L'évaluation de l'éducation pour tous à l'an 2000 : Rapport des pays

Lao PDR

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INTRODUCTION

Background

Following up with the World Conference on Education for All: Meeting Basic
Learning Needs (Jomtien, Thailand, March 1990), in August 1990, the
Ministry of Education of Lao PDR, held a national meeting. The meeting was
attended by representatives from the Ministry of Planning and Finance, the
Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Information and Culture, the Ministry
of Agriculture and Forestry, the Lao Women’s Union, and the Youth’s Union.
The meeting set forth the needs of the establishment of the National
Committee for Education for All. In December 1991, the National Committee
for Education for All (NCEFA) was established. The Chairperson of the
NCEFA was the Vice-Minister of Education with members from concerned
ministries and departments. The NCEFA set up goals and objectives to the
year 2000, determined the strategies and the National Action Plan for EFA.
The NCEFA also set up guidelines and main measures to be undertaken by
the different concerned parties to participate in the EFA action plan
according to their respective responsibilities.

On the 4th February 1997, the Prime Minister issued a decree on the
establishment of the National Committee on Basic Education for All. The
National Committee on Basic Education for All composed of:

Central Level:

1. Member of Polit-bureau of the Central Party, Chairperson of the

Human Resource Development Central Committee as Chairperson.
2. Minister of Education as Vice-Chairperson.
3. Vice-President of the Lao Front for National Construction as member.
4. Vice-Secretary of the Lao Youth Union as member.
5. Vice-President of the Lao Women’s Union as member.
6. Director of the Pre-school and General Education Department as
member and secretariat.
7. Director of the Non-Formal Education Department as member and
secretariat.

Provincial Level:
 Provincial Governor as Chairperson.

Head of the Provincial Education Service as Vice-

Chairperson.

Deputy Head of the Provincial LFNC as member.

Deputy Head of the Provincial Youth Union.

Deputy Head of the Lao Women’s Union.

District Level (same structure as the provincial committee but at

1. The roles and responsibilities of the committee at each

level:

Central level.

Monitor and supervise the implementation of the Basic Education

strategies, coordinate between the local authorities and the
concerned departments to accomplish the planned activities.
Motivate the citizens for their participation and contributions,
including the motivation for loans and grants from international
organizations to implement the Basic Education Programme.
Monitor and evaluate the activities that have been implemented.

Provincial level.

Monitor and supervise the plans set by the central committee.

Supervise and the coordination between the authorities and the
concerned departments in the province. Motivate the citizens in
the province for participation and contributions in kind, labor or
cash for the implementation of the Basic Education programme in
the province. Assist and monitor the implementation of the
activities to accomplish the targets. Report the activities
implemented to the central committee each 3 months, 6 months
and annually.

District level.

Same responsibilities as provincial level but at district level.

Meetings of the committees at each level.

The Central Committee, meets once a year. The Provincial and

District Committee, meet twice a year (every 6 months). The
concerned organizations in the committees have the duties to
implement the Basic Education Programme in accord to their
roles and tasks.

Country Profile

Lao People’s Democratic Republic covers an area of 236,800 km 2 in the

center of the Southeast Asian peninsula. It is a landlinked country bordering
China and Myanmar in the North, Vietnam in the East, Thailand in the West
and with Cambodia in the South. A large part of the country land is
mountainous. Mountains and plateaus cover approximately 80% of the
country. In the northern and eastern regions, mountains and plateaus above
1000 meters cover about 30%, mountains and plateaus between 200 meters
to 1000 meters account for about 50% of the area, and elevation below 200
meters and floodplains compose 20% (Lao Geography, 1989). The country
extends over 1,700 km in a north-south direction, with the widest part of the
country from east to west, reaching 500 km and the narrowest part, only 150
km wide. It consists of 18 provinces, 141 districts and about 11.697 villages.
The provinces can be grouped into three regions: (i) the northern region
comprise of Phongsaly, Luangnamtha, Oudomxay, Bokeo, Xayabouly,
Luangprabang, and Huaphanh; (ii) the central region comprise of
Xiengkhuang, Xaysomboon, Vientiane Province, Vientiane Municipality,
Bolikhamxay, Khammuane, and Savannakhet; (iii) the southern region
comprise of Champasack, Saravane, Sekong, and Attapeu (see Map).

