Re Education : Issue #20 - FCDO Education : Running out of Road
Run (or stand up) for Education !
In 1983 I ran 260 miles from York to London - for education.
I was part of a University of York student group, running in relay, to deliver a petition against Margaret Thatcher’s cuts to higher education.
Forty years has passed since then, but now, for a second time, I have been stung into action (it takes a lot to rouse me). This time it’s another set of education cuts – these ones planned by a Labour government - to completely axe, or further cut, the FCDO education and gender budgets.
And this, from the party that made its name and reputation in 1997 with the electoral promise that the UK’s route out of the doldrums of the 1990s would be: “Education, Education, Education”. The same party which now says one of its five missions is to “break down barriers to opportunity by reforming education”.
At the weekend the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, gave an interview to The Observer who said of her “Reeves, the daughter of teachers, defines her mission as education" and quoted her as saying that her
“personal and political priority will always be improving the life chances of disadvantaged young people".
Just not outside the UK, even when you can ?
A Poor Warm-Up
The news of the cuts was leaked on the same day Baroness Jenny Chapman, Minister of State for Development, appeared in front of the International Development Select Committee to announce and defend these cuts.
What most astonished me was that the Select Committee did not ask a single question about the proposed cuts to education ! There were some questions about gender and then the committee got into the weeds of the mechanics of the cuts. I was stunned.
Since DFID’s inception in 1997, education has been one of the cornerstones of the UK’s development programme, including research into education. At its high point, in 2016, the education sector was delivering £900m of programmes supporting some of the poorest education systems in the world – making a massive difference to millions of children’s lives – differences with generational impacts. See here for Larry Elliot’s eloquent summary.
Getting into Stride
Many of those programmes and research initiatives have been highly influential, far beyond the UK : the Girls’ Education Challenge, Imbewu in South Africa, PESP & KESP in Pakistan, T-tel Ghana, RISE, Connecting Classrooms, the support to Young Lives, the Ed Tech hub, CAMFED’s work etc. etc.
A few days ago the “UKs New Approach to Africa” consultation paper gave a very strong and positive endorsement for FCDO’s education work :
UK leadership on health and education was underlined, particularly in strengthening national health, education and social protection systems.
Many referenced Africa’s youth bulge as both an opportunity (with a growing workforce) and risk (with an increase in dissent if opportunities for young people do not materialise). Some made the case that the largest return on investment in terms of equity is in basic education.
In the context of these global challenges what is so shocking about this de-prioritisation of education is that, not only is education the foundation of all development, (no country has ever developed without substantial investment in education), but, that the UK has been a leader in providing practical and academic expertise in this field for decades.
This has not only generated jobs in both the UK and recipient countries, but it has helped British suppliers successfully compete for education services to other donors and agencies like UNICEF, the World Bank, the EU etc. With the demise of USAID, the UK now has the premier education development service sector in the world. At least for a few weeks….
That’s the outcome of employing high quality technical staff in DFID from its very inception which was then matched by an equally high level of technical expertise in the NGO, Contractor and Academic communities (aka “suppliers”). DFID / FCDOs reputation with other donors has, for a long time, been that of a vanguard donor – experimenting and pushing agendas that others have then followed.
DFID / FCDO Education has been seen as a leading light in all the key education themes of the last twenty years : learning outcomes, girls’ education, foundational learning, ed tech, teacher development, systems strengthening, TVET, English language, disability and inclusion, early years etc. This is not accidental – it’s a product of funding expertise inside and outside FCDO.
Hitting “the Wall”
According to Baroness Chapman, all this is now to be replaced by drawing on:
all the expertise that the UK has to offer, such as our world-class universities, the City of London, the Met Office, Land Registry, HMRC, and our education, health and tech sectors.
Unfortunately, as anyone in this sector will know, this is complete fantasy – because it is utterly different to development work. You cannot replace expertise in foundational learning or skills development with a bit of technical advice from a UK education sector that is itself struggling, or university linkages, or a city type who has never been near a rural school.
Make no mistake, this is not about budgets – it’s about political choices. Yes, there is a self-inflicted budgetary constraint of epic proportions. As a sop to Trump, the government announced staggering cuts to the development budget – from 0.5% to 0.3% - to fund defence. Now, the question of where those cuts fall within the development budget are being taken. That’s a choice and they have chosen education and gender.
Humanitarian aid is protected : the UK has expertise, and it gives the government cover when there are international disasters. Climate change is protected because as extreme weather events multiply the public will become increasingly anxious about it. Health is protected because its outcomes are measurable and there will be global pandemics like COVID or epidemics like Ebola and Zika where the public will demand a response.
