SENEGAL Renforcement de la Lecture Initiale pour Tous (RELIT) - USAID
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SENEGAL Renforcement de la Lecture Initiale pour Tous (RELIT) Quarterly Activity Report, Quarter 2 - FY2022 April 29, 2022 This document was produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development. It was prepared by RTI International for the RELIT Program, Award No. 72068522CA00001
SENEGAL Renforcement de la Lecture Initiale pour Tous Quarterly Report – FY2022, Quarter 2 (Project Year 1) Award #: 72068522CA00001 Prepared for Agreement Officer’s Representative USAID Dakar, Senegal E-mail: Prepared by RTI International 3040 East Cornwallis Road PO Box 12194 Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-2194 E-mail: The authors’ views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government.
Table of Contents
Page
List of Tables........................................................................................................................... iv
List of Abbreviations.................................................................................................................v
1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 7
1.1 Program Overview................................................................................................. 7
1.2 Start-Up Activities .................................................................................................. 8
1.2.1 Operational ................................................................................................ 8
1.2.2 Program Management ............................................................................... 9
2. Program Accomplishments this Quarter ......................................................................... 12
2.1 IR1: GOS Capacity to Deliver High-Quality Reading Instruction Strengthened .. 14
2.1.1 Sub-IR 1.1: Measures for gauging system capacity at IA, IEF, and school
levels to deliver high-quality reading instruction developed and
implemented ............................................................................................ 14
2.1.2 Sub-IR 1.2: High-quality reading instruction in Saint-Louis, Fatick,
Kaolack, Kaffrine, Louga, Matam, and Diourbel delivered ...................... 15
2.1.3 Sub-IR 1.3: Local publishers’ capacity to produce and deliver high-quality
primary grade reading materials for bilingual reading instruction increased
................................................................................................................. 15
2.1.4 Sub-IR 1.4: MOHEBS reforms in bilingual reading, language, and literacy
supported................................................................................................. 16
2.2 IR2: Use of National Languages in Early Grade Reading Instruction Expanded in
Line with MOHEBS.............................................................................................. 16
2.2.1 Sub-IR 2.1: Language mapping and data collection on reading in
Tambacounda, Kédougou, and Casamance implemented ..................... 17
2.2.2 Sub-IR 2.2: KG–Grade 2 national languages reading materials in
Mandinka, Soninke, and Diola developed ............................................... 17
2.2.3 Sub-IR 2.3: Teacher training and coaching on use of reading materials for
all KG–Grade 2 teachers in Tambacounda and Kédougou delivered ..... 18
2.3 IR3: FSL Model for Reading Instruction Grades KG–Grade 2 Developed and
Implemented........................................................................................................ 18
2.3.1 Sub-IR 3.2: FSL oral language teaching materials for grades KG and
Grade 1 developed and piloted ............................................................... 18
2.4 IR4: Integration of Kindergartens and Training Institutions into Bilingual Reading
Instruction Improved ............................................................................................ 18
2.4.1 Sub-IR 4.1: A KG instructional model integrating bilingual reading and
language learning developed and tested ................................................. 18
3. Cross-Cutting Activities ................................................................................................... 19
3.1 Gender and Inclusion Mainstreaming.................................................................. 19
3.2 Communications.................................................................................................. 20
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities iii
3.3 Monitoring and Evaluation ................................................................................... 21 Annex A: Success Story .................................................................................................... 22 Annex B: Organizational Chart .......................................................................................... 23 Annex C: Brief Overview in French .................................................................................... 24 List of Tables Table 1. Project Deliverables Completed in Quarter 1 ....................................................... 9 Table 2. Technical Working Groups Established for RELIT Implementation ................... 11 Table 3. Overview of Q2 Accomplishments ..................................................................... 12 iv USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities
List of Abbreviations
AMELP Activity Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Plan
ARED Associés en Recherche et Education pour le Développement (Associates in
Research and Education for Development)
CEB Curriculum de l’Education de Base
CNRE Centre Nationale des Ressources Educationnelles
CRFPE Centre Régionale de Formation Professionnel des Enseignants (regional
teacher training center)
DALN Direction de l’Alphabétisation et des Langues Nationale (Directorate of
Literacy and National Languages)
DEE Direction de l’Enseignement Elementaire (Directorate of Elementary
Education)
DEPS Direction de l’Education Préscolaire (Directorate of Preschool Education)
DFC Direction de la Formation et de la Communication (Directorate of Teacher
Professional Development)
DPRE Direction de la Planification et de la Réforme de l’Education (Directorate of
Planning and Educational Reform)
DRTS Division de la Radio-Television Scolaire (Department of Educational Television
and Radio)
ELAN Ecole et Langues Nationales Africaines
FASTEF Faculté des Sciences et Technologies de l’Éducation et de la Formation
(Faculty of Science and Technology of Education and Training)
FSL French as a second language
FY fiscal year
G2G government to government
GOS Government of Senegal
HR human resources
IA Inspection d’Academies (regional education authority)
IEF Inspection de l’Education et de la Formation (district education authority )
INEADE Institut National d’Etude et d’Action pour le Développement de l’Education
(National Institute of Research and Action for Educational Development)
IP implementing partner
IR Intermediate Result
IT information technology
KG kindergarten
LPT Lecture pour Tous
MEL monitoring, evaluation, and learning
MEN Ministère de l’Education Nationale (Ministry of National Education)
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities vMOHEBS Modèle Harmonisé d'Enseignement Bilingue au Sénégal (Unified Framework
for Bilingual Education in Senegal)
PAQUET Programme d'amélioration de la qualité, de l'équité et de la transparence -
Education/Formation (Education and Training Quality, Equity and
Transparency Improvement Program)
PITT Performance Indicator Tracking Table
PNLS Programme National de Lecture Scolaire à l'Elémentaire (National
Elementary Reading Program)
RELIS Renforcement de la Litteratie au Senegal
RELIT Renforcement de la Lecture Initiale pour Tous
RTI RTI International
TLM teaching and learning material
TPD teacher professional development
USAID United States Agency for International Development
USG U.S. Government
VAT value added tax
vi USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities1. Introduction
1.1 Program Overview
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) entered into a cooperative
agreement with RTI International on December 6, 2021, to implement the Renforcement de
la Lecture Initiale pour Tous (RELIT) program in Senegal for a period of 5 years. At the time
of the award, the name was Renforcement de la Litteratie au Senegal (RELIS), but this was
changed at the request of the Minister of Education in a letter to USAID dated February 8,
2022. The change in name is significant for the project, because it signals the high degree of
ownership by the Government of Senegal (GOS) to lead the strategic direction of a
nationwide bilingual reading program that is implemented on the one hand through a
government-to-government (G2G) arrangement between the Ministère de l’Education
Nationale (MEN, National Ministry of Education) and USAID and on the other hand, this
cooperative agreement between USAID and RTI International and its implementing
partners)—Associés en Recherche et Education pour le Développement (ARED, Associates
in Research and Education for Development) and Save the Children. Both activities carry the
name RELIT, which is also intentionally, if indirectly, denoting them as a continuation of the
USAID-funded “Lecture pour Tous” (All Children Reading) program (2016–2021).
