FORUM SECRETARIAT
PIFS(01)FEDA.15

FORUM EDUCATION MINISTERS’
FIRST MEETING
Auckland, New Zealand
14 – 15 May 2001



SESSION THREE PAPER

CIVIL SOCIETY AS BASIC EDUCATION PROVIDER











The attached paper, prepared by the Forum Secretariat, presents an outline of the
contribution of civil society organisations to basic education in the Pacific and related policy
issues for the consideration of Ministers.
1



EXECUTIVE SUMMARY


Civil society, the Church and the private sector, have contributed significantly to the
provision and delivery of quality basic education in partnership with Governments in the
region. Given the heterogenous reality of Pacific Island Societies, the difficulties of
delivering basic education to distant islands or remote rural areas Civil Society Organisations
are well placed to work with such communities. Civil Society Organisations have established
links with existing communities and can effectively deliver basic education to such
communities more effectively and efficiently than government. Of particular concern is the
fact that schools find it difficult to respond to the different needs and circumstances of their
pupils and to organise learning experiences that are sensitive to the social, cultural and
economic environment.

2.
There is value and urgency to develop the existing partnership between governments
and CSOs in the delivery of basic education including early childhood, non-formal, primary
and junior secondary education particularly given the youthful and growing populations of
many Forum Island countries. A regionally recognised reality is that CSOs have won
‘grassroots’ confidence, and are effective in the delivery of people centred education. CSOs
have important and distinct contributions to make to the reform of mainstream schooling and
could help to open up the formal system from within.

3.
The contribution made by civil society is often without any clear national policy or
regulatory structure or framework and there is often little coordination or collaboration.
Their contribution to basic education policy and curriculum planning and development has
been limited, but there is scope for greater involvement. It would be useful to first clearly
identify and record the involvement of NGOs and the type of skills training currently on
offer in basic education and to document the range and type of arrangements that currently
exist between governments in the region and CSOs. As with many other social sectors,
policy development in this sector is hampered by the lack of accurate data on current
programmes and arrangements.

4.
The delivery of basic education can address a range of community and poverty
issues. Maintaining education on international and regional agendas ensures continuity of
effort towards raising competitiveness of FICs in the face of globalisation and more
importantly to alleviate poverty and attain greater equity and quality livelihoods particularly
between rural and urban centres.

Recommendations

5.
Ministers may wish to consider the following recommendation:

(a) In recognition of the partnership with CSOs and the private sector already in place in
all Forum Island Countries in the provision and delivery of basic education, and to
enhance the achievement of National, Regional and International commitments,
direct the Forum Secretariat in association with other regional organisations and UN
agencies to document, and quantify the contribution of Civil Society in the provision
and delivery of basic education with the view to developing model enabling
government/CSO partnership policies.

2



PIFS(01)FEDN.15

CIVIL SOCIETY AS BASIC EDUCATION PROVIDER

Purpose

There is a developing partnership between government and Civil Society in almost all
Forum Island Countries (FICs). Civil society includes communities, community-based
organisations, non-governmental organisations, the Church and the private sector. It is the
purpose of this paper to discuss how governments and civil society can become more
effective partners in basic education and training development. With robust partnerships
between these broad community interests of our societies, the impacts of geographical,
financial and human resource constraints on the provision and delivery of quality basic
education for all can be reduced.

Introduction

2.
The involvement of Civil Society Organisations in education tends to be poorly
documented. Current and potential responsibilities in education they share with governments
are not readily identified. This paper highlights:

i)
contributions of CSOs and the private sector to basic education;
ii)
constraints limiting efforts to implement an integrated approach to education
development, and
iii)
policy options for governments.

Background

3.
Civil society throughout the text refers to village, rural and urban communities and
organisations. These are organisations not based in government and not created to earn a
profit. CSOs can act as a bridge between the concerns of citizens and those of their
governments. In this context these are communities and organisations that are often called
upon to assist with School committees, School Administration and Parent Teacher
Associations (PTA). Private sector schooling is sometimes difficult to distinguish from
community-based organisations as although it may charge fees to cover costs, it is not
necessarily profit driven. These types of schools are often managed and administered for
church groups or sometimes distinct ethnic and/or business interests. Private business itself
may provide training or schooling facilities for its employees and/or their families. The
private sector also in a few instances manages schools and provides these on a profit-making
basis. The focus of this paper will be largely civil society organisations as outlined above
rather than profit motivated private sector interests.