Running on Empty
Though some of the public are increasingly sceptical, even hostile towards aid, support remains around 45%. Not bad given the relentless diatribe against the sector from the right-wing press. So, is the decision to cut education and gender myopic or cowardly – or is it ruthless ?
It fits with the narrative I described in Issue #13 of an FCDO education sector that, despite the overwhelming evidence in favour of investing in education, has been unable to convince its own paymasters of its value relative to other choices. That’s largely because it doesn’t fit neatly into the agendas of a development budget that now has to be self-serving in national interests, or have easily defensible and measurable outcomes within 5-year political cycles.
Coming in 5th
Hence, the final and greatest betrayal : that education is being cut not because the public think it’s a waste of money, but because FCDO decision-makers think so.
All the more galling is the fact that it is education that has been a major propellant in the personal careers of the very decision-makers who will cut this budget ; education that, in generations within living memory, have made the difference between poverty and wealth ; education that has revolutionised the opportunities for women socially and economically ; education that is the bedrock of personal and social development, affording us the potential for a peaceful and shared humanity. But, alas, in the UK development budget, no space for education.
Reaching the Finish Line
But, the race has not yet finished : FCDO can still adjust its course.
If FCDO cuts education, it will align itself with the reductionist and short-term narrative that only counts what can be measured and only values what can be counted. It will :
deny opportunities to children in the countries with the greatest need
scupper its own reputation in a sector where it is world-leading and
decimate an internationally regarded industry providing employment and generating revenue for UK firms
Forty years on, I may not be able to run 260 miles for education, but I will do my best to fight for it.
If, like me, you want to press FCDO to change its mind, read on below.
Andy Brock, June 2025
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What Can you Do ?
First, join the social media campaign I have been coordinating by liking, reposting and commenting on the posts published in the last ten days (big shout-out to DHA Communications who have helped me just for the love of education. Hire them, they’re great!). Most of the posts tag the key persons in FCDO and the IDC Select Committee – so any comments made come up as notifications on their social media accounts. All the posts and some comments will be added as an Annex to a letter to Baroness Chapman. You can find all the posts by searching for #GlobalEducationGlobalBritain in LinkedIn or “X”.
Second, support other organisations protesting the cuts. Amplify their social media posts, comment and make your voice heard. The key organisations who have been actively raising their voices are :
It’s a pretty short list.
A number of organisations have put out press releases or letters of protest :
But, aside from UKFIET who represent a wide range of universities, NGOs, charities and private sector organisations, there has been a real lack of noise from suppliers - those who will be most affected by cuts. Why ?
Third, if you are UK based, email your MP and copy your message to Baroness Chapman (see below). It doesn’t matter what party your MP is from : short and sweet is good – they measure objections by volume ! You can also email Baroness Chapman directly on : contactholmember@parliament.uk (use Baroness Chapman in the subject line).
Fourth, if you are based in the global south, use social media to address FCDO Development Directors in your country, or email your local FCDO office (address the Development Director) to request reconsideration of these cuts.
Ten minutes of your time to take one or more of these actions - time well spent !
No country can really develop unless its citizens are educated.
The power of education extends beyond the development of skills we need for economic success. It can contribute to nation-building and reconciliation.
Nelson Mandela
News
“The picture of the world’s richest man killing the world’s poorest children is not a pretty one” – Bill Gates takes the gloves off on Musk (here for video). See also this article in Semafor about the gifting of $200bn : Bill Gates ‘horrified’ by cuts to USAID, to give away $200B | Semafor
This post from Euan Wilmshurst looks at the impact of the proposed new US budget on international education. It’s a great summary, but it’s not pretty. All basic education programmes cut ; GPE / ECW not mentioned ; “Education is explicitly included in the list of areas eliminated for promoting “radical” ideological content”. Laughable if it wasn’t so tragic.
The Education World Forum (EWF) was held in London in May bringing together many of the developing world’s Ministers of Education and those trying to partner or sell to them. It is a curiosity of this event that it is hosted by the Department of Education, not FCDO. Nonetheless, outside the venue Send my Friend to School held a silent and respectful protest against the planned FCDO education cuts.
Inside, Secretary of State for Education, Bridget Phillipson opened the meeting with a speech heavy on the coming use of AI in English schools. Most of this was unobjectionable, though vague – emphasising reducing teacher workloads and facilitating student learning. Heard that before. For a synopsis see here where her emphasis on being evidence based is challenged with a pointed question on whether the Department of Education’s limited funding to schools is “evidence based”. Same could be said for FCDO education.
Another of the, daily, tragic stories from Gaza. Yaqeen Hammad should have been learning and thriving, not killed by an Israeli bomb. She adds to the nearly 18,000 children killed already. 18,000…
Development
Another timely piece on the path forward for development agencies by Ken Opala How should development practice (and institutions) approach the coming reforms in the aid sector? He highlights a number of competing narratives jostling for space. But, almost all seem to agree that anyone who defends (even with caveats) the old system is a “resister” and not part of the future conversation. How quickly and radically we have moved from “the system is cracked, needs fixing, needs reform” to - “smash it completely” and replace with something utterly different.