Lecture pour Tous (LPT) achieved improved instruction and reading outcomes for children in
Wolof, Serer, and Pulaar in seven regions: Diourbel, Fatick, Kaolack, Kaffrine, Louga,
Matam, and Saint-Louis. These achievements are now continuing in those regions, while
evolving to align with the new Modèle Harmonisé d'Enseignement Bilingue au Sénégal
(MOHEBS, Unified Framework for Bilingual Education in Senegal) framework, through the
G2G mechanism (RELIT/G2G). Support for bilingual instruction and improved reading
outcomes is expanding to Tambacounda and Kédougou through the USAID cooperative
agreement with RTI and its implementing partners (RELIT implementing partners [IPs],
RELIT/IP). RELIT/IP will also expand the linguistic scope of bilingual instruction to include
Mandinka, Soninke, and Diola.
In both cases, implementation is guided by the MEN and its decentralized entities, namely
the Inspection d’Academies (IA, regional education authorities) and the Inspection de
l’Education et de la Formation (IEF, district education authorities), and aligned to an annual
work plan developed by the MEN under the leadership of the Direction de l’Enseignement
Elementaire (DEE, Department of Elementary Education). As such, RELIT is one program
covering nine regions and will result in improved learning outcomes for Senegalese children.
In addition to the results framework established by USAID, which includes 4 Intermediate
Results (IR) areas, and 13 sub-IRs (see Table 3), early discussions among USAID, the MEN
and RELIT/IP identified the following priority areas for the first year:
• Reviewing the language mapping done for Tambacounda (and refining if necessary)
and assisting the MEN to carry out the language mapping in Kédougou
• Assuring teaching and learning materials (TLM) replenishment for the seven LPT
regions for the 2022–2023 school year
• Conducting the baseline institutional capacity assessment
• Begin developing TLMs in the new target languages
• Developing the pilot kindergarten (KG) program
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities 7• Launching a communications campaign in support of the MOHEBS
• Studying the extent to which teachers and students are continuing to use LPT
materials in the legacy regions to inform the revision of the materials
• Working with the IA in the G2G regions to put in place a system for quality control of
all training activities
This is the quarterly report for Quarter (Q2) of fiscal year (FY)2022, covering activities from
the date of award (December 6, 2021) through March 2022 according to IR. RTI was
exempted from the Q1 reporting requirement, which would have covered only three weeks in
December. Annex A is a Success Story from this period; Annex B is the organizational
chart of RELIT; and Annex C provides a brief overview of accomplishments this quarter, in
French. A Performance Indicator Tracking Table (PITT) will be included in the Q3 report, but
at present the indicators for the AMELP are still being finalized.
1.2 Start-Up Activities
1.2.1 Operational
The key priority throughout this quarter has been to ensure the smooth implementation of
RELIT start-up activities and the development of operational capacity to implement program
activities in subsequent quarters. Since inception, major start-up actions included:
• Setting up the RELIT office
• Procuring necessary equipment and supplies
• Finalizing agreements with subcontractors
• Recruiting at least 60% of project staff
• Establishing the customs and value added tax (VAT) exemption process in
Senegal
• Conducting a start-up trip (led by Home Office Project Coordinator and
Project Associate)
• Developing required deliverables (outlined in Table 1 below)
An initial management visit and introductory meetings with partners were held between
December 26 and December 31, involving in-country visits from the Chief of Party,
and the RTI Project Manager, At this time, they also visited
possible office space. This allowed RELIT to secure a lease for its Dakar office in January
2022, and staff began working in the space in March 2022 following the completion of
information technology (IT) set-up and the final touches to this new building. Being the first
occupants of this new building in Mermoz Pyrotechnic, RTI’s regional IT team and the RELIT
EdTech Specialist had to commission and oversee laying of internet cables and the setting
up of workstations. Procurement of office furniture has been completed and is underway for
additional supplies and equipment. Fifteen laptops were procured locally in January to
accommodate the immediate, Dakar-based hires. Another 52 laptops were procured through
the RTI home office, and shipment will be completed in the third quarter. Regional office set-
up is expected to be completed in June 2022.
RELIT’s partners, ARED and Save the Children, began work in January 2022 using a rapid
Letter of Authorization mechanism (a temporary contractual arrangement, pending full
subcontract negotiations) following the start of the project to ensure efficient and
8 USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activitiescollaborative activity planning. RTI worked closely with the partners to reach a consensus on
the scopes of work and budgets for Year 1, taking into consideration the actual award date
and other information about the evolution of the MOHEBS timeline and priorities established
with the MEN for RELIT. Full subcontracts with both organizations were finalized in Quarter
(Q)2. Staff working full-time on RELIT across all three IPs (RTI, ARED, and Save the
Children) are establishing their working relationship through RELIT’s “one team” approach,
in which all staff participate in training and orientation activities together and are assigned a
project email address: @relit-sn.org. Staff of RTI and STC are located in the RELIT office,
while the staff of ARED work from their base office due to the high number of language
specialists involved with the program and for purpose of increased productivity.
