The Program for Improving Quality, Equity and Transparency in Education and Training (PAQUET)

The Program for Improving Quality, Equity and Transparency in Education and Training (PAQUET), also known as Programme d’amélioration de la qualité, de l’equité et de la transparence, seeks to improve the quality and management of Senegal’s education system and to ensure that girls and boys have access to better education. The project aims to develop an effective, efficient, equitable, transparent, responsible and accountable education system, and maintains a close dialogue with the Government of Senegal and other partners about which reforms should be a priority. The project has two components: the provision of text books, and this one, support to the Ministry of Education to improve management and train teachers. Project activities include the following: (1) training and coaching government officials in financial, human and material resource management; (2) developing and testing management directives, procedures and tools for central and regional government officials; (3) providing teachers with comprehensive training in the skills based approach; and (4) building new schools and rehabilitating existing schools.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased education of girls and boys at the primary school level; (2) improved quality of learning in basic education for girls and boys; (3) more effective management practices among education system managers at the central and deconcentrated levels, including with regard to public procurement management, and human and financial resource management; and (4) improved management practices among government officials and private publishers for the provision of text books.

Consulted stakeholders highlighted several key achievements of the implementation of PAQUET 2013–2025, including increased educational offer through non-traditional education services targeted at out-of-school children, the establishment of performance contracts as a results-based management tool to strengthen accountability, direct financing to public primary schools with each school receiving CFA 3,500 per student annually, and the reform and strengthening of pre-service teacher training. There was also rapid expansion of infrastructure and financing to higher education in order to meet increasing demands and university enrollments.