Section A - World Bank



Document ofThe World BankFOR OFFICIAL USE ONLYReport No. 48373-CMPROJECT APPRAISAL DOCUMENTON APROPOSED CATALYTIC FUND GRANTIN THE AMOUNT OF US$24.8 mILLIONTO THERepublic Of cameroonFOR Aeducation for all – fast track initiative: support to the education sectorAugust 18, 2010Education Sector UnitCountry Department AFCC1Africa RegionThis document has a restricted distribution and may be used by recipients only in the performance of their official duties. Its contents may not otherwise be disclosed without World Bank authorization.CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS(Exchange Rate Effective July 8, 2010)Currency Unit=FCFA516.61 FCFA=US$1FISCAL YEARJanuary 1–December 31ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMSAFDAgence Fran?aise de DéveloppementANTILOPEApplication nationale des traitements informatiques et logistiques des personnels de l’EtatBEACBanque des Etats de l'Afrique CentraleC2DContrat de DésendettementCASCountry Assistance StrategyCFCatalytic FundCPTContract Primary TeacherCSRCountry Status ReportDPDevelopment PartnersEFA-FTIEducation for All-Fast Track InitiativeESSEducation Sector StrategyFCFAFrancs CFAFMFinancial ManagementGDPGross Domestic ProductGERGross Enrollment RatioGoCGovernment of CameroonGPIGender Parity IndexHIPCHighly Indebted Poor CountryIDAInternational Development AssociationIFRInterim Financial ReportISAInternational Standards on AuditingLDPLocal Development PartnerMCComité de suivi pour l’Opération de Contractualisation (Monitoring Committee)MDGMillennium Development GoalMINEDUBMinistère de 1 'Enseignement de Base (Ministry of Basic Education)MINESECMinistère des Enseignements Secondaires (Ministry of Secondary Education)MCSMinistry of Civil Service and Administrative ReformMoFMinistry of FinanceMTEFMedium-Term Expenditure FrameworkNGONon-Governmental OrganizationOCOpération de Contractualisation (Contract Primary Teachers Program)OHADAOrganisation pour l’Harmonisation en Afrique du Droit des AffairesOMOperations ManualPASEProgramme d’Appui au Système Educatif (Education Development Capacity Building Project)PEMFARPublic Expenditure Management and Financial Accountability ReviewPCRPrimary Completion RatePDOProject Development ObjectivePFMPublic Financial ManagementPFSProject’s Financial StatementsPNGProgramme National pour la GouvernancePRSPPoverty Reduction Strategy PaperPTRPupil Teacher RatioSIGIPESSystème Informatique de Gestion Intégrée des Personnels de l’Etat et de la SoldeSOEStatements of ExpendituresSILSpecific Investment LoanToRsTerms of ReferenceUNESCO/ISUUNESCO Institute of StatisticsUNFPAUnited Nations Population FundUNICEFUnited nations Children’s FundUPEUniversal Primary EducationWFPWorld Food ProgramZEPZone d’Education Prioritaire Vice President:Obiageli Katryn EzekwesiliCountry Director:Mary Barton-DockSector Manager:Christopher J. ThomasTask Team Leader:Michel WelmondREPUBLIC OF CAMEROONeducation for all – fast track initiative: support to the education sectorTABLE OF CONTENTSPage TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u Section A. STRATEGIC CONTEXT AND RATIONALE PAGEREF _Toc266784782 \h 1A.Country Background PAGEREF _Toc266784784 \h 1B.Sector Issues PAGEREF _Toc266784785 \h 1C.Rationale for FTI/CF and Bank involvement PAGEREF _Toc266784786 \h 3D. Higher Development Objectives to which the Project Contributes PAGEREF _Toc266784787 \h 3Section B. PROJECT DESCRIPTION PAGEREF _Toc266784788 \h 3A.Lending Instrument PAGEREF _Toc266784789 \h 3B.Development Objectives and Key Indicators PAGEREF _Toc266784790 \h 4C.Project Components PAGEREF _Toc266784791 \h 4D.Justification of project design PAGEREF _Toc266784792 \h 4Section C. IMPLEMENTATION PAGEREF _Toc266784793 \h 4A.Partnership Arrangements PAGEREF _Toc266784794 \h 4B.Institutional and Implementation Arrangements PAGEREF _Toc266784795 \h 5C.Monitoring and Evaluation of Outcomes/Results PAGEREF _Toc266784796 \h 6D.Sustainability PAGEREF _Toc266784797 \h 6E.Risks PAGEREF _Toc266784798 \h 7Section D.APPRAISAL SUMMARY PAGEREF _Toc266784799 \h 8A.Economic and Financial Analyses PAGEREF _Toc266784800 \h 8B.Technical PAGEREF _Toc266784801 \h 9C.Fiduciary PAGEREF _Toc266784802 \h 10D.Social PAGEREF _Toc266784803 \h 11E.Environment PAGEREF _Toc266784804 \h 11F.Safeguard policies PAGEREF _Toc266784805 \h 11G.Policy Exceptions and Readiness PAGEREF _Toc266784806 \h 11List of AnnexesAnnex 1: Country and Sector Background12Annex 2: Detailed Project Description 15Annex 3: Project Costs and Proposed Financing16Annex 4: Results Framework and Monitoring17Annex 5: Institutional Arrangements19Annex 6: Financial Management and Disbursement Arrangements20Annex 7: Procurement Arrangements 28Annex 8: Safeguard Policy Issues30Annex 9: Economic and Financial Analysis31Annex 10: Project Preparation and Supervision33Annex 11: Major Related Projects Financed by the Bank and/or Other Agencies34Annex 12: Documents in fhte Project File35Annex 13: Country at a Glance36IBRD Map No. 38REPUBLIC OF CAMEROONEFA FAST TRACK INITIATIVE CATALYTIC FUND GRANT FOR CAMEROONPROJECT APPRAISAL DOCUMENTAFRICAAFTEDDate: August 18, 2010Team Leader: Michel J. WelmondCountry Director: Mary A. Barton-DockSector Manager/Director: Christopher J. ThomasSectors: Primary education (100%);Themes: Education for all (100%)Project ID: P116437Environmental category: CLending Instrument: Specific Investment LoanJoint IFC: NoJoint Level: Project Financing Data[ ] Loan [ ] Credit [] Grant [ ] Guarantee[X] Other: EFA-FTI Catalytic Fund GrantFor Grants: Total Operation Cost (US$m.): 24.80Financing Plan (US$m)SourceLocalForeignTotalBorrower0.000.000.00EFA-FTI Catalytic Fund24.800.0024.80Financing Gap0.000.000.00Total:24.800.0024.80Amount of financing to be provided by SourceAmount (US$m)Trust Fund Program24.80SPF0.00Borrower/Recipient0.00External Funds, not Bank Managed0.00Financing Gap0.00Total Project Cost24.80Borrower:Republic of CameroonResponsible Agency:Ministry of Basic Education YaoundéCameroonEstimated disbursements (Bank FY/US$m)FY20112012Annual24.80Cumulative24.824.8Project implementation period: Start September 1, 2010 End: June 30, 2011Expected effectiveness date: September 1, 2010Expected closing date: December 31, 2011Does the project depart from the CAS in content or other significant respects? Ref. PAD I.C.[]Yes [ X] NoDoes the project require any exceptions from Bank policies?Ref. PAD Section D.G.Have these been approved by Bank management?[ ]Yes [X] No[ ]Yes [ ] NoIs approval for any policy exception sought from the Board?[ ]Yes [ ] NoDoes the project include any critical risks rated “substantial” or “high”?Ref. PAD Section C.E.[X]Yes [ ] NoDoes the project meet the Regional criteria for readiness for implementation? Ref. PAD IV.G.[X]Yes [ ] NoProject development objective Ref. PAD Section B.B., Technical Annex 3The project development objective is to reduce class sizes by recruiting and retaining more teachers in the public education system, as well as deploying them in an equitable manner.Project description Ref. PAD Section B.C., Technical Annex 2The project will contribute to the payment of the salaries of 37,200 primary public school contract teachers recruited during FY07, FY08, FY09 and FY10 during (a) the period from January 2010 through the date which is four months after the Effective Date, and (b) part of the remainder of the 2010 and 2011 school year. The indicators for this project will be the reduction in pupil-teacher ratios (PTR) and reduction in the variation of PTR across regions. PTRs are measured by dividing the number of teachers by the number of students within regions and for the nation. The variation of PTR is calculated by regressing the size of specific schools against the number of teachers in each specific school.Which safeguard policies are triggered, if any? Ref. PAD Section D. F. – n/a Significant, non-standard conditions, if any, for:Board presentation: n/a Loan/credit effectiveness: There are no project specific effectiveness conditions.Covenants applicable to project implementation:The Education Development Capacity Building (PASE) to amend the contract of his current external auditors so as to carry out the Specific Audit and the audit of the financial statements of the Contract Teachers Program.Section A. STRATEGIC CONTEXT AND RATIONALE I. Country and Sector IssuesCountry BackgroundAt the end of World War I, different parts of Cameroon were occupied by the French and the British. The Republic of Cameroon received its independence from the French in 1960 and the parts controlled by the British merged with it in 1961. English and French are its official languages. With a population of approximately 18 million, Cameroon has about 200 linguistic and ethnic groups. Cameroon is made up of ten regions -- eight Francophone and two Anglophone. Strategically located in west and central Africa, its neighbors include Nigeria, Chad, the Central African Republic, Congo, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. Since independence, Cameroon has remained a stable country with President Paul Biya in power since 1982.Until the mid 1980’s, Cameroon’s economy progressed steadily with a real GDP growth of 13 percent from 1977 to 1981 and 8 percent from 1982 to 1985. Subsequently, the drop in prices for both agricultural products and petroleum caused a sharp decline in growth and revenue. Over the next two decades, Cameroon’s trajectory of economic development fluctuated with periods of growth and decline in GDP growth. In 2000, with the high level of external debt, Cameroon became a “Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC)” and eligible for corresponding financial provisions. Macroeconomic stabilization and structural adjustment have since served to improve the fiscal situation and provide a framework for development. The Gini per capita based on purchasing power parity is US$2,120. Between 2000 and 2002, the real GPD growth rate was 4.23 percent decreasing to 3.32 percent been 2003 and 2007. Due to the financial crisis, economic growth is predicted to decline further in the coming years.The Government of Cameroon (GoC) is committed to development and a reduction in poverty. The first Poverty Reduction Strategic Plan (PRSP) was produced in 2003 and a PRSP for 2010-2019 is currently being prepared. From 1996 to 2003, poverty declined by 13 percentage points. Currently, about 40 percent of the population is below the poverty line and the GoC intends to reduce poverty levels to 25 percent by 2015. Sector IssuesFour ministries are respectively responsible for primary, secondary, technical and higher education. The education system is structured in slightly different manner in the Francophone and Anglophone parts of the country. In both parts, primary education consists of six years with unified objectives and curriculum. Subsequently, all students can choose between general and technical secondary education. Whereas the first cycle of general secondary education is five years and the second cycle two years in the Francophone regions, it is respectively four and three years in the Anglophone regions. Although the National Assembly passed a law in the 1990’s to make the Francophone and Anglophone secondary education systems uniform, it has never been promulgated by the President. After secondary education, students can choose to attend university or attend post-secondary technical education. The evolution of the education system has been uneven. Up until the 1990s, equitable access to quality primary education was amongst the top in the Africa region. However, following drastic budget cuts, primary education Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) fell approximately ten percentage points during the 1990’s from 94 to 84 percent. The contraction of the education budget greatly affected the teacher corps. Civil servants salaries were drastically cut in 1993 and there was a mandated restriction of teacher recruitment. Consequently, pupil-teacher ratios (PTR) grew to over 60 students per class, with considerable variations between regions. Communities and regions resorted to their own strategy for addressing the growing need for teachers in schools, which led to the creation of three parallel teacher corps: civil servant teachers, temporary teachers (Enseignants vacataires) and community teachers (Ma?tres des parents).Over the last decade, with the assistance received through Cameroon’s HIPC status, education indicators have steadily improved. Literacy rates in the population above 15 years of age grew by 7 percentage points between 2001 and 2007. Primary Education GER regained the ground lost and reached 100 percent by 2000. In spite of the progress made, the Country Status Report (CSR) published in 2003 indicated that critical interventions would be required if Cameroon was to meet the MDGs of universal primary enrollment (UPE) by 