs can improve children’s well-being, academic learning, can develop skills for a successful life and build resilience in the face of conflict and crisis. But these four sets of goals– and the approach one would take to achieve each of them– are quite different.  Programs need to be clear about their main SEL goal. This is key for designing a focused program and deciding on the best approach. This first step is critical for improving coherence of a program and determining the potential approach(es) to achieve this goal. Our focus is on SEL programs to improve academic learning, which we’ll discuss in the rest of this blog.  

b. Be clearer about the programmatic approach 

SEL programs also vary in how they try to achieve these goals. Typically, programs focus on one of two things: improving the climate in the classroom, the school, and the community or building specific skills – either through standalone SEL lessons or integrated into regular classes. Although skills-building dominates the SEL conversation, some programs, especially those that work on creating a positive school climate, aim to meet children’s social and emotional needs (such as the need to feel safe) as much as building skills. Programs should be clear if they’re building skills, responding to needs, or doing both. 

c. Specify the skills being targeted 

SEL programs also differ in the skills they target. Teaching empathy is different from teaching critical thinking, but both often get grouped under “SEL programs”. As research and programs advance, we need to be clearer about the specific skills each SEL program is targeting. For example, a recent study in Kenya, which we describe in our background paper,  found that specific SEL skills, like building relationships and self-confidence, are linked to academic success. 

d. Specifying the mechanisms by which skills contribute to program goals 

The Kenya study points to skills that might improve academic outcomes, such as self-confidence. If we understand how specific SEL skills lead to better academic results, we can refine our intervention strategy. The background paper suggests two ways (among many) that SEL might improve learning: boosting students’ confidence and creating a classroom environment that encourages participation. Specifying these mechanisms enables programs to target specific intermediate outcomes (e.g. a supportive environment) and to monitor mechanisms (e.g. greater participation in class) to develop a stronger understanding of how a program works.  

2. Assess the added value of SEL programs

This brings us to our second point: when it comes to improving academic outcomes, we need a stronger evidence base that pin-points the added value of SEL programs.  Many of the best programs – such as IRC’s healing classrooms – combine SEL and instructional improvements into a single intervention. This makes it hard to tell which part is driving the results. We need evaluations that separate the effects of SEL from those of traditional teaching methods. 

Conclusion 

Overall, the SEL field, especially in LMICs, needs more clarity and focus. A clear model showing how SEL programs work, their goals, approaches, and impact on children’s outcomes, would benefit the whole field. Our background paper includes two studies that help build this model. Such a model would allow program designers to be more intentional and make it easier to categorize evidence based on different goals and approaches, rather than just asking the generic question, ‘Do SEL programs work?'” 

We need stronger evidence showing a clear link between SEL programs and academic outcomes. SEL has enjoyed a lot of optimism, but without rigorous, precise evidence to support it, that optimism might not last. To ensure SEL programs truly benefit children in low- and middle-income countries, we need more studies that pinpoint what works and how. 

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This blog is based upon a background paper produced for the second Spotlight continental report. 

To reduce grade repetition and dropout, many African countries are providing some type of remedial education, either in-school or through community-based activities. In Chad, three out of every five children starting primary school are expected to drop out before the end. Out of the 40% of students who reached the last grade of primary education, one in two had repeated at least one school year. A 2014 decree banned student retention in early primary grades. Instead, students at the end of grade 2 and grade 4 with  scores regularly below average would be provided remedial lessons. These lessons would be provided for 40 hours per year and subject (mathematics and language) to help students progress to the next cycle.

But implementing additional hours of remedial education is challenged by low levels of teacher capacity, high teacher absenteeism rates and a lack of incentives for teachers to take on additional responsibilities. Already, teachers face heavy workloads, with an average of 55 children per class. Many teachers have weak subject knowledge as well. According to the 2019 PASEC assessment, Chadian teachers scored the lowest among the 14 participating countries in mathematics. About 70% achieved no more than level 1, when the average among participating countries was 32%. Moreover, one in three teachers was absent in 2021 and actual time spent teaching was almost half the expected instruction time. 

A positive initiative was the introduction by the Ministry of National Education and Civic Promotion in 2017/18 of the Projet d’amélioration de la qualité de l’éducation de base et de promotion d’une gestion de proximité (Basic Education Quality Improvement and Local Management Promotion project). Supported by civil society implementing partners, the project aimed to reduce repetition by training teachers to provide tailored remedial support during school hours.

In 2018, the project was rolled out in 50 public schools, evenly split between the N’Djamena and Moundou regions, reaching more than 55,000 students. The project has several key features worth mentioning for other countries facing similar challenges in retention as Chad. 

One notable feature of the programme was improving teachers’ pedagogical practices during regular school hours. Teachers were trained to adapt their teaching practices to students performing poorly by observing their learning patterns, being supportive when they made mistakes and understanding what is holding back learners’ efforts.

