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The African Centre for School Leadership supports governments and other educational stakeholders in Africa to help build robust school leadership systems that strengthen teaching and improve learning outcomes for all. 

Find out here what the African Centre for School Leadership can mean for quality education in Africa and how you can engage. VVOB’s most important resources on school leadership are included too. 

ACSL in a nutshell

Governments in Africa have made great strides to ensure access to basic education. But ‘being in school’ does not equal ‘learning’, and the quality of education indeed remains a challenge. School leaders are essential to tackle this, as research shows that effective school leadership contributes to better teaching and learning through setting direction, empowering and developing teachers, and leading teaching and learning. 

Governments and other stakeholders in the education sector can call on the African Centre for School Leadership (ACSL) to help build robust school leadership systems that strengthen teaching and improve learning outcomes for all. Building constructively on the review by Bush et al (2022) shared above, the ACSL works with partners on 4 key areas to ensure quality school leadership systems: 

1. Development of school leadership policies and guidelines and effective and scalable professional development programmes for school leaders. This requires engaging with governments across the continent to put the strengthening of school leadership systems as a step towards quality education high on the policy agenda. 
2. Delivery of professional development programmes for school leaders through supporting professional development providers. To have an impact, continuous professional development (CPD) programmes for school leaders should: 
   • have a long-term focus
   • be embedded in national education systems
   • be offered to a significant number of school leaders 
3. Monitoring, evaluation and research on the effectiveness of school leadership and school leadership development. The ACSL will institute a continent-wide research programme to address the limited knowledge base on school leadership in Africa and develop tools for consistent monitoring and evaluation of CPD initiatives on school. 
4. Knowledge mobilisation, advocacy and sector coordination through multi-stakeholder dialogue. The Centre will become the ‘go-to’ place for research and information on school leadership in Africa, and build a strong school leadership network that bring together scholars, policy makers and practitioners interested in school leadership and leadership CPD on the African continent. 

The ACSL promotes effective leadership at all levels of the education system, but its priority focus is on schools and their school leaders. 

Download the concept note for the ACSL

Read on below the visualisation of the ACSL’s theory of change.

How you can engage with the ACSL

For more information or further contact, reach out to our committed team through info@africancentreforschoolleadership.org

• If you’re a representative of an African government: The ACSL is set up to strengthen the capacity of school leaders to spur increased learning outcomes on the continent. Reach out if you want to collaborate and discuss how the ACSL can support your government to direct the focus of school leaders on learning outcomes.  
• If you’re a government affiliated provider of continuous professional development for school leaders in Africa: The ACSL is a point of reference for home grown, evidence-based approaches and strategies to strengthening school leadership capacity. Reach out if you are keen to share insights on your work and develop good practices for the region. 
• If you’re a funder interested in investing in a key driver for SDG 4 in Africa: The ACSL is currently seeking partnerships with donors and investors who share our belief and vision of school leaders as key drivers of learning outcomes and are interested in investing in this area on the African continent. 

Empowering school leaders and developing their capacities are key actions to allow them to establish systems that enable teachers to continuously improve their practice and galvanize the whole community to support students’ hopes and dreams

DR. VALENTINE UWAMARIYA, MINISTER OF EDUCATION OF RWANDA

Read Dr. Uwamariya’s full speech announcing the ACSL at the 13th Policy Dialogue Forum of the International Task Force on Teachers on 2 December 2021 here. 

VVOB and school leadership in Africa

The ACSL builds on the experience and expertise of VVOB and the Ministry of Education in Rwanda on promoting effective school leadership.

Starting from a set of five standards of what constitutes effective school leadership, Rwanda has put in place a CPD support system for school leaders, consisting of a certified initial course for school leaders delivered by the University of Rwanda – College of Education, and complemented by professional learning communities for school leaders. This support system leads to better performing school leaders and an improved culture of teaching and learning in schools.  

For this approach and the innovative blended modalities for delivery of professional development, the Government of Rwanda received recognition from the African Union twice, during the Innovating Education in Africa Expo in Dakar (2018) and Gabarone (2019). 

To this day, VVOB is working closely with the Ministry of Education in Rwanda on effective school leadership. The LEAD project (2022-2026) focuses on strengthening the competencies of school leaders to rely on and use data to improve teaching, learning and school-based teacher professional development. But as the video below shows, VVOB’s partnership with the government to strengthen the school leadership system goes back quite some tiIn Kenya too, VVOB’s priority focus in its collaboration with the Ministry of Education is on school leaders. The INCREASE project (2022-2026) supports school leaders in junior secondary education to acquire strong instructional leadership skills and organise quality teacher professional development at school-level, thus supporting the effective implementation of the new competence-based curriculum. 