2015. For example, the increase in girls’ enrollment was not as high as expected, especially in some of the most disadvantaged regions. Completion rates were low at 65.4 percent for boys and 53.9 percent for girls (CSR, 2003). More importantly, the Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR) rose from 51:1 to 58:1 between 1990/93 and 2001/02 due to increased enrollment in primary education. PTR of 40:1 suggested by the FTI indicative framework for universal and quality primary schooling was yet to be achieved. In addition, the envisioned increase in the school population from 2.5 million to 4 million by 2015, as reported in the CSR, would make it necessary to double the number of teachers.The GoC prepared an Education Sector Strategy (ESS) to map out the future direction of the education system. To specifically meet the MDGs of universal primary enrollment (UPE), gender equity, and completion rates of 100 percent by 2015, the ESS included the following options: reduction in repetition; expansion of the number of teachers, reduction of teacher/pupil ratios; increase in pedagogical resources and improvements in the system of governance in education. One of the key strategies was the recruitment of contract teachers who follow a different career path and are remunerated according to a different salary scale than civil servant teachers. The expansion of this teacher corps was meant to ensure medium term financial sustainability.After taking into consideration budget resources and contributions from other partners, the government calculated that there would be a financing gap of US$47 million to finance the implementation of the ESS. On the basis of this assessment, the ESS served as a basis for the GoC request to join the Education for All-Fast Track Initiative (EFA-FTI) and for the preparation of the request to the EFA-FTI Catalytic Fund (CF). The EFA-FTI CF Committee agreed to provide a US$47.3 million grant to be distributed as two annual grants (Year I - US$22.5 million and Year II - US$24.8 million). The project financed under the grant would contribute to the remuneration of contract teachers, whose salaries would eventually be integrated into the national budget. The strategy received the endorsement of local partners in July 2006 and was approved by the CF Committee in October 2006. The World Bank has been the supervising entity of this project since then. Rationale for FTI/CF and Bank involvement The Bank’s continued involvement as supervising entity of the project is essential. First, the ESS is in line with the Bank’s overall program in Cameroon. Second, the program financed by the proposed project complements efforts supported under another Bank-financed project (Programme d’Appui au Système Educatif – PASE). Finally, the supervision of this project by the World Bank would prevent any interruption in ESS implementation more generally and the program financed by the project more specifically.The proposed program to be financed under the project is aligned with Bank’s “Cameroon: Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) for FY10-13,” presented to the Board in March 2010. The CAS emphasizes that human capital production and mobilization are binding constraints to economic growth in Cameroon. In addition, membership to EFA-FTI is in line with the Bank commitment to strengthen partnerships and harmonization of donor activity (a hallmark of the EFA-FTI).In addition, the Bank supports the education sector through an IDA Credit (P075964 – the Education Development Capacity Building Project) of US$18.2 million for capacity building in the education sector. The development objective for this project is to develop and apply management and learning tools for use by government and communities to improve efficiency and accountability of the Cameroon education sector. The project has provided financial resources for capacity building critical to the implementation of the ESS.As supervising entity of the CF Grant to Cameroon, the World Bank signed an initial grant agreement with the government in 2007 for Year I of the CF Grant. This grant was disbursed in two tranches in 2007 and 2008. The project financed under the Year II CF Grant will help consolidate the progress achieved so far. The GoC intends to use the second-year grant of US$24.8 million to continue to support salaries of 37,200 contract primary teachers hired between FY07 and FY10. No other partner is prepared to assume the responsibilities of CF supervising entity at this time. Without the Bank’s continued involvement in the program, the overall sustainability of the implementation of the ESS could be compromised. D. Higher Development Objectives to which the Project ContributesThe higher level development objective to which the proposed project contributes is universal primary school enrolment by 2015. Section B. PROJECT DESCRIPTION Lending Instrument The instrument will be a Specific Investment Loan (SIL), implemented via governmental institutions. The instrument and implementation arrangements provide efficient financing to a program that forms an integral part of the Government’s ESS. Development Objectives and Key IndicatorsThe project development objective is to reduce class sizes by recruiting and retaining more teachers in the public education system, as well as deploying them in an equitable manner. Project ComponentsThe project consists of one component. It will be fully used to support the Government’s contract teacher program. It will contribute to the payment of the salaries of 37,200 primary public school contract teachers recruited during FY07, FY08, FY09 and FY10 during (a) the period from January 2010 through the date which is four months after the Effective Date, and (b) part of the remainder of the 2010 and 2011 school year. The indicators for this project will be the reduction in pupil-teacher ratios (PTR) and reduction in the variation of PTR across regions. PTRs are measured by dividing the number of teachers by the number of students within regions and for the nation. The variation of PTR is calculated by regressing the size of specific schools against the number of teachers in each specific school.Justification of project design The current project design is based on the following rationale:The overall CF Grant (Year I and Year II) corresponds to the calculation of the financing gap resulting from the shortage of teachers in the system.Based on the endorsement of local education partners, the CF committee approved the GoC proposal that the grant would be specifically used to finance the salaries of contract teachers. Consequently, as supervising entity, the Bank is under obligation to ensure that the grant be used for this specific purpose. The successful experience of the Year I CF Grant implementation and the impact of this financing on key educational indicators warrant continued support for this activity.Section C. IMPLEMENTATION Partnership ArrangementsThe local development partners endorsed the ESS in 2006, which was a prerequisite for the awarding of the CF Grant. There are approximately seven bilateral and multilateral development partners that support the education sector, with the Agence Fran?aise de Développement (AFD) as the Lead Donor. AFD is a significant donor for the education sector. It provides 40 million Euros for the ESS: 37.5 million Euros is disbursed over 5 years as general budget support against the implementation of the government’s contract teacher program (through its Contrat de Désendettement et de développement, C2D); and 2.5 million Euros for institutional strengthening. Japan, China, Korea, UNICEF, UNFPA, Africa Development Bank, and NGOs also provide assistance to the education sector.The development partners have put in place a systematic and shared process for assessing ESS progress. Based on detailed terms of reference, an intensive implementation review of the sector strategy was carried out in 2008 and 2009. Based on the review, a joint development partner aide memoire was transmitted to government that summarized the achievements and challenges of each sub-sector in addition to cross sector issues. The review provided a forum for assessing implementation and the sub-sector experience to be shared with other sub-sectors. Institutional and Implementation Arrangements The Ministry of Basic Education (MINEDUB) is responsible for the overall implementation and monitoring of the contract teacher program. Several government entities are involved in the CPT program: (i) the Prime Minister’s office, which gives prior approval to proceed with the contracting process; (ii) the Ministry of Public Function and Administrative Reform (MCS), which signs the contract; and (iii) the Ministry of Finance (MoF), which is responsible for budget allocations and salaries payment. To ensure efficient coordination between these actors, the government established a Monitoring Committee (MC) within MINEDUB. The MC includes representatives from the above ministries, has a Permanent Secretariat headed by the Human Resources Director of MINEDUB, and is assisted by a Technical Secretariat. The staff of the Permanent Secretariat has considerable experience in human resources management. In addition, an Operations Manual guides the implementation of the contract teacher program. The Manual specifies the procedures, roles and responsibilities of the actors involved in the process. It also specifies the administrative, financial and accounting mechanisms. The Manual was updated in March 2010 to reflect the recommendations of the 2008 Technical Audit and that of the financial audit of Year I CF Grant, as well as new disbursement procedures to reimburse government payments. The MC is responsible for (i) ensuring the coordination of the activities of the Project; (ii) preparing and organizing the overall recruitment process for CPTs; (iii) managing the recruitment and deployment of contracted teachers, especially verifying teacher presence in schools; (iv) monitoring the quality of the teaching; and (v) keeping records and reporting to the development partners on all aspects of the Program. In addition, the MC reports to the development partners on all aspects of the contract teacher program. The development partners also participate in the MC’s working sessions. The MoF and the MCS shall be jointly responsible for the administrative management and disbursement, under the Project. As such, the MCS shall be responsible for (i) the identification and selection of the contract teachers to be paid under the Program; and (ii) the signing of the contracts with CPTs. The MoF shall be responsible for (i) identification of the payments to be made under the Program; and (ii) issuance of wire transfer orders to the relevant central, regional, and prefectural level entities for the processing of payments.Fiduciary arrangements are aligned with the Government’s mechanisms and procedures already in place for contract teachers. In particular, the country system will be partially used for the payment of teachers’ salaries. In view of certain weaknesses in the PFM system, highlighted by the recent Public Expenditure Management and Financial Accountability Review (PEMFAR), these arrangements will be supplemented with the financial management system of the existing Bank-financed PASE project. The PASE FM Unit will appoint an accountant who will record and report on the project transactions, e.g. teachers’ salary payrolls. In addition, PASE’s Internal Auditor will review and clear the requests for disbursement of the project as part of his annual work program. Finally, the PASE external auditors will certify the eligibility of teachers’ salaries claimed by the Monitoring Committee for the Project (MC) and audit the Project’s Financial Statements issued at the end of the project implementation. The external auditors’ contract will be updated accordingly. No prior audit for this project or for any other project managed by the PASE is outstanding.Monitoring and Evaluation of Outcomes/ResultsThe monitoring and evaluation system put in place for the Year I CF Grant provided detailed and consistent information on the implementation of activities. Consequently, the project will use the same system. The primary source of information is provided by MINEDUB. Bi-annually, MINEDUB submits the names of teachers who were hired, the observations of government missions to the regions, and financial information on the amounts spent on Contract Primary Teachers (CPT) salaries by region. The second source of information is provided by regular independent technical and procedural audits as well as by financial audits required under the Grant. The technical and procedural audits assess whether: (a) the rules for recruitment and payment of salaries are being followed; (b) teachers are present in the classrooms, and (c) salaries