The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Tunisia Tertiary Education for Employability Project (P151059) Tunisia Tertiary Education for Employability Project (P151059) MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA | Tunisia | Education Global Practice | IBRD/IDA | Investment Project Financing | FY 2016 | Seq No: 8 | ARCHIVED on 22-Jul-2019 | ISR37872 | Implementing Agencies: Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Ministry of Development, Investment and International Cooperation, National Agency for the Advancement of Scientific Research Key Dates Key Project Dates Bank Approval Date: 25-Feb-2016 Effectiveness Date: 30-Nov-2016 Planned Mid Term Review Date: 20-May-2019 Actual Mid-Term Review Date: 20-May-2019 Original Closing Date: 31-Dec-2021 Revised Closing Date: 31-Dec-2021 pdoTable Project Development Objectives Project Development Objective (from Project Appraisal Document) The objective of the Tertiary Education for Employability Project (TEEP) is to improve the employability of tertiary education graduates and to strengthen the management of higher education. Has the Project Development Objective been changed since Board Approval of the Project Objective? No Components Table Name Improving employability of tertiary education graduates:(Cost $36.00 M) Strengthening the management of higher education:(Cost $34.00 M) Overall Ratings Name Previous Rating Current Rating Progress towards achievement of PDO Moderately Satisfactory Moderately Unsatisfactory Overall Implementation Progress (IP) Moderately Unsatisfactory Moderately Unsatisfactory Overall Risk Rating Substantial Substantial Implementation Status and Key Decisions The Project made good progress to achieve its objectives during the last six months. PDO 1 (Share of higher education graduates from co- constructed programs (out of which share of female) that were employed 6 months after graduating) and PDO 2 (Number of tertiary education students who completed PAQ-supported employability programs) will only be measured in year 5, upon completion of the Project. With regard to the improvement of employability of tertiary graduates, the first cohort of 400 students have been enrolled in the co-constructed programs supported by 5 PAQs (PDO 1) and several thousand tertiary education students are enrolled in academic programs benefiting from PAQ-supported employability programs (PDO 2). With regard to the strengthening of management of higher education, 54 percent of public universities have a strategic plan 7/22/2019 Page 1 of 8 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Tunisia Tertiary Education for Employability Project (P151059) (PDO 3). The PDO 3 target is expected to be achieved in 2019 with the launch of the new PAQ-DGSU that includes as a requirement the preparation of a strategic plan by universities. The overall implementation has accelerated in recent months, but it is not yet sufficient in regard to the project's objectives and disbursement forecast. A total of 77 PAQs (competitive grant schemes to incentivize higher education institutions to better connect with the labor market and increase employability of its graduates) have been awarded since January 2019 bringing the total to 127 PAQs. Two new competitive funds (PAQ- DGSU and PAQ-MOBIDOC) have recently been launched with proposals expected soon, while two other competitive funds (PAQ-PROOUES and PAQ-DGSE) will be launched in coming weeks. A total of 15 competitive windows have been launched out of 17 to benefit public universities, tertiary education institutions, research centers and laboratories; PhD students and post-docs. The activities financed under the PAQ range from strengthening employability of tertiary education students through certification to supporting research and innovation through spin-offs and start-ups. Risks Systematic Operations Risk-rating Tool Risk Category Rating at Approval Previous Rating Current Rating Political and Governance Substantial Substantial Substantial Macroeconomic Moderate Moderate Moderate 7/22/2019 Page 2 of 8 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Tunisia Tertiary Education for Employability Project (P151059) Sector Strategies and Policies Substantial Moderate Moderate Technical Design of Project or Program Substantial Substantial Substantial Institutional Capacity for Implementation and Sustainability Substantial Substantial Substantial Fiduciary Substantial Moderate Moderate Environment and Social Moderate Low Low Stakeholders Moderate Moderate Moderate Other -- -- -- Overall Substantial Substantial Substantial Results PDO Indicators by Objectives / Outcomes Improve the employability of tertiary education graduates IN00723402 ►Share of higher education graduates from co-constructed programs (out of which share of female) that were employed 6 months after graduating, relative to appropriate comparison (Percentage, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 0.00 0.00 20.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 5 PAQ co-construction are currently under implementation (grants were signed in late 2018 and one grant was approved in April 2019). All grants have an implementation period of 24 months. This indicator will be measured during the second semester of 2021, six months after the graduation of students enrolled in the co-constructed programs . As a result there will not be an intermediate target for end of 2019, as initially expected. Comments: A new call for proposals was launched in April 2019. The results are expected for September 2019. A third and final call for proposals will be launched in September 2019. The Bank asked the counterpart team to collect data on the comparison group for the 5 grants approved so far to measure the baseline data on employability of tertiary graduates from the same type of programs before the co-construction. IN00723404 ►Number of tertiary education students who completed PAQ-supported employability programs. (Number, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 0.00 0.00 10,000.