Country: Senegal
Founded: 2012
Executive Director: Pr Rokhaya Cissé

Established in 2012 within IFAN Cheikh Anta Diop, LARTES-IFAN is distinguished by its multidisciplinary expertise spanning education, poverty, reproductive health, governance, and the social economy. Beyond academic production, the laboratory generates knowledge that directly informs policy and programmatic decisions. Its work extends from Senegal to several other African countries. Its main focus within the FLN space is on citizen-led assessments and action research.

Key Activities

• Applied research and methodological innovations
• Teacher training, learning assessment, and remediation
• Collection and use of evidence-based data

Recent Impact

• ELANA, an Early Language, Literacy, and Numeracy Assessment Program, reached 5,178 children aged 4 to 10 years across 180 census districts nationwide in 2024. The data enabled the PAL network to widely disseminate the results at the global, national and community levels. The results contributed to policy changes, shifting the focus from inputs to processes and learning outcomes.
• The KAPB study, conducted in February–March 2025 on teachers’ knowledge, attitudes, practices, and beliefs (KAPB), involved 112 schools in four regions of Senegal (Diourbel, Kaolack, Matam and Saint-Louis). A total of 205 teacher questionnaires and 50 classroom observation sessions were conducted. 

Vision for the Future

Transforming Africa through evidence-based public policies by combining academic rigor with strong field engagement, so that robust research informs decision-making and genuinely serves citizens.

Cohort 1