are paid regularly. The financial audit examines the financial management of the project.The third source comes from the bi-annual supervision missions conducted by the Bank in collaboration with the development partners. One of these bi-annual missions occurs at the time of the annual ESS review.Achievement of the Project Development Objectives will be measured by a reduction in pupil-teacher ratios (PTR) and a reduction in the variation of PTR across regions. PTRs are measured by dividing the number of teachers by the number of students within regions and for the nation. The variation of PTR is calculated by regressing the size of specific schools against the number of teachers in each specific school.SustainabilityThe systemic sustainability of the program supported by the project results from the new teacher management policy framework that includes the establishment of a contract teacher corps. First, contract teachers have rights, responsibilities and career opportunities. This will contribute to the stability of the teacher corps over time, which in turn will enable authorities to develop plans for improvements in performance. Second, contract teachers are more easily posted and reposted to different schools than civil service teachers. This ensures a more efficient and effective deployment of teaching staff, and thus a more equitable distribution of education opportunities. Third, because all new teachers are recruited as contract teachers and given the attrition of civil servant teachers over time, there is little risk that the differences in pay and working conditions between the two corps will constitute a demotivating factor. The ability of the Government to eventually take over external funding is a key factor in ensuring the sustainability of the program. The GoC has shown strong commitment to sustaining the progress made in the education sector and intends to gradually absorb the salary of contract teachers into the national budget. The share of education in total public expenditure exceeded 17 percent between 2007 and 2009, in spite of the decrease in revenues in 2009. The government plans to increase this share to 19.5 percent in 2011. In parallel, the share of basic education in total expenditure on education increased dramatically, from 32.5 in 2007 to 38 percent in 2009, with a peak at 41 percent in 2008. These increases portray the priority given to education by GoC. If the budget for education increases to around 20 percent as suggested in the FTI indicative framework, GoC will be in a position to absorb contract teachers cost by 2011.Risks A key issue associated with the hiring of contract teachers has been addressed while the Yr I CF Grant was implemented. Contract teachers were hired without adequate policies in place that defined their status and future career paths in the system. Cameroon has addressed this issue by establishing clear policies that govern the hire, salary scales and benefits, in addition to career development in the system. These policies differ distinctly from the ones that apply to regular civil servants and provide opportunities for career development. Remaining risks are identified in the table below, together with mitigation measures.Potential risksLevelMitigating measuresLevelCountry/Sector Levela.Sustainability of the program could be jeopardized by a decrease in allocations to the education sector resulting from fluctuation in the global markets.H`Allocations to the education sector will be monitored closely by the LDPs.Hb.Political resistance could halt implementation of the CPT programMThe favorable employment conditions of contract teachers and the gradual attrition of civil servant teachers minimize the political salience of the recruitment of this new corps of teachers.MImplementing agency levelc.MINEDUB has proven experience in managing Yr.1 CF SIG but is not equipped to account and report separately on the project transactions in accordance with IDA fiduciary requirements.SGovernment PFM systems supported by SIGIPES and ANTILOPE will apply from recruitment, budgeting to payment of teachers’ salaries and will be complemented with specific arrangements for separate accounting, reporting auditing on CPT project transactions.MProject leveld.Changes in personnel managing this project in the Ministry could slow down implementationMThe government indicated to the LDPs, including the World Bank, that the same team will manage and monitor the project.Me.Contract teachers may not be deployed where they are most needed.HThe 2010 Technical audit as well as the Specific Audit monitor this aspect closely thus minimizing the likelihood of misalignment of teachers’ allocation with local needs. Mf.Under Yr.1 CF MC’s Permanent Secretariat failed to maintain sound accounting, issue financial reports and ensure adequate internal controls. SPASE FM Unit will provide technical support to the MC’s Permanent Secretariat. Its role will consist in maintaining sound accounting records, preparing and submiting financial reports in time. PASE FM Unit will maintain separate accounting ledgers so as to generate and submit reliable financial reports in time.In addition, the recommendations of the 2008 Technical audit and that of the financial audit are being satisfactorily implemented including an effective reconciliation of CPT data between SIGIPES and ANTILOPE.Mg.Ghost teachers may be paid under the programMThough the risk of fraud and corruption within the country is high in general, it is considered Moderate for the project’s activities in light of the results of the 2008 Technical Audit of Yr.1 CF Grant as there was no proved evidence of ghost teachers in the listing of personnel cleared by MC. Besides, the lessons learnt from the implementation of Yr.1 CF SIG are factored in the proposed built-in fiduciary arrangements. In particular, under MC’s leadership, the government is satisfactorily implementing the key recommendations of the 2008 Technical Audit and that of the financial audit of Year I Grant, including a reconciliation system between SIGIPES and ANTILOPES. Mh.Fiduciary riskMA Specific Audit will be carried out to certify the eligibility of the first two tranches of payment of the project. It will be informed by the 2010 Technical Audit currently being carried out to assess whether there is any leakage in the CPT.MH: High, S: Substantial, M: Moderate, L:LowSpecific undertakings:Dated covenant within 2 month after effectiveness:PASE to amend the contract of his current external auditors so as to carry out the Specific Audit and the audit of the financial statements of CPT.Section D.APPRAISAL SUMMARYEconomic and Financial Analyses Although there has been some progress toward Education for All objectives, inefficiency and inequity is still pervasive in Cameroon. Gross Enrolment Ratio surpassed 100 percent in 2005, meaning that the primary education system had the overall capacity to enroll all 6-11 year old Cameroonians. However, this hides inequity within the system. Whereas the average Gender Parity Index (GPI) is high (.90), some regions still have a high proportion of out-of-school girls. For example in the “Extrême Nord” and “Nord” provinces, the gender parity index is below .70. Completion rates were still very low in primary education. Primary Completion Rates (PCR) reached only 64 percent in 2007. High levels of repetition also contributed to low completion, particularly in the francophone regions. Although repetition is primarily a policy issue in Cameroon (rates of repetition are determined by individual schools rather than clear pedagogical benchmarks), low quality of education may have been a contributing factor. The insufficient number of teachers has contributed to low efficiency. During the 2005-2006 school year, there were 62.1 students per primary school teacher. In addition, not all teachers had the same qualifications. Of the three types of teachers - civil servant teachers; contract teachers and community teachers - only the first two categories received training. The priority actions adopted in the 2006 ESS to improve equitable access to quality education included an increase of the number of trained teachers to be deployed in a more equitable manner and a reduction in repetition rates. Financial simulation scenarios indicated that increasing the number of civil servant primary school teachers would not be financially sustainable. Consequently, the government decided to recruit contract teachers who were paid lower salary levels. This was the essential element of the government’s EFA-FTI Catalytic Fund Grant application in 2006. Since the Year I CF Grant was awarded, progress has been made regarding the number and equitable deployment of teachers. As indicated in Annex 1, pupil teacher ratios decreased by 10 points between 2005/2006 and 2007/2008 to 51.8. The recruitment of an additional 13,275 contract teachers has contributed to this goal. In addition, over the same period there has been a drop in repetition from 28 percent to 18 percent in francophone regions and 17 percent to 12.2 percent in Anglophone regions. This has been the result of the enacting automatic promotions for “sub-cycles”. In addition, the Government of Cameroon has shown strong commitment to sustaining the progress made in the education sector and intends to gradually absorb the salary of contract teachers into the national budget. The share of education in total public expenditure exceeded 17 percent between 2007 and 2009, in spite of the decrease in revenues in 2009. The government plans to increase this share to 19.5 percent in 2011. In parallel, the share of basic education in total expenditure on education increased dramatically, from 32.5 in 2007 to 38 percent in 2009, with a peak at 41 percent in 2008. These increases portray the priority given to education by GoC. If the budget for education increases to approximately 20 percent as suggested in the FTI indicative framework, the GoC will absorb contract teacher costs by 2011.The project will consolidate the progress achieved so far. It will contribute to the payment of the salaries of 37,200 primary public school contract teachers recruited during FY07, FY08, FY09 and FY10 during (a) the period from January 2010 through the date which is four months after the Effective Date, and (b) part of the remainder of the 2010 and 2011 school year TechnicalDuring the 1990’s, parents and communities resorted to hiring temporary teachers, paying them significantly less than the average GDP per capita. This arrangement led to lower quality instruction, high turnover and an onerous financial burden on poorer communities. Introduced in 2007, the contract teacher program aimed to rapidly reduce the shortage of teachers and the very high PTRs across the country and replace temporary teachers financed by communities. Contract teachers are recruited by the government, but within a personnel management framework that is different than for civil servant teachers. Contract teachers can receive promotions (with salaries and other benefits) and after 10 years of service, some can join the regular civil servants cadre. The GoC also provides contract teachers with a cash component to their remuneration in lieu of a traditional pension. Contract teachers are also given similar benefits to regular civil servants. For example, contract teachers receive the same amount of allowances for professional development. In some cases, they have greater flexibility than civil service teachers. Contract teachers can at any point resign from their position, whereas regular teachers must serve for ten years before they can resign.Fiduciary Procurement: The CPTs are recruited on a contract basis and as such fall under the category of “Service Delivery Contractors”. The procurement plan specifies the number and timing of recruitment of these contractors. The selection procedures, job description and terms of employment are described extensively in the Operations Manual and have been deemed acceptable by the Bank. For the CPTs hired in 2007 and 2008, compliance to these rules has been attested by the 2008 Technical Audit. For the CPTs hired in 2009 and 2010, compliance will be verified during supervision of the project, based on the results of a 2010 Technical Audit and a Specific Audit. Financial Management: This is a follow-up operation that builds on the lessons and achievements of the Year I CF implementation. The implementation arrangements remain almost the same except for a few specific requirements that are detailed in the Financial Management (FM) Annex, as summarized below. In response to its weak Public Financial Management (PFM) system, Cameroon formulated a PFM Reform Strategy to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of Central and Local Government PFM, as well as accountability processes. The 2006 PEMFAR identified