ODA Spending

How much ODA does Sweden allocate to education?

Sweden’s spending on education represented around 4% of its total ODA in 2022, indicating that this sector is a lower priority for Sweden than for most DAC donors (which spend, on average, 7% of their ODA on education).
 

How is Swedish educational ODA changing?

Sida’s support to education focuses on:

• Strengthening equitable and inclusive national education systems for quality education, from early childhood education and throughout life;
• Promoting equal rights to education for all girls and boys; and,
• Paying attention to the role and importance of education in conflict and post-conflict situations as well as in humanitarian crises.

Sida focuses on the right to inclusive equitable quality education, promoting and strengthening national education systems, where support to basic education and life-long learning remains priority areas. Support to governments is complemented with support to CSOs and multilateral organizations. Education is prioritized in three out of Sida’s 33 bilateral and regional strategies; and in one out of twelve thematic strategies. In conflict and post-conflict countries multilateral actors play a crucial role.

How does Sweden allocate educational ODA?

Bilateral Spending

In total, 50% of Sweden’s ODA to education in 2022 was channeled bilaterally (including the US$52 million in earmarked funding through multilaterals).

Multilateral Spending and Commitments

In 2022, 50%, or US$111 million, of Sweden’s education ODA was disbursed as core contributions to multilateral organizations.

The table below summarizes Sweden’s more recent commitments to multilaterals working on education development. Some of these commitments are considered core funding to multilaterals while others will be earmarked funding through multilaterals from Sweden.

Funding and Policy Outlook

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

Improving education, particular in its intersection with gender equality: Under its 2016 Policy framework for Swedish development cooperation and humanitarian assistance, Sweden highlights ‘Education and Research’ as one of eight priorities. The education portfolio is governed by the Sida's Sustainable Social Development Strategy. Under the overarching goal of “Improved, equitable, inclusive and gender-equality education and quality lifelong learning,” Sweden’s activities focus on:

• Enhanced and sustainable quality systems for education and learning, from early childhood and throughout life; 
• Improved opportunities for learning and knowledge acquisition, especially for girls and women; 
• Increased knowledge about sex and relationships, including sexual rights, and enhanced work in and out of schools to combat GBV; 
• Improved access to clean water, and safe and sustainable sanitation and hygiene in schools; and  
• Increased knowledge and integration of sustainable development in education and learning. 

Key Bodies