Publishing a book for children in Laos

After long negotiations and advocacy with government, we can announce about the success – we have approval from Ministry of Education to produce 10 000 books “Look around Laos” in 2010. The translation to English and revision has been completed and books are going to be printed. The book is available online http://www.unbelievablelaos.com/media/lookaroundlaos/index.html.

It will be donated to the schools in Attappeu, Salavanh and Sekong Provinces schools. Schools principals had to report the number the books they needed when we were budgeting, now the schools that are not in the list can have books in their library, so that children can borrow them.

We don’t have yet enough budgets to get all 10,000 copies to children. We have received from private funds and through global giving 5500 dollars (for 2200 copies) and we are hoping to collect the rest 19500 by the end of the year. Please give your support to these children for a brighter knowledge and possibility to share it with friends and family. Many thanks for your great support and we are hoping for future contributions.

In order to fulfill SEDA’s goal of publishing 10,000 books for children, we need the approval of the Minister for Education and the Minister for Culture. It costs US$2.50 to publish each book. Advocacy and lobbying work such as this takes a long time in Laos and costs a lot of money, but we will not give up and will hopefully continue to publish these extra 5000 books to reach our goal as soon as we can in order to educate the children and improve literacy. With your much appreciated continued support and with the addition of new supporters we can achieve higher literacy rates in Laos and make the children's dreams come true.

In rural Laos, childrens' futures are at stake. Without an adequate education, these children will not have the opportunity to advance to university, find decent work, and ultimately make a good living for themselves. SEDA recently visited the rural Saravane province in southern Laos to speak with villagers about their concerns, and took the time to visit several primary schools in the area. What we saw were shoddily constructed wooden classrooms filled with sometimes more than forty kids per class. Their morning nutrition consisted of donated corn flour, sugar, and vegetable oil; prepared by the village women in the mid-morning.

The teachers also commented on the situation, with one of them saying that her monthly salary was only 500,000 kip (roughly 60 dollars) per month, and she received her pay every three months. She said it was difficult to survive.

When SEDA arrived at the school, the children themselves seemed cautious of approaching, much less speaking to, the strangers, and remained so until we left. Many of the children suffered from malnourishment and malnutrition, apparent from their stunted growth (at 10 years old, some were shy of 4 feet). Many of their white uniforms were stained from dirt and dust, and they lacked any sort of school supplies save tattered notebooks. However, one thing they all agreed upon was their wish for a foreign teacher to come help them learn English.

SEDA visited several schools on this trip, but in a country where more than two-thirds of the population live in rural villages, mostly supporting themselves through subsistence farming, the lack of decent education is widespread. Many children don't complete their basic education, returning home to assist their families survive by working the crops. The rural children of the Saravane province, and Laos, need your help. Whether it be improved education facilities, basic school supplies, or volunteers as teachers to help add new enthusiasm to the classroom, anything helps. With your time, donations, and support, we can help improve the quality of education for the next generation in Laos.