Page 9 - Microsoft Word - Bangladesh_Diagnostic_E_final5.doc

• Meeting with officials from the local developmental agencies; and
• Meeting with project officials from various donor-funded education projects.

9. A diagnostic is conducted through a series of individual or group interviews
and administration of questionnaires in order to draw up a comprehensive and balanced
view of the actual capacity gaps at each particular intra-sectoral level of the education
sector with particular attention to the following areas:

• institutional mandates and resource availability of statistical units at the different
levels (central, provincial and district levels);
• conduciveness of environment to evidence-based decision-making;
• data quality assurance (error-tracking or consistency-checking mechanisms);
• record-keeping practices at the institutional (school) level;
• effectiveness, user-friendliness and comprehensiveness of instruments for data
collection relative to needs for information;
• mechanisms or procedures along the data collection chain;
• data processing technology and methodology;
• methodology for treatment of missing data;
• data dissemination modes;
• data use, analysis and interpretation of data for planning and decision-making;
• feedback to data providers;
• revision policy, user consultation mechanism and new data/indicators
development policy; and
• metadata and user assistance policy.

10. Since the inter-relation among different sub-sectors within the whole
education sector is critical for building successful and sustainable national capacities,
an appropriate action plan will be required to address the issues of all sub-sectors in an
integrated way. This will be based on the findings from the diagnostic study as well as
recommendations made by the NTC. Project intervention would be emphasised in the
sub-sectors of EFA- and MDG-related education goals.

11. One of the key elements of the UIS approach is to initiate and maintain close
collaboration with local developmental agencies and partners that are active in the
education sector especially in education statistics so as to harmonise with existing
country programmes as well as to exploit the local resources and expertise to produce
the synergetic effect. A principal advantage of the UIS involvement in the country is that
its interventions and approaches to address the issues are guided by best practices,
lessons learned and cost-efficient and sustainable solutions from other similar
experiences acquired globally.

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