Asked by: David Taylor (Labour - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of (a) the International Finance Facility for Education and (b) other innovative finance models on delivering value for money in education spending.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It is too early to assess the impact of the International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd) which was established only in 2024. The first investment cases will be approved by IFFEd's Board at the end of 2025 and projects will then begin implementation by the Asian Development Bank. An evaluation of IFFEd will take place over the next three years to understand impact.
The value for money assessments of our Results-Based Finance pilots through the Education Outcomes Fund (EOF) in Ghana and Sierra Leone are ongoing. Early analysis suggests the approach, which pays only for results achieved, leads to greater impact on children's learning outcomes. The final analysis will be available in 2026.
The Global Partnership for Education (GPE) Multiplier was externally evaluated in 2023. The Multiplier was found to be an effective mechanism for unlocking additional education finance, including from new philanthropic and private sector sources, of which 30% has been non-Official Development Assistance.
Asked by: David Taylor (Labour - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to make use of innovative financing mechanisms to support global education outcomes.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Generating more innovative finance is a priority for the UK to address the $97 billion annual financing gap for global education.
The UK is a founding donor to the International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd). This innovative guarantee mechanism unlocks $7 in new concessional lending from Multilateral Development Banks, for every $1 of Official Development Assistance. In the start-up phase, IFFEd will unlock $1 billion.
The UK is also engaging with philanthropy and the private sector to channel more finance to education. Through our support to the Global Partnership for Education Multiplier, the UK has helped raise a further $3.7 billion from 64 co-financers across 52 partner countries since 2021.
In Sierra Leone and Ghana, we support the Education Outcomes Fund to mobilise impact investment to improve children's learning outcomes. In Kenya, we are testing disaster risk finance to protect school infrastructure, keeping children safe and learning when climate disasters hit.