With the support of USAID, RELIT successfully resolved the issue of customs exemption
import of international goods. The project continues to work with the USAID team to facilitate
the VAT exemption process.
The RELIT Project Coordinator, and Project Associate,
traveled to Dakar from March 14–24, 2022, to work with RELIT staff on the implementation
of key operational activities. Staff developed a procurement plan with the input of the RELIT
Operations Director and Procurement and Logistics Officer. Ms. and Ms.
conducted orientations on relevant policies and systems for recently hired staff. Meetings
were held with ARED and Save the Children operational team members to discuss key
operational matters and establish a strong working relationship. RELIT continues to benefit
from close collaboration with Dakar-based human resources (HR), IT, and procurement staff
from RTI’s Africa Regional Office.
As stipulated in the cooperative agreement, RELIT has submitted the required deliverables
outlined in Table 1, below.
Table 1. Project Deliverables Completed in Quarter 1
Deliverable Submission Date Approval Date
Press Release December 22, 2021 December 24, 2021
Grants Manual January 20, 2022 February 28, 2022
Fact Sheet (English) January 27, 2022 April 8, 2022
Revised: March 7, 2022 Pending; French revision to be
submitted this quarter
Branding Strategy and Marking Plan December 6, 2022 Approval pending
Revised: March 7, 2022
Year 1 Annual Work Plan March 7, 2022 April 13, 2022
Revised: April 5, 2022
Activity Monitoring, Evaluation, and April 5, 2022 Pending; Agreed to be a
Learning Plan (AMELP) working document
1.2.2 Program Management
Human resources. Most RELIT technical and operations staff have been hired. All three
key positions were in place within 7 weeks of award. The Chief of Party started working on
December 16, 2021—or, 10 days post-award—and was in country January 22. The Deputy
Chief of Party-Technical, already an RTI employee on another project, was in country on
January 17 and the Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Advisor reported to work on
January 24. The DCOP-Operations joined the team in early February, followed by the
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities 9Procurement Specialist and the Finance Manager in mid-February and early March, thus
fast-tracking the office set-up and launch of key activities.
Recruitment was facilitated through the rapid on-boarding of the HR manager in Senegal,
who started work on December 22. Recruitment is ongoing for national and regional
technical positions, including additional positions of Capacity Building Manager and the
Senior Regional Manager of the G2G regions, which were created in response to the
anticipated needs in technical assistance and regional coordination for the G2G and IP
regional activities. An Office Manager, and an IT Manager, finance staff at the national and
regional levels are being actively recruited. Some offers were made for these operational
positions, but the candidates declined to opt for longer-term positions in other organizations.
The full team is expected to be mobilized by the end of May 2022, at which time the program
has planned formal IP team building activities. Technical staff from ARED (language
specialists and a bilingual education advisor) and Save the Children (communications,
community mobilization, gender, two regional preschool coordinators, one publishing and
teaching materials specialist, and one senior project manager) are also in place. ARED has
also identified additional short-term expert support. See Annex B for an updated working
draft of the organizational chart for the program.
Team building and coordination. Staff from all institutions have been oriented on the link
between the previous program (LPT) and the scope of work of RELIT. A senior management
team meets every Monday morning, followed by regional coordination meetings. The
onboarding process for new staff involved learning about RTI policies and procedures
related to ethics, security, operations (procurement, time recording, etc.) and human
resources. Staff were also oriented on use of the workstations, Microsoft (MS) Teams and
other Office 360 applications and the new versions of MS Word and MS Excel.
RTI established GO_RELIT as a cloud-based workspace used for coordination of the RELIT
technical teams, both within the implementing partners and government. Set up in Microsoft
Teams, it allows for the centralization of working documents in a standardized work directory
tree, harmonizing activity schedules
so that each actor is informed in real
time on the implementation and
interventions. The site sits on the
SIMEN Microsoft space, thus making
it accessible to MEN staff with
support as needed to the MEN users.
Relationship with USAID. Biweekly
updates and meetings with USAID
are occurring on a regular basis. Key
topics for our discussions include how
to coordinate and harmonize the
operational and technical work of the
G2G and IP modes of intervention.
The harmonization and coordination Workshop to set up working groups; Ministry
are particularly important as RTI and offices, Diamniadio, March 10, 2022, with Mr.
its implementing partners are called Inspector of Education at the
upon to provide technical assistance DEE, at the Presidium, the COP and the IGEF
in the G2G regions. (Photo: RELIT/ See also the Success
Story, Annex A).
10 USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of ActivitiesRelationship building with host country government. Initial meetings with DEE to
introduce the project occurred in February, and subsequent meetings were held to propose
the key activities for the start-up of the program. These activities constitute the Year 1
workplan that was approved. In mid-February, RTI participated in the G2G workshop
organized by the MEN to orient all 9 regions to RELIT and to review the results of the risk
assessment study that was undertaken by the MEN with the support of USAID.
On March 10, 2022, the project organized a workshop for the establishment of technical
working teams. Approximately 50 representatives of the central services and directorates of
the MEN and the implementing partners attended the workshop that was chaired by the
DEE. Objectives, membership, tasks, code of conduct, and working methods for each team
were clarified to make the working groups more operational and effective.
Six teams composed of institutional actors and agents of the IP have been set up (Table 2).
