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LAOS - Cooperating for the provision of Non-Formal Vocational Skills Development in Agriculture and Forestry
On 13 and 14 December 2023, the Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES) Department of Non-Formal Education (DNFE), together with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) Department of Agricultural Extension and Cooperatives (DAEC), supported by Skills for Tourism, Agriculture and Forestry (STAF) Programme (LAO/336), held a workshop to identify opportunities for inter-departmental cooperation for the provision of non-formal and informal agriculture and forestry vocational skills development (VSD).
The workshop was chaired by Mr Nouphanh Outsa, Director-General, MoES Department of Technical and Vocational Education, and co-chaired by Mr Sengaloun Boutsady, Deputy Director-General, MoES DNFE and Dr Phanxay Ingxay, Deputy Director-General, MAF DAEC. Workshop participants included representatives of provincial non-formal education centres, as well as provincial agriculture and forestry offices.
The workshop had two objectives:
- to introduce the agriculture and forestry components of the STAF Programme to public non-formal and informal VSD providers in Lao PDR;
- and to establish a foundation for cooperation in non-formal and informal VSD delivery.
Following presentations of the STAF Programme (and the Local Development Programme (LAO/338) with which the STAF Programme collaborates), a discussion panel comprising Mr Nouphanh Outsa, Mr Sengaloun Boutsady, Dr Phanxay Ingxay, and Mr Phetsamon Thanasack, Deputy Director-General, MAF Department of Organisation and Personnel, delved into the specific roles, responsibilities, and challenges encountered by different departments and ministries in delivering non-formal and informal VSD in agriculture and forestry. The afternoon session saw participants divided into three groups to discuss their 2024 activity plans for non-formal and informal agriculture and forestry VSD.
On the second day, participants were grouped by provinces (Bokeo, Luang Prabang, Vientiane, Khammouane and Bolikhamxay) to discuss and encourage potential synergies among stakeholders within each province to execute activity plans.
During the workshop, a noticeable convergence emerged in the 2024 workplans of the DNFE and DAEC (and their provincial representatives) further underlining the importance of coordination mechanisms and ongoing dialogue to prevent duplication of effort and optimisation of benefits for people in rural communities. With a shared commitment to coordination and dialogue, the MoES and the MAF are confident that joint efforts will be undertaken, maximising the impact of non-formal and informal VSD in the agriculture and forestry sectors in Lao PDR.
The LAO/336 - Skills for Tourism, Agriculture and Forestry Programme is co-financed by Laos, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Switzerland and the European Union, and implemented by the Lao Ministry of Education and Sports and LuxDev, the Luxembourg Development Cooperation Agency.
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