Secondly, the training aimed at stimulating student engagement by changing the traditional frontal classroom set-up, which results in students passively listening to teachers, aiming to rebuild children’s confidence.  The 2024 Spotlight Report, Learning Counts, emphasizes the importance of social and emotional skills for learning. A positive learning climate leads to stronger academic achievement through encouraging children to be more active in class and more confident. It can improve school attachment and relationships with other students, which in turn increases the motivation to learn. It can also shape norms that influence children’s self-beliefs, helping to battle stereotypes. 

Providing concrete feedback, instead of a simple grade.

To support teacher professional development, teacher guides and a teacher training kit with techniques and multimedia support were developed. All pedagogical supervisors from 50 schools were also trained on using the guide and the training kit.

An impact evaluation in 2022/23 with the participation of about 130 teachers highlighted that almost all had adopted strategies to improve pedagogy appropriate for different learners’ speeds. This included rearranging the classroom layout, while more than three quarters had changed their attitudes towards students’ mistakes and almost all tried not to punish students facing difficulties. However, only one third of teachers had implemented differentiated teaching methods to cater to varying student needs, even though the majority expressed the intent to do so. Teachers reported requiring more time and support to implement such practices consistently. 

Using different sized boards to break down concepts for learners 

Preliminary data on the impact of the intervention indicate a reduction in grade repetition decisions made by teachers. In N’Djamena, the average class repetition rate fell from 24% in 2021/22 to 21% in 2022/23. The teacher guide and training programme are currently being considered for country-wide implementation.  

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Imagine a world where every young person, regardless of where they are born, can confidently solve problems, make informed decisions, and envision a future filled with possibilities. This is not just a dream – it is a vision grounded in the power of numeracy skills, the focus of the 2024 Spotlight Report Learning Counts, and a cornerstone of foundational learning.

Numeracy is the language of logic, the art of numbers, and the key to unlocking potential. It is about much more than arithmetic and algebra; it is about critical thinking, problem-solving, and navigating life with confidence. Sadly, for at least four in five young children from across Africa, this aim remains just out of reach, locked behind barriers of inadequate education and limited resources. 

The African Union has declared 2024 the Year of Education, a bold statement of our commitment to breaking down these barriers. This theme is more than a policy: it is a call to invest in the education of our youth.

Across Africa, young people are answering this call with creativity, passion, and determination. From cities and remote villages alike, youth-led movements are sparking change. A simple example is the innovative educational tech startup O’genius in Rwanda that is turning smartphones into classrooms. Such platforms are revolutionizing how we learn, making numeracy skills accessible to children who might otherwise be left behind.

Grassroots organizations are also making waves. An example is Starlight Africa, an organization I co-founded seven years ago. We host workshops, Math Olympiads, summer camps, mentoring, and other programs that demystify science, technology, engineering and mathematics to inspire a love for learning. Proving that with the right support, every child can develop the numeracy skills they need to thrive.

But we cannot address this systemic problem through grassroots interventions alone. We need a holistic approach that brings together governments, educators, and the private sector to build resilient educational ecosystems. This means investing in teacher training, modernizing curricula, creating partnerships, and leveraging technology to bridge educational gaps.

Let’s take a moment to celebrate these efforts, but also to challenge ourselves to do more. Imagine an Africa where every child can calculate the trajectory of their dreams, and where numeracy skills pave the way for innovation, entrepreneurship, and sustainable development. This is the future we must build — together. 

As we celebrate the AU Year of Education, let’s commit to concrete actions. Let’s empower our youth with the tools they need to succeed, ensuring that numeracy becomes a universal language of opportunity.

Together, we can transform education and, in doing so, transform our future.

Alice Mukashyaka was a featured speaker in a GEM Report webinar co-hosted with the African Union, the Association for the Development of Education in Africa and the African Young Educators’ Network to celebrate the Day of the African Child on June 14. Watch the event video.  

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Produced in partnership with the Association for Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), the report is being launched today, 7 May, at the 2024 Conference of the African Federation of Teaching Regulatory Authorities. Along with the continental report, the country report for Zambia will be launched at the same event, along with H.E Douglas Munsaka Syakalima, Minister of Education, Zambia. It is the first Spotlight session on foundational learning as part of the African Union Year of Education.

One in five children achieve minimum proficiency levels  

Learning Counts compiles the latest out-of-school and completion rate statistics to show the challenge that countries face every day. For every 100 children in Africa, 18 children are out of school– twice the rate of the rest of the world. However, there is sign of improvement, with completion rates growing at a steady pace of almost one percentage point per year throughout the past 20 years. Still one in five children do not complete primary school today. 

