The economic situation of Madagascar has seen an almost continuous decline in the standard of living since the country’s independence. Meanwhile, the national poverty line remains high at 75 pct. and is especially increasing in rural areas of Madagascar. 

Poverty is a hindrance for access to education, as education allowances rarely are a priority for households and school dropouts often are due to a family’s financial challenges. The disparities between rural and urban areas are large, and especially girls are disadvantaged and more likely to dropout, ex. because of early pregnancies. 

Many poor households rely on help from the state but the share of state spending in the education sector has decreased, and schools and the Participatory School Management Committees (FEFFI) report of a lack of reliable and adequate resources and an absence of internal control. 

To make up for the missing internal monitoring and control at the level of the Ministry of Education and to make communities more accountable, it is vital that parents, communities, and local CSO’s are mobilised and more involved in monitoring and control – and this is the exact aim of the SCORE project, led by Multi-Sector Information Service – Tohana sy Ainga ho an’ny Tambazotran’ny Olompirenena (MSIS-Tatao). 

The extension phase of the project will build on the efforts made in the previous phase implemented between July 2021 – December 2023. MSIS-TATAO will work to strengthen the mobilisation and civic education of all stakeholders in basic education at local level, particularly education authorities and professionals, CSOs, grassroots communities, pupils, and private sector actors. The project is based on monitoring and strengthening transparency and accountability, as well as citizen participation, so that they can fully play their role as a community structure bringing together local stakeholders to ensure sound management of resources and a positive impact on the quality of education. Furthermore, the SCORE project will during this phase focus on strengthening inclusive education for the most vulnerable and poor children, young girls, and children with disabilities. 

Some main efforts of the SCORE project will include:  

• Mobilisation and civic education by and for community players. 

• Monitoring and observations carried out by local CSOs and community representatives, and results and recommendations disseminated to the public, ex. through the media. 

• Local actors committed to improve the transparency and effectiveness of basic education services. 

• Advocacy at national level to improve national public policies in favour of transparency and good management of education. 

The previous phase of the SCORE project has already brought about positive changes and serves as a source of hope for several schools in the 21 districts and 7 regions that is covered by the project.  

The extension phase is likewise designed to support permanent structures, particularly at communal level. Together with supporting local CSOs to carry out activities at communal level, which will ensure permanent changes, the SCORE project will ensue the longevity of the achieved impacts. 

A previous phase of the SCORE project was implemented between July 2021 – December 2023. The current project is part of the EOL extension phase of 2024-2026. Read more about the first phase of the project here.