These are as follows:
1. Training
2. Teaching and Learning Materials
3. Institutional Capacity
4. Monitoring and Evaluation
5. Communication and Community Mobilization
6. Finance
Table 2. Technical Working Groups Established for RELIT Implementation
Teams Terms of Reference
Training • Develop training and coaching materials for the 9 academies
• Ensure teacher professional development in the 9 academies
• Align the modules introduced in the Centre Régionale de Formation
Professionnel des Enseignants (CRFPE, regional teacher training
center) with the MOHEBS
• Explore ways to integrate bilingual education modules into Faculté des
Sciences et Technologies de l’Éducation et de la Formation (FASTEF,
Faculty of Science and Technology of Education and Training)
TLMs • Review existing national language to French transfer cards/tools
• Develop and pilot French as a second language (FSL) teaching materials
for KG and design the preschool pilot approach in collaboration with the
MEN
• Collect data on current levels and practices of French language and
reading
• Accompany the MEN in the process of replenishing teaching materials in
the national languages in the 7 regions for the 2022–2023 school year
• Analyze the package of teaching materials in the 7 G2G academies for
revision in Year 2
• Analyze the book chain at the national level based on existing materials
• Develop national language reading materials for KG (GS)-Grade 2 in
Mandinka, Soninke, and Diola in accordance with the MOHEBS
• Review LPT's gender and inclusive education materials with a view to
strengthening them and/or bringing in new innovations in Universal Design
for Learning
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities 11Teams Terms of Reference
Institutional Capacity • Set up a national technical group and one in each of the 9 academies
• Establish the system's capacity indicators through a documentary review
of the regulatory texts
• Develop a baseline of the capacities of the structures at the central and
deconcentrated levels
• Validate the results
• Develop a capacity-building plan
• Conduct a gender and power analysis of the performance of the education
system
• Conduct a comparative analysis of gender equality and children with
disabilities and the impact on teaching/learning
Monitoring and • Accompany the MEN in the implementation of language mapping and data
Evaluation collection on reading in Tambacounda, Kédougou
• Develop the MEL Plan for the activities
• Develop the baseline for FSL
• Accompany all other components in all matters related to the studies
included in the action plan
Communication and • Develop a communication strategy in alignment with the MOHEBS and an
Community implementation plan
Mobilization • Utilize RELIT's small grants program to support community mobilization
Finance • Still being established
Regional coordination. To support implementation in all nine regions, RELIT/IP plans to
have two offices in the new regions, and place embedded technical advisors in the other
seven. Over the course of Q2, we held several working sessions of the RELIT/IP and the
MEN to agree upon the composition of these support teams in the RELIT/G2G regions.
Agreement was reached that the teams will still be composed of four individuals for the new
regions (Kédougou and Tambacounda)—a professional development (PD) specialist who
will coordinate the implementation of all capacity-building and training activities and the
regional team, a kindergarten specialist, a monitoring and evaluation officer, and a finance
officer. However, in the G2G regions RELIT will place only two individuals: one Professional
Development Specialist and one MEL Specialist. All the regional teams will sit in the IA to
facilitate their integration into relevant structures and will be paired with counterparts of the
IA and IEF, and to reduce considerably the costs of execution of the program. We are in the
process of hiring these regional staff who will be in place in Q3. The national coordination of
regional activities in the G2G and IP regions will be overseen by two Senior Regional
Advisors respectively.
2. Program Accomplishments this Quarter
Table 3, below, shows an overview of key accomplishments related to each result area. Not
all results areas had activities planned for this quarter.
Table 3. Overview of Q2 Accomplishments
IR Result Overview of Accomplishments
IR 1 GOS Capacity to Deliver High-Quality Reading Instruction Strengthened
12 USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of ActivitiesIR Result Overview of Accomplishments
1.1 Measures for gauging system capacity at • National technical team in charge of
IA, IEF, and school levels to deliver high- institutional capacity development put in place
quality reading instruction developed and • Short-term technical assistance from
implemented (RTI) to adapt capacity-building
approach to Senegal
• Document research and analysis for initial
capacity situation analysis
1.2 High-quality reading instruction in Saint-
• Negotiations in progress to determine the
Louis, Fatick, Kaolack, Kaffrine, Louga,
number of TLM that RELIT can subsidize
Matam, and Diourbel delivered
1.3 Local publishers’ capacity to produce and
deliver high-quality primary grade reading
• Planning for book sector study underway
materials for bilingual reading instruction
increased
1.4 MOHEBS reforms in bilingual reading, • Establishment of the technical teams of
language, and literacy supported MOHEBS across all IRs
IR2 Use of National Languages in Early Grade Reading Instruction Expanded in Line with MOHEBS
• Reviewed language mapping tools,
methodologies, and final report of the language
Language mapping and data collection on mapping exercise in Tambacounda
2.1 reading in Tambacounda, Kédougou, and • Planned timing and methodology of the
Casamance implemented language mapping in Kédougou
• Planned to integrate questions of preschool
and community mobilization
• Collected existing TLMs in three languages for
initial analysis
KG–Grade 2 national languages reading • Started analysis of methods of bilingual
2.2 materials in Mandinka, Soninke, and Diola education
developed • Proposed timeline for development of materials
in national languages for KG and Grade 1
• Participation in working groups with MEN
Teacher training and coaching on use of
reading materials for all KG–Grade 2
2.3 • No activities planned this quarter
teachers in Tambacounda and Kédougou
delivered
IR3 FSL Model for Reading Instruction Grades KG–Grade 2 Developed and Implemented
Data collection on current French language • Recruited FSL specialist
3.1 and reading levels and practices • Began to collect national, regional, and
conducted subregional reference documents
FSL oral language teaching materials for
3.2 grades KG and Grade 1 developed and • No activities planned this quarter
piloted
FSL reading/writing curriculum for bilingual
3.3 instruction in Grade 2 developed and • No activities planned this quarter
piloted
FSL reading instruction implemented in
3.4 alignment with MOHEBS reforms and • No activities planned this quarter
operation
Integration of Kindergartens and Training Institutions into Bilingual Reading Instruction
IR4
Improved
A KG instructional model integrating • Literature review on best practices
4.1 bilingual reading and language learning
developed and tested • Planning timeline of the pilot
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities 13IR Result Overview of Accomplishments
Revision and scale-up of modules for pre-
4.2 service teacher training in bilingual reading • No activities planned this quarter
instruction continued
2.1 IR1: GOS Capacity to Deliver High-Quality Reading Instruction
Strengthened
Under this IR, the first annual work plan anticipated the following priorities for this quarter:
• Putting in place technical teams (national and regional) for RELIT to start the
capacity-building activities
• Supporting the MEN to replenish TLMs in the seven regions already
supported by USAID prior to the 2022–2023 school year by participating in a
situation analysis, determining what materials are needed, and supporting the
MEN in the purchasing process
• Reviewing the coaching process
• Participating in regular coordination meetings with the MEN on the G2G
program and MOHEBS
Most accomplishments this quarter have been related to establishing working relationships
with MEN, understanding what RELIT/G2G has already accomplished and how RELIT/IP
can best support system strengthening in the G2G regions, and working together to
establish a common understanding of and approach to capacity development. These are
further developed in each sub-section below.