Albeit data gaps remain large, what evidence exists suggests that learning rates at the end of primary school have improved faster in Africa than the rest of the world since 2011. However, the challenge remains notable, with at most one in five children attaining minimum proficiency levels in reading and mathematics at the end of primary school today.

There is often a lack of connection between countries’ aspirations and their plans

For instance, having up to date and relevant textbooks is critical. Yet the report found that textbooks are often out-of-date and not available in the languages of instruction. Textbooks were not in the language of instruction for 80% of students in Zambia and in less than half of classrooms visited in Uganda. Given many students have limited reading skills, graphic explanations of mathematics concepts could help, but are often lacking.  

Textbooks and teacher guides may not be fully aligned with the curriculum and their design needs to be reviewed to prevent confusion and improve implementation. In Mauritania, algebra is missing from the lower primary curriculum, while it is covered in textbooks and teacher guides. In Niger, textbooks and teacher guides include statistics and probability but the curriculum does not. Assessments often cover a different set of competencies from those outlined in the curriculum, particularly at the end of primary, where an examination culture prevails, and the level of cognitive difficulty increases. 

Remedial education is highlighted as a critical approach for ensuring that all students are learning with understanding. Yet, of the five countries analysed only South Africa and Zambia contain guidance for teaching students who are falling behind. In Chad, a programme introduced in 2017/8 trained teachers to provide remedial support and they all implemented new strategies, such as rearranging classroom layouts and using more supportive approaches for struggling children, which ultimately saw children’s repetition rates fall.

Many countries need to contend with a teacher workforce whose qualifications and knowledge levels are well below what is required 

Ongoing professional training is also important to improve teachers’ subject knowledge and refresh their qualifications, which the report shows technology is helping with in the case of Burkina Faso, the United Republic of Tanzania and Zambia among others. In Africa, 17% of countries require a bachelor’s degree to teach in comparison to 62% of countries globally, while teachers’ qualifications are also often lower than requirements.  

The importance of training is highlighted in the report. Among surveyed primary school teachers in the 14 countries in the 2019 PASEC learning achievement survey, only 35% mastered basic procedures in mathematics. Differences in teacher subject knowledge accounts for more than one third of the cross-country variation in student achievement. But training approaches need to be sustainable and engaging teachers. Technology can help professional communities emerge, as a case study from Burkina Faso shows.

More funds are needed to bolster foundational learning  

As explained in more detail in the special edition of the 2023 Education Finance Watch for Africa, education is dropping down the list of governments’ priorities despite there being an annual financing gap of USD 28 billion to achieve countries’ own targets to achieve 85% primary completion rate by 2030. External financing is meanwhile declining as a source of revenue for governments, and less likely to support foundational learning as to support secondary education.  This makes it ever more important that it focuses on institutional building and not on short-term projects. 

The report recommends the following: 

At the individual level

1. Give all children a textbook – and all teachers a guide.

Ensure that all children and teachers have teaching and learning materials that are research-based, aligned with the curriculum, and locally developed. 2. Teach all children in their home language – and train teachers accordingly.

Give all children the opportunity to first learn to read in a language they understand and all teachers the confidence to support them.

3. Provide all children with a school meal.

Give all children the minimum conditions to learn at school. 

At the system level

4. Make a clear plan to improve learning.

a. Develop a common continental framework to monitoring learning outcomes.

b. Establish clear learning standards and align assessments to evaluate how well students meet them.

c. Ensure learning is not abstract; children need full understanding before moving to advanced concepts.

5. Develop teacher capacity.

Ensure all teachers use classroom time effectively through cost-effective training.

6. Prepare instructional leaders.

Restructure support mechanisms offered to teachers and schools. 

At the continental level

7. Learn from peers.

Reinvigorate mechanisms allowing countries to share experiences on foundational literacy and numeracy. 

At the international level

8. Focus aid on institution building.

Shift from projects to provision of public goods that support foundational learning. 

Download the report: https://bit.ly/2024-spotlight 

Download social media cards and materials: https://trello.com/b/1CYw5ork/spotlight-report  

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The Uganda report is the second one to be released, following a report on South Africa launched in March. It will be followed by the launch of the continental and Zambia country report in May and the release of the report on Mauritania. As with all national Spotlight reports, the study in Uganda comprised a set of activities, each generating evidence and findings related to the study’s research questions: literature review, document mapping, fieldwork, and Initial/final Validation workshops with national stakeholders. For the fieldwork, Uwezo Uganda engaged and its own researchers to each of the four districts, in each of which a local civil society organization also provided research assistants who spoke the local languages.