1. According to the most recent population census, in 1995, the total

population of the Lao PDR is 4,574,848. The female:male ratio
was 50.6:49.4. The average population density of 19.4
person/km2 is relatively low especially in Asia. The population
growth rate is 2.6% per year, during the period 1985 to 1995. The
recently projected population will reach 5.34 million in the year
2000 and 6.73 million in year 2010.
2. The Lao PDR is a uniquely multi-ethnic state. According to the
1995 population census, the Lao ethnic account for only 52.5% of
the nation’s population and are the largest ethnic group in only 8
of 18 provinces, namely Vientiane Municipality 92.6%,
Champasack 84.8%, Vientiane province 64.8%, Saravane 60%,
Khammuane 59.4%, Savannakhet 57.5%, Xiengkhuang 44.3%,
and Attapeu 36.9%. In 10 other provinces ethnic minorities are
the plurality. Phutai are the largest ethnic group in 2 provinces
namely, Huaphanh 31.5% and Bolikhamxay 41%. Leu are the
largest ethnic group in Xayaboury 26.9%. Khmu are the largest
ethnic group in 5 provinces, namely Oudomxay 57.7%,
Luangprabang 45.9%, Luangnamtha 24.7%, Phonsaly 24.4% and
Bokeo 23.8%. Hmong are the largest ethnic group in
Xaysomboon 53.7%.
3. In a country as ethnically diverse as the Lao PDR, it is probably
impossible to arrive at a classification that captures the true ethnic
richness of the country. The existing official classification is by no
means definitive nor is it final. The first definitions used by the
government classified the population by topography, with three
categories: Lao Loum (Lowland Lao), Lao Thueng (Midland Lao
or Upland Lao), and Lao Soung (Highland Lao). While this
definition is has been used semi-officially, it falls far short of
capturing the diversity in the country. The 1995 census
categorizes the population into 47 ethnicities and lists 2 groups,
"others" and "not stated" who represent 0.2% and 0.5%
respectively. In the 47 ethnic groups there are 4 major
ethnolinguistic superstocks. These major superstocks are broken
 down into six main language families (see Chart 1):

Tai-Kadai comprising Lao-Phoutai (66.2%);

Austroasiatic comprising Mon-Kmer (22.9%) and Viet-Muang (0.1%);
Hmong-Yao (7.4%); and
Sino-Tibetan comprising Tibeto-Burman (2.5%) and Hor (0.2%).

Table 1 Percentage of Ethnic Groups by Province

Province Tai- Austroasiatic Hmong- Sino- Others

Kadai Yao Tibetan

Vientiane 95.9 1.0 1.4 0.2 1.5

Mun.

Phongsaly 20.1 24.9 5.7 47.6 1.7

Luang 32.1 29.6 7.7 30.1 6.5

Namtha

Oudomxay 25.0 57.9 13.3 3.5 0.3

Bokeo 40.8 35.6 13.2 10.1 0.3

Luangprabang 37.4 46.0 15.7 0.2 0.7

Huaphanh 61.5 16.7 21.1 0 0.7

Xayaboury 58.2 26.5 14.8 0.1 0.4

Xiengkhuang 54.8 9.9 34.2 0 1.1

Vientiane 78.5 12.3 8.4 0 0.3
Prov.

Borikhamxay 81.3 8.0 9.2 0 1.5

Khammuane 81.8 16.0 0.2 0 20

Savannakhet 76.4 22.6 0 0 1.0

Saravane 61.7 37.8 0 0 0.5

Sekong 8.9 90.8 0 0 0.3

Champasack 86.1 12.4 0 0 1.5

Attapeu 37.2 62.3 0 0 0.5

Xaysomboun 26.0 17.2 55.7 0 1.1

Source: National Statistic Center Population Census,

1995 & LFNC Dept. of Ethnic Affairs, 1999.