weak internal control and weak financial reporting and treasury management that led to a high overall fiduciary risk. Under the phase I of CPT, the MC has put in place robust fiduciary and operational procedures for the recruitment, management, budgeting and payment of the contract teachers which is mainstreamed through the government computerized public financial management systems: SIGIPES (personnel management) and ANTILOPE (salary payment). In light of this, it was agreed to rely on these country systems for the project while supplementing them with the financial management systems of the existing Bank-financed PASE project. This will ensure sound accounting, timely reporting and audits. The fiduciary arrangements are aligned with the Government’s mechanisms and procedures already in place for contract teachers. Existing internal controls will apply that comprise the whole system of control – financial, operational or otherwise - established by the Permanent Secretariat and described in an operations manual. This manual has been updated to take into account the recommendations of the 2008 Technical Audit. The PASE FM Unit will expand its computerized accounting systems so as to record and report on project transactions, e.g. teachers’ salary payrolls. PASE’s Internal Auditor will review and clear the request for reimbursement to be submitted to IDA by the project. It will also submit Interim Financial Reports (IFRs) to the World Bank no later than 45 days after the end of each calendar quarter. At the end of the project implementation, the MC with the assistance of PASE will issue the Project’s Financial Statements, which will be audited by the current external auditors of PASE upon an amendment of their contract on Terms of Reference (TORs) agreed during the negotiations. Besides a Specific Audit to ascertain the eligibility of the disbursement claimed under category 1 will be carried out and report is expected to be done by March 15, 2011. The audit reports of the project financial statements shall be submitted to IDA no later than 6 months after the end of the project implementation. Disbursement: Overall project funding will consist of the Year II CF Grant of $24.8 million, and will be used exclusively to reimburse the government for the salaries paid to contract teachers. Under these arrangements, the project proceeds will be used to reimburse the government for part of the salaries of 37,200 primary public school contract teachers recruited during FY07, FY08, FY09 and FY10 with a retroactive financing of up to 20 percent for salaries paid before the signature of the grant but on or after January 1, 2010. This will be followed by a second installment estimated at 40 percent of the grant. The last installment will be conditioned to a conclusive Specific Audit on the eligibility of the salaries claimed by MC and paid by IDA under the first and second installments. As mentioned above, the PASE external auditor will perform the Specific Audit (in addition to the financial statement audit) upon amendment of their contract and based on TORs agreed during negotiations. SocialThe social analysis in the PRSP identifies the urban poor, marginalized groups and the disabled as vulnerable populations. Marginalized groups are not uniformly distributed across the country, but vary according to region and tribes. Marginalization also occurs due to the fragility of the national economy and its dependence on exports. The movement of populations into Cameroon from neighboring countries as a result of conflict is also a concern and puts enormous social and economic strain on communities and financial resources. While the project does not address these issues directly, it will result in an increase in and a more equitable distribution of teachers, which is likely to have the greatest impact on disadvantaged areas. This focus on ensuring a better distribution of teachers will indeed benefit mostly the most disadvantaged schools, including the “Extreme Nord” of the country where education indicators are the lowest. This is portrayed in the appointments made in 2008 and 2009 - the majority of teachers were allocated to the ZEP regions where they are most needed.EnvironmentNo issues are envisioned. Safeguard policiesAs this project only finances contract teacher salaries, no safeguard policies would apply. Policy Exceptions and ReadinessThere are no policy exceptions. The project is ready to be implemented, supporting the Government’s on-going program.Annex 1: Country and Sector BackgroundRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorThis annex presents an overall description of the status of the GoC Education Sector Strategy (ESS), within which the program of contract teachers is located. It then summarizes the program of contract teachers established by the GoC and initially supported by the Year I CF Grant and to be supported by the project.Findings of the Joint Review of the Education Sector StrategyOwnership of and commitment to the ESS in a coordinated manner have been strengthened since the first joint review held in April 2008. A committee grouping the four education ministries was created and meets regularly to debate issues that cut across sectors and subsectors and identify appropriate responses. Each ministry has created a committee that monitors the implementation of the part of the ESS relative to its level of the education system. Work plans, with annual work programs from 2009 to 2011, have also been established to guide actions toward achieving the ESS goals. Furthermore, annual statistics for primary education have been consistently produced, together with analyses of trends. For secondary and higher education, additional efforts are needed in order to produce consolidated annual statistics. Progress in the implementation of the ESS is presented below for each sector.Pre-school: The Government recognizes that pre-school education can prevent repetition and drop-out in primary and post primary education and has established it as a sector priority. The Government’s strategy is to rely on partnership arrangements with civil society, in particular with NGOs. Unfortunately, very few results have been observed. Planned activities to increase access, to train the teachers, to provide subsidies to NGOs have not produced the expected results and enrollments remain far behind ESS targets. These weak outcomes are mainly the result of an inadequate legal and institutional framework that could allow civil society to play a more active role. The Government acknowledges that immediate actions are needed to establish structures and systems that enable effective partnerships and the transfer of funds.Primary education: Remarkable progress has been achieved in this sector. The completion rate has increased to 71 percent in 2007/2008 from 67 percent in 2006/2007. This rise is mainly the result of a decline in repetitions, which improved internal efficiency. The repetition rate dropped from 25 percent in 2006/2007 to 16.8 percent in 2007/2008, surpassing targets. Several strategic actions contributed to this favorable outcome, notably the application of automatic promotion between the sub-cycles, increased pedagogical support to teachers and intensive communication campaigns. It is expected that this positive trend will continue.Indicators – Primary Education2005-062006-072007-08MDG Goals- 2015GER in the priority region (ZEPs) (%)9099103100Gender Parity Index in priority region (ZEPs).70.82.831Primary Completion Rate Francophone (%)586069100Primary Completion Rate Anglophone (%)748287100Primary Completion Rate - girls (%)585965100Repetition rate Francophone (%)28231810Repetition rate Anglophone (%)17151210Pupil teacher ratio62505242Degree of Randomness in teacher deployment.45.42.35-MINEDUB has regularly produced annual statistics with guidance provided by the National Statistics Institute. UNESCO/ISU and OECD have also provided support and they prepared an audit in 2008. The results have been used to strengthen the data collection and compilation process. Statistics and their analysis have mainly embraced the coverage side of the system, rather than learning levels. MINEDUB is aware of this necessity and is working with partners to establish a quality assessment system. A new strategy for pre-service and in-service teachers training is under consideration, as the comparative study of the curriculum reforms of six African countries, including Cameroon, shows that providing training through the cascade method is not effective. Secondary education: Construction targets have been surpassed with the construction of 1,347 classrooms. In addition, MINESEC has developed eight new protocols to evaluate teachers and trained 650 pedagogical inspectors to use them. A partnership law for the private sector has been adopted together with a contracting framework. Finally, administrative personnel have been trained in modern management techniques to improve governance and system management.Cameroon, however, does not currently have a solid strategy for the future development of secondary education. First, secondary education was supposed to be reformed on the basis of a law passed in 1998, which has yet to be signed by the President. After ten years, it is not clear whether this strategy (which aimed to align the Anglophone and Francophone upper secondary systems) is still relevant. In addition, school statistics for this level of instruction are produced late and are of low quality. 2004-20062007 – 2008Target 2015Secondary Education (1st Cycle)GER (%)35.1%*31.3%44.0%Repetition rate (%)13.5%#13.0%10.0%Completion rate (%)29.79%#23.3%36%Secondary Education (2nd Cycle)2004-20062007 – 2008Target 2015GER (%) 19.8%*18.6%24%Repetition rate (%)21.8%#15.9%10%Completion rate (%)11.9%#14.5%21%Sources: Simulation Model, unless otherwise indicated, *Sector Strategy; 2009 MINESEC reportTechnical/vocational education: A draft Professional Orientation and Training Law and a Professional Training Reference Guide have been prepared. In addition, the Government has signed partnership agreements with a few socio-professional groups, and has rehabilitated and constructed some professional training centers.However, institutional, organizational, quantitative, and qualitative constraints have posed challenges to the development of technical and vocational training. The budget for the subsector has declined since 2007, limiting its development. Weaknesses also exist in the overall vision for the sub-sector. The ESS presents a linear progression of provision of training that fails to take into account any analysis of actual needs of the economy and the labor market. The sub-sector also suffers from internal and external efficiency, lack of coordination between training institutions, weak capacity for the production of statistics, and limited operational capacity.Higher education: The Government has begun implementing two principal strategies of the ESS for higher education: regulating student intake within the context of democratizing access to higher education, and adapting some of the courses to the needs of the economy and labor market in order to improve the employability of young graduates. It has been difficult however to limit the number of students enrolled in public higher education institutions as originally envisaged. The target for 2015 was 138,000 students; however, 2008 enrollment surpassed this figure. The lack of a coordinated inter-ministerial strategy at the different levels of the system and the failure to effectively regulate student intake in humanities subjects have contributed to the relative lack of progress in this area. Objectives to develop and promote research and in-service teacher training were also not achieved, as authorities have focused on student intake issues and quality. Contract Teacher ProgramThe economic crisis in the 1980’s made it impossible for the GoC to hire civil servant teachers, leading to serious shortages in primary schools throughout the country. Communities and regions had to resort to recruiting their own teachers. As a consequence, three types of teachers existed side by side in primary schools: regular civil servant teachers, teachers hired by parents (Ma?tres des parents) and temporary teachers (Instituteurs Vacataires). To address teacher shortages and very high PTRs within ongoing budgetary constraints, the GoC introduced the contract teacher program in the 1990s. However, the program was not sufficiently defined leading to inequitable deployment, high attrition and uneven performance. In 2000, the government adopted a more sophisticated contract teacher model. The policy outlined salary scales, benefits and a career path for contract teachers. The salary of contract teachers was set at approximately three times the average Gini per capita (Atlas method) and two-third of