Large-scale learning assessments can be used to generate performance and contextual data on student learning outcomes. They can be national, regional, or international; school based or household based. The UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP-UNESCO) has conducted a qualitative study to explore both how and why learning assessment data are used in six sub-Saharan African countries. This Information Sheet provides background details for IIEP's Policy Brief on Zambia. It looks at the characteristics and setting of student assessments, presents the roles and responsibilities of the different actors, and sets out the documented uses of learning data. [For "The Use of Learning Assessment Data: Zambia. IIEP Policy Brief. No. 6," see ED617146.]