Strengthening Education Systems for Improved Learning

SESIL is a six-year programme aimed at improving learning outcomes in Uganda. The overall intended impact of SESIL is for young women and men, from disadvantaged backgrounds, to have the knowledge and skills to contribute to- and benefit from development and growth in Uganda. The intended outcome of the programme is improved equity and quality of measurable learning outcomes for girls and boys in Uganda at primary and secondary levels. Due to COVID-19 and prolonged period of school closures for much of 2020 and 2021, SESIL was redesigned to respond to COVID-19’s impact on the education sector in Uganda. Learning remained the focus of the programme, but under Component 1 the outputs changed to reflect the COVID-19 response approach of Community Led Learning (CLL) and radio lessons as the delivery method. Promoting Equality in African Schools (PEAS) outputs remained the same with the addition of distance learning and system support. New outputs for the new funding streams were added to support the Government of Uganda (GoU) with technical assistance to improve results in the World Bank Uganda Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers (UgIFT) programme through ODI, and support Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES)’s school reopening strategy through UNICEF. The specific activities related to the recommendation on addressing the gender performance gaps have been completed, but the goal to significantly reduce the gender attainment gap remains a top priority. Radio shows also included positive messaging on girls’ ability and the role of girls’ education, which enabled PEAS to engage with the community while schools were closed.