Advancements in Adult Education Planning and Decision-Making in Mozambique

One of the main advances achieved to date is that the Mozambican government has realized the importance of adult education and integrated it into its 2020-2029 plan for the education sector, developed as part of the implementation of the new law on the education system adopted in 2018. Furthermore, in 2023, the CapED program helped the government to update the central operational plan (2023-2025), which defines key strategic actions, the objectives and indicators for implementing and monitoring the plan for the education sector. Going forward, the CapED program will continue to support the deployment of this operational plan at the provincial level, help ministry staff build capacity at both central and regional levels, and encourage learning center managers to better monitor and evaluate the implementation of the plan. This year, more than 13 million students in primary, secondary and adult education programs participated in the system established under the leadership of the Ministry of Education.

Adult education efforts are underpinned by a strategy launched by the Mozambican president in 2021, aimed at strengthening adult education and increasing the national literacy rate. This dynamic has led to a significant increase in the number of adult learners and the number of learning centers in the country. The government is currently considering establishing new learning centers in areas where primary and secondary schools are far apart and is also considering expanding distance learning opportunities.

There are also plans in the future to extend the program to also cover the equivalent of lower secondary education and thus provide the equivalent of nine years of education to learners. Work is also underway to adapt higher education teaching materials to distance adult education as well as to improve coordination between adult education and technical and vocational education and training (TVET).