Group Discussions and Work Sessions
Participants were organized into 3 French- and 1 English-speaking groups to discuss three key questions:

1. Approaches to financing adult education in African regions.
2. Key technical and financial partners.
3. Structuring interventions to achieve measurable outcomes.

Key Recommendations

1. Financing Adult Education

• Government Role: States must ensure the right to education for all, including adults, through sustainable and adequate funding policy. Adult education should be integrated into national education policies, with allocated budget to each of the three regions .
• Advocacy Strategies: Funding advocacy should emphasize on:
  • Literacy as an investment in human capital, capable of generating employment and wealth.
  • Evidence-based data demonstrating the impact of literacy on public policies and economic development.
• Funding Sources:
  • Internal: State allocations, sectoral ministry contributions, public-private partnerships, and individual contributions (self-financing, educational microcredit).
  • External: Support from intergovernmental organizations (UNESCO, UNICEF), technical partners (GIZ, DVV International), and multilateral financial institutions (World Bank, African Development Bank), as well as bilateral cooperation from countries such as Switzerland, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
• Special Funds: Creation of dedicated funds for adult education to ensure sustainable financing.
• Mapping: National and international mapping of beneficiaries, decision-makers, and funders to guide funding strategies.

2. Key Actors and Stakeholders

• Primary Actors: Governments, ministries, and local authorities.
• Community Involvement: Communities should conduct needs assessments, set priorities, contribute funding, and advocate for adult education.
• Technical Partners: International organizations provide technical and financial support.
• Challenges: Capacity-building is essential to improve public management and coordination among stakeholders.

3. Approaches and Implementation Strategies

• Community-Centered Design: Interventions must be demand-driven, starting from the real needs expressed by communities.
• Tailored Solutions: Programs should be adapted to adult learners rather than imposed top-down, considering cultural, social, and economic contexts.
• Monitoring and Evaluation: Ongoing assessment is necessary to ensure effectiveness and continuous improvement.
• Platforms and Networks: Digital tools like Moja should be leveraged to expand professional networks, share resources, and enhance collaboration across the continent.

Comments Recorded from the Webinar

Question 1: Sources of Funding / Financing

• The state must ensure its role in guaranteeing the right to education for all citizens, including adult learners, through sufficient funding.
• Funding should be regular and sustainable, anchored in public policy through laws and legal texts, with dedicated budgeting.
• Create a special fund dedicated to Adult Learning and Education ( ALE).
• Allocate the budget across regions and localities.
• Advocacy to convince decision-makers to fund adult education should focus on:
• Public demand (impact of literacy programs on public policies, especially economic policies).
• Literacy as an investment in human resources that can generate employment and wealth.
• Evidence-based and quantitative data demonstrating the added value of literacy for development.
• Mobilize both internal and external financing:

Internal: Beyond state funding and sectoral ministry contributions, ensure diverse resources via a mixed approach including public authorities, companies (employee training, contributions to pooled funds), and individuals (self-financing, educational microcredit, etc.).

External: Secure funds from intergovernmental organizations (UNESCO, UNICEF, etc.), technical partners (GIZ, DVV International, World Bank, African Development Bank), and bilateral cooperation programs (Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, etc.).

• Conduct national and international mapping of beneficiaries, decision-makers, and funders in ALE program implementation.
• Follow the recommendations of the CONFINTEA VII action framework.
• Adult education must be integrated into national education policies.
• Current allocations are very low (e.g., Burkina Faso: only 5–6%).
• Governments need to be convinced through advocacy.
• Responsibility should be shared among the state, local communities, private sector, and industries.
• Raising awareness among institutions and partners is essential.

Question 2: Key Actors / Stakeholders

• Governments, ministries, and local authorities are the primary actors.
• Communities and civil society organizations should conduct diagnostics, set priorities, advocate, and contribute to funding.
• Technical and international partners provide technical and financial support.
• Coordination between actors remains a challenge and requires capacity building.
• Strengthening state capacities and improving public management are essential.

Question 3: Approaches / Implementation Strategies

• Understand the real needs of communities before designing interventions.
• Solutions must be tailored to adults and not imposed top-down.
• Adult education should start from locally expressed needs to ensure relevance and effectiveness.
• Programs should be context-specific and demand-driven.
• Engage adult learners actively in the design and delivery of programs.
• Consider cultural, social, and economic factors to improve accessibility and impact.
• Monitoring and evaluation should guide continuous improvement of adult education initiatives.

Conclusion

The webinar highlighted the critical importance of sustainable financing, multi-stakeholder collaboration, and community-centered approaches in advancing adult learning and education across Africa. Participants emphasized that adult education must be integrated into national policies, supported by allocated funding to the sub-sector, and guided by evidence-based advocacy. Effective implementation requires the active involvement of governments, local communities, civil society, and international partners, with programs designed to respond to the real needs of adult learners.

By combining policy commitment, innovative funding mechanisms, and participatory approaches, stakeholders can ensure that adult education contributes to social and economic development, enhances human capital, and empowers communities. Moving forward, continued collaboration, capacity building, and the use of digital platforms like Moja will be essential to expand networks, share knowledge, and scale impactful initiatives continent-wide.

The use of digital tools like the Moja platform further supports the exchange of knowledge and scaling of initiatives across regions.

The webinar concluded with plans for a follow-up session on funding strategies, through another webinar, scheduled for October 28th, 2025 which, will regroup all ALE stakeholders in Africa and will be an opportunity for Pamoja Education to share her experiences with all.