This research brief is based on the findings of field research coordinated by the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) and partners on the impact of decentralization policies on local-level actors, carried out between 2002 and 2010. It focuses on the role and challenges of one key actor in education, the district education office (DEO). The research was carried out in Francophone West Africa from 2002 to 2004 (Benin, Guinea, Mali, and Senegal), in Eastern and Southern Africa from 2008 to 2009 (Kenya, Lesotho, and Uganda), and in Asia from 2007 to 2010 (Pakistan, Philippines, and Sri Lanka). For all projects, the research was mainly qualitative, and included interviews with a range of actors at the local level, including DEO staff, parents, teachers, and local authorities.