4.
Churches as part of civil society are often registered education authorities (providers)
with legislated authority to own and administer schools.

5.
CSOs and especially the churches are major players in the provision and delivery of
quality basic education throughout the Pacific. Governments are aware of their significant
contribution to basic education for all. A major constraint however is the lack of clear
mandates and policies within which civil society organisations can contribute to basic
education in a creative manner and responsive to local needs and aspirations.

3



6.
Why involve civil society organisations? It is now well documented that CSO
capacity to reach the rural poor and outreach to remote areas is greater than the formal
institutions of the state, particularly for the delivery of key social services. Although CSOs
work in both urban and rural areas, they tend to focus on poorer communities that have few
basic resources or infrastructure, are often located in areas with poor access where
government programmes are limited or non existent. CSOs are also usually themselves part
of the population whose involvement is sought and they work with community groups as
partners, emphasising local control. CSOs are largely voluntary in nature, use low cost
technologies and streamlined services which enable them to operate efficiently on low
budgets.

7.
CSOs, being rooted in the communities they serve and orientated towards promoting
initiatives, have a comparative advantage in identifying needs and building upon existing
resources. More flexibly than government services, they can transfer technologies developed
elsewhere and adapt them to local conditions, as well as work out innovative responses to
local needs.

8.
The World Education Forum held in Dakar in April 2000 reiterated the importance of
working together, and made commitments to develop and strengthen the existing partnership
between governments, UN bodies, Inter-governmental organisations (IGOs), the private
sector and civil society, in the work to eradicate illiteracy. This commitment was reaffirmed
through the Dakar Framework of Action adopted by participating governments including the
FICs. A focus of the Framework is the need for consultation with a broad-based alliance of
civil society to achieve goals agreed at the World Education Forum (paper
PIFS(01)FEDN.09 refers).

9.
Pacific governments recognise the importance of human resource development
through education and training for sustained economic development (FEMM, Apia, 1999).
However, their small budgets can not adequately meet all educational and training
development needs, given the plurality of development priorities. FIC governments must
therefore develop appropriate policies and strategies to foster effective and legitimate
partnerships between the governments, their agencies and CSOs, traditional and indigenous
institutions, community-based organisations, private sector, donors and other stakeholders.
Such partnerships are crucial in creating and maintaining a concerted effort toward
sustainable development.

Trends in Basic Education and Training Delivery in Pacific

10.
FICS are finding it increasingly difficult to administer, control and finance their
education systems. The strengthening and consolidation of existing partnership arrangements
has therefore become unavoidable. In Fiji (as with most other FICs) the national government
provide the following support to Schools (Education Commission Report, 2000):

Overall administration of and policy-making for the education system,
Registering and monitoring schools and providing advisory services,
Paying for tuition for the first ten years of schooling,
Defining and designing curriculum and producing related materials,
Setting and overseeing external examinations,
Training teachers,
Licensing and employing teachers,
Providing grants for buildings and other purposes.(Education Commission
report, 2000)
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11.
The churches and communities, committees, councils and other private organisations
administering schools tend to provide:

land for schools
establish and build schools,
equipment and maintenance of schools,
control the finance of schools including government grants through school
committees,
pay for utilities such as electricity, water and telephone,
resources such as text-books, library books and stationery,
pay auxiliary staff such as cleaners, maintenance staff and secretaries,
in rural areas, provide teachers with living quarters, and supply utilities,

12.
Roles and responsibilities of government and the community differ slightly between
countries. Generally, there is more CSO and church participation in the provision and
delivery of basic education in the bigger and more populous Melanesian countries.

