USAID EDUCATION POLICY
   November 2018
     Cover: Clockwise from top left: (1) Student and engineer Amani, left, works with a blind student at the Peace Center for the Blind 
     in East Jerusalem.  Credit: USAID/West Bank Gaza; (2) Higher Engineering Education Alliance Program (HEEAP) Vocational Faculty 
     Development training with Arizona State University hosts faculty from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.  Credit: USAID/Vietnam; (3) 
     Students in early grade reading program in Bangladesh.  Credit: Kate Maloney/USAID.  (4) Teacher instructing children in Nigeria.  
     Credit: USAID/Nigeria.
     Inside Cover: Inclusive education program in Nyamagabe, Rwanda.  Credit: Kate Maloney/USAID.
                                                Table of Contents
                                                   Administrator’s Message ...............................2
                                                   Executive Summary  ..................................4
                                                   Introduction ........................................6
                                                   Education context ...................................10
                                                   Education is Fundamental 
                                                   to Achieving Self-Reliance .............................12
                                                   Key Principles ......................................16
                                                   Priorities ..........................................28
                                                   Agency Roles, Responsibilities, and Requirements ..........42
                                                   Conclusion ........................................43
                                                   Definition Of Terms .................................44
                                                   Endnotes ..........................................50
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           ADMINISTRATOR’S MESSAGE
           I am pleased to share with you USAID’s Education Policy.  This policy puts education as the foundational 
           driver of a country’s journey to self-reliance.  Investing in high-quality education for all children and youth 
           builds the human capital partner countries need to lead their own development and growth.  
           This policy is particularly important to me because I started my career as a teacher.  My wife, Sue, and I 
           volunteered as high school teachers in rural Kenya and saw first-hand the power that a quality education 
           has on the lives and futures of children and youth.  Now, decades later, that experience as a teacher 
           shapes my approach to development each and every day.  When we give children the skills they need to 
           succeed and grow, they have the potential to flourish and innovate to transform their lives, their families’ 
           lives, and their communities.  
           As this policy lays out, in many contexts, the most marginalized children and youth still lack the 
           educational opportunities they need and deserve.  This is nowhere more acute than in crisis and conflict 
           settings.  The families I meet with, particularly those who are displaced or affected by violence, conflict, 
           or natural disasters, say that the most important thing they want for their children is a good education.  
           Today, we risk an entire lost generation of children and youth who are growing up displaced by conflict 
           and crisis without access to that education.  
           This policy provides the whole Agency with a framework for supporting our partner countries in 
           strengthening their capacity to deliver quality learning opportunities for children and youth.  We know 
           we can’t do this alone.  We will seek out and strengthen partnerships that leverage local, regional, and 
           global knowledge, innovation, and resources to ensure American taxpayer investments lead to sustainable 
           learning outcomes.  
            
           Mark Green 
           Administrator 
           U.S.  Agency for International Development
           2   USAID EDUCATION POLICY