Is that how educators see the last 70 years – a system that didn’t work, didn’t achieve much, and should just be discarded ?
Rachel Glennerster and Lee Crawfurd of CGD have a well-argued blog, Four Criteria for Prioritizing Education Funds | Center For Global Development, on the choices facing those funding multilateral agencies supporting education. Both ECW and GPE are coming up for replenishment soon with a unreliable US position signalling trouble. The conclusions will not surprise – invest in evidence-based solutions, in poorer countries and seek leverage to multiply impact.
But, the approach feels utilitarian to the point of being algorithmic. The political economy dimensions of these choices are not ignored, but seem sidelined. The process, developmental and sustainability aspects of supporting countries in need seem secondary to whether an intervention is “effective”. But, little of the research tells us whether these interventions are effective in the long term, not just for that study. Are bandages being prescribed instead of triage ?
Ngaire Woods has a thoughtful article in Foreign Affairs magazine “Order without America” on how non-American countries may align in reaction to (potential) US withdrawal from key global institutions. She uses the World Bank as an example pointing out that if the US withdraws the Bank’s HQ would most likely move to Japan creating a different set of dynamics around development.
Voices from the front
An impressive achievement from Shule Bora in Tanzania. After initial project support in rolling out the School Quality Assurance Management Information System (SQA-MIS) in 9 regions, the Government is now scaling it up to all 17 regions and 184 LGAs using its own funds. That’s true scaling and sustainability.
A very interesting blog from GPE on quality early childhood development : “Who are the sleeping giants of quality early childhood education?” (spoiler alert : parents). The blog reviews an intervention in Ghana showing very positive results on cognitive development and parental engagement / awareness. The conclusion of the RCT evaluating the intervention had an important observation :
One key take-away from our work is that the home environment remains a critical input for the development of pre-school age children. Policies and programmes that target only the pre-school environment may be overlooking an important pathway to improving children’s school readiness.
But, put this in the context of declining support to early years education from research by Their World and the REAL Centre well summarised in this post.
Luminos is one of those development organisations focusing on the practical solutions to consistently knotty problems – in this case developing teacher skills in foundational learning. Aishwarya Kaple’s blog highlights the components of an online workshop run recently for 120 teachers and usefully links to set of materials to help any teacher / educator trying to implement practical change in their classroom. (Even more useful if the font on their website was easier to read!).
Voices from the rear
(Gray and Published Research)
Two of the biggest names in the economics of education – George Psacharopolous and Harry Patrinos have a new, very accessible paper : “The Effect of Raising School Quality on Earnings”. This is an easy read, even for non-economists, and strengthens the case for TaRL, structured pedagogy and investment in raising the quality of education by showing how that investment results in significantly improved earnings. Sample quote :
For example, while the return to helping a student from a low-quality primary school complete middle school is modest (3 percent), the return to improving primary school quality is much higher (13 percent).
The other side of the coin is a depressing report from ActionAid : “The Human Cost Of Public Sector Cuts in Africa”. 40% of teachers report cuts in school budgets and 87% report a drop in real income. The recommendations include negotiating debt forgiveness and increasing tax take in order to adequately fund public services.
Also worth reading, a pithy and pointed article on LinkedIn by Indranath Chatterjee called The Pill We Forgot in Education Reform on the subject of teacher value and respect :
Systems improve when people find purpose. And when we build environments where teachers feel a sense of ownership and meaning, we begin to see real shifts—not just in morale, but in learning outcomes.
And finally
Romesh Ranganathan is a well known British comedian of Sri Lankan heritage who used to be a maths teacher. He was interviewed on the BBC’s Desert Island Discs a few weeks ago and had nothing but praise for teachers. It’s worth listening to it all, but if you’re short of time 36:00 – 37:40 is the essence. Two quotes summarise the cognitive dissonance of being a teacher :
There’s not been a single day of my comedy career that even comes close to the stress I felt as a teacher.
There wasn’t a single day of that job that I didn’t feel completely fulfilled.
A UK colleague alerted me to the Hemingway Editor app, a tool to help you determine the readability of your writing. Very useful for public-facing documents, reports, blogs – even epistemological academic articles ! The app tells you how easy / difficult your text is to read.
(This para gets a 6 which means it’s easy to read by most, despite the inclusion of the word epistemological). Try it!
If you’re writer of any sort - aspiring, technical, blogger, novelist - read this incredible and troubling Substack post on how quickly and comprehensively ChatGPT lies.
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