regular civil servants salary. The GoC also established a career development strategy for contract teachers, which includes several levels of promotion. The GoC provides an additional payment to contract teachers in lieu of a guarantee of a pension. Contract teachers are also given similar benefits as regular civil servants, such as 18 days of leave during the school year. If they have children, contract teachers can also take two additional days of leave per child. If leave is not taken during the school year, contract teachers are allowed to cumulate the leave -- civil service teachers, on the other hand, are not allowed to cumulate leave.With the teacher contract program, the teacher workforce has increased significantly, responding to the teacher shortage and reducing the inequity in the distribution teachers across regions. This is portrayed in the appointments made in 2008 and 2009 - the majority of teachers have been allocated to the Zones d’Education Prioritaires (ZEP) regions where they are most needed.Annex 2: Detailed Project DescriptionRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorCOMPONENT 1: Support the contract teacher program in primary education (US$24.8 million)The project development objective is to reduce class sizes by recruiting and retaining more teachers in the public education system, as well as deploying them in an equitable manner. The indicators will be the reduction in pupil-teacher ratios (PTR) and the reduction in the variation of PTR across regions. PTRs are measured by dividing the number of teachers by the number of students within regions and for the nation. The variation of PTR is calculated by regressing the size of specific schools against the number of teachers in each specific school. The project has one component which will contribute to the payment of the salaries of 37,200 primary public school contract teachers recruited during FY07, FY08, FY09 and FY10 during (a) the period from January 2010 through the date which is four months after the Effective Date, and (b) part of the remainder of the 2010 and 2011 school year. The Operations Manual will be used for the implementation of this component, including for the hiring and paying of teacher salaries. The instrument will be a SIL, implemented via governmental institutions. The instrument and implementation arrangements provide efficient financing to a program that forms an integral part of the Government’s Education Sector Strategy. Annex 3: Project Costs and Proposed FinancingRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorThe Program (“Opération de contractualisation”) consists of the recruitment of 37,200 contract teachers over a five year period (2007-2011), estimated to cost US$392 million (202.5 billion FCFA). The Program receives financial support from AFD totaling US$55 million (28.5 billion FCFA) and a Grant from the EFA-FTI Catalytic Fund of US$47.5 million (24.5 billion FCFA). Total donor financing equals approximately US$103 million (53 billion FCFA), representing 26 percent of the Program cost. The CF Grant was split into two Grants (Year I Grant and Year II Grant). The project financed under the Year I CF Grant contributed to the financing of the salary of teachers hired in 2007 and 2008, and was disbursed in 2008. The project financed under the Year II CF Grant continues to support the Program by reimbursing the government for part of the salaries for 2010 of contract teachers recruited between 2007 and 2010. After 2011, the salaries of these teachers will be fully covered by the national budget. The overall cost and financing of the Program is presented below:Equivalent in billion FCFA?20072008200920102011Total2007-2011Number of new teachers18,4855,1256,4907,100-37,200Total number of teachers in the program18,48523,61030,10037,20037,20037,200Program Cost20.330.339.749.862.4202.5Sources of financing:Catalytic Grant5.85.8-12.8-24.5AFD (C2D)9.37.05.84.61.928.5Government5.217.533.932.460.5149.5Equivalent in US$ million?20072008200920102011Total2007-2011Number of new teachers18,4855,1256,4907,100-37,200Total number of teachers in the program18,48523,61030,10037,20037,20037,200Program Cost39.358.776.996.6120.9392.4Sources of financing:Catalytic Grant11.311.3-24.8-47.5AFD (C2D)18.013.511.29.03.655.3Government10.133.965.762.8117.3289.8Annex 4: Results Framework and MonitoringRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorAchievement of the Project Development Objectives will be measured by a reduction in pupil-teacher ratios (PTR) and a reduction in the variation of PTR across regions. PTRs are measured by dividing the number of teachers by the number of students within regions and for the nation. The variation of PTR is calculated by regressing the size of specific schools against the number of teachers in each specific school. It is expected that PTRs will decline from 50:1 to 48:1 and the degree of randomness in teacher allocations in the system from .43 to .42. PDOPDO IndicatorUse of Outcome MonitoringTo reduce class sizes by recruiting and retaining more teachers in the public education system, as well as deploying them in an equitable mannerReduction in Pupil Teacher Ratio from 50:1 to 48:1Reduction in degree of randomness in teacher deployment from .43 to .42The PTR will measure the successful recruitment and retention of teachersThe degree of randomness index will measure the extent to which teachers’ deployment is more equitableIntermediate OutcomesIntermediate Outcome IndicatorsUse of Intermediate OutcomeMonitoringNumber of additional qualified primary teachers resulting from project interventionNumber of qualified primary teachers increases by 37,200Analysis of national statisticsTarget ValuesData Collection and ReportingProject Outcome Indicators BaselineYR1Frequency and ReportsData Collection InstrumentsResponsibility for Data CollectionPupil teacher ratio 50:148:1AnnuallyStatistical YearbookMINEDUBDegree of randomness in teacher deployment0.430.42AnnuallyStatistical YearbookMINEDUBIntermediate OutcomesBaselineYR1Frequency and ReportsData Collection InstrumentsResponsibility for Data CollectionCore indicator : Number of additional qualified primary teachers resulting from project intervention037,200AnnuallyStatistical YearbookMINEDUBCore indicator : System for learning assessment at the primary levelCameroon is a participating country in PASECYES / 4Every 5 yearsPASEC ReportMINEDUBCore indicator : Number of direct beneficiaries, of which female (number of children enrolled in primary education)3,470,000(0.46)3,470,000(0.46)AnnuallyStatistical YearbookMINEDUBExplanation of project indicators: PTR measures the number of students per teacher at a given level of education. The FTI Indicative Framework suggests a primary education PTR of 40:1. The degree of randomness measures the extent to which teachers are deployed purely on the basis of the number of children in schools (a score of “1”) or in a completely random manner (a score of “0”). Annex 5: Institutional arrangementsRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorImplementation of the contract teacher program: The Ministry of Basic Education (MINEDUB) is responsible for the overall implementation and monitoring of the contract teacher program. The contracting process involves different phases, starting from a communication phase with central and local governments, unions and the civil society at the beginning of the year, the account of school children and the review of teachers’ allocation to the recruitment process and the payment phase. Several government entities are involved in the CPT program: (i) the Prime Minister’s office, which gives prior approval to proceed with the contracting process; (ii) the Ministry of Public Function and Administrative Reform, which signs the contract; and (iii) the Ministry of Finance, which is responsible for budget allocations and salaries payment. To ensure efficient implementation, a Monitoring Committee (MC) was established under MINEDUB. The MC includes representatives from the above ministries, has a Permanent Secretariat headed by the Human Resources Director of MINEDUB, and is assisted by a Technical Secretariat. The LDPs also participate in the Committee’s working sessions.The staff of the Permanent Secretariat has considerable experience in human resources management. In addition, an Operations Manual guides the implementation of the contract teacher program. The Manual specifies the procedures, roles and responsibilities of the actors involved in the process. It also specifies the administrative, financial and accounting mechanisms. The Manual was updated in March 2010 to reflect the recommendations of 2008 Technical Audit and that of the financial audit of Year I project, as well as new disbursement procedures to reimburse government payments. The MC is responsible for (i) ensuring the coordination of the activities of the Project; (ii) preparing and organizing the overall recruitment process for CPTs; (iii) managing the recruitment and deployment of contracted teachers, especially verifying teacher presence in schools; (iv) monitoring the quality of the teaching; and (v) keeping records and reporting to the development partners on all aspects of the Program.The MINEDUB is responsible for overall Project implementation and Monitoring, including (i) submission to the World Bank of bi-annually reports on the number and distribution of contract teachers who were hired, the observations of government missions to the regions within the territory of the Recipient, and financial information on the amounts spent by region on CPT salaries under the Program; (ii) preparation of progress reports of the Project. The MoF and the MCS shall be jointly responsible for the administrative management and disbursement, under the Project. As such, the MCS shall be responsible for (i) the identification and selection of the contract teachers to be paid under the Program; and (ii) the signing of the contracts with CPTs. The MoF shall be responsible for (i) identification of the payments to be made under the Program; and (ii) issuance of wire transfer orders to the relevant central, regional, and prefectural level entities for the processing of payments. Monitoring and Evaluation of outcomes/results: MINEDUB also assumes the overall responsibility to monitor and evaluate the results of the contract teacher program. On a bi-annual basis, the MINEDUB compiles the names of teachers hired, the observations of internal missions to the regions, and financial information.In addition, independent procedural, technical and financial audits will be conducted to examine overall program implementation, including recruitment, teacher presence in classrooms, salary payment, and financial management of the funds dedicated to the program. Annex 6: Financial management and disbursement arrangementsRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative -Support to the Education Sector1. Summary Project DescriptionThe project will be fully used to support the Government’s contract teacher program. It will contribute to the payment of the salaries of 37,200 primary public school contract teachers recruited during FY07, FY08, FY09 and FY10 during (a) the period from January 2010 through the date which is four months after the Effective Date, and (b) part of the remainder of the 2010 and 2011 school year. Project financing will consist of the Catalytic Fund (US$ 24.8 million). The French Cooperation – AFD - and the Government of Cameroon are also supporting the sector under parallel arrangements with US$55.3 million and US$290 million respectively.2. Country IssuesCameroon has formulated a PFM Reform Strategy that is supported by various development partners. The overall objective of the PFM Reform Strategy is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of Central and Local Government PFM and accountability processes, including an increase in transparency in the use of public funds and reduced corruption.A Public Expenditure Management and Financial Accountability Review (PEMFAR) was conducted and issued in June 2006. The PEMFAR (incorporating PER, CFAA and CPAR) recognized that substantial fiduciary risks remain in the following areas: (a) absence of controls of the materiality of expenditures in the administrative phase of spending; (b) lack of adequate controls at the payment phase of spending; (c) recurrent risk related to the payroll; (d) excessive use of exceptional procedures in budget expenditures. The combination of weak internal control and weak financial reporting thus leads to a high overall fiduciary risk. The risk is systemic on treasury management since there is not independent and effective internal control. However, progress has been registered with the implementation of Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) in some key ministries during the