The Government of India, Government of Nagaland and the World Bank today signed a $ 68 million project to enhance the governance of schools across Nagaland as well as to improve teaching practices and learning environments in select schools.The “Nagaland: Enhancing Classroom Teaching and Resources Project” will improve classroom instruction; create opportunities for the professional development of teachers; and build technology systems to provide students and teachers with more access to blended and online learning as well as allow better monitoring of policies and programmes, an official press release said."Such an integrated approach will complement conventional delivery models and help mitigate the challenges posed by COVID-19. About 150,000 students and 20,000 teachers in the government education system in Nagaland will benefit from the statewide reforms in schools," he said.C. S. Mohapatra, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, said that human resources development plays a key role in any development strategy and the Government of India has taken several concrete steps to transform the education landscape in India. He added that the education project in Nagaland will address the critical gaps faced by students and teachers and play an important role in the development of the state.The agreement was signed by Mohapatra on behalf of the Government of India; Shanavas C, Principal Director, Department of School Education on behalf of the Government of Nagaland; and Junaid Ahmad, Country Director, India on behalf of the World Bank.An official press release said that Nagaland faces challenges of weak school infrastructure, lack of opportunities for the professional development of teachers and limited capacity on the part of communities to partner effectively with the school system. The COVID-19 pandemic has further accentuated these challenges and created additional stress and disruptions to the state’s school education system, it said.Junaid Ahmad, World Bank Country Director in India said that even as the number of children attending school in India has increased over the last few years, there is a growing need to significantly improve learning outcomes to meet the demands of the labor market and fuel future growth. This project is designed to support the Government of Nagaland’s ongoing efforts to improve and develop a more resilient education system in the state, he said.He said strengthening Nagaland’s Education Management and Information System (EMIS) would enable wider access to education resources; support professional development and performance evaluation systems for teachers and education managers; facilitate school leadership and better management; and support examination reforms.Kumar Vivek, Education Specialist and the World Bank’s Task Team Leader for the project said that the project will support the state’s efforts to reform and improve the learning environment in schools so that they are child-centered; supportive of modern, technology-enabled teaching and learning approaches; and resilient to future shocks.As part of that strategy, about 15 out of Nagaland’s 44 higher secondary schools will be developed into school complexes that operationalize the envisioned learning environment during the project period.The $68 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), has a final maturity of 14.5 years including a grace period of five years.