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 There are 18,500 tertiary students currently enrolled in academic programs benefiting from PAQ- supported employability programs. The number of students who completed the employability programs is being collected by the Ministry from the tertiary education institutions. As more PAQs are just beginning to Comments: be implemented and others will be approved in the coming months, this number is expected to increase. Strengthen the management of higher education 7/22/2019 Page 3 of 8 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Tunisia Tertiary Education for Employability Project (P151059) IN00723403 ►Percentage of public universities that have strategic plans. (Percentage, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 8.00 54.00 54.00 100.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 Seven public universities (UVT, UTM, University of Sousse, University of Monastir, University of Sfax, University of Gabès and University of Kairouan) have a strategic plans approved by the IEAQA (National Authority for Evaluation, Quality Assurance and Accreditation). University of Kairouan and University of Gabès are among the new universities with a strategic plan. Comments: All 13 public universities are currently updating their strategic plan as part of the application to the new PAQ DGSU (for strategic development of university management). The plans will be ready in August 2019. Intermediate Results Indicators by Components Improving employability of tertiary education graduates IN00723405 ►Number co-constructed programs that have been established under the project (Number, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 5.00 5.00 50.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 Only five PAQ "co-construction" were awarded in 2018 and April 2019. A new call for proposals was launched in April 2019 with results expected in September 2019. A third and final call for proposals on this competitive funds will be launched in September 2019 with results to be Comments: released in March 2020. The total number of proposals to be approved on these two new calls is estimated at 20. The final target of 50 will be downgraded to 25 for the entire duration of the Project. IN00723407 ►Share of graduates from co-constructed programs that report being satisfied with their level of employable skills (Percentage, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 0.00 0.00 25.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 Baseline for this indicator will be updated in Year 3 of project implementation (2019). This indicator will be measured among the students currently enrolled in a PAQ co-constructed program to Comments: collect a baseline. A final assessment of this indicator will be collected from students before they graduate to estimate the increase in satisfaction of students with their level of employability. IN00723409 ►Number of newly introduced programs under PAQ with at least one module on entrepreneurship (Number, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 22.00 22.00 75.00 7/22/2019 Page 4 of 8 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Tunisia Tertiary Education for Employability Project (P151059) Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 The number of 22 PAQs for 2018 that include at least one module on entrepreneurship has not have been updated. It was based on 110 PAQs approved. This number will increase as there are a total of 127 Comments: PAQs approved and many include module on entrepreneurship. IN00723411 ►Percentage of PAQ projects by young universities (Percentage, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 20.00 22.00 20.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 28 PAQs from young universities approved out of total 127 PAQs Comments: IN00723413 ►Set up of an online information platform for the dissemination of tracer studies (Text, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target A pilot online platform was set up for the 4Cs, The online platform Value No platform Platform functioning but this is not the agreed does not exist yet. target. Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 As mentioned previously, there is a functioning online platform www.4c.tn that publishes information on job prospects in the labor market for tertiary education graduates. However, there is no dedicated online platform (should be hosted on www.orientation.tn) that will publish information on tracer studies carried out by tertiary education institutions. Creating a dedicated online platform is essential to inform future Comments: students on career prospects. The Ministry is responsible for elaborating the technical specifications for this online platform. The work is just starting. A project called TUNED (financed by the EU) is currently carrying out a tracer studies of several universities and engineering schools. The information collected will be publish on the online platform. IN00723414 ►Percentage of university observatories that systematically publish the results of periodic tracer studies on their website (Percentage, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 0.00 0.00 80.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 Data has not yet been collected for this indicator. 10 universities have received a PAQ-PRICE that finances tracer studies. We don't know yet if they have Comments: started the plan to carry out the requested tracers studies. The future PAQ-DGSU will also provide funds to strengthen the observatories in the universities that are responsible for carrying out tracer studies. IN00723415 ►Share of secondary students (in their final year) that have been informed about higher education opportunities and subsequent labor market outcomes with information generated by tracer studies (Percentage, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 0.00 0.00 50.