From paper forms to data-driven decisions: how GEMS improved school monitoring in Guinea-Bissau

In many education systems, the challenge is not only reaching schools. It is knowing, regularly and accurately, what is happening in each of them. In Guinea-Bissau, long distances, limited resources and a lack of up-to-date data made it difficult to monitor public schools and often left education planning dependent on fragmented or outdated information. The introduction of a new national curriculum under the World Bank Group-financed Education for All Project made this need even more urgent: education authorities needed to monitor curriculum implementation, identify challenges on the ground and respond based on concrete evidence.

Against this backdrop, the Project Coordination Unit, with support from the World Bank Group’s GEMS (Geo-Enabling Initiative for Monitoring and Supervision) team, which is part of the Development Data Group, introduced a digital inspection form. GEMS combines mobile data collection, georeferencing, forms that can work even in areas with weak connectivity, and data visualization dashboards. In practice, the approach helped turn dispersed inspection visits into a regular flow of information on schools, teachers, students, operating conditions and needs identified in the field.

The objective was not simply to digitize a paper form. The priority was to produce standardized, comparable and actionable data for decision-making. During each visit, inspectors began recording information on school location, classroom functioning, student numbers, lesson observations, challenges reported by teachers, material needs and basic operating conditions. These data were then aggregated and presented through interactive dashboards, making it possible to track trends, identify gaps and support faster decisions.

The shift happened quickly. The GEMS team supported the General Inspectorate of Education and the Project Coordination Unit (UCP) in developing the digital inspection form and training 78 inspectors, who began using mobile devices to record their observations directly in schools. In less than a year, more than 568 schools across five regions were covered by a continuous monitoring system with near real-time data collection and visualization. This improved information transparency and strengthened the General Inspectorate of Education’s capacity to monitor the education system with greater autonomy.

One of the most concrete uses of the data collected was the organization of the distribution of school kits and cabinets. Updated information on student numbers, classroom functioning and needs identified by inspectors helped guide logistics and ensure that materials reached the right schools. The kits included basic teaching and learning materials, such as notebooks, pencils, pens and rulers for students, small boards and chalk, as well as support materials for teachers, including lesson plans, record sheets and guides related to the new curriculum. In some cases, cleaning and hygiene materials were also included to improve the school environment.

“Before we used GEMS, we relied mainly on occasional visits and incomplete information to understand what was happening in schools. Today, we can monitor what is happening in each school more rigorously and act quickly when necessary. This was an essential step towards improving the functioning of the education system,” says Mamadu Banjai, Inspector-General of Education.

For the UCP, the data collected began to support training planning, the identification of structural gaps and the reorganization of resources based on field evidence. For the General Inspectorate of Education, the digital inspection form became a tool to prioritize interventions and strengthen pedagogical oversight. For World Bank supervision, the system also made it possible to follow implementation using georeferenced and up-to-date information, facilitating technical dialogue with the project team and the early identification of support needs.

“With GEMS, we have significantly reduced the time required to carry out school visits, as well as the associated operational costs. At the same time, we have substantially improved the quality, consistency and reliability of the data shared at regional and central levels,” says Geraldo Raul Indeque, coordinator of the Education for All Project.

Beyond making inspection visits faster, digitalization strengthened the State’s capacity to use data to make informed decisions. During inspection visits, lessons are also observed, and teachers have the opportunity to inform inspectors about the difficulties they face. When collected in a structured and regular way, this information helps move the system from ad hoc reporting towards a clearer view of education needs.

“Previously, inspection visits were conducted with paper questionnaires, and afterwards we had to compile the information and write a report. It was a time-consuming and error-prone process. With this new method, everything has become more efficient. We now collect data directly in digital format - faster, with fewer errors and with better quality information,” says Florentino Correia Utite, a school inspector in Canchungo.

The experience also left institutional capacity behind. After the closure of the Education for All Project, GEMS resources continued to be used by the General Inspectorate of Education, which already has an established digital system and materials provided by the project, and by the Directorate-General for Studies, Planning and Evaluation of the Education System (DGEPASE). At DGEPASE, 16 technicians were trained by the World Bank’s GEMS team, and a national commission was created to develop a new electronic form for education statistics.

With the start of a new school year, GEMS is also expected to support, among other applications, the collection of initial enrolment data. Experience shows that when data are collected regularly, georeferenced and well organized, supervision stops being only an administrative activity and begins to guide public decisions.

A cross-cutting tool for data-driven public decisions

The use of GEMS in the Education for All Project is part of a broader effort to apply the methodology across several sectors in Guinea-Bissau. More than supporting the implementation of one specific project, GEMS provided tools, data collection routines and technical capacity that now help sustain the continuity of public policies in the education sector.

Beyond education, the methodology has been used for price tracking in rural markets, the registration of customers of the Electricity and Water Company of Guinea-Bissau (EAGB), the monitoring of animal vaccination campaigns, the distribution of agricultural materials and inputs, and the tracking of grievance mechanisms. Across these applications, the logic is the same: bringing field data closer to decision-making processes.

The experience of school inspection visits shows that digital transformation does not start with technology itself, but with the ability to generate useful data, interpret them and act on them. In Guinea-Bissau, GEMS helped build this bridge between schools, public administration and development partners, contributing to more transparent, efficient and evidence-based supervision.