Strengthening the assessment systems Africa needs to know if children are learning.
AFLAI helps governments understand whether children are learning foundational literacy and numeracy — and build the internal capacity to use that data to improve outcomes.
What is AFLAI?
The Africa Foundational Learning Assessment Initiative is an Africa-led initiative that helps governments strengthen the assessment systems they need to understand whether children are learning foundational literacy and numeracy — and to use that data to improve outcomes.
AFLAI is not a new assessment. It is not promoting any one tool or methodology. It is a practical support mechanism that helps governments make better decisions about their assessment systems, access technical expertise when they need it, and build the internal capacity to sustain their systems independently.
Why AFLAI?
Assessment activity across Africa has grown faster than assessment capacity. More than half of countries collect foundational literacy and numeracy data, but fewer than one in five do so systematically at the primary level. The gap between collecting data and using it is wider still.
Psychometricians and statisticians are scarce inside Ministries of Education. Countries continue to rely on external providers for item development, data management, and analysis — without building the internal expertise to sustain those functions. When donor priorities shift, assessment capability built through projects disappears.
AFLAI exists to change that. Not by running assessments for governments, but by helping them run better assessments themselves.
Our Principles
Government ownership comes first.
Every engagement builds government capacity, not dependency.
Country priorities before predefined solutions.
We start by understanding what the government is trying to achieve.
Evidence over assertion.
Resources are selected because they work in African contexts, not because they are widely cited.
Accessible and usable.
We prioritize practical tools, templates, and guides over dense academic frameworks.
Africa-led and Africa-relevant.
We prioritize resources developed by or with African institutions, in African languages.
Transparent about limitations.
Every resource explains what it is good for and where it may need adaptation.
A curated platform, not a repository.
Everything on this site — whether created by AFLAI, PASEC, PAL, or any other partner — has been reviewed against a set of explicit quality standards. When a government or practitioner finds a resource here, they should be able to trust it is technically sound, practically usable, and relevant to African assessment contexts. They should not have to guess.
Our Quality Principles
1
Government ownership comes first
We do not endorse approaches that create dependency on external providers or position assessment as something done to governments rather than by them.
2
Context before content
Resources are selected because they are adaptable to different contexts, not because they offer a universal solution. We flag where adaptation is needed.
3
Field-tested over theoretical
We prioritize material applied in real assessment cycles, with real enumerators, in real Ministry contexts.
4
Accessible and usable
Dense academic papers are not resources. Usable tools, templates, checklists, and guides are.
5
Africa-led and Africa-relevant
We supplement with global resources only where they add genuine value and can be adapted.
6
Transparent about scope and limitations
Every resource is annotated with what it's good for, its context of origin, and who reviewed it.
How Resources Are Reviewed
Before any resource is published on the AFLAI site, it goes through a two-stage review, conducted by a named technical expert in the relevant pathway area.
STAGE 1
Relevance & usability check
Does this resource help a government at this stage of their assessment journey? Is it practical for Ministry staff or practitioners to use without significant additional support? Is it available in an accessible format and language?
STAGE 2
Technical quality review
Is the content technically sound and field-tested? Does it meet professional standards for assessment design, data collection, psychometric analysis, or data use? Is it methodologically appropriate for its context?
Resources that pass both stages are published with a clear annotation: what the resource is, what it is good for, what context it was developed in, who reviewed it, and any known limitations or adaptation needs. The reviewer’s name and the basis for their endorsement are published alongside every resource.
What this means for partners
AFLAI welcomes resource contributions from assessment practitioners, institutions, and organizations across the continent. If you have material you believe meets these standards, submit it through the contact form. We will review it and notify you of the outcome.
AFLAI does not pay for content submissions. We credit and acknowledge all contributors whose resources are published. If you are a technical expert interested in contributing as a pathway reviewer, please get in touch.
Six pathways. Find your entry point.
AFLAI’s support is organized around six technical pathways. Each corresponds to a stage in a government’s assessment journey — the question they are trying to answer.
“Why do we need a foundational learning assessment system, and where do we start?”
Who this is for
Governments that know learning outcomes are a priority but haven’t yet defined what kind of assessment system they need, who should own it, or how it connects to existing curriculum and policy.
What AFLAI offers
- A short diagnostic to help you clarify your assessment problem
- An overview of what different types of FLN assessment systems look like
- Examples from other African countries at a similar starting point
- A framework for mapping current assessment activities and identifying gaps
When this becomes a TA engagement
When you need facilitated support to build alignment across Ministry departments, development partners, and stakeholders on what kind of assessment system to pursue and why.
“What assessment architecture should be in place to support foundational learning, and how do we know where we stand?”
Who this is for
Governments with some assessment activity underway but uncertainty about whether their current system is fit for purpose — the right grades, subjects, skills, and usable data.
What AFLAI offers
- A maturity self-assessment tool — from building to institutionalising capacity
- Architecture options: national, regional, citizen-led, sample-based, census-based, hybrid — with trade-offs
- A framework for mapping existing assessments against foundational learning objectives
- Examples of countries that have redesigned their assessment architecture
When this becomes a TA engagement
When you need expert support to interpret self-assessment results, design a new assessment architecture, or build stakeholder consensus.
