India: Education Sector Development in the 1990s, A Country Assistance Evaluation

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Abstract

World Bank lending in education has taken place through a unique working relationship in line with India's principle of self-sufficiency and domestic development. Until the late 1980s, the government of India strongly resisted external funding for education programs. Subsequently, the goal of universal elementary education resulted in demand for additional resources, leading the department of education (DOE) to review its policy on external funding in education. The Bank's continued efforts towards a dialogue with DOE aimed at confidence building also contributed to this change in policy. Since 1980, the Bank s investments in education in India have grown from an almost negligible amount to 2 billion dollars. The Bank has approved four vocational and technical education and training (TVET) projects and six basic education projects. Overall, their capacity increased more than 50 percent, by roughly 100,000 student places, and expansion often exceeded targets. The operations evaluation department (OED) has rated project performance as satisfactory or highly satisfactory, though substantial improvements are still needed in industry linkages, quality of trainers, and academic flexibility.