Early Childhood Education

13.
ECE enrolment in the region has increased and demand for it is growing. Until June
2000 ECE enrolment had increased by ten-fold within a span of three years in the Solomon
Islands. FIC governments are slowly becoming engaged in ECE. CSOs, churches,
community groups and volunteer organisations have been the pioneers and still the providers
of ECE in many FICs except in Nauru, Niue, Cook Islands and to some extent Marshall
Islands and recently Vanuatu that have state funded ECE systems. In other FICs, NGOs and
community associations usually with assistance from donors, provide all ECE infrastructure.
In these countries there is little or no recurrent budgetary provision for ECE, reflecting the
perceived low status of ECE. Low pay is the norm for ECE workers, as most are paid by the
voluntary sector through users’ contributions, and probably because many of these workers
are untrained (Tavola, 2000).

The Challenges

• growing demand
• workers are untrained
• lack of Government commitment
• mostly provided by churches, NGOs and volunteers
• not a priority in national education plans and budgets
• heavily subsidised by rural communities and donors
• workers have limited training opportunities
• policies are either unclear or non-existent
• uncoordinated
• little and unreliable data

Primary and Junior Secondary Education

14.
Marked progress has been made in the Pacific in primary school enrolment. There is
conflicting information in the literature on enrolment rates in the Pacific. However, the
average gross enrolment for the region is close to 80%. Throughout the region, governments
take the lead in the provision and delivery of primary education, except in Fiji where the
churches, NGOs, communities and private organisations provide for about 80% of primary
5



school enrolment. Most teacher costs, teacher training, and development and supply of
curriculum materials are state funded. Student costs are also subsidized up to year 8 and 10
in most FICs, except in a few Melanesian countries where fees are charged from
kindergarten. The land on which the schools are built is mostly customary (in rural areas), or
government owned (in urban areas) and given rent free for school use, but usually not
registered. Governments in the region are finding it difficult to provide quality primary
education services to outer islands and distant rural communities. Generally, urban primary
schools have better infrastructure, more complete curriculum materials and attract more and
better trained teachers. There may be greater scope for the involvement of CSOs in the
deliver of primary level education to these communities in particular where community
support and involvement is crucial.

15.
Secondary Schooling, on the other hand is often in short supply, particularly in
isolated and remote areas of the Pacific. The lack of availability of boarding places in church
run schools often disadvantages girls. Some church run boarding secondary schools provide
fewer dormitory places for girls. Furthermore, if schools are available in remote areas, good
teachers often do not serve there and if deployed, do not remain for long, while facilities,
textbooks and other materials are often limited (UNICEF, 2000). In some FICs even though
girls generally do better than the boys in the final primary school examination only half as
many girls as boys gain access to places in senior secondary schools due to the unavailability
of places.

COMMUNITY HIGH SCHOOL EXPLOSION IN SOLOMON ISLANDS

Under the world bank funded 3rd Education and Training Project, which ended in 2000, five pilot Day
Junior Secondary Schools (DJSS) were constructed. The first of these were opened in 1994. This added
only 116 secondary school places. Access to secondary schooling for the 8000+ student place seekers was
then 29%. The five world bank built DJSSs cost about SBD$1 million each but only accounted for about
1,050 secondary school places.

Political Will and People Power.

By late 1994, the Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development received 9 applications from 9
primary schools wishing to expand their operations to include up to three years of Junior Secondary
Schooling (form 3 or year 9) and approval was granted by the Minister of Education. By 1995 Community
High Schools’ (CHSs) enrolment had risen from 116 to 608 and by 1996, another 18 schools were opened.
By 1998, enrolment had risen to 7,000 pupils.

In 1996 the Minister boasted that by the year 2000, Solomon Islands would attain a 50% transition rate
from primary to secondary. This was surpassed as early as 1998. In less than five years CHS enrolment had
risen from 29% in 1994 to 52.9% in 1998. The access rate as at June 2000 stood at about 60%. This could
not have been achieved without the broad support from the community and various civil society
organisations.

16.
The above development has helped communities to have greater “ownership” of the
school, and strengthened parent-community-school linkages. Moreover, the development of
Community High Schools has resulted in increased participation of girls from about 30% in
1990 to 40% in 1998 (for cultural reasons, parents often hesitate to send daughters to
boarding Schools). Moreover, where the community support and participation in education
development has been strong, access to secondary education in those Islands and education
authorities has also improved.