The number of children enrolled in primary school increased from 6.5 million in 2000 to 9 million in 2017 the latest year for which official data are available. Yet, while the out-of-school rate has slightly declined from 15% in 2000 to 11% in 2022, the demographic pressure is such that the number of out-of-school children is estimated to have increased due to rapid demographic growth from 745,000 to 1,065,000. While the completion rate increased from 35% in 2000 to 41% in 2010, it had declined to its 2000 level by 2020. This is the official definition of the indicator, which is calculated over children aged 3 to 5 years above graduation age (blue line). The data show that children finish primary school with several years delay. Taking into account late completers, the ultimate completion rate increased from 55% in 2000 to 63% in 2010 before declining to 57% in 2020 (grey line).

Primary completion rate, 1990–2020

In terms of learning, data from the last time Uganda participated in a cross-national assessment with recognized comparable standards, the Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality in 2013, show that only one out of five pupils at the end of primary school achieved the global minimum proficiency level in numeracy.

Low levels of foundational learning have since also been suggested in other assessments funded by development agencies. For instance, the USAID-funded School Health and Reading Program (SHRP) and Learning Achievement and Retention Activity (LARA) which carried out Early Grade Reading Assessments in 2015 and 2019 and found that about 45% of grade 3 students could not read a single word. This makes it more likely they will fall further behind each school year and drop out of school.

Classroom and teacher shortages hinder the effective implementation of the curriculum in government schools. Overcrowding poses a major obstacle to delivering quality education and assessing student learning adequately. Access to textbooks remains a significant hurdle.

The analysis assessed the content alignment between the Ministry’s vision for foundational numeracy and its implementation in practice. In Uganda, strong alignment is found between that curriculum and the content of teacher guides to support teachers’ teaching practices, but less strong alignment between the curriculum and what is being assessed. For example, in the grade 7 curriculum, 58% of content is dedicated to numbers and number operations, yet these represent only 35% of the learning opportunities in a typical grade 7 textbook and 22% of the learning opportunities assessed in the P7 national exam.

Alignment between core grade 7 documents in Uganda

Pedagogical alignment was also flagged as requiring attention: Uwezo’s field research found that only 42% of observed teachers asked questions that required students to use creativity or imagination, or likewise, to apply information to new topics during mathematics lessons.  Also, 54% of observed teachers utilized material from the textbook, as opposed to the curriculum or the teacher guide, when planning lessons.

Language barriers to learning are prominent. A transition from local languages to English as the medium of instruction is intended to take place in grade 4,  However, there is as of yet no specific guidance for how this transition should occur.

Although there are indications that there will be an increase in funding per pupil, the latest spending levels were 2.7% po GDP in 2021, as opposed to an international benchmark of at least 4% of GDP.

The report is highlighting Uganda’s positive practices that are improving foundational learning and can be shared with its peers in the continent. It has embedded the achievement of universal foundational literacy and numeracy skills in its Early Grade Reading programme covering 80% of public primary schools and encompassing 6 million pupils, which has been shown to improve learning at grade 3 level. In addition, its Teacher Development Management System and Cluster Coordinating Tutors are important building blocks for strengthening teacher training.

These and other findings inform the recommendations of the report across six broad themes, offering concrete actions to improve and strengthen learning in Uganda.

1. Articulate a clearer vision for achieving foundational literacy and numeracy.
2. Rethink curriculum content and structure. Pupils need to learn more problem-solving skills and application of foundational numeracy skills from the outset of their schooling.
3. Improve accessibility of the curriculum and student textbooks, including making materials available in local languages.
4. Improve clarity and content of teacher guides and provide additional training for teachers to implement the curriculum effectively.
5. Prioritize assessment for monitoring student progress along with in-service training to develop teacher skill to carry out classroom assessment.
6. Strengthen foundational learning opportunities through various strategies ranging from remedial education for learners who have fallen behind, to addressing teacher shortages and absenteeism, and implementing a school feeding programme.

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It is the first country report to be launched as part of the second cycle of the Spotlight, or Born to Learn, series, which will consist of one continental and four country reports on foundational learning: the other three counties are Mauritania, Uganda and Zambia.

The research aimed to answer four overarching questions:

• Which mathematics domains and constructs are included in the country’s curriculum, textbooks, teacher guides and national assessment at grade 3 and the last grade of primary?
• To what extent do teaching and learning materials and learning assessments align with the intended curriculum? How do they support the learning process?
• How do teaching and learning materials reflect pedagogical guidance expressed in curriculum documents? Do practices observed in the classroom correspond to what is expected by the curriculum and to known best practices in teaching basic numeracy skills?
• How does the national curriculum compare with the global proficiency framework for mathematics at grade 3 and the last grade of primary?

As all four 2024 Spotlight country reports, the research in South Africa consisted of a literature review, mapping of policy documents, fieldwork and two stakeholder workshops – an initial and a validation workshop. For the fieldwork, a research team observed 23 mathematics classes in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo provinces. Teachers, principals and school governing body members were interviewed to better understand the degree to which the intended curriculum is enacted in classrooms and the challenges teachers and administrators face in implementing South Africa’s curriculum.