1. The Lao PDR is officially recognized as a least developed

country. The country relies heavily on external aid.
According to the 1998 UNDP Human Development Index,
the Lao PDR ranked 136th out of 174 countries investigated.
Its development level falls in between that of Myanmar
(131 st ) and Cambodia (140 th) (HDR 1998). According to the
1995 World Bank study, 22% of the population falls below
"the food poverty line" (defined as the level of income
sufficient to buy 2,100 calories per person per day). An
estimated 50% of the population lives below the higher
poverty line (defined as an allowance for non-food
expenditures sufficient to buy basic goods)(World Bank,
1999). Despite recent economic progress, Lao PDR is still a
very poor country with average per capita income of only
US$400 (World Bank 1999), respectively to some US$370
according to the IMF statistics 1998. According to the State
Planning Committee Report, the GDP for 1998-99 has
decreased to US$262.9 from US$280.1 in 1997-98.
2. Achieving the "graduate" status from the ranks of the least
developed countries by the year 2020 will require sustained
annual growth of about 9%, higher than the 7% annual
average achieved over the last five years. The government
has itself set a medium term growth target of 8-8.5% during
1997-2000. Achieving this level of growth would not only be
unprecedented in Lao PDR’s history but is also made more
difficult by the much less favorable economic environment
currently prevailing in Asia (World Bank, 1999:33).
3. The social dimensions of the crisis in Lao PDR stem mainly
from the deep depreciation of the local currency, the Kip,
 and from the consequences of this serious devaluation. The
most widespread and noticeable effect of the crisis has
been on prices, particularly for basic commodities and
goods on which much of the population, especially the poor,
depend for survival. Annual inflation rose to 26.6 percent by
the end of 1997 and has continued to increase in 1998,
reaching over 142 percent in June 1998 (World Bank,
1999).
4. The Lao PDR economy is predominantly agrarian.
Agriculture, including forestry, represents about 50% of Lao
PDR’s GDP. Outside of forestry, agriculture has not been
significantly impacted by the crisis because its linkages with
the regional markets are limited. Production in the sector is
largely for subsistence. A large share of the sector’s exports
(mainly coffee) goes to market outside the region. Lao
supply of agricultural produce for agro-processig industries
in the Northern and Northeastern provinces of Thailand has
been increasing. The forestry sub-sector has been severely
impacted by the crisis. Forestry contributes about 5 percent
of Lao PDR’s GDP but is the leading export sector,
providing an average of 33 percent of total exports annually
over the last five years. The hydropower sector has not
been significantly impacted as its contribution to GDP is still
very small, under 2 percent. The key garment industry has
not been adversely affected, as over 70 percent of garment
exports go to destinations in Europe (World Bank, 1999).
5. Overall, economic activity in Lao PDR has not experienced
a major slowdown following the crisis. Growth was
estimated at 6.5 percent. It appears that with inflation, the
entire population is sharing the pain of the crisis. However,
this pain may have a disproportionate effect on the poor.
Even though the effects of the crisis have been small
compared to those in other countries, given the level of
poverty in the country, even a small change can have
serious consequences.
6. Tourism is now the biggest contributor to national income.
National tourism earnings in 1998 topped income generated
from the export of garments and electricity. In 1998 the
country earned US$ 79.9 million from the tourism sector.
According to the National Tourism Authority, tourism has
seen a continual rise in arrivals from all over the world, from
102,946 in 1993 to 463,200 in 1997. In 1998, the number
rose to 500,200. Tourism in the Lao PDR has been
developing continually and its role and status has grown in
importance to the country’s socio-economic development.
(Vientiane Times,Vol. 6,No. 69,Aug.31-Sept.2 1999)
7. Overall living standards in Lao PDR , following decades of
wars and destruction, are still very low. Life-expectancy
(1995) is 52.2 years. According to the HDR 1998, 33% of
the population does not have access to health services.
This can be interpreted as those ethnic minority villages
having no access to roads in the northern provinces for
 example.

1. Poverty and economic opportunities

1. Although the precise definition of poverty differs from society to society,

poverty reflects the lack of access to critical goods and services such
as food, shelter, and health care. Poverty is many ways a reflection of
the lack of access to education and health care services; the poor
suffer from the lack of access, and the lack of access contributes to
their poverty.
2. The previous study of poverty is the Lao Expenditure and Consumption
Survey (LECS) conducted by the National Statistics Center in 1992-
1993. Although this study did not specifically focused on the poverty
within different ethnic groups, it is still a useful starting point in
measuring poverty throughout the country.

The LECS sample divided the country into three geographic areas: the North,
the Center ( including the capital of Vientiane), and the South. Although the
population of the Lao PDR is diverse, the North and the South both have a
generally high proportion of ethnic minorities.

The information in Table 2 shows the distribution of poverty by these

geographic regions, desegregated into urban and rural sectors.

Two separate poverty lines were defined. The first is the basic poverty line,
which measures the household’s ability to purchase a variety of goods
beyond food and dwelling needs. The second is the extreme poverty line,
which measures the household’s ability to purchase only the most absolute
necessities: food, shelter, and clothing. The headcount shows the
percentage of the population falling into the categories of poverty and
extreme poverty. The poverty gap index measures the average transfer of
resources that the poor need to escape poverty. It measures the depth of
poverty but does not put any special weight on the poorest of the poor.

