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The Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with J-PAL Africa, a research network focused on reducing poverty through scientific evidence, in what officials describe as a significant step toward strengthening evidence-based policymaking in Sierra Leone’s education sector.
The partnership aims to ensure that decisions affecting children’s education are informed by rigorous evidence on what works.
Under the agreement, J-PAL Africa will work with the ministry to strengthen the school subsidy programme to improve student learning outcomes, support the development of the Education Sector Plan using evidence-based research, build institutional capacity in data collection and analysis, and promote long-term sustainability through knowledge transfer and government-led systems.
Speaking on the partnership, Primerose Ajapong, Senior Policy Manager at J-PAL Africa, said Sierra Leone is the latest country to join the organisation’s Africa partnerships in advancing evidence-based policymaking.
“Whatever the ministry is doing, we are walking hand in hand with them to make it even more effective,” she said.
The Chief Education Officer at MBSSE described the MoU as more than a formal agreement, calling it “a commitment to every child in Sierra Leone that decisions shaping their education will be grounded in evidence, data, and what truly works.”
The ministry said the agreement is not an externally imposed programme, but a collaborative framework designed to strengthen existing national efforts and improve education outcomes.
Officials added that the partnership positions Sierra Leone’s education future as evidence-based, homegrown, and sustainable.
