The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) REPORT NO.: RES48892 RESTRUCTURING PAPER ON A PROPOSED PROJECT RESTRUCTURING OF GAMBIA - EMERGENCY EDUCATION COVID-19 RESPONSE APPROVED ON JULY 10, 2020 TO THE GAMBIA EDUCATION AFRICA WEST Regional Vice President: Ousmane Diagana Country Director: Nathan M. Belete Global Director: Jaime Saavedra Chanduvi Practice Manager/Manager: Meskerem Mulatu Task Team Leader(s): Alison Marie Grimsland The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ESMP Environmental and Social Management Plan ESCP Environmental and Social Commitment Plan GM Grievance Mechanism ISR Implementation Status Report MoBSE Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education PDO Project Development Objective PPE Personal Protective Equipment RF Results Framework WFP World Food Programme The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) BASIC DATA Product Information Project ID Financing Instrument P174035 Investment Project Financing Environmental and Social Risk Classification (ESRC) Moderate Approval Date Current Closing Date 10-Jul-2020 30-Nov-2021 Organizations Borrower Responsible Agency The Gambia Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education Financing (in USD Million) FIN_SUMM_PUB_TBL SUMMARY Total Project Cost 0 Total Financing 0 Financing Gap 0 DETAILS -NewFin3 Project Development Objective (PDO) Original PDO The Project’s Development Objective is to: (a) support implementation of the Education Sector COVID-19 Response Plan; (b) ensure continued access to educational services and (c) support safe and resilient learning environments for students returning to schools. OPS_TABLE_PDO_CURRENTPDO The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) Summary Status of Financing (US$, Millions) Net TF Approval Signing Effectiveness Closing Commitment Disbursed Undisbursed TF-B3371 10-Jul-2020 16-Jul-2020 16-Jul-2020 30-Nov-2021 3.46 3.46 0 Policy Waiver(s) Does this restructuring trigger the need for any policy waiver(s)? No I. PROJECT STATUS AND RATIONALE FOR RESTRUCTURING A. Project Status 1. Project Overview. The Emergency Education COVID-19 Response Project (P174035) is an emergency response project funded by the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) with the World Bank as the grant agent. It was approved on July 10, 2020 and declared effective on July 16, 2020 with a 17-month implementation period. The current closing date of the project is November 30, 2021. The project has four components: (i) Component 1: Continuity of Learning; (ii) Component 2: Safe Return to School; (iii) Component 3: Community Engagement and Strategic Communication; and (iv) Component 4: Technical and Institutional Support. The Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education (MoBSE) is the key implementing agency. 2. Progress towards achievement of Project Development Objectives (PDO). The Project Development Objectives (PDOs) are to: (i) support implementation of the Education Sector COVID-19 Response Plan; (ii) ensure continued access to educational services; and (iii) support safe and resilient learning environments for students returning to schools. The project is currently rated as Satisfactory. Reporting on the results framework show that it is progressing well across each of the components and is making significant progress toward achievement of the PDOs. This is evidenced by the increase in the disbursement rate from 83 percent (March 2021) to 100 percent (November 2021) as well as achievement of two of the four PDO level indicators, related to COVID-19 sensitization campaigns and equipping schools with minimum hygiene standards for prevention of COVID-19. A third related to distance learning support is over 85 percent met and the fourth, related to the medium-term objective of rolling out a remediation program, is under implementation, with analysis of the results expected by end of November. Both are likely to be met subject to extension of the project closing date. The final withdrawal of funds has been made, and several procurement activities are underway to ensure that the full funds are spent down. 3. Implementation Progress. Weekly implementation support meetings show that several of the key project supported activities are being implemented successfully. However, three main activities related to the resilience efforts still require concerted effort to ensure timely delivery. These are: (i) provision of equipment for internet connectivity, (ii) procurement and distribution of SD cards that provide students with both online and offline resources and (iii) the The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) establishment of regional education radio stations. The long-term nature of COVID-19 along with supply chain delays posed significant challenges and caused slowdown of the implementation of some of these activities. To reflect the short timeframe remaining to implement these activities, implementation progress was recently downgraded to Moderately Satisfactory. Despite the delays, the project continues to operate and has made substantial progress toward completing the remaining activities. A summary of progress across the main components is detailed below. 