last decade. A Bank-assisted project is supporting the government to address the main PFM weaknesses cited above.On governance and corruption issues, the Government has initiated a series of initiatives to strengthen governance through the adoption of a five year National Governance program (PNG). The Government has established anticorruption units in all ministries and in some public agencies. Their activities are coordinated by a national Anticorruption Observatory under the authority of the Prime Minister office. Moreover, various anti-corruption institutions have been set-up in the framework of the HIPC program completion. Despite this progress, Cameroon has still a long way to go to overcome endemic corruption and improve governance as well as PFM.Although there are risks associated with the country environment, robust fiduciary and operational procedures have been put in place by the MC under the first phase of the CPT program. These procedures apply to the recruitment, management, budgeting and payment of the contract teachers. The latter is mainstreamed through the government computerized public financial management systems, SIGIPES (personnel management) and ANTILOPE (salary payment). In light of this, it was agreed to rely on these country systems for the project while supplementing them with the financial management systems of the existing Bank-financed PASE project. This will ensure sound accounting, timely reporting and audits. Risk Assessment and MitigationThe following risk identification worksheet summarizes the significant risks with the corresponding mitigating measures.RiskRisk RatingRisk Mitigation MeasuresResidual RiskInherent RiskCountry levelThe country’s governance deficit constitutes a major obstacle in achieving a robust rate of growth, and to ensure it is equitably shared amongst the population in order to reduce povertyHThe PRSP recently adopted recognizes the importance of improving institutional framework, administrative management and governance.The FY10-13 CAS proposes to further support Cameroon Governance Reform Program which will contribute to mitigate the specific risks relating to this CPT in the long run. HEntity levelMINEDUB has proven experience in managing Year 1 CF Grant but is not equipped to account and report on the project transactions separately in accordance with IDA fiduciary requirements.SGovernment PFM systems supported by SIGIPES and ANTILOPE will apply from recruitment, budgeting to payment of teachers’ salaries and will be complemented with specifics arrangements for separate accounting, reporting auditing on CPT project transactions.MProject levelMC’s Permanent Secretariat failed under Year 1 CF Grant to maintain sound accounting and issue financial reports.SPASE FM Unit will provide technical support to the MC’s Permanent Secretariat. Its role will consist in maintaining sound accounting records, prepare and submit financial reports in time.MOverall Inherent riskSMControl RiskBudgetingMNone. CPT is included in government annual budget and monitored adequately. MAccountingGovernment accounting system is inadequate to record the project transactions separately.SAn accountant is being appointed by PASE to ensure the bookkeeping of CPT transactions with the support of PASE computerized accounting system. PASE will expand its computerized accounting system to record the payments of teachers’ salaries in separate ledgers. MInternal controlAdequate internal controls are in place but adherence proved challenging as revealed by audits reports of Phase 1.SThe recommendations of the pilot and financial audits have been satisfactorily implemented including an effective reconciliation of CPT data between SIGIPES and ANTILOPE.;the existing Operations Manual was updated in March 2010 to take into account the recommendations of the audits and the lessons learned during the CPT Phase 1. MFlow of fundsFungibility and traceability: SUnder the current financing arrangements in the education sector, it is impossible to track donors’ contribution for each teacher separately. However, the project will reimburse part of the teachers’ salaries on the basis of sound supporting documents, namely Monthly Statements of Payment be submitted by the Government on the basis of the CPT listings of teachers which will be kept for audit purposes. This documentation will be reviewed and cleared by the internal auditor of the PASE. M Financial reportingLack of financial reports as revealed by the audit reports of Year I of the CF Grant.HPASE FM Unit will maintain separate accounting ledgers so as to generate and submit reliable financial reports in time.MAuditingThe financial audit of Year I of the CF Grant proved challenging in absence of clear auditing arrangementsSPASE to amend the contract of its current external auditors to audit CPT as follow: (i) audit of the lifetime project financial statements covering from effectiveness to the closing; and (ii) perform a Specific Audit to certify the eligibility of the teachers’ salaries after the disbursement of the first and second installments and before the release of the grant balance. The TORs of the audits have been agreed upon with the government during the negotiations. MFraud and corruptionGhost teachers may be paid under the programMThough the risk of fraud and corruption within the country is high in general, it is considered Moderate for the project’s activities in light of the results of the 2008 technical audit of Year I of the CF Grant as there was no proved evidence of ghost teachers in the listing of personnel cleared by MC. Besides, the lessons learnt from the implementation of Year I of the CF Grant are factored in the proposed built-in fiduciary arrangements. In particular, under MC’s leadership, the government has satisfactorily implemented the key recommendations of the 2008 Technical Audit and that of the financial audit of Year I Grant, including a reconciliation system between SIGIPES and ANTILOPE. In addition, the 2010 Technical Audit currently being implemented under C2D financing and whose results will be published in September 2010 will be used to inform the Specific Audit as much as possible. MOverall control riskSMOverall risk ratingSMThe overall residual FM risk is moderate. Strengths: This is a follow-up project whose main activity will consist in reimbursing part of the salaries of CPT teachers under same fiduciary arrangements used for Year I CF Grant. In addition, the fiduciary arrangements will be strengthened with the support of PASE FM Unit in the areas of accounting, reporting and auditing and the existence of robust operations and fiduciary procedures. No prior audit for this project or for any other project managed by the PASE is outstanding.Weaknesses and Follow-up Actions: The audit reports of the Year I of the CF Grant identified several internal controls weaknesses, including the lack of accounting records and financial reports and the absence of reconciliation mechanism between SIGIPES and ANTILOPE. To address these shortcomings, the PASE FM Unit is expanding its computerized accounting system to ensure adequate bookkeeping of the CPT transactions and generate the financial reports under the responsibility of the Permanent Secretariat. Besides, the MC has updated the operations manual taking into account the audit recommendations, including an adequate reconciliation mechanism between SIGIPES and ANTILOPE. 3. Implementing entity The Ministry of Basic Education (MINEDUB) is ultimately responsible for the implementation and monitoring of the “Opération de Contractualisation” (OC). However, the contracting process of the OC calls for an institutional arrangement that requires the implication of different governmental entities: (i) the Prime Minister's office, which gives prior approval to proceed with the contracting process; (ii) the Ministry of Public Function and Administrative Reform, which signs the contract; and (iii) the Ministry of Finance, which is responsible for budget allocations and salaries payment. To ensure efficient implementation, a Monitoring Committee (MC) was established under MINEDUB. The MC includes representatives from the above ministries, has a Permanent Secretariat headed by the Human Resources Director of MINEDUB, and is assisted by a Technical Secretariat. The LDPs also participate in the Committee's working sessions.The staff of the Permanent Secretariat has considerable experience in human resources management. In addition, an Operations Manual guides the implementation of the contract teacher program. The Manual specifies the procedures, roles and responsibilities of the actors involved in the process. It also specifies the administrative, financial and accounting mechanisms. The Manual was updated in March 2010 to reflect the recommendations of 2008 Technical Audit and that of the financial audit of Year I CF Grant, as well as new disbursement procedures to reimburse government payments. The MC is responsible for (i) ensuring the coordination of the activities of the Project; (ii) preparing and organizing the overall recruitment process for CPTs; (iii) managing the recruitment and deployment of contracted teachers, especially verifying teacher presence in schools; (iv) monitoring the quality of the teaching; and (v) keeping records and reporting to the development partners on all aspects of the Program. In addition, the MC reports to the development partners on all aspects of the contract teacher program. The development partners also participate in the MC's working sessions. 4. Financial management and Audits The 2008 Technical Audit was carried out in 2008 on a representative sample of PCTs hired in 2007 and 2008. The results of this audit highlighted several weaknesses in the recruitment process as well as in the recording of transactions. The audit also noted significant improvements between the two recruitment phases. A second technical and procedural audit is under implementation and the results will be published by September 2010.The main results of the 2008 audit are summarized below:The selection criteria of teachers were observed overall, even though the audit found a number of anomalies in 2007. This number decreased significantly in 2008.The audit showed a significant gap between the number of teachers recruited and that registered in 2007. This gap was reduced in 2008. The number of teachers registered but not paid was low (40 out of 13,000 in 2007 and 60 out of 5500 in 2008). A delay at the contract signature explained this anomaly in most cases, and at the time of the pilot audit, MINEDUB was working to reduce this delay.The audit also showed that in 2007, 3.6% of the total CPT were registered twice. This percentage fell to 0.04% in 2008. Half of these teachers were also paid twice, while the situation of the other teachers could not be asserted. At the time of the audit, no robust system was in place to track the "Bons de Caisse" leading to such uncertainty regarding the occurrence of double payment.In response to the issues identified in the auditor reports of Year I CF Grant, PASE will provide a technical financial management support to the Permanent Secretariat. The FM Unit of PASE, headed by a qualified Financial Manager and supported by an accountant, will collect the documents supporting monthly salary payroll, record the transactions under the existing computerized accounting system and prepare the financial reports. PASE’s Internal Auditor will review and clear the requests for reimbursement before submission to IDA. His role will consist mainly in double-checking supporting documents submitted by MC to claim the reimbursement of monthly CPT teacher salaries. The effective reconciliation mechanism between SIGIPES and ANTILOPE will also help secure the registration and payment processes.5. Budgeting The project budget is included in the government approved budget with appropriate tags for spending selected in the project supported by external funding. The budget is prepared and managed under the responsibility of the MINEDUB. The annual work program - comprising the recruitment and deployment plan of contract teachers and budget - is agreed, recorded and monitored through the Government budget and executed according to financial procedures and systems. Adequate budget control and control of commitments are carried out by the “Contr?le financier” of the Ministry of Finance in accordance with the internal controls applicable to payroll in Cameroon through computerized information and management financial systems – SIGIPES and ANTILOPE - and other relevant operational and PFM controls and oversights.6. Accounting policies and procedures Although the project envisions an approach which departs from the one used for the Year I CF Grant, the fiduciary arrangements are aligned with the Government’s mechanisms and procedures already