Laos: Lao PDR Education Development Project II
Assignment name: Supervision of CBC Sub-Component Lao PDR
Education Development Project II
Project Value: USD 130,775 to date
Country: Lao PDR
Location in country: Vientiane, Attapeu, Houaphanh,
Luangnamtha, Oudomxay, Phongsaly, Xekong
Name of Client: World Bank
Date: Jan 2003 - Ongoing
Narrative description of Project:
The Lao PDR Second Education Development Project's overall aim is to
contribute to the achievement of universal completion of primary education.
Its specific objective is to increase primary school access, enrolment and
completion in the country's 19 poorest districts within the six poorest
provinces. The Project has three components. Component One aimed to
increase access and completion of primary education by financing:
Community-Based Contracting (CBC) for classroom construction; A community
grants for schooling program to lower the cost of education for
communities; and In-service teacher training. This Project is Lao PDR's
first experience with CBC.
Component One was implemented through a decentralized structure,
involving Implementation Units within the Ministry of Education's (MoE)
central, provincial and district offices, and representative Village
Development Committees in some 400 villages. The CBC Sub-Component had
its own Implementation Unit (IU) in the MoE's central office. In
addition, each of the targeted provinces and districts had an IU
responsible at the relevant level for the three sub-components
combined. Villages were selected using field-based school mapping
process and schools were scoped using simple school-sizing rules.
Villages were then contracted to undertake their own school
construction, to a specified design, quality specification and price.
The Project Management Unit provided training and regular engineering
inspections.
After the first year, the Project produced schools at a rate greater than the planned target. The 2007 Mid-Term review found the resultant school construction costs were lower than any other internationally funded school construction projects to date.
After the first year, the Project produced schools at a rate greater than the planned target. The 2007 Mid-Term review found the resultant school construction costs were lower than any other internationally funded school construction projects to date.
Description of actual services:
Consulted with senior Ministry of Education staff on the structure and
purpose of CBC, and how it could be incorporated into the project;
Conducted joint feasibility assessments to selected provinces, for
discussions with provincial and district government officers; Supervised
the preparation of the Project's CBC Operating Manual; Participated in the
PID preparation; Developed the Project Management Arrangements; Carried out
periodic supervision visits during implementation; and Adjusted the
Component budget and direction at Mid-Term Review.