Decentralized education in Somalia: lessons from East African models

This study analyzes decentralized education reforms in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania and derives actionable lessons for Somalia’s evolving federal system. Adopting a conceptual, comparative, and narrative review of peer-reviewed literature, government documents, and policy reports, the analysis is organized around administrative, fiscal, and political dimensions of decentralization. Evidence from East Africa indicates that devolution expands access and strengthens accountability when subnational authorities receive clear mandates, predictable intergovernmental transfers, and institutionalized avenues for community participation. However, capacity asymmetries, politicized decision-making, and weak oversight can entrench spatial inequities and erode quality. Somalia’s context, fragmented federalism, donor dependence, irregular fiscal flows, and a dominant private sector amid low enrolment, amplifies these risks. The study proposes four priority reforms: transparent, formula-based fiscal equalization to promote equity, clarified federal–state roles to reduce duplication and improve implementation, legally empowered school- and community-level accountability mechanisms, and integration of private providers through standards, routine data reporting, and performance-linked regulation. It further argues that digital public infrastructure can bolster monitoring, financial transparency, and learning assessment where administrative capacity is thin. The paper contributes to education governance in fragile settings by translating regional experience into a sequenced, context-sensitive reform agenda for Somalia.