Internal effectiveness of secondary education in Alibori (Benin): Diagnosis and analysis of associated factors

Internal effectiveness within educational systems remains a major challenge in Sub‑Saharan Africa, where many countries struggle to transform educational resources into sustainable learning outcomes. This issue is particularly acute in Alibori, a department in northern Benin, which faces high rates of grade repetition and school dropout. This study assesses the level of internal effectiveness in the secondary education subsector of Alibori and identifies the factors influencing it. The analysis draws on administrative data (2007–2025) and surveys conducted in 2020 among 167 students in the commune of Gogounou. Descriptive statistics, Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA), and logistic regression were used to measure internal effectiveness and identify its main associated factors . The Internal Effectiveness Index (IEI) stands at 66.7%, revealing significant resource losses due to grade repetition and dropout. The students’ level of learning outcomes is moderate. Students younger than the expected age for their grade and those with a good proficiency in the language of instruction (French) are more likely to contribute positively to the internal effectiveness of the subsector. Two key measures can strengthen this internal effectiveness: (1) enforcing the official school entry age and ensuring close monitoring of students’ trajectories to reduce repetition and dropout; (2) implementing targeted linguistic support programs from the primary level, providing continuous teacher training in the didactics of French for multilingual contexts, and promoting extracurricular activities in French (reading clubs, school newspapers, debates).