The National Examination and School Inspection Authority (NESA) has released the 2025 Learning Achievement in Rwandan Schools report, revealing improvements in learner performance alongside persistent gaps in foundational literacy and language proficiency.

Conducted in May 2025, the nationwide assessment covered 22,950 learners from 592 schools across the country. Learners were assessed in Kinyarwanda and English proficiency, Mathematics and Science to provide data for education planning and policy development.

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The findings show that 44 percent of Primary Three learners demonstrated the expected level of Kinyarwanda reading comprehension, while 46.6 percent attained the required English proficiency level.

Mathematics recorded stronger performance at the same level, with 63 percent of Primary Three learners meeting the expected standard. Science emerged as the best-performing subject at Senior Three, where 74.8 percent of learners reached the expected level.

Reading comprehension remains a challenge

The assessment report indicates that although many learners are developing basic reading skills, comprehension remains a significant challenge.

In Kinyarwanda, 49 percent of Primary Three learners met or exceeded the benchmark of reading 35 words per minute, while 71 percent achieved the expected sentence-reading standard.

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Girls outperformed boys in Primary Three Kinyarwanda assessments. Regionally, Northern Province recorded the highest reading fluency but the lowest comprehension scores, while the City of Kigali and Southern Province posted comparatively weaker performance in reading.

English proficiency improved as learners progressed through the education system. While 46.6 percent of Primary Three learners met the required proficiency level and 63 percent successfully read words within a text, only 24 percent demonstrated the expected reading comprehension skills.

Performance improved significantly in higher grades, with 72.5 percent of Primary Six learners and 64.8 percent of Senior Three learners meeting the expected English proficiency standards. Eastern Province recorded the strongest performance among Primary Six learners.

Mathematics also showed encouraging results, with 63 percent of Primary Three learners, 68.7 percent of Primary Six learners and 57.5 percent of Senior Three learners meeting the expected proficiency benchmarks.

Science recorded the strongest overall performance, with 74.8% of Senior Three learners achieving the expected standard.

Disparities remain across gender and location

Despite overall progress, the assessment identified disparities linked to gender, location and school characteristics.

While boys and girls performed similarly in lower grades, a gender gap emerged at Senior Three level, with boys outperforming girls. Urban learners consistently achieved stronger English proficiency results than their rural counterparts, while Mathematics and Science performance varied across grades.

The report also highlights differences across provinces and districts, underscoring the need for targeted interventions in areas with lower learning outcomes.

Learning environment influences achievement

The assessment found that access to books, internet connectivity and other learning resources at home positively influenced learner performance.

Schools equipped with libraries, laboratories and playgrounds recorded stronger outcomes than those with limited facilities. Class size also played a significant role, with learners in classes of fewer than 40 students outperforming those in classrooms of more than 60 learners.

The report further notes that learners in Special-Needs Education schools performed well in several subjects, although comparisons with national averages should be interpreted with caution due to the relatively small sample size.

Recommendations

The 2025 Learning Achievement in Rwandan Schools assessment recommends strengthening early childhood and foundational learning, improving English language instruction, supporting girls as they progress through school, reducing classroom overcrowding, and expanding continuous professional development for teachers.

The report also calls for increased investment in learning resources, improved school infrastructure, and targeted interventions for rural learners to ensure equitable learning outcomes across the country.

Minister calls for focus on learning outcomes

Speaking during the dissemination of the findings, Education Minister Joseph Nsengimana noted that education remains a cornerstone of Rwanda’s ambition to build a knowledge-based economy under Vision 2050 and the Second National Strategy for Transformation (NST2).

The minister stressed that increasing school enrolment alone is not enough, emphasizing the need to ensure learners acquire practical competencies that enable them to apply knowledge in everyday life.

"Learning Achievement in Rwandan Schools helps us understand whether students are learning as expected and provides evidence that guides improvements in our education system,” he said.

He urged education stakeholders to use the findings to strengthen learning outcomes across the country.

"These results are not just numbers; they are a mirror reflecting the state of our education system,” he said.

"Our goal is not simply to measure performance but to use the evidence to make informed decisions and take action that improves learning for every child in Rwanda.”