School grants are funds transferred to schools by the central government, under a decentralization and direct funding programme. The aim of this transfer is to increase schools’ autonomy, allowing them to spend their resources in accordance with their needs. IIEP conducted a study to examine how the policy on grants, which are generally referred to as ‘operational resources’ in the DRC, is devised and implemented.Field research was carried out in 15 public primary schools in the educational provinces of the city of Kinshasa, Kongo Central, and Kwango, by means of interviews with around 210 local actors (school heads, pupils, teachers, parents and school management committee members, and resource persons at the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education and Initiation to New Citizenship, [EPS-INC]). A quantitative study also covered 110 schools in the city of Kinshasa and in Kwango.Students at a school in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.Photo credit: IIEPInternational Institutefor Educational PlanningIIEP Research BriefDemocratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