6



The Challenges

• Poor state of physical infrastructure
• places are in short supply
• lack adequate supply of trained teachers
• curriculum materials are in short supply
• provision of places often inequitable
• community involvement in schools often limited
• Inconsistent teacher in-service training and monitoring.

Non-Formal Education

17.
The traditional education system right across the pacific is already in great flux.
Government education departments without exception realize that no matter how much
money, personnel and technology they pour into their systems, most peoples’ education
opportunities lie outside traditional structures” (John Roughan, Adviser to the Solomon
Islands Development Trust). Non-formal education is growing in recognition and is largely
supplied by CSOs: “It should be seen as an education system more clearly identified with
the needs of the rural economy, but not to the exclusion of the growing groups of urban
dwellers.” (Cole, 1996).

18.
Adult and community and non formal education in the Pacific is largely conducted by
CSOs with increasing Government involvement on issues such as health, environment,
women, business, nutrition, agriculture, literacy, numeracy and life skills. Typically CSOs
have urban and rural-based networks and their programmes are delivered in a wide variety of
forms including advocacy, drama, print materials, workshops, and seminars. The enthusiasm
of the communities to work with CSOs has made this education process effective. In Papua
New Guinea where there are over 800 distinct languages, the programme on literacy in
community was said to be costing very little as a result of combined efforts of provincial and
CSOs.

The Onesua Vocational centre , Vanuatu

Responding to the challenge presented by children pushed out from primary education, the Presbyterian
Church of Vanuatu established training centres with the following objectives:
• To offer the young people of Vanuatu skills, motivation and self-respect that can lead to them
becoming productive citizens within their home environment
• Encourage the development of leadership skills so that youth might reach their full potential
as members of the community
• Merge an understanding of tradition and culture with new methods of construction,
horticulture, nutrition, sanitation and home economics to improve quality of life
• To encourage citizenship and participation in regional and national development.

The principle centre Onesua, located on Efate Island, provides training for both young men and women
between the age of 17-25 years. Before entry, it is essential they should have the support of their parents as
well as village leaders and the community generally.

The girls centre opened in 1982, and has to date provided training for 218 students in activities designed to
assist income generation as well as providing leadership in community education programs directed at
women’s and youth groups. The boys centre opened in 1991, and has provided training for 48 young men
in building and furniture making. This involves the construction of cement blocks and tanks, smokeless
stoves, toilets and community buildings. Although the number of entrants is low in relation to the emerging
needs of the drop-out population in Vanuatu, this is an important component of the total effort being
provided by non-government organisations. A recent review by an independent consultant commended the
work being done at these two centres.
Source: Pacific 2010; Opportunities for NFE in Melanesia, (R.V.Cole, 1996).
7



The Challenges

• Lack of adequate policy framework
• Women and rural communities are well placed to benefit but often not included
• Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms lacking
• Procedures for ensuring accountability of funds and material resources lacking

Policy Issues in the Delivery of Basic Education

19.
Emerging from the discussion above are some distinct issues in delivering basic
education and training in the Pacific, notably the key education policy issues of access,
quality and equity.

Enhancing access to education

20.
Access to basic formal education is a problem more associated with Melanesia than
Polynesia or Micronesia. On average about 40% of children, mostly girls, in Papua New
Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu never actually enroll in a primary school, (compared
to about 6% in Polynesia and about 16% in Micronesia). In Melanesia, of those that are able
to attend the sparsely located primary schools, about 24% have opportunity to enter
secondary school, (compared to 55% in Polynesia and 43% in Micronesia). Lack of
confidence in the ability of the formal education system to address livelihood issues, high
school fees, concerns with the curriculum have tended to discourage particularly rural
participation.

21.
Throughout the region, the involvement of CSOs, churches, and local communities is
significant. Church, private and public schooling have co-existed for decades. The churches
were the first to introduce schooling in the Pacific. The governments soon became involved
but concentrated their efforts mainly in the secondary sector. School providers and the
government became partners in the ownership, administration and financing of education. In
Fiji, the government owns 0.4 % of the 710 primary schools and about 8 % of the 154
secondary schools (Fiji Government, 2000). While in Solomon Islands, the government owns
close to 90% of the 556 primary schools and more than 70% of the 100 secondary schools.

