The World Bank Report No: ISR4401 Implementation Status & Results Liberia Fast Track Initiative Grant for Basic Education (P117662) Public Disclosure Copy Operation Name: Fast Track Initiative Grant for Basic Education (P117662) Project Stage: Implementation Seq.No: 2 Status: ARCHIVED Archive Date: Country: Liberia Approval FY: 2011 Product Line: Recipient Executed Activities Region: AFRICA Lending Instrument: Specific Investment Loan Implementing Agency(ies): Key Dates Board Approval Date 28-Jul-2010 Original Closing Date 30-Jun-2013 Planned Mid Term Review Date 31-Jul-2012 Last Archived ISR Date 26-Mar-2011 Effectiveness Date 31-Jan-2011 Revised Closing Date 30-Jun-2013 Actual Mid Term Review Date Project Development Objectives Project Development Objective (from Project Appraisal Document) Has the Project Development Objective been changed since Board Approval of the Project? Yes No Component(s) Component Name Component Cost Increasing access and equity in rural areas 15.50 Improving the conditions of teaching and learning 14.00 Strengthening central and local levels to operate in a decentralized education system by developing 10.50 management and M&E system Overall Ratings Previous Rating Current Rating Public Disclosure Copy Progress towards achievement of PDO Satisfactory Satisfactory Overall Implementation Progress (IP) Moderately Satisfactory Moderately Satisfactory Overall Risk Rating Substantial Substantial Implementation Status Overview The FTI Grant for Basic Education Project was approved on September 1, 2010 and the grant agreement signed on September 29, 2010. The project became effective on January 31, 2011. The Project Support Team has been recruited and consists of a Project Coordinator, Project Adviser, International Procurement Specialist, National Procurement Specialist, Project Accountant, and Sr. Project Accountant. Although the procurement of select consultants and firms have either been completed or are underway, the recruitment of some key positions are now behind schedule and have resulted in implementation delays, including: (i) School Construction Management Firm, (ii) Textbook Contracts Management Consultant, (iii) Curriculum Development Firm, and the (iv) School Grants Technical Expert. Page 1 of 6 The World Bank Report No: ISR4401 Locations No Location data has been entered Public Disclosure Copy Results Project Development Objective Indicators Indicator Name Core Unit of Measure Baseline Current End Target Basic education completion rate Percentage Value 49.00 49.00 56.00 Date 12-Dec-2008 01-Sep-2011 13-Jun-2013 Comments New school level data not yet available. Direct project beneficiaries Number Value 0.00 0.00 470000.00 Date 29-Dec-2010 01-Sep-2011 13-Jun-2013 Comments Recruitment of TA for school construction, school grants, and learning materials sub- components are underway. Female beneficiaries Percentage Value 0.00 Sub Type Date Supplemental Comments Textbooks-Student Ratio Text Value 0 0 1:2 Date 29-Dec-2010 01-Sep-2011 13-Jun-2013 Comments Procurement of new textbooks in progress. Teachers having at least one teaching guide Percentage Value 0.00 0.00 80.00 Date 29-Dec-2010 01-Sep-2011 13-Jun-2013 Public Disclosure Copy Comments Procurement of new teacher guides in progress. Schools managed by a SMC or PTA Percentage Value 0.00 0.00 60.00 Date 29-Dec-2010 01-Sep-2011 13-Jun-2013 Comments Significant sub-component design changes expected. School grants implemented in accordance with Percentage Value 0.00 0.00 60.00 agreed upon procedures Date 01-Sep-2011 Page 2 of 6 The World Bank Report No: ISR4401 Indicator Name Core Unit of Measure Baseline Current End Target Comments Significant sub-component design changes expected. Public Disclosure Copy Intermediate Results Indicators Indicator Name Core Unit of Measure Baseline Current End Target Number of additional classrooms built or Number Value 0.00 0.00 108.00 rehabilitated at the primary level resulting from project interventions. Date 29-Dec-2010 01-Sep-2011 13-Jun-2013 Comments Recruitment of school construction management firm underway. Cost-effective early child development model Yes/No Value No No Yes designed and piloted Date 29-Dec-2010 01-Sep-2011 13-Jun-2013 Comments Recruitment of ECD systems development TA underway. Children benefiting from de-worming Number Value 0.00 0.00 300000.00 intervention (number) Date 29-Dec-2010 01-Sep-2011 13-Jun-2013 Comments First found of de-worming expected in October 2011. Unified HR database (Civil Service Agency, Yes/No Value No No Yes MOE, MOF) developed and maintained Date 29-Dec-2010 01-Sep-2011 13-Jun-2013 Comments Recruitment of database analysis TA