Education Minister Prof Dr Somkot Mangnomek said last week it was not necessary to build any more teacher training colleges in Laos , even though there was still a teacher shortage.
He said that what these colleges reallyneeded was more in the way of educational materials and facilities, to improve the standard of teaching.
Dr Somkot made the comments during an official courtesy visit to the Ministry of Education by the Ambassador of Japan to Laos , Mr Mazaaki Miya****a. They discussed how best they could jointly and actively initiate possible contributions to the development of Lao education, particularly during the present time of education reform.
Dr Somkot said that in fact the ministry trained enough teachers each year, but the major obstacle was the limited quota of new government employees.
“Even though the government has allotted us a higher quota of staff than other sectors, reaching 3,050 this year - about half the number of all new staff entering government employment - it is still not enough.”
He explained that each year a large number of teachers retired, which made the need for teachers even more acute.
During his talks with Mr Miya****a he pointed out that in 2009 the ministry would also extend the number of years of study in lower secondary schools from three to four. This meant that about a further 2,700 new classrooms would be needed, as well as more teachers.
Dr Somkot said the government had obtained a loan from the Asian Development Bank of about US$8.6 million and a grant of about US$12 million for the development of education.
In addition the Lao government had budgeted about US$5 million but more financial support was needed to fund the new reform programme.
“Our educational reform programme is more comprehensive than anything we have undertaken before, and there is so much more work to do,” he said.
There are 11 programmes covering 111 priority projects. The Ministry of Education is responsible for four projects including increasing the total number of years children spend in primary and secondary education from 11 years to 12.
The ministry also aims to improve teaching standards across the country, develop the education system in the rural areas, and establish technical and vocational schools in all provinces.
Mr Miya****a said the purpose of his visit was to get a clearer idea of the true nature of the situation, and the strategy plans that Laos hoped to develop.
He would use what he learnt as a basis for decision-making in future cooperation and support, especially in helping the new programme of educational reform.
Mr Miya****a said the Japanese government had already given support and priority to the development of human resources in Laos and would continue to do so as effectively as possible.
He said that if Laos needed further help from Japan , the ministry would need to provide clear and specific explanations as to what was required so that Japan could provide the most appropriate form of assistance.