Table 2. Enrolment by Type of Schools



Primary
Secondary
NFE
Literacy
Country
Youth Est.
Enrolment
Enrolment
Enrolment
Rate
1998
%
%
%
%
Cook Is.
2 850
100
49

94
FSM
23 950
83
44

72
Fiji
159 360
89
43
20
86
Kiribati
15 340
77
44

79
Marshall Is.
13 260
79
49

74
Nauru
2 000
96
34

95
Niue
240
96
53

98
PNG
894 220
31
23
1.3
28
Samoa
37 100
94
70

96
Solomon Is
86 080
85
26
2.2
30
Tonga
20 130
90
67

99
Tuvalu
1 720
88
34

95
Vanuatu
36 360
72
22
0.83
34
Source: Human Development Report, UNDP, 1999; State of the Pacific Youth Report, 1998; The
World Bank Report, 2000

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22.
CSOs' tend to dominate the provision of non-formal education in the majority of rural
communities focusing on a wide range of livelihood and skills training programmes.
Government involvement in community education programmes in FICs is an opportunity to
strengthen and integrate these CSO programmes and provide coordination in order to ensure
the limited funds available are put to effective use. There is also greater potential for the
private sector to assist in this area by providing supporting funds to carry out integrated
community education training and programmes in related fields. For example, food
processing industries can help fund food and nutrition awareness raising and practices;
general merchandise and accounting businesses can assist in running small income
generating training, credit and saving schemes. Similarly, handicraft industries can help out
in quality handicraft production; companies operating sustainable forestry harvesting assist
in environmental and reforestation awareness programmes; tourism investors in eco-tourism
ventures etc.

Enhancing quality of education

23.
Many claim that private and church schools are generally of better quality than public
schools (cf. Gannicot 2000, Bray 1996 and Tedesco 1997).

24.
Involvement of Churches and the private sector and other CSOs in education
enhances teaching and learning practices. In the formal sector, studies have associated
private schools with quality education. Many examples exist of public schools that deliver
comparable quality education. This is readily evident in public schools where government
financial support is high. Morever, schools, whether private or public, that receive adequate
community support with better facilities and are adequately equipped with teaching and
learning materials, also produce good results.

25.
Other factors which are often associated with good results from community, church
or private schools in the Pacific include improved parental monitoring of child progress and
teacher performance, good management and greater accountability to the local community.
(UNICEF/PIC, 1993).

26.
The shortage of teachers especially in ECE is a common issue as national teacher
training institutions have limited places for annual intakes. A shared responsibility between
government, CSO and the private sector to address this deficiency is feasible, where the
latter helps out in training and providing teacher training facilities to complement the former
who is also responsible for teachers salaries. Similarly, private companies can assist in
funding and sponsoring training of teachers for schools they establish for their employees’
children. The Melanesian countries where large logging and mining companies are operating
could explore this.

27.
A number of researchers have found many schools in FICs have partly or unqualified
teachers, especially in ECE and primary school levels. This is a result of a shortage of
teachers for fast growing populations. Ongoing pressures for increasing numbers of
classroom teachers results in few of the untrained teachers being able to undertake formal
teacher training. In Tonga, access to the PEACESAT network has helped primary teachers,
and the Commonwealth distance education programme has assisted the Solomon Islands to
upgrade their teacher basic literacy and numeracy levels.

28.
Policy and curriculum development that includes CSOs can result in tangible
improvements. Without any mechanism for participation in policy, curriculum planning and
design, CSO contributions may never be fully exploited. Their contributions in the shaping
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of formal school curriculum have produced good results in some FICs. Health, food
production and nutrition, home economics, which dominate topics of community education
programmes, have been integrated into core curricula of both primary and secondary schools
in some countries (UNICEF, 1993).

29.
Other community/adult education programmes carried out by CSOs have positive
impacts on the livelihoods of community members. Workshop programmes such as
entrepreneur skills, small income generating activities, savings schemes are useful to rural
communities in meeting the demands of a subsistence economy. In societies where women
are the main food producers for households, they have tended to become more involved in
small income generating activities. This, in turn, has helped them to provide basic education
for their children. Governments can be active partners with CSOs in this basic but vital area
for rural subsistence communities to ensure their sustainability.

