In 2013, Sudan joined the RussiaEducation Aid for Development (READ) trust fund program, thegoal of which is to help countries improve their capacity todesign, carry out, analyze, and use assessments for improvedstudent learning. As part of the READ trust fund program,and in order to gain a better understanding of the strengthsand weaknesses of its existing assessment system, Tajikistanparticipated in a formal exercise to benchmark its studentassessment system under The World Bank's SystemsApproach for Better Education Results (SABER) program. SABERis an evidence-based program to help countriessystematically examine and strengthen the performance ofdifferent aspects of their education systems. SABER-studentassessment is a component of the SABER program that focusesspecifically on benchmarking student assessment policies andsystems. The goal of SABER-student assessment is to promotestronger assessment systems that contribute to improvededucation quality and learning for all. The importance ofassessment is linked to its role in: providing informationon levels of student learning and achievement in the system;monitoring trends in education quality over time; supportingeducators and students with real-time information to improveteaching and learning; and holding stakeholders accountablefor results. The SABER-student assessment framework is builton the available evidence base for what an effectiveassessment system looks like. The framework providesguidance on how countries can build more effective studentassessment systems. The framework is structured around twomain dimensions of assessment systems: the types/purposes ofassessment activities and the quality of those activities.Assessment systems tend to be comprised of three main typesof assessment activities, each of which serves a differentpurpose and addresses different information needs. Thesethree main types are: classroom assessment, examinations,and large scale, system level assessments. This reportfocuses specifically on policies in the area of student assessment.