Universal coordination in governmental policy-making: Aligning the interests of local authorities with national objectives Mr. Lytou Bouapao; Vice Minister Ministry of Education and Sports Lao PDR World Education Congress, 2016 Taj Lands End, Mumbai, India

Lao PDR: A 2020 target to exit from Least Developed Country Status Many of our population are engaged in subsistence agriculture. How to move from a Least Developed Country to a manufacturing and knowledge-based economy? 66% of workers are engaged in the agricultural sector although it contributes only 27% to the economy. Key challenge is to ensure that natural resource wealth is transformed into investments in public infrastructure, services, and better health and educational outcomes for all, especially the poor.

Lao PDR A population of approximately 6.5 million people in 2015, around two thirds of whom live in rural areas. Ethnically, culturally and linguistically diverse. Many small primary schools are remote and without road access. Despite these challenges much progress has been achieved.

8 th National Socio-Economic Development Plan Need to extend education opportunities to children, adolescents and people in remote areas to help ensure higher quality of education and sufficient labor force to employ in production and services sectors to support future national development, Enhance capacity to integrate and compete at the regional (ASEAN Economic Community) and international level. Implications for education are clear: we need to align the interests of local authorities with national objectives if we are to achieve the objectives of the 8 th NSEDP.

Vision of the Education Sector Development Plan “Create opportunity for all Lao population to have equitable education access with a focus on education quality development to develop Lao citizens to become disciplined, brave, qualified and professional in self and nation and to reduce disparities between urban and rural areas.” Important to involve local communities in planning since it is students who are the key beneficiaries of our planning and implementation and local communities must see benefits from what is planned for their local schools.

SIDA funded the Demand Driven Approach to Education for All Project: 2003 to 2007 A process-oriented and participatory management design that involved local communities in the achievement of the EFA goals. Key outcome from this pilot project was to establish Village Education Development Committees (VEDC) in all primary schools. VEDCs: Formulate a village education development plan. Collect data. Monitor the use of school budgets especially school block grants. Report progress to the District Education Development Committee.

From policy to practice Central administration must be willing to hand over appropriate responsibilities to local authorities, including VEDCs. VEDC need considerable capacity building to take on new roles and responsibilities. Funding must be available to support VEDC to implement their school improvement plans. Ongoing support through district level education staff (DESB) must be available. A strong but simple M&E system must be in place to ensure that funds are used according to agreed school development plans.

Sustainable knowledge and skills development at local levels A need for coordination between different development partners. A single approach to school and VEDC level capacity building. A single policy framework, one set of guidelines and a unique set of training materials. Ongoing and active discussion to gain consensus about the drafting of a single policy framework, one set of guidelines and a unique set of training materials. This is easier said than done since Development Partners have different country strategies and must follow the priorities and strategies of the headquarters.

Good progress is being made on this coordination If we are to achieve alignment between local authorities and national objectives, we must use our limited resources in an effective and efficient manner.

Thank you