2.1.1 Sub-IR 1.1: Measures for gauging system capacity at IA, IEF, and school
levels to deliver high-quality reading instruction developed and
implemented
Over the course of a series of meetings, RELIT was able to put in place the national
technical team in charge of institutional capacity development and determine its purpose and
plan of action. This technical team will establish the indicators of system capacity, complete
the baseline capacity assessment at central and regional levels, develop a plan for building
capacity based on this initial assessment, and put in place technical teams in each of the
nine IAs. Doing this involved identifying individuals with the necessary profile and leadership
capacity to constitute a strong team capable of advancing the work plan. This team
identification was completed on March 31 during a meeting with MEN and DEE in which
individuals from each of the departments were named (i.e., DEE, Direction de la Formation
et de la Communication [DFC, Directorate of Teacher Professional Development], Direction
de la Planification et de la Réforme de l’Education [DPRE, Directorate of Planning and
Educational Reform], Institut National d’Etude et d’Action pour le Développement de
l’Education [INEADE, National Institute of Research and Action for Educational
Development], and IPs). RELIT will include additional focal points from INEADE to ensure
that capacity to conduct research and evaluation of learning outcomes in a bilingual
environment is addressed sufficiently.
In Q2, the RELIT team also had support from RTI’s Director of Policy, Systems, and
Governance—Mr. —who traveled to Senegal in February 2022. Mr.
contributed to the development of RTI’s “core components” approach to systems
14 USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activitiesstrengthening and has applied this in several other countries. Together with RELIT’s Senior
Advisor for Institutional Capacity ( and technical teams from MEN,
they worked on adapting this approach to the Senegalese context through a self-assessment
methodology. Members of the team agreed on the relevance of the approach for Senegal
and began to gather documentation to determine the current strength of the core
components, particularly documents such as brochures, standards, and decrees that may
help implement a strong bilingual education approach. These documents are being compiled
and posted on Go_RELIT, a shared, cloud-based platform that includes RELIT and MEN
counterparts. The team also completed the calendar and work plan of activities through Year
1 and detailed activities through the end of April that will result in identifying the individuals
and functions who will benefit from capacity-building—especially those who have the most
influence on reading instruction. Plans for Q3 also involve analysis of regulatory texts and
determining training needs. Mr. and another system-strengthening expert from
RTI, Mr. will be in Senegal to deliver a workshop on institutional capacity from
May 9 – 15.
2.1.2 Sub-IR 1.2: High-quality reading instruction in Saint-Louis, Fatick,
Kaolack, Kaffrine, Louga, Matam, and Diourbel delivered
In Q2, RELIT reviewed the results of the MEN’s situation analysis of TLM in the seven G2G
regions and has been discussing how much support RELIT/IP can provide to purchasing
additional materials. RELIT/IP staff were not able to participate in the situation analysis
directly since the MEN began this activity shortly after RELIT was awarded. However, RELIT
staff reviewed the methodology during a G2G meeting in Saly in February, during which
MEN shared its plan and the questionnaire developed to gather information on the number
of materials available (used and in good condition and stock not yet used). The DEE sent
this questionnaire to the IAs to fill out and send back, and the data were then compared with
the number of children and teachers in the targeted grades to determine the number of
materials to be reprinted. Only teacher’s guides and student manuals were targeted for
reprinting, given the high costs and the anticipated revision to the materials.
Negotiations are ongoing and in Q3, RELIT anticipates participating in additional validation
of the number of materials to be ordered, the cost, and how RELIT can support the purchase
through an in-kind grant rather than a full procurement process.
Part of ensuring the continuation of high-quality reading instruction in the G2G regions was
to review and support the plan for providing ongoing training and coaching to teachers.
RELIT has put in place a technical working group on training (see Table 2) that will meet
monthly either in person or online. One of the main objectives of the working group is to
develop the coaching tools that will be used across the nine academies. In Q3 (May) RELIT
is planning to carry out field work jointly with MEN to study teachers’ training needs through
classroom observation. This will be an opportunity to further review the coaching model as
well as the use of materials and current teaching practices.
2.1.3 Sub-IR 1.3: Local publishers’ capacity to produce and deliver high-
quality primary grade reading materials for bilingual reading instruction
increased
No specific activities were planned related to publisher capacity-building this quarter, but
RELIT has brought on board the materials development specialist under sub-partner Save
the Children. As part of regular cross-component meetings of the IPs, RELIT has begun to
establish the timeline and process for involving publishers.
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities 15However, the textbook supply chain analysis will inform this component, and in Q1 the
project team has collected relevant documents (reports, studies, templates from previous
projects) that add familiarity and understanding of the current situation and identify what
aspects of previous sector studies need to be deepened. The collection of documents
included bibliographic research on the Internet and collection of information from resource
persons. This documentation will be reviewed to better plan the study on the textbook supply
chain and to develop a knowledge repository on past and current practices, knowledge and
tools, and areas of strengths and weaknesses.
Working with the DEE, the RELIT/IP has defined the period and duration of each of the
different stages of the study and has drafted the terms of reference for the study to be
validated by the DEE. The activity is expected to include several phases including the
document review described above; the design of data collection tools, such as
questionnaires and interview guides, to use with key informants and stakeholders in the
book procurement process; conducting field data collection; and data analysis and drafting of
the report.
2.1.4 Sub-IR 1.4: MOHEBS reforms in bilingual reading, language, and literacy
supported
As described above, a major accomplishment of the start-up period in Q1 and Q2 was
establishing the working relationship with MEN. This included establishing thematic working
groups and participating regularly in these groups. Additionally, RELIT/IP participated in two
larger events:
• The Atelier de Partage du Programme RELIT/G2G held in Saly in February
2022. RELIT/IP not only participated actively, but also helped to plan the
agenda and organization of the workshop.