Using the poverty line, the national incidence of poverty is estimated at 46%,
while for rural areas the incidence is 53%. The incidence of poverty is 53%in
the rural North, 47% in the Center, and 66% in the South. Extreme poverty is
especially prevalent in the South. As is common in most countries, poverty is
far more common in rural areas than in urban areas. Indeed, the level of
urban extreme poverty is quite low.

The poverty gap index confirms the general trends in the head count ratio.
The South is the poorest region, with especially heavy poverty in the rural
areas. Since the survey did not identify poverty by ethnicity, it is difficult to
make many inferences about poverty among ethnic minorities. However,
poverty is highest in areas that also have a large proportion of ethnic
minorities.

Table 2: The Incidence and Depth of Poverty, by Region

and Sector, Lao PDR, 1992-1993

POVERTY
Region Head-Count Ratio Poverty Gap Index

Rural Urban Total Rural Urban Total

North 0.527 0.160 0.464 0.129 0.025 0.111

Center 0.469 0.257 0.404 0.118 0.060 0.100

South 0.662 0.288 0.598 0.224 0.017 0.188

All 0.530 0.239 0.461 0.144 0.045 0.121

EXTREME POVERTY

Region Head-Count Ratio Poverty Gap Index

Rural Urban Total Rural Urban Total

North 0.246 0.021 0.207 0.045 0.003 0.038

Center 0.216 0.112 0.184 0.042 0.015 0.034

South 0.373 0.006 0.310 0.098 0.001 0.081

All 0.260 0.076 0.216 0.055 0.010 0.044

Source: Lao PDR Social Development Assessment and Strategy,

World Bank 1995

1. Often the most serious limitations to access, and hence the most
severe forms of poverty, are economic in nature. On the supply
side, the scarcity of funds may result in entire communities that
lack basic services. The nearest social service may be
prohibitively distant.
2. Even where services are available, members of ethnic minority
groups may face severe economic constraints, caused by low
income. This may manifest itself through the inability to pay for
services or through other effects of low income, such as
malnutrition.

10. However, economic conditions are not the only factors that
influence access. Many other factors contribute to the constraints
of access and the use of social services by ethnic minorities.
Some of these factors have a very definite economic
interpretation, whereas others are more clearly related to cultural
and political barriers.

EDUCATION SYSTEM

The education system is comprised of General Education,

Technical/Vocational Training (including teacher training), and
Tertiary Education. Likewise, the education system of Lao PDR
 can be conceptualized as three interrelated systems, through
which both children and adults acquire knowledge and skills. The
three systems are formal education, non-formal education, and
informal education. Each of these systems has differing but
overlapping goals, organization, curriculum, and pedagogy.

Formal Education

1. General Education: General education consists of:

a. Pre-school which consists of créche for children ages 0-

2, and Kindergarten for children ages 3-5.

b. Primary Education consists of 5 years of schooling for

children from

6 -10 years and is compulsory.

c. Lower secondary education covers 3 years of schooling

and for children of ages 11– 13.

d. Upper secondary education is three years of schooling,

accepting children of ages 14-16.

2. Vocational Education (including teacher training):

Vocational education students are admitted after they have

completed either grade 8 or 11 study at this level for 3 years in
order to receive certificates. Students who completed 11th grade
can receive technical certificates in two years or higher level
certificates in specialty areas in three years. Students who
completed 8th grade attend classes for the same certification as
above but for a longer period (8+3+2) and (8+3).

1. Teacher Training

Secondary students who want to become teachers have five options.

To become a preschool teacher, they can enroll in a one-year program
at the end of upper secondary school (11+1). To become a primary
teacher they can enroll in a three-year training course at the end of
lower secondary school (8+3 option) or they can enroll in a one-year
training program at the end of upper secondary (11+1 option). To teach
at the lower secondary level, they can enroll in a three-year training
program upon completion of the upper secondary school (11+3 option).
To teach upper secondary, they must enroll in the Faculty of Education
at the University of Laos (11+4 option).

The consolidation and strengthening of teacher training has been a

national priority throughout the 1990s, with considerable success. In
the late 80s, teacher training was provided by 59 small training schools
that had little common curriculum and offered generally low quality
preparation. In the mid-1990s, the MOE raised the minimum
educational requirements for primary and secondary teachers and
 began closing and consolidating these small schools into larger teacher
training centers. These larger centers were able to achieve economies
of scale and offer a stronger, more consistent training program. By
1998 the 59 schools had been reduced to 10 (plus the Faculty of
Education at the National University).

