Ensure government ownership and good management. Government ownership and good management are essential. Ministry of Religious Affairs demonstrated strong ownership of the project by making sufficient financial, human, and technical resources available in a timely manner. Good coordination and communication among all project stakeholders, i.e., ADB, government agencies, madrasahs, consultants, and communities, are key factors in the success of the project. Creating positive synergies and a harmonious working environment among key stakeholders throughout the life of the project is essential to successful project implementation. _x005F_x000D__x005F_x000D_Promote a community-driven development approach. The success of the madrasah development plan (MDP)-based improvements in each participating madrasah suggests that a community-driven development approach could provide a model for the development of all madrasahs. The requirement to jointly formulate an MDP in each project madrasah created an environment for participatory planning at the level of the individual madrasah for the formulation of both long and short-term plans, and became the starting point of a development process that had the full support of the wider community. Even though project madrasahs were funded entirely through block grants provided from project funds, the MDP-based approach to madrasah strengthening ensured community ownership through the process of MDP formulation. As a result, community participation remained high. This was demonstrated by community cash and in-kind contributions totaling about $3 million to support the provision of teaching and learning facilities._x005F_x000D__x005F_x000D_Systematically involve district administrations. A systematic approach toward involving the district administration and Ministry of Education and Culture education offices is required to realize wider development impact. It would be beneficial to harmonize madrasah development with Ministry of Education and Culture district education plans and integrate MDPs into the annual district development plans. Greater capacity-building of district-level Ministry of Religious Affairs staff will be essential for sustaining quality improvements in the madrasah education system. Greater collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Culture is also essential to ensure more efficient use of government resources._x005F_x000D__x005F_x000D_Support institutional development beyond training. The project was also intended to build the institutional and professional capacity of the madrasah education management system. To that end, the project provided funds for Ministry of Religious Affairs officials to take doctoral and master's degrees overseas. However, institutional capacity building requires more that training. It also requires streamlining of the organizational structure, job functions, professional skills, resources allocation, and accountability system. Further efforts are needed to create and implement a capacity-development plan that will support the institutional capacities of Ministry of Religious Affairs at all levels, starting from the central level.
Madrasah Education Development Project