There has been several research studies and articles on foreign aid for education which predominantly deliberates on the aspects that really works effectively in favor of aid and on the points which indicate the main reasons for the failures of such education aid initiatives. In fact, studies have abundantly shown that these foreign aids for education have made positive contributions to the education aid-recipient nations specifically in terms of enhancing the enrolment percentages under the basic education levels. However, there is also strong evidence on the existence of a wide gap on what the aid does to the nation and what it is intended to possibly achieve specifically in terms of the quality of education anticipated to be achieved. Overall findings of the research studies suggest that interventions are more effective at improving student performance and learning when social norms and intertemporal choices are factored in the design of educational policies and when two or more drivers of change are combined.
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The education is considered to be one of the largest sectors of the current era, education includes products (books, reading material, writing material, computer software and hardware, and teaching aids) comprises of various programs (Curricula, academic systems, procedures and processes which helps in attaining a Degree or an academic certificate). Education embraces services (such as examinations, tests, laboratory and practical courses, research, mentoring, counselling teaching and consulting). The combination of all leading to employment and successful career. Hence the education sector is considered as one among the largest service sector which serves as a pillar for development of the country and its citizens. In this context International aid for education has taken a prime position in helping the developing and underdeveloped nations to attain their set goals on education effectiveness and excellence. (Heyneman, 2001).
Imparting education to an individual has monetary and non-monetary influences, higher level of education an individual attains, lesser are the chances of they being poverty stricken and unemployed. The education not only works positively towards the individual’s betterment, it also impacts the growth and prosperity of the community and Nation where the educated individual hails from. The non-monetary impact of education enhances health, personal safety and hygiene, nutritive food intake practices, and on a whole improves individual wellbeing and quality of life. In this changing economy, education leading to knowledge and wisdom is acquired through formal system of school, college and university as an institution. This gets transformed to the next generation through systematic incorporation and transformation of the assimilated new knowledge and skills acquired over a lifetime period (Schultz, 1982; McMahon, 1999).
The concept of foreign assistance for education is more visible since 1960 onwards. In the early periods, the focus of educational aid and assistance was more towards imparting work-related skills, engineering education and technology related education with utmost thrust on assisting vocational training and development. By the start of 1980’s the emphasis of foreign aid moved towards extending support and assistance to primary and secondary school education, professional course education, education research and moving ahead towards social sciences discipline of education in addition to the technical and engineering field.
The priority of the International aid is much more focused on the development of the infrastructure like roads, specifically highways, bridges, railway tracks, dams, agricultural and Industrial developments. However, to man these Infrastructure projects and to maintain these projects the need for skilled and knowledgeable manpower was identified as the important requirement which is the need of the hour. Thus, the focus of the International aid on education started moving towards enhancing the locally available manpower’s skills and knowledge to manage the Infrastructural and technical projects. (Heyneman,2004).
The return on investment was very high when the investment of financial aid is made on the primary education. Therefore, the shift from international funding for the higher education to primary education has been visibly seen, further the higher education funding has been generated through collecting higher additional tuition fees (Psacharopoulos et al., 1986). This approach was further followed by the model adopted universally called the “education for all” of course with a prime focus placed by the International aid Organizations’ on the primary education (Heyneman, 2009, 2010, 2012a).