30.
Related to this is the growing acknowledgement among educationalists that
conventional school systems fail to help children pick up basic skills and competencies
crucial for continued learning and for coping with diverse forms of change. This is only
partly due to unsuitable content; it has also much to do with unsuitable teaching-learning
methodologies and with the difficulties of schools to effectively assist different categories of
youngsters. The pedagogical critique is that schools cannot handle diversity among their
(potential) clientele: in terms of background, circumstances, age and gender, learning styles
and specific learning needs. The schools’ response is to expect children to blend into the
existing system without structurally adapting the system to their specific needs. In this
situation the central issue is that basic education no longer bridges the cultural and social gap
between the school and the community. The disjunction between (western) school culture
and (local) popular culture is seen to contribute greatly to poor pupil learning and the
persistence of one-sided expectations regarding educational benefits.1

Promoting Educational Equity

31.
Acquiring of quality basic education should not be restricted to traditional classroom
settings or to a particular age range or stage of life (Tedesco, 1997). Education is a human
right for every child, youth and adult. However, the limited capacity of some FIC
governments to provide adequate basic education for their youth is of concern. This is a more
serious issue in the Melanesian countries with larger and more youthful populations, and
high illiteracy rates.

32.
Formal Education, though an important process with functional and intrinsic values,
is not, as noted above, a solution to all problems, nor is it an alternative to other development
programmes or structural change" (ASPBAE, 2000). Some countries in the Asian region
have effectively linked literacy with poverty alleviation, gender issues, health education,
water and sanitation issues, savings and credit schemes as well as human rights awareness.
Many CSOs are carrying out similar programmes in the Pacific particularly rural areas and
outer islands. Governments can and should consider actively supporting the CSOs in these
interventions. Integrated efforts by all actors including government, CSOs, the private sector
and churches can also address lifelong learning opportunities, protect the right to education
and the exclusion of disadvantaged groups. The reasoning, or rationale, here is that the
“poor” need to participate more fully in “growth” and their concerns reflected in
development planning. Universal notions of growth ignore local perspectives of what
constitutes needs and priorities, and what is defined as “progress” and “advancement”. The

1 Nonformal Education, Distance Eduction and the Resturucturing of Schooling: Challenges for a new Basic
Education Policy, by Wim Hopper in International Review of Education, Vol 46, No.1, 2000.

10



importance of articulating such perspectives as a basis for enhanced local participation leads
to an interest in what knowledge, norms and values schools actually disseminate. Findings
in this regard do not correspond with what is regarded as essential for promoting local
economic initiatives. Education does not deliver the goods.2

Policy Issues

33.
The long-standing involvement in education of CSOs has been identified as a
contributing factor to improved access, quality and equity. The international focus on the
participation of civil society in education through various conventions and declarations is
now increasingly reflected at the national level. Many FICs have placed, as a matter of
policy, developing partnerships with all other stakeholders in the delivery of education.
Likewise, CSOs are calling for more participation in making education more relevant to
enhance sustainable social and economic development. FIC governments should now give
due consideration to strengthening this invaluable participation as an option in education
delivery by creating and developing enabling policies.

34.
A few FICs have policy statements that explicitly demarcate cost sharing
responsibilities between the government and CSOs. In the Cook Islands, for example, the
policy states that NFE is the responsibility of CSOs. The coordination of Non Formal
Education (NFE) is through the Cook Islands Association of Non-governmental
Organisations (CIANGO). CIANGO has some 50 member NGOs, many of which have been
involved in providing basic life skill training with donor funding assistance. Countries
around the world have developed other models of state/CSO cooperation.

