There are over five-million children out of school in Tanzania, most of whom have been forced into child labor by extreme poverty, or through being orphaned by HIV/AIDS, Malaria, or other tragedies. Many of these children have dropped out between primary and secondary school due to inability to pay school fees, and the extreme shortage of secondary schools in the country.

The national Primary Education Development Program (PEDP), initiated in 2000, has made dramatic improvements in the numbers of children enrolled and retained in primary school in Tanzania, but many schools are of very low quality with not enough books, teachers or desks, and over-crowded classrooms.  The situation at secondary level is bleaker. At only 20.6% as of 2007, Tanzania has one of the lowest secondary net enrollment ratios in the world. And not even 1% of children enroll in advanced level Form V and VI, the last step before going to college. Currently, due to shortage of schools only a fraction of children eligible for secondary school can get spaces.  While the Government of Tanzania has made dramatic improvements in secondary enrollment from 6.3 net enrollment in 2003, to 20.6% today, it faces great challenges regarding quality, with high class sizes (40 per class) and student-teacher ratios; inadequate books and supplies; and poor performance of students.

While the Government of Tanzania has a Secondary Education Development Plan (SEDP) in place aiming to increase secondary education access, it faces great challenges, especially related to the quality of education provided and access for the poor.  While the government struggles to keep up with the rising population of children who need to be educated, including an ever-increasing number of orphans and vulnerable children, students continue to drop out, especially during the transition from primary school to secondary.