Education Minister Ronald Thwaites is to set up a committee to monitor the performance of the education sector, with regards to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) targets and the policy priorities set out by his Ministry.

Thwaites says the committee will comprise members of civil society.

He says the setting up of the body is part of efforts to allow stakeholder groups to hold players in the public education sector accountable.

Among the priorities for the education ministry under the IMF deal is balancing of student-teacher ratio within schools; greater cost recovery at the tertiary level; and restructuring of the current scholarship programme into separate needs-based and merit-based components.