There is political resolve to improve children’s learning

“The National Development Plan in South Africa calls for strong partnerships to improve learner outcomes by 2030, of which the Spotlight Report is one. Our singular aim is to ensure that no child is left behind in learning, recognising the critical importance of access to quality early learning programmes in the early ages of a child’s life.  Our fruitful collaboration with the GEM Report, ADEA and the African Union has  resulted in key policy solutions to remedy the challenges we face in delivering equitable, quality education for all learners, which we stand committed to pursue”.

Angie Motshekga Minister of Basic Education of South Africa

Foundational numeracy and literacy have been strong DBE priorities. This is reflected in the fact that education has been the largest budget item in the national budget for many years and remains so today. Demonstration of the political commitment to improving foundational learning is seen in the introduction of school nutrition programmes, school transport, the integrated early childhood development Policy, the language of instruction policy, high-quality support materials for learners and teachers, and early grade reading assessments.

These investments have ensured that there is universal primary completion. However, many challenges remain. In mathematics, as part of the 2019 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study, South Africa was one of the three countries with the lowest achievement levels, even though it has made a lot of progress, making a fourfold increase for mathematics from 11% to 41% over 20 years. In reading, as part of the 2021 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study, an estimated 81% of grade 5 learners could not read with comprehension in 2021, up from 78% in 2016. To some extent, this fall was anticipated as a result of COVID-19, but the low level also demonstrates wider challenges.

Promising practices demonstrate the determination to improve the current learning outcomes

The Teaching Mathematics for Understanding programme has been piloted in 40 schools over the past five years and demonstrates a commitment to improve numeracy skills in learner-centred environments through the use of manipulatives. Lesson plans are provided for teachers to ensure that all learners understand each mathematics concept.

he Mental Starters Assessment Project introduces six focused mathematics lesson units for Grade 3 students, targeting skills like addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, place value, fractions, and geometry. The aim of the project is to move students beyond inefficient counting methods like finger counting and tally marks, fostering a strong number sense.

Another good practice at the DBE, which is important to share with the rest of the continent, is the commitment to evaluate all early learning initiatives, in reading and mathematics, but also in other areas of education policy, and base their rollout on evidence that they have been effective.

To what extent does the national vision trickle down to key education documents?

As with each of the Spotlight second cycle outputs, the research in South Africa included a review of the national curriculum, learner workbooks, teacher guides and assessments in grades 3 and 6. Alignment across these pedagogical inputs can help learners effectively master these skills. The research found some misalignment between CAPS, the intended national curriculum, and the content of learner textbooks and national assessments, as a result of a multiyear curriculum recovery approach to address the negative impact of COVID-19, in grade 3 and, to a lesser extent, to grade 6. Overall, there is strong alignment between the national curriculum and the global proficiency framework for mathematics.

The report carries the following recommendations:

1. Continue to support the vision of foundational literacy and numeracy.
2. Consider the continued provision of concrete manipulatives for early grade mathematics classes with additional teacher training on how to use, sustain and maintain manipulatives and materials (i.e. mathematics kits and games).
3. Time the delivery of instructional materials to schools so that they reach schools before term begins.
4. Strengthen the accessibility of materials in all official languages across all years of primary school education and ensure awareness of the open-source Teaching Mathematics for Understanding
5. Plan targeted teacher support and ongoing professional development to enhance teachers’ content knowledge and pedagogical skills.
6. Utilize learner responses in learning assessments better to improve teaching practices
7. Continue improving infrastructure to accommodate increases in learner enrolment.

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When families realize their children do not benefit from school, it is more likely that they will leave school early. One in four children do not even finish primary school.  To help all children progress through school, there is still a lot more to be done, from better preparing and supporting teachers to ensuring all students have access to textbooks, especially in their home language. 

Over the next three years, we’ll be following the lives and learning journeys of four children in Africa, whose unique stories, aspirations, and accomplishments bring to life the experiences shared by countries in the Spotlight report on foundational learning in Africa, Born to Learn.  

Together, we’ll learn more about their lives, the obstacles these children face to learn, and the struggles that parents and teachers deal with every day.  

Meet the four Spotlight children 

Introducing Godfred 

Godred is 6 years old. He lives in Ghana. He started school at 4 years old and dreams of becoming a salesman when he’s older. Godfred’s father has passed away, but a lot of emphasis is put on education by his mother Margaret. She stopped school early and isn’t able to read.  

Godfred and his peers are lucky with out-of-school numbers decreasing across all levels of education in Ghana. But despite some recent encouraging progress in reading, learning outcomes remain low. Pupils aged just one year older than Godfred can read an average of just 2.5 words per minute, with up to three-quarters of children unable to read a single word. 

