LiftEd Development Impact Bond Overview
The LiftEd Development Impact Bond (DIB), a USD14.7 million multi‑partner outcomes‑based financing instrument, was created to support the Government of India’s NIPUN Bharat Mission and to improve foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) in government primary schools across Haryana, Delhi, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
Partners and Implementation
Founding partners include the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation (India), Bridges Outcomes Partnerships, Maitri Trust, Reliance Foundation, Atlassian Foundation, Standard Chartered Foundation and the British Asian Trust, which acted as programme leader. Education partners that delivered the intervention are Kaivalya Education Foundation, Language and Learning Foundation, Peepul and Pratham Education Foundation. Dalberg served as Design Lead and Performance Manager, while Development Solutions and ConveGenius Insights performed the independent evaluation.
Financing and Cost Structure
The DIB operates as an outcomes‑based financing (OBF) instrument: investors provided the upfront capital and will be repaid only after independent evaluators confirm achievement of predefined learning and system‑performance targets. The programme delivered education services at a cost of USD6 (Rs 559) per child for a three‑year period.
Impact on Children
The independent end‑line evaluation of the first cohort, which enrolled Grade‑1 students for three years, found that more than half a million children benefited. Children in the LiftEd districts read an average of 49.3 words per minute by Year 3, compared with 41.7 words per minute in non‑programme districts, representing a gain of roughly 50 words per minute versus 42 elsewhere. Mastery of multiplication tables and division reached 65 % of children, versus 56 % in control areas. Measured in Equivalent Years of Schooling (EYOS), the gains equate to 1.81 years of reading fluency, 0.37 years of literacy (listening and comprehension) and 0.24 years of numeracy.
System‑Level Improvements
The programme strengthened block‑ and district‑level review meetings, making them more structured and data‑driven. More than 95 % of block‑level review meetings used student learning data to guide decisions, and over 80 % of classroom observations provided teachers with practical feedback. Approximately 37,000 government officials—including block education officers, cluster coordinators and middle managers—received coaching and tools to use learning data for gap identification, school prioritisation and mentorship.
DIB Mechanism and Future Cohorts
The DIB links repayment to two sets of results: improvements in the education system and measurable gains in children’s learning. The first cohort’s success paves the way for a second cohort, with the two cohorts together targeting learning improvements for more than one million children.
Broader LiftEd Initiative
LiftEd is part of a larger USD20 million initiative that also comprised an EdTech Accelerator (now concluded) and the District Education Innovation Challenge in Jharkhand. In total, the LiftEd initiative aims to improve learning outcomes for 6.5 million children across India by 2028.
Statements from Partners
"The main lesson from the LiftEd DIB is that meaningful systems change and better learning outcomes for children require collective action," said Bharath Visweswariah, Executive Director, India, British Asian Trust. Prachi Jain Windlass, Head of India at the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, noted that children are learning more and teachers are receiving better support. B Srinivasan, Executive Lead, Reliance Foundation, highlighted the alignment with the NIPUN Bharat Mission and the potential to scale impact. Gagandeep Nanda, Associate Partner at Dalberg Advisors, explained that the aim was to create lasting change in the education system alongside improved learning.