4. Component 1. Continuity of Learning. Under component 1, radio and television programming was developed (using a multigrade approach). The radio and television programs were broadcast over two periods (each for 21 days) for four hours daily. An online platform has been developed to serve as a repository for the lessons developed, and other avenues are being explored for distance learning using lessons learned from the extended school closure period. Food distribution took place as planned in regions 2, 4, and selected districts in region 5, benefitting over 90,000 children and their families. This mirrored World Food Programme (WFP) efforts in other regions and was implemented in lieu of the school feeding program during the school closure (in July 2020). Further, student worksheets have been developed for supplemental home based learning and are ready to be distributed. 5. Component 2. Safe Return to Schools. Under Component 2, The Ministry of Education developed a school reopening plan which was shared broadly and informed the reopening of schools. All schools benefitted from deep cleaning prior to school reopening upon which Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and various cleaning materials were distributed. This included provision of masks to all students. Masks were made by several woman-owned small enterprises, and specialized masks for hearing-impaired students. All schools were reopened as of October 28, 2020, and the following school year (2021) schools once again reopened as planned. 6. Component 3. Community Engagement and Strategic Communication. Under Component 3, sensitization messages were developed and widely distributed before and after the aforementioned radio and television programs. These key sensitization messages were shared around COVID-19 safety and prevention measures (shared 8 times daily, meaning 168 times during the 42-day broadcast). A school readiness assessment was conducted, targeting grade 5 students, as well as teachers and staff, and analysis of the total number of students reached will inform the related intermediate indicator. The results of the assessment are informing ongoing remediation efforts. B. Rationale for Restructuring 7. The proposed restructuring seeks to extend the project’s closing date by four months from November 30, 2021 to March 30, 2022. The extension of the loan closing date will allow for uninterrupted implementation of the project. The additional time will allow the remaining critical activities namely, provision of small equipment required for internet connectivity, final delivery of technology devices (SD cards, and tablets), and equipping of regional radio stations, to be completed. These are each near completion and the remaining four months will allow them to be fully executed. This subset of remaining activities are linked to the resilience objective of the project and met considerable delays due to the ongoing nature of the pandemic which has required continuous attention from MoBSE and project coordination teams to continue to react to shifting COVID-19 realities and slower than usual procurement due to some minor supply chain challenges. An extension of the project closing date is simultaneously being submitted to GPE. 8. The restructuring will also revise the project’s results framework (RF) to reflect a modification in the disability intermediate indicator “number of disabled students benefitting from mobile based support from teachers” to “number The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) of students benefitting from technology aided support from itinerant teachers” thus taking into account broader technology-based support rather than mobile based support. 9. Based on strong progress made in achieving the PDO indicators, progress in the recruitment of environmental and social (E&S) specialists and undertaking work related to monitoring of environmental and social risks, the overall project risk rating has been reduced from Substantial to Moderate as of the most recent Implementation Status Report (ISR) from November 2021. II. DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSED CHANGES A. Proposed Changes 10. The proposed restructuring includes the following changes: a. Extension of the project closing date by 4 months from November 30, 2021 to March 30, 2022. The extension request does not have any cost implications. b. Modify the disability intermediate indicator from “number of disabled students benefitting from mobile based support from teachers” to “number of students benefitting from technology aided support from itinerant teachers” to reflect broader technology-based support. 