Teacher training colleges (TTCs) are under the general supervision of

the Department of Teacher Education within the Ministry of Education.
Each school has a Director who oversees the operation of the school.
The Faculty of Education at the National University of Laos Reports to
the Ministry through the Rector of the University.

2. Higher Education: Students who are admitted to higher education

courses have completed grade eleven. They study in each faculty for 4-
7 years depending on the subject area. For example, Engineering takes
7 years and to become a medical doctor takes 6-7 years.

In parallel with the Public Education system, the Private

Education system is becoming increasingly important and has a
growing role in the education system. Private crèches,
kindergartens, primary and secondary schools,
vocational/technical schools, and colleges are growing in
numbers, and are concentrated primarily in urban areas.

Non-Formal Education

The objective of the non-formal education system is to provide learning

activities to meet the needs of adults to acquire knowledge and skills.
Considering the isolation in many parts of countries and the years of fighting
and involuntary migration, there is a large group of adults who have limited or
no formal education. The Non-Formal Education policy of the MOE targets
on 3 age groups:

those between the ages of 6-14, who are not attending schools;
those between 15-25 years of age who do not have definite vocations;
and
those between the ages of 15-40 who are illiterate and have not
completed primary school, or those over 40 years old who are
interested.

Until recently, the major components of non-formal education were literacy

programs and formal education equivalency programs for adults, with a
particular focus on government personnel and staff. While these programs
still operate, non-formal education also focuses on other educational needs
outside of the formal education system. The non-formal education system
provides a combination of anti-literacy and basic education for the illiterate,
and programs to raise the education levels of the population. It has a
particular focus on vulnerable groups: the poor, women, and ethnic
minorities. The activities and goals for non-formal education are:

Eradication of illiteracy for the population countrywide, especially for

women and ethnic minorities in remote areas;
Raising the primary and secondary levels of education for government
 employees, military personnel, police; and
In conjunction with the two responsibilities above, the promotion of
basic vocation for educationally disadvantaged and low-income
populations, in order to increase income levels and to improve
livelihood.

In conjunction with its activities to raise the education levels of the population
with some basic education, the non-formal education department of the
Ministry of Education maintains an equivalency program for adults (Table 3).
There is an accelerated program for senior officials. This program presents 3
months curriculum for each grade and is not intended for university
enrollment, but for education equivalence purpose only.

Table 3: The Equivalency Curriculum

Level Equivalent Duration

Primary Level 1 Grade 1 and 2 340 hours (45 units)

Primary Level 2 Grade 3 180 hours (23 units)

Primary Level 3 Grade 4 and 5 120 hours (17 units)

Lower Secondary 1 Secondary 1 462 hours

Lower Secondary 2 Secondary 2 506 hours

Lower Secondary 3 Secondary 3 506 hours

Upper Secondary 1 Secondary 4 484 hours

Upper Secondary 2 Secondary 5 484 hours

Upper Secondary 3 Secondary 6 506 hours

In addition to the equivalency curriculum, the NFE department also has

developed special curriculum for vocational training (i.e. sewing and weaving
and many other supplementary materials). NFE with the assistance of GTZ
are in the process of developing vocational training curriculum. Also with the
assistance of UNESCO the NFE is developing a curriculum for distance
education. The continuing education curriculum for lower and upper
secondary has also been developed.

Informal Education

The informal education system that transmits indigenous

knowledge to populations is an extension of the traditional
learning system that has always existed in Laos. It operates
primarily through the family/clan, and ensures the socialization of
both males and females as productive members of society as well
as the survival of the ethnic group as people. Of importance to a
large percentage of the population of Lao PDR, there is also the
religious education provided by the monks in the monasteries to
 the masses and novices. The first official policy about the
education of monks and novices was introduced in November
1998.

Administration and Management

In the Lao PDR, the administration and management of education consists of

three levels:

At the central level, the Ministry of Education government staff

determines policy guidelines, strategy, law, regulations, rules,
monitoring and control of education.
At the provincial level, the Provincial Education Service (PES)
implements education policy guidelines, programmes, and projects
defined by the Ministry of Education for the province.
At the district level, the District Education Bureau (DEB) implements,
and manages primary schools and kindergartens in each district.
Non- Formal education or adult education provides education to 15-40
years old population group.

