The Hewlett Foundation has been making grants to improve the quality of education in developing countries since 2006. The Foundation’s special initiative, Quality Education in Developing Countries (“QEDC”), which was co-funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, has focused on ensuring that children not only are in school, but are also learning. The end of 2014 marks the formal end of the QEDC initiative, which was envisioned by both the Hewlett and Gates Foundations as a time-bound effort. It also marks the beginning of a new phase of education grantmaking at the Foundation, one that will focus on greater transparency about and accountability for learning outcomes, particularly on the part of governments in developing countries and international donors.
This document provides a retrospective view on the first phase of work, describes the rationale for this next phase of work, and lays out the three grantmaking strategies that we plan to pursue. The thinking behind these strategies has been informed by reviewing existing grants, extracting lessons from those grants and the literature, and consulting with a broad range of experts. We are grateful to the individuals and organizations that provided comments on an earlier version of this document, and we look forward to continued learning and iteration with colleagues as the strategy evolves.