World Bank approves $300mn loan to boost learning for Bangladeshi children

The World Bank has approved a $300 million loan to improve the quality of primary education in Bangladesh.

The money will go towards building basic reading, writing, and maths skills among 26 million children from pre-primary to Class 5, the lender said in a statement on Friday.

It will also back the government’s fifth primary education development programme, under the Learning Enhancement and Acceleration in Primary Education Programme.

The bank’s board cleared the loan at its Washington headquarters. It is equal to about Tk 37.35 billion at Tk 124.5 per dollar.

The funds come from the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank Group’s arm for concessional financing to low-income countries.

Repayment runs 25 years, including a five-year grace period.

Bangladesh has achieved near-universal access to primary schooling, but quality remains a big challenge, the bank says. Nearly half of 10-year-olds cannot understand a simple, age-appropriate text.

Jean Pesme, the bank’s division director for Bangladesh and Bhutan, called quality primary education a cornerstone for building a workforce fit for the global job market.

“Over the past two decades, the World Bank Group has helped ensure almost every child can go to school in Bangladesh,” he said. “The new financing will help children learn better and stay in school.”

The system is among the world’s largest, with over 20 million children in government schools, NGO-run schools, kindergartens and madrasas.

A special package of teaching materials, structured lesson plans and teacher training will strengthen foundational literacy and numeracy.

Head teachers at 90 percent of government primary schools will receive leadership and management training.

Tashmina Rahman, the bank’s senior education specialist and team leader for the programme, said lagging students will get extra lessons, with priority for the worst-hit districts.

Funds will be used accountably, and data will guide decisions, she added.

Teachers will receive training and support, while pre-primary quality will also improve.

The bank expects the programme to create 843,000 new, comparatively well-paid jobs in government primary schools.

Source: bdnews24.com