underway. Development of a pay and grade scale for Yes/No Value No No Yes teachers Date 01-Sep-2011 Comments Public Disclosure Copy Availability of annual sector statistics by May of Yes/No Value No No Yes each year Date 01-Sep-2011 Comments School census not conducted in 2009/10. Data collection for 2010/11 conducted in April 2011. Draft report not yet ready. Page 3 of 6 The World Bank Report No: ISR4401 Indicator Name Core Unit of Measure Baseline Current End Target System for learning assessment at the primary Yes/No Value No No Yes level Date 01-Sep-2011 Public Disclosure Copy Comments No MOE counterpart team has been assigned. District Education Officers using the new Percentage Value 0.00 0.00 75.00 assessment instruments Date 01-Sep-2011 Comments New assessment instruments not designed. Data on Financial Performance (as of 04-Apr-2011) Financial Agreement(s) Key Dates Project Loan No. Status Approval Date Signing Date Effectiveness Date Closing Date P117662 TF-97456 Effective 29-Sep-2010 29-Sep-2010 31-Jan-2011 30-Jun-2013 Disbursements (in Millions) Project Loan No. Status Currency Original Revised Cancelled Disbursed Undisbursed % Disbursed P117662 TF-97456 Effective USD 40.00 40.00 0.00 6.00 34.00 15.00 Disbursement Graph Public Disclosure Copy Page 4 of 6 The World Bank Report No: ISR4401 Public Disclosure Copy Key Decisions Regarding Implementation 1. The Government has requested a project restructuring to reflect that Early Childhood Development center construction, as opposed to "minor rehabilitation and renovation" as currently indicated in the Grant Agreement, is included under the project. It was therefore agreed during the August 2011 mission that the Bank would initiate project restructuring to include ECD center construction, so as to not hold up progress under the School Construction component. 2. While the Ministry of Education (MOE) has proposed programmatic changes to other sub-components, most notably School Grants and Learning Materials, sufficient details are not yet available and thus a deeper project restructuring will be held off for now. Some changes were proposed only in August 2011 and they are likely to result in significant project design changes, which will need to be agreed with the Government. While the Bank supervision team has continued to work with the MOE to identify areas to accelerate project implementation, the effectiveness of the implementation teams is often hampered by the overloading of work on the few competent members, and lack of agreement with MOE senior management on the objectives and design of each sub-component. These obstacles will need to be further examined to improve project implementation. 3. The Ministry of Education (MOE) agreed to fund the Rapid Results Approach (RRA) Cycle 2 (Jul-Sep 2011) from the FTI BEP and is expected to continue with Cycle 3 (Oct-Dec 2011), as well as to apply RRA to the entire sector. This is in recognition of weak implementation and project management capacity. Through the RRA, MOE sub-component teams Public Disclosure Copy have been identified, and each team has developed an annual implementation plan as well as the Rapid Results Initiatives (RRI) implementation plan for Cycles 1 and 2. During the RRA Cycle 2 midterm review in August 2011, several implementation obstacles were identified: (i) poor planning of RRIs where teams overlap FTI project activities with the activities of other programs, resulting in non- or slow accomplishment of FTI-BEP results; (ii) ineffective and inadequate communication between teams and the MOE senior management, hence limiting their involvement in monitoring implementation; and (iii) several team members who have not been allocated any action step and therefore are not participating in implementation. As a result, the few members who are allocated action steps are overloaded and this imbalance has slowed implementation. One option to improve administrative and communication bottlenecks is to conduct a management review of the MOE, in addition to the functional review that will be undertaken in the coming months in coordination with the Bank's Public Sector team. 4. The Monrovia-based education specialist departed on August 19, 2011, leaving a void in in-country support for the project and sector as a whole. A search for a new consultant is ongoing. Funding and political stability permitting, a selected candidate is expected to take up assignment by October or November. Page 5 of 6 The World Bank Report No: ISR4401 Restructuring History There has been no restructuring to date. Public Disclosure Copy Related Projects There are no related projects. Public Disclosure Copy Page 6 of 6