Bhubaneswar, Oct 7: In a significant milestone for educational transparency and accountability, Odisha has taken a pioneering step by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Social Audit Unit (OSSAAT), Department of Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water to implement the school-level social audit program under the Samagra Shiksha Scheme.
This initiative aligns with the Sustainable Development Goal for Education (SDG-4) which aims to provide inclusive, equitable, quality, and holistic school education. The Samagra Shiksha Scheme, an integrated school education scheme, spans from pre-school classes to class XII. Its objective is to ensure comprehensive development and improvement in the quality of education across the country. To further enhance transparency and accountability in its implementation, the scheme has introduced a social audit mechanism.
The social audit of Samagra Shiksha will serve as an independent monitoring and tracking mechanism. It will collect information on various programs, initiatives, and activities under the scheme, with a focus on gathering input from stakeholders at the grassroots level, particularly from schools. This initiative aims to enhance public accountability in the Samagra Shiksha implementation process.
Under the guidelines, the social audit unit will conduct social audits for all government schools over a five-year period, covering 20% of the total number of government schools annually. This approach will ensure systematic and comprehensive coverage of schools across the state.
