EU-supported BENC ends

(KPL) Three authorities in Luang Namtha, Luang Prabang and Phongsaly provinces announced yesterday to end the six-million Euro European Union Basic Education Development in Northern Communities Project (BENC), after operating for five years.
The government’s basic education development plan needs to continue its effort in order to meet many big goals, but the European Union (EU)-supported BENC project needed to end in the three northern provinces (Luang Namtha, Luang Prabang and Phongsaly provinces) with big achievements by ensuring the basic education development framework in rural and upland areas after it has operated since 2004.
The official closing ceremony of BENC and the handover of the last 31 schools to Luang Namtha and Phongsaly provinces were held on 18th January in Luang Namtha province. It was attended by Mr. Lytou Buaphao, Deputy-Minister of Education, Mr Aloun Lokhamloi, Vice-Governor of Luang Namtha, and Mr. Henry Prankerd, Charge d’Affaires of the Delegation of the European Union as well deputy-governor of Luang Prabang and Phongsaly provinces.
During the official closing ceremony, Mr. Lytou Buaphao, Deputy Minister of Education, said that developing education system was one of most important factories that will help Laos get rid of its poverty basically through providing opportunities for more education development to rural and upland areas, instead of central level only.
“I would like to take this opportunity to express sincere thanks to the EU that it has supported a lot of assistance to Laos for a long time under increasingly bilateral cooperative ties as supporting to education , health, agriculture and others”.
In his speech to the ceremony, Mr Henry Prankerd, Charge d’Affaires of the Delegation of the European Union, said that the BENC Project started in 2004 with the objective of improving basic education standards in remote areas of the northern provinces of Luang Namtha, Phongsaly and Luang Prabang, through training teachers and improving facilities. The Project has been a joint effort between the European Union, the Government and the provincial authorities; and of course I must not forget the very important role played by the communities themselves, particularly in assisting in the building of the schools.
“With the hard work of the project team, continued support of government, provincial authorities, and communities, this project had achieved the most of its objectives,” said Mr. Prankerd, Charge d’Affaires of the EU Delegation. “However, the end of this project does not mean the end of our assistance to education sector. With our new approach, the EU will continue supporting the Government with direct budget aid, which will still be used to improve education,” he added.
In all, project activities took place in nine districts in the three provinces with a total of 27,567 students, (of whom 12,331 are women) as well as more than 7000 adult learners benefiting.
Other project achievements over the past five years have included 101 new school buildings, 54 trained trainers, 1,165 trained teachers and principals in teaching method, 430 trained community leaders to support education in village, the establishment of Non-Formal Education (NFE) courses for adult learners in 214 villages, building professional bonds between educational communities within the Lao PDR, and with the Cambodian Ministry for Education, Sport and Youth, and the Vietnamese adult education development community and so on.
In achieving its objectives and ensuring sustainability, the BENC Project has been unique in its participatory approach of working closely with provincial and district education officers, as well as community leaders and teachers, to help increase access to quality education. The BENC Project has been applauded by Ministry officials for its significance as a pilot project in decentralised education management systems in the Lao PDR.
The sustainability of BENC is such that, even after it has closed, the impact of project activities remains. As a result of BENC’s work, Provincial Education Service and District Education Bureau officers, community leaders and teachers across the three provinces are able to more competently implement their educational activities to increase access to quality education in the northern communities of the Lao PDR.

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