Agreement for financial support to STARS project signed between DEA and World Bank

Context

Agreement for the financial support of the implementation of Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States (STARS) project is signed between Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) and World Bank along with Ministry of Education.

About STARS project

• STARS project envisions improving the overall monitoring and measurement activities in the Indian school education system through interventions in selected states.
• Department: The project would be implemented as a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme under Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL), MOE.
• Identified States: The project covers 6 States viz Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Odisha.
  • The identified States will be supported for various interventions for improving the quality of education.
• Union Cabinet has approved the proposal of STARS project on 14^thOct 2020.

Objectives of the Program

• STARS will draw on existing structure under Samagra Shiksha with the DoSEL, MoE as the main implementing agency at the national level.
• At the State level, the project will be implemented through the integrated State Implementation Society (SIS) for Samagra Shiksha.
• STARS project will be instrumental in the implementation of various recommendations of National Education Policy 2020 i.e.
  • Strengthening Early Childhood Education and Foundational Learning
  • Improving Learning Assessment System
  • ICT-enabled approaches in education
  • Teachers Development and Vocational education etc.

The proposed WB Support

• The proposed World Bank support under STARS is primarily in the form of a results-based financing instrument called Program for Results (PforR).
• This will ensure major reforms at the State level through a set of disbursement-linked indicators (DLIs).
• State Incentive Grant (SIG): A State Incentive Grant (SIG) will be used to encourage States to meet desired project outcomes. The SIG matrix has been aligned with the intermediate outcome indicators as per the requirement of PforR instrument.
• Verification agency (IVA): An independent Verification agency (IVA) will verify each result before disbursement of funds.