Beyond allocation: assessing public school efficiency of financial resource tracking and management in Cameroon

Armand Mboutchouang Kountchou

International Review of Public Administration, 2025, vol. 30, issue 4, 381-406

Abstract: Education systems in developing countries, particularly in Africa, are characterized by a performance gap between private and public schools, accentuating educational inequalities. The main causes are poor management and weak accountability on the part of public-school managers, who are the responsibility of the public administration. This study delves into the critical issue of public budgeting and finance of education system in Cameroon. Specifically, it examines public schools’ efficiency regarding their management of public financial resources allocated by the government. Data come from the third Public Expenditure Tracking Survey (PETS III) conducted by the National Institute of Statistics on 521 primary and 403 secondary public schools. We employ Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Tobit model. Results show that there is scope of increasing efficiency in primary and secondary schools by 52% and 66%, respectively, by establishing school councils and facilitating official information flow on operating budget, especially in urban area.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1080/12294659.2025.2519555

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