Foreign economic-aid-related services

Tender description

1 DFID Sierra Leone is implementing a programme of support to the education sector — the Sierra Leone Secondary Education Improvement Programme (SSEIP) over the next 5 years, 2016/17 to 2020/21. The SSEIP seeks to support the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST) to improve learning outcomes for boys and girls at upper primary and secondary level and to increase the enrolment, retention and well-being of girls in school. The rationale for the programme is clearly set out in the Business Case. 2 The programme is being delivered in the context of Sierra Leone's recovery from Ebola. The initial 15 months of the programme will support the President's Recovery Priorities in which education is 1 of 5 priority sectors. These Recovery Priorities build Priorities build on the successes of the initial 9 month recovery programme which saw the re-opening of schools after their closure during the state of emergency from August 2014 to April 2015. Beyond the President's Recovery Priorities, which end in June 2017, SSEIP remains open and flexible to respond to the newly emerging priorities of the Government of Sierra Leone (GoSL), noting that a general election is due towards the end of 2017. These ToRs concern mainly the initial period from now until June 2017, reflecting the focus in the Business Case. Some indications are given of how the scope of work may be extended in the 2nd phase, though this remains very much an issue for second phase design which is a key activity of the 1st phase. 3 The SSEIP is part of a wider commitment of support by DFID to assist the recovery and further development of Sierra Leone. SSEIP is the largest single externally funded programme to the education sector. Other major support comes from the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), supervised by the World Bank, with a focus on primary education. The European Union (EU) is in the final stages of design of a 5 year programme covering primary, secondary and skills development. UNICEF, who has a strong presence, chairs the Education Donor Group. DFID has played a leading role in the early recovery in Sierra Leone, including in the education sector.