The enrolment rate in primary schools for children in the target age group in Laos has risen to 95.2 percent in 2012 compared to 79 percent in 2000, the Lao news agency KPL reported, citing figures from the Global Monitoring Report on Education for All 2012.

KPL quoted Vice Minister of Education and Sports Lytou Bouapao as saying at the March 13 National Launch of Education for All Global Monitoring Report that the education sector has been improved quantitatively and qualitatively since 2000.

The Vice Minister said that the enrolment rate for early child group aged between 3 and 5 jumped to 28 percent in 2012, from 8 percent in 2000, while the secondary gross enrolment rate rose from 46.6 percent to 46.7 percent, and the upper secondary enrolment rate rose from 22.6 percent to 34.7 percent.

However there are some challenges remain in the primary education such as high repetition rate at 10.9 percent, and dropout rate, 7.1 percent and low survival rate 70 percent.

Poverty is the main cause, said Lytou, noting that according to Education for All (EFA) goals as well as MDGs 2 and 3, primary repetition rate and dropout rate should not be more than 2 percent and survival rate should be 95 percent.

Concerning adult literacy achievement, according to the Lao Social Indicators survey 2011-2012, the rate among women from 15 to 19 years old is 72.3 percent and 79 percent for men. The literacy rate among women aged between 20 and 24 is 64.3 percent and 75.5 percent for men.
Education for All is the international commitment made jointly by Governments, UN agencies, Development Banks, civil society group and other multilateral and bilateral development partners.

The EFA is a shared commitment and goal in the way that all society has a shared responsibility to deliver quality education to all children, youth and adults by 2015.

The report emphasises that it is crucial to ensure that the learning need of all young people and adults are met through equitable access to appropriate learning and life skills programmes.-VNA