in place for contracting teachers program. The MC is supported by a computerized tool, SIGIPES (Système Informatique de Gestion Intégrée des Personnels de l’Etat et de la Solde), that interfaces with the financial software ANTILOPE (Application nationale des traitements informatiques et logistiques des personnels de l’Etat) - the computerized system of management of State personnel’s salaries and pensions-for the payment phase of Government treasury system. However, given that the audit reports of Year I CF Grant revealed shortcomings in bookkeeping and reporting, the PASE FM Unit will maintain separate project accounting following its current policies based on OHADA standards, which are acceptable to the Bank. The existing PASE’s computerized accounting system will be expanded to record the transactions of this project and generate accurate financial reports in time.7. Internal control and auditing: Internal controls already in place include the whole systems of control, financial or otherwise, established by the Permanent Secretariat consistent with CPT payroll management in order to (a) carry out the project activities in an orderly and efficient manner, (b) ensure adherence to policies and procedures and (c) safeguard the funds of the project and ensure as far as possible the completeness and accuracy of the financial and other records. An operations manual documenting the internal controls was developed and used to implement the Year I Grant with a specific focus on the following: (i) segregation of duties, (ii) authorization and approval, (iii) clear channels of command, (iv) arithmetic and accounting accuracy, (v) integrity and performance of staff at all levels, and (vi) supervision involving donors. Under the leadership of the MC, the government is satisfactorily implementing the key recommendations of the 2008 Technical Audit including the effectiveness of the reconciliation of data between SIGIPES and ANTILOPE. The Operations Manual (OM) was also updated in March 2010 taking into account the audit recommendations of Year I of the CF Grant. 8. Financial Reporting: On behalf of MC, PASE FM Unit will record and report on the project transactions, e.g CPT salary payrolls claimed for reimbursement and will then submit Interim Financial Reports (IFRs) to the World Bank not later than 45 days after the end of each calendar quarter. At a minimum, the financial reports must include the following tables with appropriate comments; (i) Sources and Uses of Funds; and (ii) Uses of Funds by Project Activity. The format of the IFR used for PASE will apply to this project as agreed upon during negotiation.At the end of project implementation, PASE will prepare on behalf of MC the Project’s Financial Statements (PFS) comprising: (i) a statement of sources and uses of funds; (ii) Uses of Funds by Project Activity; (iii) accounting policies and procedures; and (iv) explanatory notes. These PFS will be subject to external audits as described below.9. External audit: Within 2 months after effectiveness, PASE will amend the contract of its current external auditors to audit the CPT as follow: Specific Audit: upon the disbursement of the first and second installments, the auditors will audit the teachers’ salaries claimed by the government to certify their eligibility before the balance – if any – be released by IDA. The expected due date of this Specific Audit report is March 15, 2011;Project financial statement audit: within 6 months after the closing date, the auditors will audit the Project Financial Statements covering the project’s lifetime. The expected due date is June 30, 2012. These audits will be carried out in accordance with the International Standards on Auditing (ISA) and based on TORs acceptable to IDA. The ToRs of the audits have been agreed upon with the government during negotiations. The above audit reports including a management letter will be submitted to IDA as specified above. Disbursement Arrangements and Flow of Funds10. Flow of funds: The overall project funding will consist of $24.8 million. The project proceeds will be used exclusively to reimburse the payment of CPT teachers’ salaries claimed by the MC under the program. An account will be designated at the BEAC by the government into which the reimbursement will be wired. Detailed arrangements, including procedures regarding all financial transactions, are documented in the financial procedures of the Operations Manual.Disbursement Methods: The Disbursement Guidelines of May 2006 avail up to four disbursement methods (reimbursement, advance, direct payment and special commitment). For this operation, the reimbursement method will be used since the grant will reimburse the government for its contribution to the program. The reimbursement method is being used to partially mitigate the risk of diversion of funds associated with financing contract teachers’ salaries paid using government systems. Before submitting applications for withdrawal grant proceeds to IDA, the internal auditor will review and clear the supporting documents provided by MC to claim the reimbursement of monthly CPT teachers’ salaries. Upon effectiveness, the government will submit a first installment request, together with the supporting documentation, for the amount approved for retroactive financing representing not more than 20 percent of the grant. A second installment representing not more than 40 percent will be submitted to IDA with agreed supporting documentation (see below). The third and last disbursement will be conditioned to the Specific Audit aimed at confirming the eligibility of the teachers’ salaries paid under the first and second installments. The following is the tentative disbursement schedule:Installment 1: US$ 4,960,000 upon effectivenessInstallment 2: US$ 9,920,000 October 2010Installment 3: US$9,920,000 January/February 2011CategoryAmount of the Grant Allocated (expressed in USD)Percentage of Expenditures to be Financed(inclusive of Taxes)(1) Services under Part 1(a) of the Project $14,880,000100%(2) Services under Part 1 (b)of the Project $9,920,000100%TOTAL AMOUNT24,800,000Counterpart funding: similarly to Year I CF Grant, GoC is committed to support the education sector by contributing its own resources. Under this project, GoC pays the monthly salaries to contract teachers before seeking with IDA the reimbursement of catalytic fund contributions for a fraction of the overall CPT cost.Retroactive Financing: The grant will be disbursed on a retroactive financing basis up to the allowed limit of 20 percent of the grant (US$4.96 million equivalent) for contract teachers’ salaries paid by the government during calendar year 2009/2010 and before the grant agreement date but on or before January 1, 2010.Types of Supporting Documentation: the Bank requires copies of the original documents evidencing monthly payments of teachers’ salaries to be provided by the Technical Secretariat (“Records”) or summary reports of such payments (“Summary Reports”). Disbursements will be supported by customized Statements of Expenditures (SOE) summarizing eligible teachers’ salaries paid during a stated period. The SOE will be certified by MC and cleared by the internal auditor. In all cases, the Permanent Secretariat will be responsible for ensuring that the original documents evidencing the eligible teachers’ salaries are available for accounting, audit or inspection.Financial covenants: financial covenants are the standard ones as described in the legal documents and are comprised of maintaining project accounts in accordance with sound accounting practices, audit requirements and records well kept and secured. Fraud and corruption: Though the risk of fraud and corruption within the country is high in general, it is considered Moderate for the project’s activities in light of the results of the 2008 Technical Audit and that of the Financial Audit of Year 1 CF Grant as there was no proved evidence of ghost teachers in the CPT listing of personnel cleared by MC. The stringent procedures for the recruitment and monitoring of the contract teachers program are strong deterrents against the risk of fraud and corruption. Besides, the lessons learnt from the implementation of Yr.1 CF Grant are factored in the proposed built-in fiduciary arrangements. In particular, under MC’s leadership, the government has satisfactorily implemented the key recommendations of the 2008 Technical Audit and that of the Financial Audit of Year 1 CF Grant including a reconciliation system between SIGIPES and ANTILOPE. The 2010 Technical Audit will be used by the external auditors to certify the eligibility of teachers’ salaries for which reimbursement is claimed by the MC. In addition, the reimbursement method and auditing arrangements will contribute to mitigate the risk of fraud and corruption.Conclusion and Supervision Plan: the project will be supervised using a risk-based approach. Supervision will review the acceptability of FM system to ensure that the project resources are used for the intended purposes and provide support where needed. Based on the current risk, which is moderate, the project will be supervised once a year. Action PlanActionsCompleted byResponsible1. Finalize the appointment of an accountant to ensure the bookkeeping of CPT transactions and expand PASE computerized accounting system to the specifics of the Grant;September 1, 2010 (Before effectiveness)Permanent Secretariat/PASE 2. Amend the contract of the current external auditors of PASE to conduct (i) the specific audit and (ii) the audit of the financial statements of the CPT project.Within 2 months after effectivenessPermanent Secretariat/PASEAnnex 7: Procurement ArrangementsRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorGuidelines: Procurement for this project would be carried out in accordance with the World Bank “Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants by World Bank Borrowers”, dated May 2004 and revised in October 2006 and May 2010, and the provisions stipulated in the Grant Agreement. The general description of various items under different expenditure category is described below. No procurement related to works, goods and non-consulting services is foreseen under this grant. For each contract to be financed by the grant under consultant selection methods, estimated costs, prior review requirements, and time-frame would be agreed between the Recipient and the Bank Task Team in the procurement plan. Advance contracting and retroactive financing: In order to accelerate program implementation, the borrower has expressed its intention to proceed with the initial steps of procurement before signing the related Financial Agreement. The procurement procedures, including advertising, have been done in accordance with the Bank’s Guidelines in order for the eventual contracts to be eligible for Bank financing, and the normal review process by the Bank will be followed in accordance with the Consultant Guidelines.Procurement plan: The Monitoring Committee has finalized the procurement plan. The team has been informed that all the candidates have already been recruited. All the recruitments of the CPTs will be treated on the post procurement review basis. There will be no need for the procurement plan to be updated.Selection of consultants The CPTs are recruited on an individual consultant contract basis and as such fall under the category of the paragraph 3.21-“Service Delivery Contractors” of the Consultants Guidelines. The teachers’ recruitment process is based on a group advert, depending on the needs. Only consultants who meet the requirements stated in the advert will be selected. The selection procedures and terms of employment are described extensively in the Operations Manual and are summarized below:Selection Procedures: The process starts by assessing the needs at the local level, based on the existing number of teachers and enrolment. The MC then decides on the number of positions to be open in each school, taking into account the objective of reducing the gap in PTR across regions. Based on this, MINEDUB publishes a call for application, detailing the modalities for applying, including the criteria used for the selection. Awareness campaigns are carried out to ensure that the call for application reaches every region in the same way. After all the applications are received and analyzed by MINEDUB, a ranking is performed taking into account the criteria defined beforehand, including years of experience, and diploma obtained. The final decision is made by matching the candidates’ choices with open positions. The list of hired candidates is then made public by local and central entities of MINEDUB.Terms of Employment: The CPTs are hired at the first echelon, 8th category.Technical audits and supervision missionsThe Bank will exercise quality control. It is understood that control mechanisms, including reporting will be done on the existence and performance of the teachers. This will be done during supervision missions and through technical audits. The selection procedures, job description and terms of employment will be deemed acceptable by the Bank. For the CPTs Teachers hired in 2007 and 2008, compliance to these rules has been attested by the 2008 Technical Audit. For the CPTs Teachers hired in 2009 and 2010, compliance will be verified during supervision of the project, based on the results of the 2010 Technical Audit as well as that of the Specific Audit. Fraud and Corruption: The MINEDUB/the Monitoring Committee, the PASE as well as CPT teachers shall observe the highest standard of ethics during the procurement and execution of contracts financed under the program in accordance with paragraphs paragraphs 1.22 & 1.23 of the Consultants Guidelines. Details of the Procurement Arrangements for Consulting ServicesList of main consulting assignments with selection methods and time schedule for all the project implementation. 