KEY POLICIES IN EDUCATION

Human Resources Development Policies

The Leading Committee of Human Resource Development (LCHRD) was

established in November 1993. The Lao Government has highlighted the
importance of this committee by appointing the Head of the Party’s
Organizational Central Committee as chairperson and including several
ministers as members. The duties of the LCHRD are to draw plans, policies,
projects, and measures to implement human resource development, monitor
and direct the implementation, and to study, analyze, and resolve problems
in the implementation. The LCHRD has a permanent secretariat to implement
its daily duties. The following is the Government’s definition of human
resource development (HRD):

HRD is a constant development of a human being for the development itself,

starting with birth (i.e. starting from the family planning) to the last minute of
life. In each stage of the life cycle, there should be attention and concern
placed to each aspect of the human life, particularly from whether there will
be live birth which is related to family planning activities and then maternal
and child care activities to assure child survival. Once a child was born, the
new born baby should receive hygienic and sanitary care, immunization and
good nutrition. In the next stage of life cycle, the child should receive
education; especially in Lao PDR, this is basic education for all, followed by
secondary education, vocational, technical and tertiary education or short
term training courses or skill development courses for upgrading the
technical capabilities in different disciplines. For those who are without formal
schooling, they should be educated through informal education starting from
eradication of illiteracy to the level equivalent to completion of higher
secondary school. Concurrently with the provision of scientific-technical
education, the population should also be provided with education and training
on the value and significance of the national tradition, custom, art and culture
in order to gain understanding of development along the era, to cultivate the
senses of a human being, the values of lives and preferences which are in
conformance with the development of the country in a progressive and
continuous manner. During his/her lifetime, a person should be entitled to an
appropriate remuneration for his/her work in order to enjoy a proper life,
appropriate welfare policies, a pension at old age retirement, and proper
allowances to the spouse and children, when that person dies. From the
above reasons, it could be seen that human resource development is a broad
activity involved activities in the areas of development and training of man
power, education, labor and social welfare, public health, culture and
information, science and technology, and environment, and youth, women,
worker and ethnic minorities development

The definition states that HDR is a life long process, intended to create
citizens who live good lives(i.e. enjoying health, having access and quality
education and opportunities for employment, and contributing productively to
society). The definition involves the whole Services Development, which is
not in the list of the seven priorities of the national socio-economic
development plan.

In August 1996, a National Review Conference on HRD was held. The

conference identified both progress and weaknesses in the sector. The
major weaknesses causing obstacles identified in the conference were
problems reaching remote rural areas and the heavy bureaucracy still in
place. To counter these weaknesses, more attention needs to be paid to
HRD, the planning must be better and more coordinated, training sessions
should be continuous and coordinated, mobilization and management of
funds needs to be more efficient and also equitable. HRD efforts were
identified:

Formation and training of civil servants

Quality of education
Building of labor force
Culture and information
Health
Mass organizations: Youth, Women, Trade Union, National Front.

1. Strategies and Policies of the Government Regarding Human

Resource Development of the Education Sector

Education Strategies

The Lao government considers that the education of the masses

is necessary for the development of the country. Despite
considerable achievements since 1975, the government
recognizes that much remains to be done.

Despite the exceeding excellent growth of economy in the

previous years, the situation of education indicates the imbalance
and conflict between socio-economic growth and that of the
education sector. Therefore, the Government adopted an
education strategy reform as follows:

Determine the role and function of education toward the cause of

 national development.
Link education with socio-economical goals and two strategic tasks.
Encourage the general population to achieve primary education level.
Upgrade the quality and efficiency of education.
Raise prestige of teachers-professors in the society.
Mandate contributions from the entire society toward education.
Enhance the management of administrative committees toward
educational work

2. Education Policies

The resolution of the Fifth Party Congress and the resolution on

human resource development can be summarized as follows:

Enforce compulsory education for children and youth by using mainly

the State fund.
Completely eradicate illiteracy among the illiterates and neo illiterates.
Promote and expand private education both formal and vocational.
Reorganize the lower and upper secondary schools, and vocational
schools in consistence with the actual capacity of the country and give
examination at every level.
Develop personnel for all socio-economic sectors and not only for state
apparatus.
Gradually raise the quality of education to an international standard.
Expand education to reach the remote, isolated, and mountainous
areas, build ethnic boarding schools in certain appropriate areas
to establish conditions for children of the ethnic minorities to
attend schools.
Improve the system of monks’ education by providing knowledge in
dharma, linguistics, and literature and clearly outline policies for monks’
education.