• MOHEBS strategy meetings on the bilingual curriculum.
In support of the bilingual education TLM reforms, ARED made available several bilingual
education and community mobilization specialists to participate in MOHEBS working groups.
They contributed to the development of basic reference documents and pedagogical guides
for Grade 1 (CI) and Grade 2 (CP), bilingual terminology, and a strategy and action plan for
communication and community mobilization related to MOHEBS. This helped to ensure that
the MOHEBS guide included fundamental principles from the LPT approach to bilingual
instruction including consideration for language and communication more broadly.
In Q3, RELIT anticipates meeting at least twice for formal coordination between USAID,
RELIT/G2G, and RELIT/IP senior management teams.
2.2 IR2: Use of National Languages in Early Grade Reading Instruction
Expanded in Line with MOHEBS
Whereas the focus of IR1 is largely on supporting ongoing implementation of national
language instruction in the seven regions supported by RELIT/G2G, and formerly the target
regions of the LPT program, IR2 focuses on expanding instruction in three additional
national languages and two additional regions. Activities planned for Q2 under this
component were:
• Language mapping in Tambacounda and Kédougou
• Establishing technical teams for the development of TLM
16 USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities• Reviewing existing materials and methods of teaching national languages and
literacy
The third sub-IR related to teacher training and coaching on use of reading materials for all
KG–Grade 2 teachers in Tambacounda and Kédougou will not start in Year 1.
2.2.1 Sub-IR 2.1: Language mapping and data collection on reading in
Tambacounda, Kédougou, and Casamance implemented
The language mapping was completed in Tambacounda by the G2G activity before RELIT
was awarded. RELIT/IP reviewed the report and instruments in order to provide comments
and plan for language mapping in Kédougou. A specialist from RTI, Ms.
reviewed the methodology and findings from Tambacounda and made comments based on
experience from language mapping in other countries. Overall, the methodology was
considered appropriate, but some suggestions were made, for example:
• Add a tool, in each classroom, to determine how varied the linguistic diversity
is by asking children what language they speak most at home; allow for the
possibility that some children may already speak or understand multiple
languages.
• Validate that the label that the child (or any survey respondent) uses to
answer the question is in fact referring to the language or language variant
that is spoken.
• Ensure that the results are available before community consultations so that
there are hard data about the linguistic diversity before discussing the most
appropriate language of instruction for the community or school.
• Promote inclusivity of participants in the community consultations to ensure
that certain influential individuals or groups do not dominate the discussion.
RELIT also plans to review the tool to integrate information about preschools and community
mobilization so that this can be done in Kédougou and in areas where language choice
proved problematic in other regions. RELIT will return to Tambacounda to conduct language
mapping in preschools and to conduct community validation of the findings of the language
mapping. Revisiting these areas as well as the language mapping for Kédougou will be done
by RELIT/G2G in Q3 and will employ digital data collection using tablets with technical
assistance by the RELIT/IP. In Q2 RELIT/IP began the process of procuring tablets (new
and reusing tablets already owned by INEADE) for data collection. In Q3 the team will
revise, test and deploy the digital data collection tool, conduct the training of trainers and
monitoring incoming surveys.
2.2.2 Sub-IR 2.2: KG–Grade 2 national languages reading materials in
Mandinka, Soninke, and Diola developed
To prepare for the development of reading materials, including scope and sequence for the
curriculum in national languages, specialists from ARED have collected existing language
materials from sources such as the Internet (SIL’s website) and requested information from
national structures like Direction de l’Alphabétisation et des Langues Nationale (DALN,
Directorate of Literacy and National Languages), Centre Nationale des Ressources
Educationnelles (CNRE), and Ecole et Langues Nationales Africaines (ELAN). These
materials were reviewed extensively and corrected as needed by the specialists. ARED also
collected relevant documents from LPT and MOHEBS and made them available to the larger
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities 17RELIT team, who meet weekly with specialists from RTI’s home office and the kindergarten
specialist from Save the Children to plan the timeline of materials preparation.
These documents related to methods and models of bilingual literacy development are being
analyzed in preparation for scope and sequence development workshops that will take place
in April and May with the support of RELIT’s resource partner SIL.
2.2.3 Sub-IR 2.3: Teacher training and coaching on use of reading materials
for all KG–Grade 2 teachers in Tambacounda and Kédougou delivered
No activities were planned for Year 1 since this year is about developing the TLM prior to
piloting and finalizing.
2.3 IR3: FSL Model for Reading Instruction Grades KG–Grade 2 Developed
and Implemented
During the first 4 months of RELIT, the focus has been on gathering materials and models
for French instruction in Senegal and the region, and then planning the timing and sequence
of materials development in line with national language materials development (IR2). No
activities were planned in this quarter or in Year 1 related to the remaining sub-IRs: 3.1: Data
collection on current French language and reading levels and practices conducted; 3.3: FSL
reading/writing curriculum for bilingual instruction in Grade 2 developed and piloted; and 3.4:
FSL reading instruction implemented in alignment with MOHEBS reforms and operation.
2.3.1 Sub-IR 3.2: FSL oral language teaching materials for grades KG and
Grade 1 developed and piloted
The RELIT team, led by specialists from ARED, have collected documents related to the
current practices in teaching language and reading in FSL, and understanding how the
MOHEBS curriculum lays out instructional time for different FSL skills (i.e., language,
literacy, oral expression, listening comprehension, writing, etc.). The result is a set of training
models, studies, manuals, and instructional guides that are already used in the Senegalese
education system and will allow us to build on what is familiar and existing. Document
research has also looked at practices used in other countries in the region and
internationally.
2.4 IR4: Integration of Kindergartens and Training Institutions into Bilingual
Reading Instruction Improved
Plans under this IR are closely related to the development of the bilingual literacy model
described under IR2 and IR3, but also build substantially on the body of work already
underway through Save the Children’s work with the government and the World Bank on the
kindergarten curriculum. RELIT’s plans for this quarter included further analysis of the
models and lessons learned in Senegal and establishing the relationships with the Ministry
that will allow RELIT to design and implement the pilot.