11. PDO and PDO level indicators. The proposed restructuring will not change the PDO and PDO level indicators and the project will retain all existing implementation and financing arrangements 12. Environmental and Social Framework. An Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) was finalized under the project after some delay. The grievance redress mechanism (GRM) is operational and includes sexual exploitation and abuse/sexual harassment (SEA/SH) mitigation measures, and is informed by a mapping of services across all regions. Environmental and Social safeguards specialists, as required by the Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP) are in place and regularly monitoring project activities. The extension by 4-months is not expected to in any way change the environmental and social risks, or design of the project. III. SUMMARY OF CHANGES Changed Not Changed Results Framework ✔ Loan Closing Date(s) ✔ Disbursement Estimates ✔ Implementing Agency ✔ Project's Development Objectives ✔ Components and Cost ✔ The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) Cancellations Proposed ✔ Additional Financing Proposed ✔ Reallocation between Disbursement Categories ✔ Disbursements Arrangements ✔ Change in Overall Risk Rating ✔ Legal Covenants ✔ Institutional Arrangements ✔ Financial Management ✔ Procurement ✔ Implementation Schedule ✔ Other Change(s) ✔ Economic and Financial Analysis ✔ Technical Analysis ✔ Social Analysis ✔ Environmental Analysis ✔ IV. DETAILED CHANGE(S) OPS_DETAILEDCHANGES_RESULTS_TABLE RESULTS FRAMEWORK Project Development Objective Indicators PDO_IND_TABLE Percent of targeted communities benefiting from COVID-19 Sensitization Campaigns Unit of Measure: Percentage Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 100.00 90.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Number of children in the relevant age-group in the program area supported with distance/homebased learning/tutoring programs Unit of Measure: Number Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) Value 0.00 154,863.00 168,330.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Number of grant-supported schools offering remediation programs Unit of Measure: Number Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 0.00 418.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Number of grant-supported schools equipped with minimum hygiene standards for prevention of COVID-19 Unit of Measure: Number Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 807.00 564.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Intermediate Indicators IO_IND_TABLE Number of public primary school/lower secondary school students who receive stationary packages and printed materials Unit of Measure: Number Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 0.00 100,000.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Of which female Unit of Measure: Percentage Indicator Type: Custom Supplement Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 0.00 50.00 No Change Number of children provided access to nutrition Unit of Measure: Number The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 95,424.00 88,000.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Number of disabled students benefiting from technology based support from teachers Unit of Measure: Text Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value zero not yet available to be determined Revised Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Number of grant-supported schools reopened Unit of Measure: Number Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 807.00 627.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Percentage of teachers in grant-supported schools (public LBS and UBS) who return to school once the school system is reopened Unit of Measure: Percentage Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 78.00 80.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Number of teachers trained to provide accelerated programs to mitigate loss of learning during school closure Unit of Measure: Number Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 261.00 2,000.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 School Reopening Minimum Hygiene Standards developed Unit of Measure: Yes/No Indicator Type: Custom The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value No Yes Yes No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Remediation learning strategy developed Unit of Measure: Yes/No Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value No Yes Yes No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Number of citizen engagement messages distributed via radio Unit of Measure: Number Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 168.00 27.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Percentage of children previously enrolled in grant-supported schools who return to school once the school system is reopened Unit of Measure: Percentage Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 72.00 60.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Number of mobile surveys completed Unit of Measure: Number Indicator Type: Custom Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 2.00 2.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 Percentage of children whose learning was assessed to evaluate loss of learning during school closure Unit of Measure: Percentage Indicator Type: Custom The World Bank GAMBIA - Emergency Education COVID-19 Response (P174035) Baseline Actual (Current) End Target Action Value 0.00 0.00 20.00 No Change Date 13-May-2020 08-Nov-2021 30-Nov-2021 OPS_DETAILEDCHANGES_LOANCLOSING_TABLE LOAN CLOSING DATE(S) Original Revised Proposed Proposed Deadline TF Status Closing Closing(s) Closing for Withdrawal Applications TF-B3371 Effective 30-Nov-2021 30-Mar-2022 30-Jul-2022 OPS_DETAILEDCHANGES_DISBURSEMENT_TABLE DISBURSEMENT ESTIMATES Change in Disbursement Estimates Yes Expected Disbursements (In US$) Fiscal Year Annual Cumulative 2021 0.00 0.00 2022 0.00 0.00