“How do we develop new assessment instruments or adapt existing ones to fit our context?”
Who this is for
Governments that have decided on an assessment approach and now need support developing or adapting the actual tools — item development, language adaptation, piloting, and psychometric review.
What AFLAI offers
- An annotated item bank organized by skill, subtask, and language
- Guidance on item development from subtask mapping through field testing
- Language adaptation checklists for mother tongue instruction contexts
- Passage quality rubrics and worked examples
When this becomes a TA engagement
When you need hands-on support with item development, language adaptation for a new curriculum, piloting, or psychometric review of existing instruments.
“How do we collect data credibly and at scale?”
Who this is for
Governments with assessment tools in place but struggling with implementation — training enumerators, field logistics, data quality, and digital tools.
What AFLAI offers
- A complete enumerator training package with QA checklists and a training-of-trainers model
- Administration manuals and field logistics guides
- A software decision tool for choosing the right data collection platform
- Consent and safeguarding protocols
- A WhatsApp-based chatbot for enumerator support in the field
When this becomes a TA engagement
When you need operational support for sampling design, enumerator training, digital tool setup, or field management.
“We have data. How do we interpret it, and how do we make sure it changes what happens in classrooms?”
Who this is for
Governments collecting assessment data but struggling to turn it into decisions — curriculum adjustment, teacher support, resource allocation, or reporting.
What AFLAI offers
- Analysis plan templates and guides for interpreting FLN data
- Benchmarking explainers — what a benchmark is, how it's set, and how to communicate it
- Dashboard design examples and data visualization templates
- Policy brief templates for sharing results with decision-makers
- Feedback loop models — from national assessment to school and classroom level
When this becomes a TA engagement
When you need support with psychometric analysis, benchmark-setting workshops, building a data use culture, or designing feedback systems that reach schools.
“How do we maximize our assessment system for global alignment and reporting, including SDG 4.1.1?”
Who this is for
Governments with a functioning assessment system that want their data to speak to global frameworks and be comparable across countries and over time.
What AFLAI offers
- An assessment framework crosswalk mapping FLEX, African Union frameworks, CESA, and SDG 4.1.1
- Guidance on linking national benchmarks to global minimum proficiency standards
- Benchmarking workshop materials developed with UIS
- Country examples of national benchmark-setting processes
When this becomes a TA engagement
When you need support setting national benchmarks, linking to SDG 4.1.1, preparing for global reporting, or engaging with networks like PASEC or PAL.
Three ways to work with AFLAI.
Most governments start with one and move into others as their needs become clearer.
Technical Assistance
Targeted, time-limited support on a specific assessment challenge. You identify the problem; AFLAI helps scope the need and matches you with the right technical expert or institution. Every engagement builds your government’s capacity, not dependency.
Complete the government interest form and a member of the AFLAI team will follow up within two weeks to begin a scoping conversation.
Knowledge Exchange
A practitioner community connecting governments, national assessment bodies, technical experts, and regional institutions across the continent — webinars, peer learning, and shared implementation lessons. Topics are set against live country demand.
Already underway through ADEA.
Cohort Engagement
Governments facing similar technical challenges — for example, countries transitioning to local language assessment, or building enumerator capacity from scratch — can be brought together into a structured cohort combining peer learning, shared resources, and expert facilitation.
Reviewed by named experts, not anonymous panels.
AFLAI’s technical advisors curate and review the resources on this site. Each resource is signed off by a named expert in the relevant pathway area — so when you use a resource, you know who reviewed it and why it meets AFLAI’s quality standards.
Brahm Fleisch
Wits University & SADC Technical Chair — assessment design, EGRA/EGMA, Southern Africa & SADC (16 countries)
Penelope Bender
Gates Foundation advisor — Senegal, Francophone West Africa, local language curriculum & assessment
Melanie Smuts
South Africa education advisor — nationally owned reading benchmarks, Western Cape model, peer learning
Melissa Chiappetta
Sage Perspectives / GPE — diagnostics, political economy of assessment, GPE country programs
Maxine Schaefer
UCT — linguistics, digital assessment, language adaptation
Martin Gustafsson
Stellenbosch University — item analysis, statistical methods, Southern Africa
Alice Michelazzi
Enumerator training across Africa, field implementation
Dunston Kwambaya
Research manager, Kenya PRIMR — field data collection & implementation
Lucy Wambari
Field data collection technology
Epha Ngota
KNEC Training Lead & UIS advisor — Kenya, East Africa
Hillaire Hounkpodote
PASEC assessment coordinator — Francophone West & Central Africa
Cally Ardington
AFLearn Director, UCT — data analysis & governance
Anna Murru
Teaching at the Right Level — Zambia, implementation & data use
Hetal Thukral
Elimu-Soko consultant
Working on foundational learning assessment? Tell us what you're working on.
AFLAI’s technical advisors curate and review the resources on this site. Each resource is signed off by a named expert in the relevant pathway area — so when you use a resource, you know who reviewed it and why it meets AFLAI’s quality standards.