Activities related to integrating training institutions in the bilingual reading policy have not
started, beyond recruitment of the TPD specialist for the Dakar office and initiating the
recruitment of TPD liaisons in each region.
2.4.1 Sub-IR 4.1: A KG instructional model integrating bilingual reading and
language learning developed and tested
Preschool education in Senegal has always relied on national languages to install skills in
children. However, the country has not yet adopted a harmonized model of bilingual
18 USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activitiespreschool education. The formalization of a bilingual preschool education model will
necessarily require the analysis and adaptation of existing curricula and learning materials in
Senegal while also drawing inspiration from the successful experiences of other countries
with similar multilingual environment. In order to harmonize the understanding of this task
among all key partners and to strengthen the efficiency in delivering the expected results,
the preschool team began by conducting working sessions with specialists of
RTI and of Save the Children US to discuss what the evidence says about the
most successful experiences of bilingual education in Africa, Asia, and Latin American
countries. These experiences are being compiled and in Q3 the team plans to elaborate and
present a benchmarking report on bilingual policy options in countries with linguistic
situations similar to those of their Senegalese counterparts. This will help guide the choice of
a relevant model to direct the bilingual policy in preschools.
The RELIT team has also worked to clarify the roles, responsibilities, and working
relationships of Direction de l’Education Préscolaire (DEPS, Directorate of Preschool
Education) and RELIT. The team met DEE officials to define practical modalities for a better
integration of DEPS colleagues in the implementation of the RELIT and to coordinate, with
DEPS, involvement in the preschool strategic options of the MOHEBS and the planning of
RELIT activities for Year 1. The project team has started working closely with DEPS through
its designated MOHEBS focal point. From now on, the Director of DEPS will clear any policy
issues or action plans.
Finally, the team has been reviewing the current state of teaching and learning tools in
preschools. Government preschools have a tradition of using local languages. Teachers’
innovations are encouraged and there are no set directives in this area. Songs, games, and
role-plays are often done in the national languages. However, the frequency and presence of
national languages in the preschool learning process must be monitored and better
documented. To this end, the project team is currently working on the following two activities:
• Documentary review of language use in existing curriculum and learning
materials in preschool in collaboration with the DEPS (Curriculum de
l’Education de Base [CEB], LPT)
• Collection and analysis of preschool-level TLMs in Senegalese languages
Lessons learned from these activities will serve as a starting point for the further
development of the materials and the pilot implementation expected to be introduced at
small scale in schools for the 2022–2023 school year.
3. Cross-Cutting Activities
3.1 Gender and Inclusion Mainstreaming
The Education and Training Quality, Equity and Transparency Improvement Program
(PAQUET-EF) strategy aims to offer equitable learning opportunities to all children, taking
into account social, regional, and gender disparities. Aligned with this vision, RELIT
promotes a strategy of systematic integration of gender in the development, implementation,
monitoring, and evaluation of all planned activities.
RELIT/IP has hired a gender specialist who participated in the meeting to validate the terms
of reference for the language mapping study, noting the following:
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities 19• Encourage selection of women as survey researchers and trainers mobilized
for the linguistic mapping.
• Ensure gender equality in the choice of community targets through the
involvement of mothers' associations and other women leaders within
communities.
The gender specialist also participated in the meeting of the communication and community
mobilization technical working group, raising the importance of gender mainstreaming in
institutional communication, community mobilization, and communication for behavior
change and of ensuring that all media and communication strategies developed are gender-
sensitive.
The gender specialist will also participate in activities related to the situation analysis and
literature review of the publishing sector and preschool programs. She has encouraged the
team to draw inspiration from the available documentation on the situation of equity and
gender equality at the basic education level (from 6 to 16 years old) to develop a relevant
gender strategy and inclusion of students with disabilities. Additionally, RELIT should draw
inspiration from national and international conventions and policies on the promotion and
protection of the rights of girls, women, and students with disabilities.
The full gender and inclusion strategy for RELIT will be prepared in Q3.
3.2 Communications
The RELIT communication team was fully
involved in the process of planning and
coordinating the national launching of the
RELIT program and in Q2 accomplished
the following:
• Establishment of working
groups for institutional
communication and
communication of
community
mobilization/behavior
change in favor of bilingual
education Presentation of RELIT and its coordination
mechanisms by the COP Dr. March 4,
• Planning of all activities to 2022 (Photo:RELIT/
ensure that RELIT’s launch
becomes a national event
• Promotion of community support for and participation in the linguistic mapping
activity
The communication group attended the session on the presentation of the RELIT program
and coordination mechanisms held on March 4, 2022, which brought together the IPs at the
RELIT offices.
The RELIT communications and community mobilization teams and representatives of the
DEE attended a coordination meeting held on March 15, 2022, at MEN. The main objective
of the meeting was to identify the most urgent needs for institutional communication and
20 USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activitiescommunity mobilization in Year 1. This information was included in the annual work plan.
Similarly, two sub-groups were created to facilitate the management of deliverables.
As a result, the members of each sub-group were designated including the Division de la
Radio-Television Scolaire (DRTS, Department of Educational Television and Radio)
representative. The communication meeting was coordinated by the DFC. Similarly,
members also established a coordination mechanism that incorporates a schedule of bi-
monthly meetings.
Under the leadership of the DEE, preparations for the launching of RELIT included:
• The design of the terms of reference,
the communication plan, and event
management tools
• The establishment of a specific task
force integrating USAID, DFC, and
DRTS
• The design of communication media
(leaflets, folders, T-shirts, caps,
kakemonos, banners)
An operational planning mission with the IA of Saint-
Louis was organized on Monday, March 21, 2022, to
discuss the planning and organizational documents of Visit to Boly Diaw Elementary School with Mrs.
the launching ceremony and to make a preliminary visit (DEE), Mr.
of USAID, the IEF of Saint-Louis Commune and
to Boly Diaw Elementary School, which was selected Mrs. Regional AI, IA de Saint-Louis
to be the site of the launch. In this site visit, RELIT was (Photo: RELIT/
able to meet the school's stakeholders and promote
optimal conditions for organizing a national launch.