35.
Fiji and Solomon Islands are in the process of developing NFE policies, which
explicitly acknowledge and encourage CSOs, private sector and community participation.
Fiji has a policy objective to set up the Fiji Council of NFE, a voluntary council to
encourage, reinforce, network and moderate NFE programmes and services (Ministry of
Youth, Employment & Sports, National Policy on NFE in Fiji, Draft II, 2000).
Papua New
Guinea has a National Training Policy that emphasises partnership between public and
private sectors, churches and NGOs in planning, delivery and evaluation of training and
similarly stated in its draft policy formulated in 1995, called ‘Çommunity Education and
Literacy' (CEL). Other FICs with national policies yet to be developed have written
statements that emphasize partnership between the public and private sector, churches,
NGOs and civil society.

Constraints in Integrated Education Development

36.
With or without policies to legitimize their involvement, CSOs, Churches and the
private sector have been involved in the provision and delivery of basic formal education and
skills training. Key constraints have tended to be:

Lack of enabling conditions

37.
Despite the extent of CSO participation in basic education, there is still little
recognition of this on the part of the state. This is characterised by the absence of formal
structures and policy conducive to an integrated approach for basic education development.
While education is a core responsibility of the state, it needs to encompass in its structural
development the reality of the much-needed contribution of all other stakeholders.

2 What is Education Worth? From Production Function to Institutional Capital, Human Capital
Development Working Papers
, No 75, The World Bank, Washington, November 1996.

11



Lack of Coordination

38.
Efforts to coordinate the involvement of CSOs and the private sector are evident in
some FICs. The lack of coordination in other FICs has led to wastage and duplication.
Coordination entails putting in place mechanisms for collaboration/consultation/networking,
monitoring and evaluation. Moreover, any coordination effort must ensure establishment of
mechanisms that would enable the production of monitoring data to inform policy and action
plans.

Lack of data

39.
Sustainable development depends on availability of credible data and data analysis.
Crucial data on civil society involvement is limited. The lack of adequate information has
greatly hindered the employment of integrated approaches to basic education. Analysis and
assessment backed up by statistical data of past policy efforts to determine future policy
approaches to education delivery are important. Such information would be useful under
limited education budgets of FIC governments to avoid wasteful duplication.

Coordination

40.
There is need for a regional coordinating body or mechanism for education in the
Pacific (Tavola, 2000). Much Pacific literature highlights the weakness in coordination of
training programmes and pilot projects carried out in the region. This is exacerbated by the
absence of structures to perform the coordinating role in most FICs (G N Bramford, 1986).
This problem has been more obvious in non-formal and early childhood education. There is a
need at national and regional levels, to establish coordinating mechanisms for basic
education.

Mechanisms for Developing Partnerships in the Delivery of Basic Education

41.
Partnership Strategies – Further research needs to be undertaken on community
basic education needs, particularly in the rural and outer islands and mechanisms developed
to enhance CSO, Church and private sector participation in the delivery of basic education.
Governments will need to address the need to develop enabling conditions for the active
participation of CSOs including the Church and private sector in basic education.

42.
Community Level – There is already considerable diversity in the range and quality
of training programmes on offer (Cole, 1996), what is required is the creation of a directory
of basic education and training programmes at the community level. Local demand for such
programmes is a good signal of what can be further developed and sustained. However,
alongside this, community and/or national coordination mechanisms will need to be
addressed.

43.
Sub-national or Local Government level - At the sub-national or local government
level, mechanisms for decentralisation enhances community participation and relevance of
educational programmes based on local conditions. Educational interventions based on social
issues facing the community can also be carried out by local groups, this can empower
communities and build capacity at the local level.

44.
National Level – At the national level, constructive partnerships between all
stakeholders ought to be developed. They should all be involved in the education process,
from planning to delivery and evaluation. Benchmarks and targets should be established and

12



indicators of progress agreed with the stakeholders. This will be strengthened if effective
research networks are established involving CSOs, the private sector and regional
educational institutions to develop appropriate and relevant teaching and learning practices
in basic education. Good data and analysis will inform and make policy more effective and
relevant.

45.
Regional and International Levels – At the regional and international level,
structures and mechanisms to facilitate partnerships (such as global and regional
conferences, inter-government and inter-institutional dialogue and consultations) should be
facilitated. Maintaining education on international and regional priority agendas ensures
continuity of effort towards raising competitiveness of FICs in the face of globalisation and
more importantly to alleviate poverty and attain quality livelihoods for all people.

13



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