 Godfred struggles in school as his family is unable to provide him with the textbooks he needs to participate and stay focused in class. 

 My children love school, but sometimes due to struggles without money they are not able to go to school (Margaret, Godfred’s mother) 

The Spotlight report for Ghana  recommends all children should have their own textbooks to learn, which are research-based and locally developed.  

Introducing Priscilla 

Priscilla is 8 years old and lives in the Eastern region of Ghana. She lives at home with her parents and four siblings. Sending children to school puts financial pressure on Priscilla’s family forcing them to make difficult choices, which means sometimes Priscilla arrives at school hungry and unable to concentrate for class.   

Genevieve Priscilla’s teacher worries that financial difficulties, like the choice between food, tuition fees and school uniforms, sometimes prevent children in Priscilla’s community from attending school.  

I made my mind up, I would do anything I can so they can attend school (Yaa, Priscilla’s mother)  

In Born to Learn, the continental report on Africa, we recommend that all children are provided with school meals, as they cannot learn if they are hungry. 

Introducing Rougui 

Rougui lives in a village in the Louga region of Senegal. She is in her second year of primary school, which she loves. She is smart and studious; she wants to do well. She is also lucky to have a family that supports her learning and believes in the importance of education for girls and boys alike. 

The Spotlight report for Senegal shows that, following some progress in primary completion rates, these have stagnated in recent years at around 60%; today still only around 15% of those who do complete primary school are able to read with understanding.  

Rougui’s teacher, Madame Sarr, explained that some of the reasons for this are related to gender.   

 The main reason why students drop out of school is early marriage for girls. I have seen it here and in all the other villages I have taught before.  They get married very early (Madame Sarr, Rougui’s teacher) 

Rougui’s story underlines the support of parents is an important element for children’s education, especially girls. One in six of all pre-schools were run by the community in 2020, rising to one in two in Louga, where Rougui is from, showing a significant community contribution to education. 

Together, we will meet Rougui’s whole family and find out how parents are doing everything they can to help their children stay in school.  

Introducing Pape 

Pape is a really keen learner. He lives with his siblings and his mother, a single mum who works as a housekeeper and does her very best to allow all her children to go to school. For years, Pape’s teacher, Madame Top, has taught her classes in both French and Wolof, the most spoken regional language of Senegal in an effort to help her students in their studies.  

In the Born To Learn report, we recommend that all children are given the opportunity to first learn to read in a language they understand. The report shows that at most one in five children are taught in their mother tongue in Africa, the continent with the highest linguistic diversity. This is detrimental to learning outcomes on the continent. The report recommends that teachers get the preparation, materials and support they need to be able to do their work well. 

Godfred, Priscilla, Rougui and Pape’s stories show that participation in quality education can change a child’s life forever.  

Journey with us over the next three years, as we turn the spotlight on foundational learning in Africa, for a better future for millions of children. 

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An education is a precious thing! Born and bred in Zimbabwe I was lucky enough to have been given strong foundations in and through education, which have enabled me through hard work and determination to pursue my goals.  I would not be here today fronting the voices of youth from over 55 countries as the youngest diplomat in the African Union without my parents, teachers, school principles and friends who believed in me and supported me on my learning journey.

We cannot forget every African child has the right to an education. And over the past two decades, Africa has improved children’s access to education thanks to commitment and action by the continent’s leadership.

While progress has been promising, challenges remain. The UNESCO and ADEA Spotlight Report published in partnership with the African Union reminds us children in Africa are five time less likely to learn the basics and only two in three children in the region complete primary school by age 15. Insufficient funding leading to a lack of equipment, dilapidated buildings, overcrowded classrooms, poor teacher development and teacher payment are holding children back from learning.

The massive disparities in African education systems require urgent action. With the largest population of young people of any continent, education must be the driving force for the continent to fully harness its talent and deliver the future we want.

Since becoming the AU Youth Envoy in 2021 I’ve witnessed young people across our continent striving for peace, justice, inclusion, gender equality and human rights. Part of my role is ensuring young people have a place at table as agents for change and working together to shape the Africa we want. In May, we achieved a milestone with the institutionalization of the Office of the Youth Envoy which is a great leap towards the attainment of the aspirations of African youth. But we need an educated and literate young people to achieve our vision.

It comes as no surprise then that the importance of education as the bedrock of development and sustainability for our collective future was recognized by the recent declaration by His Excellency AU Commissioner Belhocine that the AU theme for 2024 will be education.

Together we must grab this opportunity as a catalyst for action. We already have a continental youth movement actively engaging to follow up on commitments made in the Transforming Education Summit’s and encapsulated in the Youth Manifesto.

