Financing for equity in pre-primary education
1. Education resources to subnational governments
2. Education resources to institutions
3. Education resources to students and families
4. Social policies and family support programmes
Introduction
Key financing indicators (UIS Data)
The official entrance age to pre-primary education is 3 years old. In 2024, the net enrolment rate for pre-primary (both sexes) was 45%.
Governance
The Ministry of Education (MINEDUC) oversees and funds the education sector, including pre-primary education (starting at age 3), which is considered part of basic education. At the local level, 30 district education offices are responsible for implementing pre-primary, primary and secondary policies. Their duties include preparing budgets, managing capitation grants, and monitoring school financial reports, as well as overseeing the delivery of education services in schools.
The National Child Development Agency is additionally responsible for ensuring effective coordination and monitoring of early childhood development services, also has established the latest 2024 National Standards for Early Childhood Development in Rwanda for children up to the age of 5.
Pre-primary and primary education receive the highest education budget allocations (54.5% in 2022/23), mainly covering teacher salaries and the school feeding programme.
Tuition-free status
National laws and policies do not guarantee free pre-primary education.
1. Education resources to subnational governments
Education financing for pre-primary, primary and secondary education is highly decentralised, with a large share of sector resources transferred to districts. In 2023/24, 65.6% of the total education budget was allocated to districts. The Ministry of Education, together with the Ministry of Local Government, monitors education service delivery at the decentralised level.
To promote geographical equity, the government allocates district education budgets using a formula based on the number of students, teachers, schools, and district-level poverty. A revised formula is currently being developed to ensure inclusive allocation to districts and schools. Most of the district budget is spent on recurrent costs, including salaries and other fixed expenditures such as school feeding.
2. Education resources to institutions
Capitation grants
Capitation grants are distributed through districts to public and government-aided pre-primary, primary, and secondary schools every quarter, according to the 2023/24 Earmarked Transfers Guidelines to Decentralised Entities with Legal Personality. Allocation is based on the number of children in each school. Capitation grants are used for pedagogical items (30%), running costs (60%), and school infrastructure (20%). Schools accommodating students with disabilities or special needs receive additional resources to support inclusive learning. Disabilities include physical and motor challenges, specific learning difficulties, visual and hearing impairments, developmental challenges, speech, language and communication difficulties, multiple disabilities, intellectual disabilities, autism spectrum disorder, and emotional and behavioural disorders.
According to the 2021 Law Determining the Organisation of Education, the government contributes to covering the cost of education and feeding for students in public and government-subsidised pre-primary, primary, general or technical and vocational secondary schools. Pre-primary education expansion has mainly been funded through the construction of additional pre-primary education classes and public-private partnerships.
3. Education resources to students and families
There are no subsidies for students and families at the pre-primary education level. Pre-primary schools are financed directly by the government.
4. Social policies and family support programmes
The country’s flagship Vision Umurenge Programme (VUP), initially established in 2008 and revised in 2023, includes a child grant to provide support to the most vulnerable families in accessing early childhood development (for example, through training caregivers in home-based early childhood development centres). The Home-Based Early Childhood Development (HB-ECD) intervention, under the Expanded Public Works component, specifically enables poor beneficiaries with care work responsibilities to be employed as caregivers in dedicated HB-ECD centres and to get paid while learning and delivering nutrition, early stimulation, and better parenting knowledge and practices. The programme is led by the Ministry of Local Government, Good Governance, Community Development and Social Affairs (MINALOC). While pre-primary education is not a required component of the grant, access to integrated early childhood development services for children under the age of 5 from poor households has been reported to have increased through these interventions. Most beneficiaries of the VUP are working adults and older persons.
