About DVV International Laos
DVV International launched its work in the Lao People's Democratic Republic in late 2009 with the arrival of the German Regional Director in Vientiane and the rental of suitable office space.
The projects of DVV International in Laos are financed by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). DVV International conducts adult education measures to combat poverty on three different levels:
- the micro level
educational measures - the meso level
assistance to develop stronger organizational structures of adult education providers - the macro level
advisory services on sector policy and public advocacy work
Priority areas for intervention in the annual project plan are as follows
- consulting with Laotian partners on issues relevant to adult education and lifelong learning
- promoting literacy and basic education in rural areas
- providing support on the national, provincial, and district level to strengthen the non-formal educational system
- promoting the development of non-formal vocational training for adults
- providing inservice staff training and further training for students at the national university and other centers
- promoting the networking of Laotian education experts with regional and international adult education networks
Our Base in Vientiane
The regional office in the Laotian capital of Vientiane is also responsible for projects in Cambodia. DVV International has already become well integrated within the local adult education community.
It is a member of the Education Sector Working Group and collaborates with most of the German development cooperation organizations in the region.
Special attention is also called to the project's regional collaboration with ASPBAE (Asia-South Pacific Association for Adult and Basic Education) and the UNESCO Regional Office for Asia.
Contact person at DVV International
Regional Office in Vientiane:
Christoph Jost
E-mail: jost@dvv-international.la
Laos, the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia, is ethnically very diverse
Its population comprises 49 officially recognized ethnic groups. In 1954, Laos gained its independence from French Indochina. The ensuing 20-year civil war came to an end in 1975 when power was seized by the communist popular front, the Pathet Lao, which was succeeded by the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP).
Although Laos remained officially neutral during the Vietnam War, Viet Cong supply routes which passed through the country were the target of massive bombing by the USA. Nearly a ton of bombs per inhabitant were dropped over the course of the war, leaving Laos the most heavily bombed country per capita in the world. Landmines and unexploded ordnance are still a severe problem today, also for development cooperation. In all likelihood it will still take decades of work to clear the minefields.
Laos has remained largely cut off from the dynamic economic development of its neighbouring countries - China, Thailand and Vietnam. It is one of the world's least developed countries. Considering that nearly a third of the population lives below the national poverty line, poverty reduction is the overarching objective of Lao-German development cooperation.