3. Education Objectives and Targets

Overall objectives: To build young generation with global scientific

knowledge, patriotic values, a spirit of solidarity with other
ethnic groups in the country and friendly countries in the
world, to know their rights and interests and obligations as
citizens, know how to preserve and expand fine tradition and
culture of the nation, to be self-dependent and self-strengthening,
to be economical and know how to harmoniously combine the
personal interest with that of the collective, to equip with general
knowledge and specialized fields, in science and techniques, to
be moral and disciplined, responsible for duties, to be healthy and
innovative, to have a civilized mind and be prepared to contribute
in the defense, construction and development of the nation.

Overall targets:

Expand and improve crèches, kindergartens according to the

capacity of each locality.
Expand primary education to be able to accept more children at the
age of schooling from 63% (1990) to 80% (2000) while reducing class
 repetition and school drop-outs. The anticipated outcome is to increase
the rate of surviving students enrolling in grade 1 to grade 5 from 27%
(1990) to 63% (2000).
Expand and improve lower and upper secondary schools to be able to
accept more students: first year lower secondary from 30% (1990) to
40% (2000) and upper secondary school from 12% (1990) to 17%
(2000).
Eradicate illiteracy among the population and the re-illiterates of 15 to
40 years old to increase the literacy rate from 60% (1990) to 80%
(2000); provide training and upgrade the recent graduates of illiteracy
class to primary level to reach 50% of the total number, and offer the
general population necessary basic skills training.
Encourage private sectors to establish more schools, particularly
vocational training schools, and improve the management and
monitoring system.
Develop and train teachers to satisfy the requirements of the expansion
of formal education, aiming to produce teachers equipped with good
personality, good level of knowledge, and good moral values, who will
be responsible toward their duties, strive to overcome all difficulties,
enjoy their profession, and have affection for children; increase student
per teacher ratio: primary school from 28:1 (1990) to 33:1 (2000); lower
secondary school from 13:1 (1990) to 25:1 (2000); and upper
secondary school from 12:1 (1990) to 25:1 (2000).
Expand and reorganize vocational schools and tertiary facilities to
conform with the actual capacity, and establish National University and
Polytechnic colleges in each region of the country to supply labor force
for socio-economic development.
Steadily raise the quality of all levels of education, particularly the
formal education that is the basic fundamental of the national education
system.

Though these education targets have been set relatively high, to

date, education attainments quantitatively were very close to
achievement in general. Qualitatively, a lot needs to meet the
targets in the very near future year 2000.

BASIC EDUCATION:

1. The Constitution and Definition of Basic Education

With reference to Article 19 of the Lao PDR Constitution, on 19

July 1996, the Prime Minister issued the Decree of Order on
Compulsory Primary Education in Lao PDR.

Article 19 of the Lao PDR Constitution stated:

The state emphasis the expansion of education in conjunction

with the building of the new generation to be good citizens. The
education, cultural and scientific activities are focus to raise the
level of knowledge, patriotism, love of the people’s democracy,
the spirit of solidarity between ethnic groups, the spirit of
independent. Pursue compulsory primary education. The state
permits private schools that follow the state curriculum. The
 government and citizens jointly build schools of all level, to make
the education system complete. Put emphasis on the
expansion of education in ethnic minority areas.

The state promotes the culture that is the beauteous heritage of

the nation and the progressive culture of the world, eliminate all
those actions that reflect unprogressive ideology and culture.
Promote cultural, artistic legacies and mass media including
mountainous areas. Preserve the nation’s historical heritage sites
and assets.

The following are the general principles stated in Chapter I of the decree:

Article 1: Primary education is one of the levels integrated in general

education with 5-year schooling system. It is the basic level of
education that needs to be completed by all the Lao citizens.
Article 2: All Lao citizens regardless of race, religion, sex, ethnicity,
social and economic status residing in Lao PDR with the ages ranging
from 6 years onwards by December of each academic year must
receive primary education thoroughly and equally.
Article 3: All pupils whose enrollment is stipulated in Article 2 must
complete their schooling. If not they shall otherwise continue the
schooling without dropping out or leaving school until the age of 14,
except for those with physical and mental health problem and cannot
continue their schooling even though sufficient care has already been
provided.
Article 4: Education services can be provided in the form of either
public or private; however, the content must be ensured with the aim to
develop children physically and mentally with high capability in comply
with the curriculum designed by the Ministry of Education.
Article 5: The Government and the people will join efforts to be
responsible for education management and services in all public
primary schools. The services in schools are free of charge.

