Recognizing
the critical role that early childhood education (ECE) plays in shaping future
academic and social outcomes, the Ministry of Education (MOE) in Jordan is
committed to expanding access to kindergarten 2 (KG2) as part of its broader
education reform agenda.
A
recent survey of private KGs in Amman and Irbid revealed that many KGs operate
below capacity, with average class sizes of 16.2 and 17.5 students
respectively, compared to a standard of 30 students per class. This
underutilization presents an opportunity to increase enrollment without
significant additional investment in infrastructure. However, the cost of
private KG fees remains a significant barrier for low-income families, making
it difficult for them to afford quality ECE.
To
address this issue, the MOE has proposed two Public-Private Partnership (PPP)
interventions: vouchers and subsidies. These models aim to reduce the financial
burden on families and incentivize private KGs to increase their enrollment of
low-income children. The
subsidy model offers financial incentives to KGs for enrolling additional
eligible children above the average enrollment rate of the KG from the previous
two years. This model incentivizes KGs to increase total enrollment rather than
substituting eligible children for those who are not eligible. KGs
participating in this scheme have the flexibility to use the funds for various
purposes such as fee reductions, transportation, or teaching materials to
encourage additional enrollments.
The
voucher model offers financial incentives to qualified low-income households,
facilitating the coverage of partial or entire KG2 fees at participating
private KGs. Vouchers are issued to eligible families, informing them of their
entitlement to reduced KG2 fees. These households, in turn, redeem their
vouchers at participating KGs, which then apply a discount to their fees
equivalent to the voucher's value. KGs are then compensated by receiving funds
equal to the value of the redeemed vouchers.
The
pilot will target low-fee KGs[1] in a number of governorates
identified based on the results of a rapid assessment report, taking into
consideration population density and the potential to significantly increase
enrollment rates. The pilot aims to increase the enrollment by 500 to 600
additional students. It will be instrumental in evaluating the effectiveness of
the models in achieving its goals and informing decisions for potential
scale-up.
[1]
For the purpose of this pilot, low fee KGs are KGs with average annual fees of
no more than 750 JOD in Amman and 500 JOD in other governorates.