Our funding approach is two-fold, focusing on schools and systems for real time impact and sustainability
Schools
Funding programs that support & improve LFPS
Systems
Funding advocacy & championing the ANS
Strategic Objectives
To achieve SDG4 “all” must mean all children in all settings, including non-state
The UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 4 sets out a 2030 target to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.” However, according to UNESCO, 244 million children and youth between the ages of 6 and 18 remain out of school in 2022 and in May 2022, the World Bank estimated 70% of 10-year-olds in low- and middle-income countries are unable to understand a simple written text. While quality education for all children is the responsibility of government, in low income and lower-middle income countries they are not always in a position to be the sole provider of it. In response, IDP Foundation is committed to governments’ national education agendas by partnering with organizations that support low-fee private schools to fill the gap, while funding influencers of systems change.
Education is failing to deliver, despite being at the halfway mark to SDG 4. Out-of-school numbers remain high and learning outcomes poor, both having worsened due to COVID-19.
The affordable non-state education sector (ANS) is an organic solution to a systematic issue, educating around a third of learners in many Sub-Saharan African countries and beyond – yet it’s too often excluded from global and national monitoring, funding, and policy discourse.
Much of this sector is represented by independent low-fee private schools (LFPS), who fill the gap between the rich and the poor by reducing the pressure on overwhelmed state schools. However, due to a lack of access to capital and technical support, they face numerous challenges to their operating environment.
These schools need to be:
- recognized as legitimate contributors to national education goals
- integrated into a connected system of education
- governed by the state, and supported with tailored interventions.
This will ensure that today’s mixed economy of education provision can deliver on SDG 4, so no child is left behind, and improvements to learning outcomes are universal.
In the meantime, IDP Foundation believes in empowering local actors who support LFPS with access to capital and training, so they can continue to grow and support underserved communities. As an active funder of programmes in Ghana and Kenya, and a global partner to champions of the ANS, we hope to create locally-driven sustainable change.
Learning outcomes in all education settings remain poor, with a deceleration in improvements caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. While low-fee private schools can bridge the gap in access, they can also offer flexible environments, in which quality interventions can be trailed, tested, monitored, evaluated, and scaled across all education settings, for universal improvements in learning outcomes. The independence and agility of low-fee private schools mean they’re well-positioned as hubs of innovation that can benefit the entire education landscape.
Recognition and integration into national systems and support from the global community can position the sector as a significant contributor to better learning outcomes, and in turn lead to a global awareness of the experimental environment offered by LFPS from big donors, impact investors and innovators looking to see systemic change.
IDP Foundation are committed to identifying and funding local and global actors focused on improving learning outcomes in low to no-connectivity settings. We do this by supporting initiatives to roll out effective pedagogical teaching methods, in LFPS, to be scaled across all education settings.
Governments should be the duty bearers of education, but not necessarily the sole providers of it. And while a mixed economy of education already exists, not all providers are appropriately integrated into a coordinated education ecosystem.
With the education crisis deepening since COVID-19, there is a need to move away from the public-private debate, and focus on the unquestioned goal of SDG 4 – namely, to embrace and empower all-hands-on-deck in a coordinated effort to leave no child behind.
A single system of mixed-provision education that recognizes the variation in educational settings, integrates all providers into a connected landscape and supports all education contributors with tailored solutions is the best answer to improving access to equitable and inclusive and outcomes of learning.
IDP Foundation works with global and local actors to provide Ministries of Education with the information they need to better support the integration of the ANS into their national strategies, and ultimately recognize and support a mixed economy of education.
We’re continually seeking routes to collaboration and partnerships with peers, advocates and practitioners to enable more transparency in the sector, and to amplify the voices of local experts driving change and delivering work in the ANS who otherwise may not get a seat at the table and be heard.
- Activities
- Output
- Outcomes
- Impact
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Access
Improving access to education for all children, now -
Work with local partners
Work with local partners Identify and partner with financial institutions and training organizations willing to serve and support low-fee private schools so they can expand and improve their school infrastructure.
– -
Increased access to quality education
Increased access to quality education More classroom seats in better managed low-fee private schools with improved conditions.
– -
Increased enrolment and retention
Increased enrolment and retention More children are enrolled and remaining in schools with conducive learning environments.
– -
Less out of school children
Less out of school children The total number of out of school children from primary to junior years is reduced.
–
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Quality
Interventions that create better learning outcomes for all -
Position low-fee private schools as innovation hubs
Position low-fee private schools as innovation hubs Fund innovative learning interventions in low-fee private schools, measure which are most effective and share evidence for scaling across all settings.
– -
Improved learning outcomes in Low-Fee Private Schools
Improved learning outcomes in low-fee private schools Learning outcomes improved in low-fee private schools, evidence of which leads to uptake of effective interventions in all settings.
– -
Improved learning outcomes at scale
Improved learning outcomes at scale Measurable improvements in learning outcomes are achieved in state and non-state schools.
– -
Increased secondary student enrolment
Increased secondary student enrolment There is an increased number of students continuing education to secondary and beyond.
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Advocacy
Championing a mixed economy of education provision -
Work with national governments and global policy makers
Work with national governments and global policy makers in supporting the affordable non-state sector Identify, fund and collaborate with governments and key local and international organisations best placed to connect and advocate for the ANS.
– -
The affordable non-state sector is well organised, represented and included
The affordable non-state sector is well organised, represented and included The sector is empowered to effectively advocate through a local collective voice.
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The voice of the affordable non-state sector has influence over education discourse
The voice of the affordable non-state sector has influence over education discourse The sector is no longer fragmented and is broadly acknowledged and supported through funding and advocacy.
– -
The role of the affordable non-state sector is recognised and supported
The role of the affordable non-state sector is recognised and supported The sector is recognized, integrated and supported within a centrally governed mixed economy of education provision.
–
Work with local partners
Identify and partner with financial institutions and training organizations willing to serve and support low-fee private schools so they can expand and improve their school infrastructure.
–
Increased access to quality education
More classroom seats in better managed low-fee private schools with improved conditions.
–
Increased enrolment and retention
More children are enrolled and remaining in schools with conducive learning environments.
–
Less out of school children
The total number of out of school children from primary to junior years is reduced.
–
Position low-fee private schools as innovation hubs
Fund innovative learning interventions in low-fee private schools, measure which are most effective and share evidence for scaling across all settings.
–
Improved learning outcomes in Low-Fee Private Schools
Learning outcomes improved in low-fee private schools, evidence of which leads to uptake of effective interventions in all settings.
–
Improved learning outcomes at scale
Measurable improvements in learning outcomes are achieved in state and non-state schools.
–
Increased secondary student enrolment
There is an increased number of students continuing education to secondary and beyond.
–
Work with national governments and global policy makers
Identify, fund and collaborate with governments and key local and international organisations best placed to connect and advocate for the ANS.
–
The affordable non-state sector is well organised, represented and included
The sector is empowered to effectively advocate through a local collective voice.
–
The voice of the affordable non-state sector has influence over education discourse
The sector is no longer fragmented and is broadly acknowledged and supported through funding and advocacy.
–
The role of the affordable non-state sector is recognised and supported
The sector is recognized, integrated and supported within a centrally governed mixed economy of education provision.
–
Our Partners
We believe in the power of collective action, with partnerships at the heart of our work
Sinapi Aba Savings & Loans
Ghana National Association of Private Schools (GNAPS)
Premier Credit Limited