Journey Of Promoting Effective School Leadership In Rwanda

More resources and news about school leadership in Africa

• Working paper by VVOB (2023): Building a Consensus on School Leadership for Quality Education in Africa
• Press release by The Rwanda Ministry of Education and VVOB in Rwanda (2023): Shaping the future of school leadership in Africa
• Blog and video by VVOB in Rwanda (2022): Initiating the African Centre for School Leadership  
• Press release by VVOB in Rwanda (2022): Stakeholders rely on new African Centre for School Leadership to build consensus around effective leadership 
• Chapter in Education Reimagined: Leadership for a New Era by WISE (2022): Effective School Leadership: a Path Towards Institutionalisation (pp. 38-39) 
• Joint op-ed by VVOB and Mastercard Foundation (2021): School leaders can shape Africa’s future 
• WISE blog (2020): Strengthening Instructional Leadership in Rwanda: A Collaborative Effort 
• Blog on UNESCO IIEP’s Learning Portal (2020): Shared leadership, coaching and mentoring: Key ingredients to create a positive school environment in Rwanda 

From the 26^th to the 27^th of February 2024, VVOB-education for development convened a two-day consultative workshop with partners in Naivasha, Kenya, organised by the African Centre for School Leadership (ACSL) to shape the future of education in Africa through effective school leadership.  

The African Centre for School Leadership is a coalition of pan-African organisations and governments dedicated to promoting effective school leadership through collaboration on professional development, research, and policy advice in the education sector.

The workshop objectives

The workshop brought together regional and country-level organisations, governments, and partners who share the goal of advancing quality education on the continent. Together, we:

• Gathered inputs to validate draft documents including a framework for school leadership in Africa, a practice brief on blended school leadership professional development, as well as an advocacy, knowledge mobilisation, partnerships and sector coordination strategy of the Centre
• Reviewed progress and sustainability plans and discussed scaling the activities of the Centre from the current three countries to 12 by 2030
• Presented preliminary findings of research on school leadership competencies in Sub-Saharan Africa
• Welcomed new members to the ACSL Foundation Phase Project Steering Committee
• Strengthened commitment to support the ACSL efforts to promote school leadership

At the regional level, the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), Education Sub-Saharan Africa (ESSA), and the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) were represented. At the country level, representatives from the following organisations participated in the workshop – the Ministry of Education in Kenya and Kenya Education Management Institute (KEMI), the Institute for Educational Planning and Administration (IEPA) from Ghana, the Rwanda Basic Education Board (REB) and the University of Rwanda-College of Education (UR-CE) from Rwanda.

The initiative to establish the African Centre for School Leadership is a testament to our collective commitment to advancing education and driving positive change in our communities

DR ELYAS ABDI

A message from partners

Addressing the workshop participants, Dr Elyas Abdi, Director General of Early Learning and Basic Education at the Ministry of Education in Kenya, commended the initiative to advance effective school leadership and pledged the Ministry’s full support to the Centre’s work in Kenya and beyond.

“When you are not feeling well you go to a doctor. S/he prescribes medicine, and you are fine. But education, being a social science, there is no particular prescription. It requires a multi-faceted approach, and this is where leadership comes in. The initiative to establish the African Centre for School Leadership is a testament to our collective commitment to advancing education and driving positive change in our communities,” said Dr Elyas.

He also reconfirmed his commitment to advancing the Centre and its ambitions: “This Centre represents a bold statement forward in our quest for excellence, equity, and inclusivity in education. So, for us in Kenya and on behalf of the Ministry of Education, I want to assure you of our commitment and support in advancing this Centre’s work.”

Sven Rooms, VVOB’s General Director, described the workshop as a platform for engaging in meaningful dialogue, exchanging best practices, and collaboratively devising strategies to advance effective school leadership on the African continent.

“Together, we can explore innovative solutions, learn from each other’s successes and challenges, and lay the groundwork for a brighter future for education in Africa,” he said.

The African Centre for School Leadership

The African Centre for School Leadership works with governments and governmental agencies in the education sector to build supportive school leadership systems that strengthen teaching and improve learning outcomes and well-being for all. The Centre does this by using the best available expertise in the region to deliver high-quality continuous professional development services, research, and policy advice.

Currently in its foundation phase (2022-2024), the Centre is implemented through a series of projects that are coordinated by VVOB, focusing on three countries: Rwanda, Kenya, and Ghana. The ambition is to expand activities and partnerships from the current three countries to 12 by 2030.

At the regional level, partners will collect, disseminate, and share best practices from partner countries. Within countries, the Centre will support and collaborate with coalitions that reflect the same interplay between policy, practice, and research. The outcome of this double-tiered approach will strengthen school leadership support systems at the regional and national levels, and stronger leadership practices in schools. Ultimately, the goal of the Centre is to positively impact the quality of education for students of all ages across the continent.