Presently, a high percentage of ethnic minority children do not

attend school, and the illiteracy rate among ethnic minorities is
very high. The quality of primary education is still relatively low,
due to inadequate textbooks and the low-quality teacher training.
There is a large proportion of untrained teachers in the teaching
force. Enforcement of compulsory primary education alone will
require more efforts and more flexible strategies.

1. Lao PDR Basic Education for All Programme.

Based on the Framework for Action to Meet Basic Learning

Needs adopted by the World Conference on Education for All:
Meeting Basic Learning Needs (Jomtien, Thailand March 1990)
the Ministry of Education and various sectors and concerned
ministries formulated the Lao PDR Framework for Action Plans on
Basic Education for All 1990-2000 and set up strategies, goals
and objectives as follows:

1. EFA goals and targets

 Primary Education.
To increase the net enrolment of six-year-old children to 80 %
and gradually reduce the attendance of over-aged children.
To reduce the repetition and dropout rates and increase retention
rate from 40% to 80%.
To improve pupil performance by upgrading the quality of
teaching and the teaching contents, and thus enable the student
to gain knowledge and skills relevant to the needs of the
community.
Non-formal Education or Adult Education.
To provide opportunities for people of all ethnic groups ages 15-
40 years who are illiterates or have relapsed into illiteracy to
become literate, increase the number of literacy rate among this
population age group from 60% in 1990 to 80% by the year 2000.
To allow up to 50% of the new literates to continue in
complementary education to acquire basic education and
vocational skills that would enable them to contribute in the
development of the communities.
To raise the level and quality of education of the learners.

2. EFA Strategies and Plan of Action

Strategies on raising the enrolment rate.

Promote primary education in an extensive way in order to carry

out the compulsory primary education principle.
Recognize the need for primary school networks to create
favorable condition for better student enrolment and access.
Continue to undertake multi-grade teaching in the remote rural
areas and the double-shift system in urban area where the
density of the population is high so as to remedy the shortage of
classrooms.
Provide more incentives for teachers especially those who are
assigned or who volunteers to teach in remote rural areas; and
Establish and support the activities of Students’ Parent
Associations and mass organizations which work for the
promotion of basic education for all.

Strategies for increasing retention

Take measures to encourage regular class attendance of

students
Include programmes on sanitation, vaccinations and primary
health care, nutrition… etc in the curriculum.
Automatic promotion during the first three years of schooling and
yearly revisions of examinations for promotion to the higher
grades.
Make schools more attractive and provide more basic teaching
materials.

Strategies for improving students’ performances

 Improve the relevance of the curriculum, the textbooks, the
teaching materials and make them more responsive to the real
situation in the regions.
Review the control principles of examinations used to ensure the
regular and continuous learning of the students; and
Improve the skills of teachers by organizing training programs for
their upgrading and strengthening the supervision system both
from outside (district) and inside the school cluster.

Strategies for the use of educational resources more effectively:

Setting up the school maps and organize the primary school

clusters in order to share more effectively all available facilities
(personnel and material);
Improving the organization and school management system;
Setting up the Education Management Information System
(EMIS).

Strategies on disabled groups

Admit a certain number of disabled children in the formal

mainstream general education schools, and request teachers to
pay special attention to handicapped students.
Set up an experimental class for handicaps who need special
curriculum (e.g. for blind people);
Identify and examine the mentally and physically handicapped
children from the beginning in order to orient them properly; and
Set up training for special education teachers.

3. EFA Decision making and management

Strategy and Action Plan to achieve goals and targets were formulated
during the National Meeting of the Senior Education Administrators in
1990 and officially published by the National Committee for EFA. The
Action Plan were implemented by concerned departments and
ministries from central to grass-roots level. Annually, the progress of
the implementation of the EFA action plan were reported at the
National Meeting of the Senior Education Administrators and the
adjustment of the action plan were then formulated for the forth-coming
year.

The members of the NCEFA comprised of:

The Minister of Education, Chairperson

Department of General Education
Department of Non-formal Education
Department of Planning and Cooperation
Department of Teacher Training
The State Planning Committee
The Ministry of Public Health
The Ministry of Finance
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
The Ministry of Industry and Handicraft
 The Lao Women’s Union
The Federation of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Youth

The main roles of the NCEFA were to determine the strategies and
National Action Plan for EFA as guidelines, and main measures to be
undertaken by the different parties concerned in accordance to their
respective responsibilities. Coordinate with the different parties
concerned in order to encourage, support and facilitate their action.
Supervise, monitor and evaluate the annual progress in the
implementation of the programme and projects.

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