- Primary education is a fundamental right in India and achieving universal primary education is a key goal of both the Indian government and the World Bank. However, demand for education exceeds supply in terms of both access and quality at all levels. - The World Bank has provided over $1 billion to India's education sector since 2000, focusing on projects to increase access to primary education, improve vocational education and training, and reform engineering colleges. Key challenges remain in improving education quality, expanding secondary education access, and ensuring skills training matches the needs of the job market. - Stakeholder collaboration will be important to address issues around balancing access versus quality, determining public and private sector roles, and prioritizing support across different

1. Education and theEducation and the
World Bank in IndiaWorld Bank in India
Sam Carlson
Lead Education Specialist
scarlson@worldbank.org

2. 2
Summary
• Primary education is a fundamental right in India, and at
the international level an important Millennium
Development Goal to which India and the Bank are
totally committed.
• GOI and States increasingly recognize education as a
critical input for human capital development,
employment/ jobs, and economic growth, and are putting
major financial and technical resources into this effort.
• Nevertheless, demand for education far exceeds supply,
in terms of both access and quality, at all levels.
• Anxious to get YOUR views as to how the Bank can
improve its impact on access, learning outcomes and
reducing skills shortages.

3. 3
Basic Education
• Two decades of focused programs in basic
education have reduced out-of-school youth to
about 10 M (down from 25 M in 2003), most
from marginalized social groups. Net enrollment
rate is 85%, with social disparities.
• Key challenge is to finish the “access agenda”
and dramatically increase focus on quality, with
more attention to classroom processes, basic
reading skills in early grades, teacher quality
and accountability, community/parent oversight,
evaluation/assessment.

4. 4
Secondary Education
• Access and Quality remain big challenges.
• Gross enrollment rate of 40%, with significant
gaps between genders, social groups,
urban/rural, such that most secondary students
are urban boys from wealthier population
groups.
• Private aided and unaided schools = 60% of all
secondary schools, and growing.
• Overloaded curriculum, poor teaching practices
and low primary level quality affect secondary
quality.

5. 5
Vocational Education and
Training (VET)
• VET system is small, and not responding of
needs of labor market; <40% of graduates find
employment quickly.
• Insufficient involvement of industry and
employers in VET system management,
internships.
• Lack of incentives of public training institutions
to improve performance.

6. 6
Technical and Higher Education
• Numerically huge: 330 universities and 18,000
colleges
• Substantial private provision in professional
education.
• But just 11% of youth 18-23 are enrolled.
• Problems of capacity, quality, relevance, and
public funding. Hard to retain qualified faculty.
Limited research.
• Several world-class institutions.

7. 7
GOI Education Strategy
• Unprecedented priority to universal elementary education.
• Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan: aims to universalize elementary
education by 2010, and improve learning outcomes.
• Education cess of 3% on income tax, corporation tax,
excise and customs duties generates necessary resources
• Cost-Share: was 50/50 (2007), moving to 65/35
Center/State
• Estimate: 11th Plan: ’07-’12: 60,000-70,000 crores (US$17
billion)
• Increased focus on quality and upper primary in phase II.

8. 8
GOI Strategy (continued)
• National Mission for Skills is being set up,
looking at both VET and secondary
education
• New centrally sponsored scheme to update
all industrial training institutes (ITIs)
• Significant investments in higher education
(including reforms and expansion) are
expected

9. 9
Bank Strategy and Support
• IDA Lending: 0%, 35 years to repay with first 10 years
“grace” (no repayment)
• Since FY00: over US$ 1 Billion (Rupees 40 billion)
committed to sector.
• Over last 10 years: eight State-level District Primary
Education Projects
• US$ 500 M for SSA I; Additional US$500 M in
November 2007 for SSA II
– Increased focus on quality in SSA II
– Partner with European Commission and UK DFID
– Still a small player: Bank $ is less than 10% of GOI $

10. 10
Bank Strategy and Support
(continued)
• US$ 280 M for VET: support 400 Industrial
Training Institutes, for improved quality and
relevance (June 2007)
• US$ 250 M for Technical Education and
Engineering: reforms in 128 competitively selected
engineering institutions in 13 states to address
skills shortages
• US$ 70 M for polytechnics in six remote states
(possible $300 M additional)
• State education reforms in Orissa and AP

11. 11
Collaboration with Civil Society
• Over 7,000 NGOs participating as partners in SSA
– Alternative education programs: “bridge courses”
– Monitoring of quality
– Capacity-building of VECs
– Reference Groups advising States, Districts and
Blocs
– Contracting (e.g. MP with Pratham)
• Not surprisingly, varies greatly by State

12. 12
Bank Research
• Elementary Education
– Impact evaluation regarding:
• Incentive payments and schooling inputs on
student learning
• Dissemination of education information on
school governance and student outcomes
• School characteristics and student outcomes
• Instructional time on task survey

13. 13
Bank Research
• Early Childhood Development – focus on integrated
(health/nutrition/education) approaches
– Will feed into US$ 450 M Integrated Child Development
Services Project
• Secondary Education – major analytical study
related to expanding access, particularly for girls
and marginalized groups, and to role of private
sector
• Higher Education – contribute to debate regarding
how India can address skills shortages among HE
graduates, linked to economic growth opportunities.

14. 14
Bank’s Limitations
• Engagement in Indian education is largely
through centrally-sponsored schemes, while
most implementation happens at the State
level. Need to find ways to foster dialogue
and technical assistance with States, and
increase exchanges with civil society on
substantive policy issues.

15. 15
Additional Issues for
Discussion
• Access versus quality tradeoffs
• Role of public and private sectors in education
financing and provision
• Prioritization of education levels (basic,
secondary, VET, higher)
• Role of civil society in policy debates and
project implementation

16. 16
Thank You