In the lead up to 2024 we need to harness this momentum and ensure we have a voice in transforming our own education systems. I intend to use my voice, strengths and influence to advocate for the inclusion and empowerment of young people in communities across Africa.

Governments across the continent must tackle the learning crisis through increased investment in foundational learning. We need to give children the basics they need to build off and the opportunities for them to continue to learn.

Africa’s youth can make a difference if we make our voices heard and demand the same learning opportunities possible for every child, everywhere. Let’s build momentum in the run up to the 2024 AU Year of Education and spotlight the importance of foundational learning for all #BorntoLearn.

On June 16 to mark Day of the African Child 2023, Chido joined education champions from across Africa. including Ghana’s Minister for Education Hon. Yaw Osei Adutwum and Congolese Model and Philanthropist Noëlla Coursaris Musunka for youth-led Twitter Event. Listen to the event recording and visit the campaign page here.   

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Join us in spreading the word about the day with other organizations and colleagues so that we can demonstrate a powerful groundswell of support, demanding urgent attention to this critical issue.

Visit the campaign page for more information

Three easy ways to get involved:

1. Share online and tell us what you are doing in your work to support foundational learning and tag #BorntoLearn. Feel free to include a link to your work, and we will strive to share and amplify it on our channels. Use the hashtag #BorntoLearn to amplify your impact and contribute to a powerful collective voice advocating for foundational learning for all.

2. Take a photo, forming an ‘L’ for Learning using your thumb and forefinger and share on social media using the hashtag #BorntoLearn. This simple gesture will serve as a visual identifier for the movement as a whole.

3. Twitter event – Hear ministers and youth champions from across the continent tell us how they are shining a spotlight on foundational learning.

Join our Twitter space with youth leaders from across the continent to amplify efforts to promote foundational learning, address challenges, and celebrate successes. We’ll be joined by partners including ministers of education and heads of agencies, culminating in a live #BorntoLearn campaign action.

Join us live today at 15.00 CET on @GEMReport to listen to the discussions.

Let’s harness the power of social media and the Day of the African Child to demonstrate our collective commitment to education. Share your message, make an ‘L’ for Learning, and be part of the #BorntoLearn movement.

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Ambitious national education policies put a tremendous amount of pressure on the teaching workforce in Africa. But it is common sense that teachers without sufficient competencies will be unable to teach basic literacy and numeracy skills effectively.

The Spotlight report reminded us that there are insufficient teachers with even the basic training on the continent: on average, there are 56 primary school pupils for every trained teacher in sub-Saharan Africa.

In some countries the dearth of trained teachers is more extreme. In Madagascar, only 15% of primary school teachers are trained according to national standards, which means there are 240 students per trained teacher. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo , only 13% of pre-primary school teachers are trained according to national standards, which means there are close to 200 students per trained teacher.

Having a basic training qualification may not be enough. Teaching at lower grades is as complex as teaching at higher grades, if not more so. Yet, preparation to teach in early grades is largely absent from initial teacher education programmes. Unsuitable pedagogical methodologies persist such as excessive reliance on repetition and information recall. Inefficient use of classroom time compounds the perennial problem of limited contact hours, which the pandemic exacerbated.

In addition, teachers need clear support structures they can trust and on which they can fall back to solve problems they face during their daily practice. No single method will work, but there are a few approaches explored in the Spotlight report which have been used successfully and from which countries can draw.

1. Coaching, through external coaches, head teachers or experienced peers. Coaches or pedagogical advisers observe teachers in classes and provide targeted feedback to improve pedagogical practices. Unlike most other forms of professional development, coaching is meant to be individualized, time-intensive, regular and focused on tangible skills. In-class coaching was found to have more than twice the impact of centralized training in South Africa, for example.
2. Bringing teachers together through professional learning communities. This approach was highlighted as particularly positive in the Spotlight country report on Ghana for instance for helping find new ways of teaching.

3. Providing teacher guides to structure teaching. Given that even the best initial teacher education reforms take a long time to reach students, teachers need resources to fall back on. Teacher guides are at present inadequate, however. They need to be upgraded to better align with new textbooks, provide a solid basis for lesson planning, steer teachers to assess learning in classrooms, encourage them to develop their own teaching and learning materials, and help them not just follow instructions mechanically but adapt flexibly to diverse classroom circumstances. In Benin, the curriculum was changed at the same time as new decodable textbooks were rolled out and teacher guides were also provided with lesson plans and guidance for teachers to apply instruction techniques in the classroom.
4. Focusing school leaders on instruction, not just administration. The importance of education leadership, which will be the focus of the 2024/5 GEM Report and for which the concept note, consultation and a call for expressions of interest for background research have recently been launched, has been neglected. School leaders need to be selected on the basis of their commitment to develop all children’s potential and a proven ability to inspire others to do so. They need to be able to coach struggling teachers, create an atmosphere in which teachers can learn from one another, be efficient at managing resource constraints and effectively communicate with the community. They also need to understand changes in curricula, textbooks and assessment methods. Yet, very few receive continuous professional development opportunities.

