Burkina Faso : School Autonomy and Accountability
Burkina Faso has been rapidly decentralizing its education system since 2004. Although the Parents' Association (APE) is defined as the school council in this report due to its nationwide coverage, the government initiated efforts to establish...
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
Washington, DC
2014
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2012/01/18104055/burkina-faso-school-autonomy-accountability http://hdl.handle.net/10986/17515 |
| Summary: | Burkina Faso has been rapidly
decentralizing its education system since 2004. Although the
Parents' Association (APE) is defined as the school
council in this report due to its nationwide coverage, the
government initiated efforts to establish school management
committees (Comites de Gestion, or COGES) in 2008 as a
platform for all local stakeholders to be engaged in school
management. Budgetary autonomy is latent in the school
system. Currently public primary schools in Burkina Faso
have no autonomy over salary and non-salary expenditures. By
contrast, autonomy in personnel management is established,
having been delegated to the commune level in 2009. The role
of the school council in school governance is also latent;
it has no authority to participate in budget formulation or
execution. School and student assessment is emerging:
standardized tests are implemented in specific grades, with
the results analyzed by the Ministry of national education
and literacy and shared with its regional, municipal, and
local offices. Finally, accountability is latent. There is a
national and regional system to analyze standardized
assessments, yet the school council has received no
guidelines on how to use assessment results. Neither does
the council have the authority to be involved in financial
audits. Burkina Faso has dramatically improved the gross
enrolment rate for primary education, from 42 percent in
1999 to 75 percent in 2009 (UNESCO 2009). School autonomy
and accountability are key components of an education system
that ensure educational quality. The transfer of core
managerial responsibilities to schools promotes local
accountability; helps reflect local priorities, values, and
needs; and gives teachers the opportunity to establish a
personal commitment to students and their parents. This
report focuses specifically on policies in the area of
school autonomy and accountability. |
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