The Centre expects to reach about 7,000 in-service and aspiring school leaders by 2027. This number is expected to increase, reaching more than 18,600 by 2030.

Currently, the ACSL is supported by the Mastercard Foundation, the Jacobs Foundation, and the Global Education Monitoring team of UNESCO to run its activities from May 2023 to October 2024.

Learn more about the African Centre for School Leadership.

With two years of compulsory and free kindergarten (KG) education introduced in 2008, and a new KG national curriculum and teacher training package based entirely around play-based learning, Ghana is now an African leader in early childhood education (ECE).

Despite this enormous progress, challenges persist. KG classrooms remain overcrowded, and many teachers have never received formal training in the play-based method. Teacher professional development opportunities are limited, leading to poor understanding of the play-based curriculum. Learning often remains rote-based, with minimal creative activities. As a result, almost 80% of children in Ghana still do not acquire basic literacy and numeracy skills by the end of primary school (UNESCO, 2022).

Research shows that play-based learning at kindergarten level is the single most effective learning approach for a child’s brain development (UNICEF, 2018). Hands-on education through playful activities in bright and stimulating classrooms is how young minds are moulded and a lifelong love of learning is instilled.

To help address some of the diverse challenges in Ghana’s ECE sector, VVOB, Sabre Education, Right To Play, and AfriKids, have launched a new project called ‘Strengthening Play-Based Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Ghana through Leadership Communities of Practice (LCoP)’.

This 18-month project has been set up with support of the Jacobs Foundation and aims to establish groups called ‘Leadership Communities of Practice’. These bring together district educational, school, and community leaders, with the aim of strengthening school leadership to support play-based ECE in local communities in Ghana. These learning societies will be critical for key members and leaders within the learning community to share ECE knowledge and insights, thereby promoting collaboration and professional development in the sector.

The Leadership Communities of Practice will form a critical support network for Ghana Education Service officers, teachers, parents, and school & community leaders. The pilot project is being introduced in the Ho West district, Volta Region, Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem district, Central Region, and the Binduri district, Upper East Region.

The Ghana government sees quality ECE as a critical component of their Education Strategic Plan 2018-2030. To further reach this vision, Ghana’s ECE policy was developed to advance the physical, cognitive, and psychosocial growth of all 4 and 5-year-old children, with the national KG in-service teacher training package (INSET) launched in July 2023. With a quality, play-based teacher training programme now in place, the government aims to nationally scale the training to over 48,000 KG teachers in all 261 districts across 16 regions of Ghana.

This innovative new teacher training methodology will revolutionise the way Ghana’s kindergarten children learn by equipping teachers with the knowledge and skills needed to create engaging and stimulating learning environments. The content is designed to promote critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity, and create playful learning landscapes that nurture the full potential of every Ghanaian child. The Leadership Communities of Practice will support this ground-breaking programme.

Kicking off the project

In August 2023, the LCoP partners met for a four-day inception workshop in Accra, Ghana, to map out the project work plan, including aims, locations, monitoring & evaluation frameworks, and a blueprint for training LCoP facilitators.

Speaking to the workshop participants, Ms Vida Barbara Ntow, National Director of Early Childhood Education, stated: “In essence, the community, including parents and local stakeholders, is a vital support network that can enhance the educational experience for young learners. When educators, families, and community members collaborate, they create a powerful foundation for learners to thrive academically. Thanks to all four partner organisations for their continuous support and ideas for helping early childhood education in Ghana.”

According to Lucy Ama Berma, Programme Manager at Sabre Education, the inception workshop “allowed our partner organisations to come up with some fantastic ideas that will drive this project towards achieving our ultimate objective of enhancing play-based ECE in the selected districts and beyond.”

“It was a fantastic learning opportunity”, Lucy added.

Training the project facilitators

From 9 – 16^th October 2023, LCoP facilitators, including district education officials, ECE coordinators, and community leaders, met in Accra. They discussed concepts integral to play-based learning, such as inclusive education, the integration of technology, and fostering social-emotional development through positive learning environments.

The training focussed on how school management committee (SMC) members can influence, mentor, and inspire teachers to play their role towards the improvement of learning outcomes. A key focus was also on the roles and responsibilities of the facilitators, with one participant stating:

“The training helped me understand the influential role of leaders and the importance of play-based learning in kindergarten.”

Chantal Kabanda Dusabe, Technical Lead of School Leadership at the African Centre for School Leadership (ACSL) at VVOB, was a participant in the facilitator training session. She believes that addressing challenges faced by education systems in Africa, especially at ECE level, requires strong school leadership systems:

“This leadership goes beyond the school level to involve even community leaders. I am excited to play a role in this collaborative effort to strengthen play-based learning in ECE through Leadership Communities of Practice. I am happy to see the LCoP facilitators’ commitment to fulfilling their roles within their respective communities and districts”. 

