Regional disparities in primary school participation in developing countries

Abstract

Education for All has focused international attention on the goals of universal primary education and improved education quality. However, national indicators related to these goals often mask significant differences among demographic and social groups, as well as among geographical regions within countries. This paper, based on a study commissioned by UNESCO’s Global Monitoring Report team, examines within-country (regional) disparities in participation in primary education in between 55 and 60 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Arab States. After reviewing the methodology used in the analysis, the paper compares countries’ disparities in net enrolment rates before and after the Dakar Framework was established in 2000, changes over the pre- to post-Dakar period and a comparison of net enrolment rates with pupil-teacher ratios—one of the standard measures of education quality. Overall, the analysis finds significant differences in the magnitude of regional disparities in primary participation across the countries, with the smallest disparities in Latin America and the largest in sub-Saharan Africa. While just over half the countries with both pre- and post-Dakar data showed improvements over the period, there was little change in countries’ rankings on the disparities measures over this period.