Sierra Leone explores innovative financing solutions to strengthen education for every child

FREETOWN, 25 June 2026 – The Government of Sierra Leone, with support from UNICEF, today opened a two-day Strategic Workshop on Blended and Innovative Financing for Education to identify practical and sustainable ways to expand investment so that more children can learn, stay in school and build skills for the future. 

To advance this effort, the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Technical and Higher Education convened Government ministries, Members of Parliament, the National Revenue Authority, the Teaching Service Commission, development partners and civil society representatives to examine financing options that can support stronger, more equitable and sustainable investment in education. 

“Sierra Leone allocates a significant share of its national budget to education—underscoring the Government’s commitment to human capital development,” said Liv Elin Indreiten, UNICEF Representative a.i. “This workshop is about building on that commitment by identifying realistic and achievable options for long-term investment in children and young people. Education financing is ultimately about children’s rights and children’s futures.” 

Sierra Leone has demonstrated strong leadership through the Free Quality School Education Programme and the Education Sector Plan 2022–2026, which place learning, inclusion and system resilience at the centre of reform. However, sustaining and expanding these gains requires addressing persistent fiscal pressures that continue to affect education financing. 

According to UNICEF’s Education Budget Analysis, when debt servicing is included, education accounts for 13.5 per cent of the national budget in 2026, while public debt servicing is projected to reach 29 per cent of Government spending—more than double the allocation to education. This significantly narrows fiscal space and contributes to ongoing challenges, including funding gaps, delayed disbursement of funds, and limited investment in critical priorities such as school infrastructure, foundational learning, children with disabilities and those in hard-to-reach communities, and school resilience in the face of climate shocks. 

Against this backdrop, the workshop will explore practical options, including blended finance, diaspora engagement, public-private partnerships and innovative domestic resource mobilization. 

These approaches can help complement public resources, while keeping strong, accountable and equitable public financing at the centre of education investment. 

UNICEF emphasized that financing must reach the children and communities who need it most, especially those facing barriers linked to poverty, gender, disability, location or crisis. 

Investing in education not only upholds every child’s right to learn, but also strengthens resilience, social cohesion and long-term national development. 

The workshop is expected to support the identification of financing options that can strengthen foundational learning, improve support for schools serving underserved communities, and help build education systems that can withstand shocks and protect learning continuity in a changing climate. 

UNICEF reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the Government of Sierra Leone and partners to strengthen education financing that delivers results for every child, especially the most vulnerable.