ODA Spending

How much ODA does Germany allocate to education?

Germany was the largest DAC donor to education in 2022 in absolute terms.

Compared to other DAC donors, Germany contributes a slightly larger share of its total ODA to education, representing 8.8% of total ODA in 2022, relative to the DAC average of 5.6%. This places Germany 5^th among DAC donors in relative terms.

How is German educational ODA changing?

Germany’s total ODA for education has increased steadily by 27% between 2018 and 2022. In 2022, 91% of Germany’s total ODA to education was reported as bilateral ODA, including earmarked funding through multilaterals, which is above the DAC average of 74%.

To get a full picture of a donor’s cross-border flows of education assistance, it is important to exclude scholarships and other costs of students from partner countries studying in donor countries. Part of these costs are reported as ODA by most donors but are not spent on development programs abroad.

In 2022, in-country student costs amounted to US$2 billion, or 54% of Germany’s overall education ODA. Excluding these costs, Germany remains the largest donor country to education in 2021 in absolute terms. However, Germany ranks much lower in relative terms (21^st, at 5% of total ODA) if in-country student costs are excluded. CSOs have criticized the high amount of student costs reported as ODA, arguing ODA-accountable costs are not linked to the development cooperation strategies set by the BMZ.

How does Germany allocate educational ODA?

Bilateral Spending

Higher education and vocational training received the largest share of Germany’s bilateral ODA for education in 2022, at 61% and 17% respectively. The largest share of bilateral education ODA (64%) in 2022 was directed towards ‘post-secondary education’, of which most is in-country student costs. One of the BMZ’s four special initiatives focuses on promoting vocational training and the creation of jobs, especially in African countries, where the BMZ sees rising demand for apprenticeships and jobs.

Multilateral Spending and Commitments

Germany channeled 9% of education ODA through multilateral organizations in 2022, which is well below the DAC average of 26%. The largest share went to EU institutions. Germany has contributed significant shares to GPE and ECW in recent years, although the OECD classifies these contributions as bilateral ODA.

Germany is a founding member of GPE and has contributed US$435 million to the GPE Fund since 2005, as of April 2024. In May 2022, the BMZ launched a new initiative, SHE – Support Her Education, which supports the GPE’s new GEA financing mechanism. GEA provides resources to support opportunities for girls to attend school and learn in countries where girls’ education has been a major challenge.

Germany is part of ECW’s High-Level Steering Group. As of April 2024, Germany had contributed US$366 million to ECW and is the organization’s largest donor. In February 2023, Germany co-hosted ECW’s high-level financing conference, which sought to mobilize US$1.5 billion for its 2023-2026 strategic plan. Germany did not make new pledges but reaffirmed its commitment form 2022, to provide EUR210 million ( US$221 million) in additional funding to EWC.

The table below summarizes Germany’s recent commitments to multilaterals working on education. Some of these commitments are considered core funding to multilaterals while others will be earmarked (bilateral) funding from Germany.

Funding and Policy Outlook

What is the current government's outlook on educational ODA?

Germany prioritizes vocational education in African countries: Vocational education is a priority for Germany. The government stresses the added value of Germany’s support in this area given its long-standing expertise and the success of the German dual vocational training system, in which training is partly school-based and partly company-based. Vocational education has received increased political attention and funding in recent years as part of Germany’s initiatives to tackle drivers of migration, particularly in the SSA and MENA regions. The government focuses on strengthening vocational training systems as part of a wider effort to foster labor markets and job creation in these regions. Promoting basic education, dual training, and further education are priorities of Germany’s development cooperation in the 2021-2025 Coalition Treaty, with a stronger focus on access to digital technologies.

Basic education promoted multilaterally: Besides vocational training, the BMZ also focuses on access to education, gender equality in education, and basic education. According to the BMZ’s BMZ 2030 Reform, all of the BMZ’s activities in basic education will be channeled multilaterally going forward. Key multilateral partners for the BMZ in advancing gender equality in education are ECW and GPE.

Key bodies