After the first multiparty elections in 1994, the government that emerged from the elections set out overall policies aimed at normalising and rebuilding the country's social and economic life. In the initial phase, this stressed the establishment of a stable macro-economic framework, in accordance with the economic paradigm that inspires the rules and conditions of the Inter national Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

The 1995 National Education Policy (PNE), forming part of the overall programme of the post-election government, laid down the objectives and the main lines of action for the education sector . In turn these guided that reflections and debates that resulting in drawing up the Education Strategic Plan.

By 1993/94, as Graph 3.7 shows, the levels of schooling were dropping, because of the instability imposed by the war together with the destruction of schools and the reduction in the number of teachers. But this was followed by a period of consistent and continual growth up to 1999. However, although in absolute terms, the number of pupils in EP1 in 1999 was higher than that recorded in 1981, this growth has not yet led to recovering the capacity for schooling that the system had achieved in 1981 in terms of the universe of pupils that constituted the aggregate demand.

The admission rate, which is an indicator through which one can measure the system's supply capacity, confirms the finding that there has been a real loss of the opportunity for access to education which Mozambican children had earlier gained. Graph 3.8 shows this reality.

In 1981, EP1 was able to offer 400,000 places for new entries to first grade. This capacity represented a gross admission rate of 110% - that is, the system had virtually achieved universal entry into primary education.

But in the following years, the war and the economic crisis drastically cut admission capacity, so that in 1992 the system was only making 300,000 places available for new entries into primary education.

Maps 3.2 and 3.3, together with graph 3.10, try to illustrate levels of schooling by province. For this purpose map 3.2 shows the distribution of the population of school old enough to be in primary education, while map 3.3 shows the distribution of those pupile who, according to Education Ministry statistics, are actually studying in EP1 and EP2.

Despite the provincial asymmetries evident in terms of schooling, it is recognised that the government and the international community have made efforts to increase the number of schools through rebuilding the damaged or semi-destroyed ones, and building new schools, resulting in a substantial increase in supply and hence of pupils.

Although it is unlikely, in the short term, that we shall see universal access to primary education, and a declaration that it is compulsory for all citizens, there is a need to reduce the age range of pupils in primary school, bringing it down to the normal age for attending this level of education, and gradually r educing late entries. Thus the pupils who attended 1st grade in 1999 were of ages that varied from six to 15. Some 32.2% were seven years old, while the number who were aged six - the legal age for admission - only accounted for 17.2% of the total.