Teachers face other challenges in their working conditions that prevent them from teaching effectively. Many are denied decent pay and work in challenging conditions, with insufficient infrastructure, teaching and learning materials, and development opportunities. They also need motivation. Rwanda, for instance, increased teacher salaries by between 40% and 88% in July.

We rely upon teachers to bring the change we design on paper to children in the classroom. But we are not giving them enough support, leaving them ill-equipped for their role. Teacher guides are not suitable to make up for gaps in initial teacher education. Head teachers tend to be selected not as instructional leaders but as administrators doing tasks unrelated to ensuring that children learn. Often the most glaringly obvious solutions are the one we fail to see – they end up hiding in plain sight. This is a mistake.

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The African Union launched the 2016-2025 Continental Education Strategy to create a new African citizen who would be an effective change agent and a citizen who would help get the continent on the sustainable development track, as envisioned by our 2063 Agenda.

Our efforts are therefore geared towards teaching fit-for-purpose knowledge, competencies, skills, and promoting innovation and creativity required to develop Africa’s human capital.

The formative new report, Education in Africa – Placing equity at the heart of policy, just published by UNESCO and the African Union shows that learning losses occasioned and intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic and other global events have set the continent back even further. The report seemingly shows that our vision to develop competitive educational systems in Africa is still out of reach.

Despite our best efforts, African countries are still situated at the bottom of education tables. On one hand, this tells us that our countries may have started with a disadvantage. On the other hand, there is a perceived risk that we may not meet our ambitions to achieve SDG 4.

We should however be careful to avoid reading this report as a blanket assessment. The new SDG 4 scorecard proposes a way to evaluate progress by how likely each country is to achieve the benchmarks it has set for itself, rather than the often unrealistic targets that were externally imposed.

The new assessment report accompanying the scorecard gives credit to countries for their progress, regardless of their starting point. It allows us to pinpoint countries that are cutting through challenges to achieve progress. It does not look at how countries are ranked on a global scale. We should therefore identify the policies that are helping to make the difference.

Sierra Leone, for instance, is pleased to appear on the SDG 4 Scorecard. Our country’s Free Quality School Education programme has prioritised and increased education spending and investments, introduced inclusive policies, and expanded access to education to over one million new learners especially from the early childhood education level. Through our national integrated early childhood development policy, we have made great progress in giving children the best start in life. In addition to political support and commitment at the highest levels, we believe that the right progressive policies will afford us the opportunity to achieve the goals we set.

It is in linking progress to policies that we welcome efforts such as the African Union’s Born to Learn annual Spotlight report with UNESCO and ADEA. With a focus on the foundation of our education systems, the Spotlight series collaboratively engages countries to analyse their policies and see where improvements can be made. I was therefore hugely pleased to see the DRC, Ghana, Mozambique, Rwanda and Senegal join this effort.

Sierra Leone believes strongly that foundational learning is the place to start. We can meet our CESA objectives if we focus on getting foundational learning right.

We should not take foundational literacy and computational skills for granted. We should also be mindful that African children are less likely to learn the basics than children from elsewhere. We should also be careful that when we look at progress, we look at progress that does not leave anyone behind.  Our vision for change should be driven by an ‘all–means–all’ approach, as Sierra Leone has strived to put in place with its Radical Inclusion Policy.  Without foundational skills for all, we will not achieve our broader objective of creating the stronger, more prosperous, more inclusive future we desire for our children.

We must collaborate among our various countries, learn from one another, and build on our experiences to tackle similar challenges.

This desire for greater collaboration led the African Union to launch, at the end of last year, LEARN — a peer-learning mechanism to support our technical experts in CESA clusters to find new solutions to improve foundational learning on our continent. I would like to congratulate the AU Commissioner for this initiative.

Addressing learning loss and learning poverty is not just a matter of national and continental concern. As President, I co-chaired the Transforming Education Summit convened by the United Nations Secretary-General in New York in September and I also sit as co-chair of the SDG 4 High Level Steering Committee convened by UNESCO.

At all these levels, I add my voice to a strong global movement to address three critical factors for change: political commitment, data, and evidence-based policy recommendations. The more we learn from one another’s experiences and the more we collaborate, the better it is for our children to learn as well.

We should use every opportunity to share lessons and build partnerships across the continent. Our citizens look up to us to find the solutions to our shared education challenges.

There is real strength to be found in solidarity and unity of purpose in Africa – the founding pillars of our union that bring us to this summit today. The opportunity is here now. Let us not waste it.

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