3.3 Monitoring and Evaluation
Since the award of RELIT, the program has focused on setting up the monitoring and
evaluation team, led by the MEL and Planning Director, who started working in
January 2022. Recruitment of regional MEL officers in the nine regions, as well as a data
management specialist at the national level, was initiated in March, to be concluded in Q3.
In Q2, the main task was to develop the AMELP according to the template provided by
USAID and taking into account the information needs that are relevant and essential to the
program's success. Initial meetings on the various program outcomes were held with the
partners and technical leaders of the components, allowing the team to develop a first draft
of the Learning Plan and the Evaluation Plan as well as a set of 28 performance indicators
(including 8 standard and 1 supplemental indicators) and details on data management as
well as on the distribution of roles and responsibilities related to program monitoring and
evaluation. These initial drafts were proposed and shared with USAID in a joint meeting on
March 31, 2022, which fed into the finalization of a full version of the AMELP for submission
to USAID on April 5, 2022. Once validated, this AMELP will be translated into its basic parts
in French and shared with the MEN. In this AMELP, the essential indicators of the PAQUET
tracked in the PNLS have been integrated.
USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities 21Annex A: Success Story (To compile in final version) 22 USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities
Annex B: Organizational Chart (Conceptual draft for discussion) USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of Activities 23
Annex C: Brief Overview in French
IR Résultat Intermediaire Activités prévues (AWP)
IR 1 Renforcement de la capacité du Gouvernement du Sénégal à dispenser un enseignement de la
lecture de haute qualité
1.1 Élaboration et mise en œuvre de
mesures permettant d'évaluer la Prévue :
capacité du système au niveau de l'IA, Mettre en place des quipes techniques nationale et
de l'IEF et des écoles à dispenser un régionale de RELIT (MEN et PE) pour le pilotage des
enseignement de qualité en matière de activités de renforcement des capacités.
lecture
Achevé :
Plusieurs rencontres ont permis la stabilisation et la mise en place de l’équipe technique nationale chargée de
la capacitation institutionnelle. Elle a pour mission d’établir les indicateurs de capacité du système, d’élaborer
un baseline des capacités des structures des niveaux central et déconcentré et d’élaborer un plan de
renforcement de capacités, entre autres. L’équipe va également mettre en place des équipes techniques dans
chacune des 9 académies. La mise en place nécessite le ciblage des personnes avec le profile requis pour
faire partie de l’équipe nationale de manière à avoir une équipe directionnelle forte capable d’assurer
l’avancement correct et en temps réel du travail déjà planifié dans le plan d’action.
C’est ainsi que le 31 mars il y’a eu une rencontre au MEN avec la DEE, ou ils ont fait un ciblage des noms par
rapport au directions concernées, y compris la DEE, les partenaires techniques, DFC, DPRE et l’INEADE. Il
reste à ajouter d'autres personnes de l’INEADE pour une meilleure prise en charge des questions liées à
l'évaluation des apprentissages en lecture selon une approche bilingue et les questions de recherche.
L’équipe RELIT a aussi travaillé avec l’assistance technique d’un expert du siège de RTI, Mr.
pour développer l'approche spécifique à la capacitation institutionnelle déjà expérimentée dans d’autres pays.
Elle a également organisé une rencontre de partage sur les principes de la démarche d’auto-évaluation et sur
l’approche méthodologique. Les membres de l’équipe se sont accordés sur la pertinence de l'approche. Et ont
aussitôt commencé la recherche documentaire. Il s’agira précisément d’identifier les documents qui peuvent
faciliter la mise en œuvre du projet et qui ont un impact certain dans l’apprentissage de la lecture selon une
approche bilingue. Déjà, plusieurs textes sont postés sur la plateforme interactive (GO-RELIT), (des fiches, les
cahiers de charges, les arrêtes, etc). L’objectif visé est de partager les informations entre le gouvernement et
les partenaires. Un complément de textes est attendu notamment le plan stratégique de mise en œuvre du
MOHEBS, et les textes sur les compétences pour enseignement bilingue. Une planification des activités qui
s’étale jusqu’au 21 Avril a déjà été faite. Elle permettra d’aller vers le ciblage des acteurs institutionnels à
capaciter. Il s’agira de cibler ceux qui ont des fonctions qui impactent sur l'enseignement de la lecture. A partir
du 21 avril, on commencera à procéder à l’analyse les textes règlementaires avant d’enchainer avec les outils
qui permettront de recueillir les besoins réels de formation. Ces outils feront l’objet d’un large partage en vue
de leur stabilisation.
1.2 Mise en œuvre d'un enseignement de la Prévue
lecture de haute qualité à Saint-Louis, • Accompagner le MEN dans le processus de
Fatick, Kaolack, Kaffrine, Louga, Matam réapprovisionnement du matériel didactique dans
et Diourbel. les Langues Nationales dans les 7 régions pour
l'année scolaire 2022/23)
• Participer à l’état des lieux de l’existant pour
chacune des inspections d’académie (IA)
• Déterminer avec le MEN le paquet de matériel
didactique à réapprovisionner
• Accompagner le MEN dans le processus d'achat
pour Imprimer le paquet de matériel pour les 7
Académies G2G
• Passer en revue les outils et le dispositif de
coaching
Achevé
RELIT travaille avec le Ministère de l’Éducation sur les résultats de l’état des lieux qui servira au
réapprovisionnement du matériel didactique dans les régions G2G. Le MEN a commencé tôt avec l'état des
lieux des régions G2G. Le projet l’a accompagné dans la méthodologie, qui consistait à envoyer un outil pour
collecter le nombre de matériels disponibles (matériels utilisés mais en bonne état et stock non utilisé). Cet
outil de collecte a été passé en revue au moment de l’atelier de partage sur RELIT/G2G à Saly en février. La
DEE l’a par la suite transmis aux IA pour l’état des lieux. Les données collectées (matériels dans les écoles et
24 USAID Senegal RELIT, Year 1 Quarter 2 Report of ActivitiesYou can also read
