by Conrad Sackey, Minister of Basic & Senior Education, Sierra Leone
By 2050, the African continent will be home to nearly 40 percent of the worldʼs youth. With this demographic shift comes immense opportunity; but only if it is matched by bold, coordinated investment in human capital. The decisions made today about education, workforce readiness, and social development will determine whether Africa becomes a global growth engine or the epicenter of deepening inequality.
In this context, foundational learning—the ability to read, write, and do basic math—is not just an education issue. It is the cornerstone of Africaʼs future prosperity. If our children fail to master basic skills early, we risk forfeiting the potential of an adaptable, skilled workforce.
Foundational Learning as Smart Strategic Investment for Africa
According to the World Bank, 89 percent of ten-year-olds in Sub-Saharan Africa cannot read a simple sentence. This is not a reflection of our childrenʼs potential, but of systemic gaps. The cost of inaction is high: learning poverty limits productivity, undermines innovation, and entrenches poverty.
Decades of research confirms that each additional year of quality education raises individual earnings and boosts national productivity. But it is foundational learning that carries the highest returns. Children who cannot read by age ten rarely catch up; their future participation in skilled work, innovation, or entrepreneurship is significantly compromised. One estimate suggests that every dollar invested in basic literacy and numeracy yields thirty dollars in return.
Despite the plethora of evidence, Africa continues to face a significant education financing shortfall. UNESCO estimates that an additional $97 billion is needed to meet the continentʼs 2030 education targets. In many countries, debt service now exceeds education budgets. Yet, foundational learning remains critically underfunded.
Domestic Leadership: Lessons from Sierra Leone
In Sierra Leone, we are still learning what it takes to prioritize education, and particularly foundational learning: not only through policy, but through practice. Since taking office, our government has placed education at the heart of our national agenda, guided by the personal commitment of President Julius Maada Bio. Education now receives between 20 to 22 percent of our national budget—an investment our President rightly calls a “necessary risk” for our nationʼs future.
In 2023, we executed 92 percent of our education budget—an important signal that public funds are reaching the classrooms, teachers, and learners they are meant to serve. To diversify funding, we introduced a one percent surcharge on withholding taxes to create a dedicated domestic fund for education. This has enabled large-scale textbook procurement and distribution nationwide.
These gains, however, have not been easy. We still face challenges such as delayed disbursements to remote schools and maintaining quality amid expansion. Weʼve responded by strengthening monitoring systems and involving local communities in oversight.
A critical lesson has been the importance of cross-ministerial collaboration. Our Ministries of Education and Finance work in close partnership, grounded in shared goals. I often say the Finance Ministerʼs office is my second office. Such collaboration is essential to align policy, planning, and spending.
We are also thinking beyond election cycles. Our national development and education sector plans run through 2030 and are aligned with the SDG targets. We know that real progress in foundational learning takes time and must extend beyond political mandates.
We share these experiences not as a prescription, but in the spirit of reflection and solidarity. Every countryʼs context is different. But we hope that our efforts might offer useful lessons for others seeking to build education systems that are resilient, results-driven, and rooted in national priorities.
Looking Ahead: Three Priorities to Accelerate Progress
As we reflect on Sierra Leoneʼs journey, three priorities emerge as critical for accelerating foundational learning, both for us and for our peers across Africa.
First, protect and prioritize foundational learning in national budgets. In an era of declining donor support, foundational learning must be seen as a development priority, not a discretionary item. This means striving to allocate at least 20 percent of public spending to education and targeting those funds to core skills: literacy, numeracy, and socio-emotional learning. Domestic innovations such as education surcharges, debt-for-education swaps, and outcome-based financing can help build more predictable and resilient funding streams.
Second, institutionalize collaboration between Ministries of Education and Finance. Transforming foundational learning at scale requires sustained inter-ministerial coordination. In Sierra Leone, this partnership goes well beyond budget season. Joint planning, data sharing, and routine problem-solving ensure that policy ambition is matched by sound implementation. We believe this model is vital to achieving lasting systems change.
Third, improve budget efficiency and scale what works. Every dollar must yield real results in learning. That requires tracking not just inputs but outcomes, and using data to drive decisions. Proven interventions, such as structured pedagogy, targeted instruction, and teacher coaching, must be scaled beyond pilots. These approaches should be integrated into public systems and backed by financing. Progress must be both evidence-based and
system-wide.
A Continental Commitment
This is the path weʼve chosen in Sierra Leone, not because it is easy, but because it is necessary. We know that investing in foundational learning is one of the wisest decisions a government can make and one of the hardest to sustain. It requires political courage, patient planning, cross-ministerial cooperation, and consistent investment.
But if we are serious about building a future where every child can read, reason, and thrive, this is the investment we must make. And we must do it together, as a continent, with shared resolve and shared responsibility.
Source: https://www.cnbcafrica.com/2025/financing-the-future-lessons-from-sierra-leones-commitment-to-advancing-foundational-learning/