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 7/22/2019 Page 5 of 8 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Tunisia Tertiary Education for Employability Project (P151059) This indicator is measured in year 4. However, it was agreed that the Ministry will need to agree upon and develop the practical modalities to collect and publish the information. A questionnaire/survey tool will Comments: need to be developed and a sample of representative sample of secondary schools drawn. IN00723416 ►Number of certifications of students in courses focusing on transferrable skills (IT, PM, language skills/communication, etc.) (Number, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 0.00 0.00 21,500.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 12400 students are currently enrolled in certification programs financed by PAQs. These programs include certification in IT, languages and transferrable skills (soft skills). The number of students certified will be Comments: collected in 2019 for each course. Strengthening the management of higher education IN00723406 ►Percentage of universities that have a functioning internal Quality Assurance (QA) unit (Percentage, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 0.00 0.00 90.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 This indicator will be measured at the end of 2019. All universities have an internal QA unit. The level of functionality of each internal QA unit is being Comments: assessed as part of the call for proposals under the new PAQ-DGSU. The new PAQ will include financing to strengthen the universities' internal QA units. IN00723408 ►Establishment of a model, pilot and roadmap towards performance-based financing in higher education (Text, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Pilot evaluated and Concept currently being A pilot will be launched final proposal for Value No model developed. to take effect in 2020. model and roadmap ready Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 26-Jun-2019 31-Dec-2021 Several meetings took place in the first semester of 2019 with government counterparts (including Ministry of Finance) to agree on the modalities to pilot the performance-based financing for public universities in Comments: 2020. Model of contracting agreements with results will be prepared before the end of 2019. IN00723410 ►Direct project beneficiaries (Number, Custom) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 0.00 0.00 150,000.00 Date 18-Sep-2015 03-Dec-2018 03-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2021 Citizen Engagement (CE) Assessment The intermediate indicators 8 and 9 will be used to measure CE with the Project activities, particularly the Comments: level of satisfaction of beneficiaries with activities financed under the PAQs. As per the PAQ operational manual, each entity implementing a PAQ must carry out a satisfaction survey of its beneficiaries upon 7/22/2019 Page 6 of 8 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Tunisia Tertiary Education for Employability Project (P151059) completion of PAQ activities. The assessment of the CE through satisfaction surveys is expected to start with the first round of PAQs approved in 2018. Results will be available in late 2019 or early 2020. The CE indicator will be disaggregated by gender. The original intermediate indicator 2 noted for CE only represents a small component – a component where the underlying activity has been substantially delayed and therefore will be not be used anymore. IN00723412 Female beneficiaries (Percentage, Custom Supplement) Baseline Actual (Previous) Actual (Current) End Target Value 0.00 0.00 0.00 75,000.00 Overall Comments IR Citizen Engagement: It was agreed with the counterpart that the intermediate indicators 8 and 9 (number of direct project beneficiaries and female beneficiaries) will be used to assess CE instead of the intermediate indicator 2 (to narrowly measuring level of satisfaction of beneficiaries of PAQ co-constructed). The intermediate indicators 8 and 9 will measure the level of satisfaction of beneficiaries with all competitive fund windows (PAQs). The entities implementing PAQs have been reminded that they need to carry out a satisfaction survey as part of the PAQ's requirement. A total of 127 PAQs have been approved so far, representing several thousands of beneficiaries. The first assessment of CE and produced data should be available by end of 2019 or early 2020. Grievance Redress Mechanism: The Ministry has set up a hotline for citizen grievance as well as an online platform that can be accessed from the Ministry’s website (www.mes.tn). The Bank requested from the counterpart to present quantitative and qualitative information on grievances received and examples of what is done to address these grievances. Data on Financial Performance Disbursements (by loan) Project Loan/Credit/TF Status Currency Original Revised Cancelled Disbursed Undisbursed % Disbursed P151059 IBRD-85900 Effective USD 70.00 70.00 0.00 8.49 61.59 12% 7/22/2019 Page 7 of 8 The World Bank Implementation Status & Results Report Tunisia Tertiary Education for Employability Project (P151059) Key Dates (by loan) Project Loan/Credit/TF Status Approval Date Signing Date Effectiveness Date Orig. Closing Date Rev. Closing Date P151059 IBRD-85900 Effective 25-Feb-2016 03-Mar-2016 30-Nov-2016 31-Dec-2021 31-Dec-2021 Cumulative Disbursements Restructuring History Level 2 Approved on 01-May-2018 Related Project(s) There are no related projects. 7/22/2019 Page 8 of 8