Abstract:
Universal Primary Education (UPE) policy in the form of fee abolition has become
popular in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) since the mid 1990s in
order to achieve Education for All (EFA). Even after learning from the past, the
current UPE policy is devoid of analytical studies on its impact and challenges
beyond school enrollment. This paper is an attempt to make a comparative analysis
on UPE in four countries, namely, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, and Uganda, to identify
common and unique themes and to examine how these seemingly similar policies
are responding to the capacity and needs of each country. The results show that
effective policy implementation would require considerable consultation with key
stakeholders and a baseline survey that will enable systematic implementation and
consideration of equity. Mutual accountability and a responsibility mechanism
between the government and parents/communities is also a key to the sustainability
of the UPE policy.
