The Malawi National Reading Program

USAID/Malawi collaborates with the Malawi Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) to improve student learning outcomes and increase access to quality education, especially for girls. While many more children are attending school than ever before, significant challenges remain related to poor education quality and low transition rates of girls and boys to higher levels of education. USAID is committed to working with the MoEST and other development partners, including civil society, to address those challenges and ensure that children acquire the foundational skills needed to succeed in school and in life. USAID’s education portfolio focuses on primary school reading and language acquisition and education for adolescent girls and young women. Specifically, the collaboration launched the Malawi Early Grade Reading Improvement Activity (MERIT) (September 2015 – September 2020) Implemented by RTI International in all 5,549 primary schools in Malawi to improve reading performance of Malawian students in Standards 1-4. MERIT will improve reading instruction and skills acquisition in the classroom; increase parental and community engagement in support of student reading; create safer learning environments for reading; institute pathways for sustainability; and advance USAID/Malawi’s priority of integration across programs.