The Leadership Communities of Practice project forms an integral part of Sabre Education and partners’ support of the government’s national scaling plan, which aims to open up the life-changing impact of play-based learning to millions of children across Ghana. Projects such as these which champion leadership in schools and communities are critical for strengthening early education systems at district, regional, and national levels.

The LCoP project is also in line with the overall objective of the African Centre for School Leadership to collaborate with key partners in the education sector to build a supportive school leadership system and improve teaching and learning outcomes. The learnings from the project will benefit the Centre as to increase insights into school leadership approaches and competences that are relevant to the African continent.

As we continue the LCoP project into 2024, project partners will continue to deliver exciting outputs, including stories of change for project participants and an overview of learnings across the project stages. Partnerships such as these are integral to Ghana continuing its trailblazing path towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4.2: universal access to quality early childhood education.

Kigali, Rwanda – Wednesday, 30 March 2022—In close partnership with the Government of Rwanda, the Mastercard Foundation and the Belgian Government, VVOB-education for development initiating the African Centre for School Leadership (ACSL), an initiative by and for African and African-based partners.

The Centre, a multistakeholder initiative, is currently in its foundation phase and will be hosted by the Government of Rwanda, a key strategic partner. The ACSL is set to support African governments to build a supportive school leadership system with the objective of improving teaching practices and, in turn, learning outcomes.

The Centre will focus on promoting effective leadership at various levels in education systems on the continent. Drawing from evidence on the effects of school leadership, supportive educational leadership at policy level will enable effective and scalable professional development of school leaders, resulting in more effective school leadership . Effective school leadership, in turn, will support effective school-based teacher mentorship and support, resulting in improved quality of teaching, learning and learning outcomes.

“The aim of this Centre is to support governments in Africa to promote effective school leadership, and improve quality of teaching and learning outcomes. We need to have a Centre that provides support on continuous professional development of school leaders who will join the leadership in different schools,” says Dr Valentine Uwamariya, Rwanda Minister of Education.

In the run-up to the establishment of the Centre, a review of empirical evidence on school leadership in Africa took place. This review on school leadership in Africa offers insights in what constitutes effective school leadership on the continent, based on empirical evidence. The review considers the key competencies and practices that are associated with effective school leadership, the key features of effective and scalable continuous professional development (CPD) for school leaders as well as on how local, national and regional policies promote or inhibit school leaders’ leadership practices in Africa.

The empirical evidence review on school leadership in Africa can be found here.  

In a next step, a representative panel of policy makers, CPD providers, experts and development partners were brought together on the African continent from 30^th to 31^st March 2022, to discuss this empirical research and to build a consensus on what constitutes effective school leadership on the continent. It was also an opportunity to share the Rwandan experience in promoting effective school leadership.

“The biggest challenge in ensuring effective school leadership relates to the preparation and selection of school heads and principals.  For schools to be well led and managed, principals require specialist preparation as instructional leaders.  Selection of principals should be based on professional suitability, not administrative or political criteria” said Dr Tony Bush, Professor of Educational Leadership at University of Nottingham (United Kingdom).

“The quality of leadership in schools has a direct impact on the quality of basic education that children receive in any country. Therefore, it is imperative that school leaders have access to continuous professional development (CPD) to enable them to effect positive change. However, in many African countries, there are lack of structures to enable provision of such support to school leaders,” said Pauline Essah, Director of Research and Insight at Education Sub-Sahara Africa.

“The African Centre for School Leadership (ACSL), to be hosted in Rwanda, will be well-placed to contribute to bridging this gap. This is due to ACSL’s intent to support African governments to establish and scale up evidence-based education leadership systems that will be tailored to local needs, particularly with respect to strengthening the capacity of local CPD providers who train and support school leaders. This approach of co-developing solutions to challenges identified should help to improve and sustain the quality of education and learning outcomes for children in participating African countries, for the benefit of Africa and the world,” she added.

About VVOB

VVOB-education for development is an international non-profit organisation with 40 years of experience in quality education. Through capacity development, VVOB provides support to ministries of education in Africa, Asia and South America to improve (initial) professional development of teachers and school leaders in early childhood, primary, general secondary, and technical and vocational education.

For more information on VVOB, please visit: www.vvob.org

About the Mastercard Foundation

The Mastercard Foundation works with visionary organizations to enable young people in Africa and in Indigenous communities in Canada to access dignified and fulfilling work. It is one of the largest, private foundations in the world with a mission to advance learning and promote financial inclusion to create an inclusive and equitable world. The Foundation was created by Mastercard in 2006 as an independent organization with its own Board of Directors and management. For more information on the Foundation, please visit: www.mastercardfdn.org

For Press Inquiries

Etienne Ntawigira
+250 788 791 586
etienne.ntawigira@vvob.org