1234567Ref. No.Description of AssignmentEstimated Cost (US$ million equivalent)Selection MethodReviewby Bank(Prior / Post)Expected Proposals Submission Date Comments1CPT teachers10.0Service Delivery ContractorsPost2007All Recruitments already completed2CPT teachers5.0Service Delivery ContractorsPost2008Recruitments already completed 3CPT teachers4.7Service Delivery ContractorsPost2009Recruitments already completed4CPT teachers5.1Service Delivery ContractorPost2010Recruitments already completedAll CPT teachers’ contracts will be subject to post review by the Bank and audited through technical audits.Annex 8: Safeguard Policy IssuesRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorAs the project support is confined to the salary of contract teachers, the project does not trigger any of the Bank’s safeguard policies.Annex 9: Economic and Financial AnalysisRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorThe government adopted a PRSP in 2003 in which it undertook to accelerate economic diversification and boost GDP growth; these objectives are however threatened by the global economic crisis, as well as the over-reliance of the economy on oil revenues. Based on the 2005 macroeconomic previsions, the government’s objective was to progressively increase real GDP growth to at least 7 percent per annum. This would allow an increase in real GDP per capita by approximately 3 to 4 percent, which is deemed the minimum necessary to significantly reduce poverty and reach the MDGs. The government expected average annual GDP growth to be above 5 percent during the period 2008-2015. Economic growth accelerated to 4.1 percent in 2008, up from 3.4 percent in 2007 as a result of good results in the oil sector, ongoing infrastructure work, increased energy supply and programs to boost agriculture, livestock and fisheries. It is expected however to slow to 3.1 percent in 2009 because the global recession pushed down prices and demand for the country’s main commodity exports (chiefly oil, wood, cotton and rubber). The vulnerability of the economy to such exogenous shocks is exacerbated by its dependence on oil and a major challenge facing the government in 2009 is to increase revenue from the non-oil sector. The role of human capital as a key driver of economic growth and social development is reinforced in this economic context. With the decline in oil production, future growth depends on an increased share of the tertiary sector in the overall economy, in particular manufacturing activities. Education has thus a key role to play in promoting the development of these sectors, and beyond, to accelerate economic growth and poverty reduction. The government’s PRSP, which was developed in 2003, acknowledged the importance of human capital development for poverty reduction and the various progress reports published since. The 2009 Growth and Employment Strategy reaffirmed the role played by the education sector in economic and social development in Cameroun.However, progress towards Education for All remains slow: low internal efficiency and inequity is still pervasive. Gross Enrolment Ratio surpassed 100 percent in 2005, meaning that the primary education system had the overall capacity to enroll all 6-11 year old Cameroonians. However, this hid considerable inequity within the system. Whereas the average Gender Parity Index is high in Cameroon (0.90), some regions were lagging behind with high proportion of girls still out-of-school. For example in the “Extrême Nord” and “Nord” provinces, the gender parity index was below 0.70. Primary completion rates were still very low in primary education, only reaching 64 percent. High levels of repetition contributed to low completion, particularly for the Francophone schools. Although repetition is primarily a policy issue in Cameroon (rates of repetition are determined by individual schools rather than clear pedagogical benchmarks), quality is globally quite low at the primary level (CSR, 2003).According to the GoC Education Sector Strategy the insufficient number of teachers is a key contributing factor to the low efficiency of the sector. During the 2005-2006 school year, there were 62 students per primary school teachers. In addition, not all teachers have the same qualifications. Cameroon had three types of teachers: civil servant teachers; contract teachers and community teachers. Only the first two categories received training. The priority actions adopted in 2005 were to: (i) increase the number of trained teachers, ensuring a more equitable deployment; and (ii) adopt new policies that would reduce primary education repetition rates; and initiate the Contract Teacher Program. These were the essential elements of the government’s EFA-FTI CF Grant application in 2005. Since the Year I CF Grant was awarded in 2006, progress has been made regarding the number and deployment of teachers. As indicated in Annex 1, pupil teacher ratios decreased by 10 points between 2005/2006 and 2007/2008, reaching 52. The recruitment of an additional 13,275 contract teachers under the Year I Grant has largely contributed to this goal. In addition, over the same period, there has been a large drop in repetition from 28 percent to 18 percent and 17 percent to 12.2 percent in Francophone and Anglophone regions, respectively. This has been the result of the implementation of changes in repetition policies to have automatic promotions for “sub-cycles” (grades 1 and 2, 3 and 4, 5 and 6). In addition, the Government of Cameroon has shown strong commitment to sustaining the progress made in the education sector and intends to gradually absorb the salary of contract teachers into the national budget. The share of education in total public expenditure exceeded 17 percent between 2007 and 2009, although the actual spending declined to about 14 .4 percent in 2008 as a result of the fluctuation in oil revenues. In spite of the decrease in revenues in 2009, the allocation for education in total public spending remained high at 17.5 percent. In addition, the government has planned to increase this share to 19.5 percent in 2011. In parallel, the share of basic education in total expenditure on education increased dramatically, from 32.5 in 2007 to 28 percent in 2009, with a peak at 41 percent in 2008. These increases reflect the priority given to education by GoC. If the budget for education increases to around 20 percent as suggested in the FTI indicative framework, GoC will be in a position to absorb contract teachers cost by 2011.Year 20072008200920102011Education Expenditure as a percent of National Resources Expected17 %17,6%18,2%18,8%19,5%Actual14,9%14,5%17,5%% of Education budget allocated to Primary EducationExpected36,8%38,4%40,1%41,7%43,4%Actual32,5%41,06%38%Annex 10: Project Preparation and SupervisionRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorPlannedActualPCN Review (virtual):April 13, 2009April 13, 2009Initial PID to Infoshop:October 2, 2009September 28, 2009Initial ISDS to Infoshop:October 2, 2009October 1, 2009Appraisal:June 15, 2010June 16, 2010Negotiations:June 16, 2010June 16, 2010Board/RVP Approval:August 17, 2010Planned Date of Effectiveness:September 1, 2010Planned Date of Mid-Term Review:n.a.Planned Closing Date:December 31, 2011Key institutions responsible for preparation of the project: MINEDUB, FinancesBank staff and consultants who worked on the project include:NameTitleUnitMichel WelmondLead Education Specialist, Task Team LeaderAFTEDNathalie S MunzbergSenior CounselLEGAFAissatou DialloFinance OfficerCTRFCDung-Kim PhamOperations OfficerAFTEDEmeran Serge M. Menang EvounaLucienne M. M’Baipor Forestry SpecialistSocial Development SpecialistAFTENKouami Hounsinou MessanProcurement SpecialistAFTPCNestor CoffiSenior Financial Management SpecialistAFTFMFadila CaillaudEducation SpecialistAFTEDPrema ClarkeConsultantAFTEDLisa OverbeyConsultantAFTEDNatalie Tchoumba BitngaTeam AssistantAFC12Josiane LuchmunProgram AssistantAFTSPNorosoa AndrianaivoProgram AssistantAFTEDBank funds expended to date on project preparation: Bank resources:US$25,000Trust funds:US$38,000Total:US$ 63,000Estimated Approval and Supervision costs:Remaining costs to approval:US$12,000Estimated annual supervision cost:US$ 115,000Annex 11: Major Related Projects Financed by the Bank and/or Other AgenciesRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorWorld Bank:Education Development Capacity Building Project: The Project was restructured in April 2010 to restate its objective and revise the indicators to be coherent with the stated objective. The restructured Project is designed to build capacity that will support the development and implementation of Cameroon’s Education Sector Strategy. In that context, the higher level objective is to establish a culture of strategic management and planning within the education sector to identify needed reforms and ensure their effective implementation. To contribute to this higher level objective, the Project development objective is to develop and apply management and learning tools for use by government and communities to improve efficiency and accountability within the Cameroon education sector. French Development Agency: Program C2D ? Contrats de Désendettement et de Développement?. Under the C2D Cameroon continues to service the remaining debt, but France refinances the same amount through grants. The resources thereby released are allocated to jointly-identified priorities in the country’s poverty reduction strategy. The first global C2D contract between France and Cameroon was signed in June 2006. It covers an amount of Euro 537 million over a five year period (2007 to 2011) and will be distributed to five main areas: infrastructure (roads and urban development), rural development (agriculture, food security), environment and biodiversity, primary education, and health including HIV/AIDS.The Education component of the C2D provides 40 million Euros for the implementation of the Sector Strategy: 37.5 million Euros to be disbursed over 5 years as budget support targeted to the cost of contract teachers (through its Contrat de Désendettement et de développement, C2D); and 2.5 million Euros for institutional strengthening. Support to the teachers’ recruitment program is done in collaboration with the international EFA-FTI CF. Budget support totaling FCFA 24.6 billion combined with EFA and national resource funding have allowed the Ministry of Basic Education to start recruiting 13,300 new contract teachers since January 2007. The Ministry plans to recruit more than 25,000 new teachers over the next five years, in order to increase primary school enrollment while improving the quality of education, and ultimately achieve universal primary education in Cameroon. Resources from C2D also contribute to strengthening the management and the reform steering capacities of the Ministry of Basic Education, as well as developing a partnership between the Government and private schools. They will also contribute to upgrading education services in several key geographical areas.Annex 12: Documents in the Project FileRepublic of Cameroon: Education for All – Fast Track Initiative - Support to the Education SectorDocument de Stratégie Sectorielle de l’?ducation, République du Cameroun, 2006Rapport d’évaluation technique du Document de Stratégie Sectorielle de l’?ducation au Cameroun, en vue de son endossement par les partenaires techniques et financiers à l’Initiative Fast-Track, Yaoundé 9 juin 2006Manuel des procédures de mise en ?uvre du programme de contractualisation des instituteurs de l’enseignement général (2007-2011), MINEDUC, updated in March 2010Audit report of Yr. 1 Catalytic Grant, 2009Annex 13?: Country at a Glance ................
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