Asia and the Pacific Education for All (EFA) mid-decade assessment ...

.) provide an opportunity for comparative analysis of progress towards EFA within the sub-
regions using statistical data and country examples;
c.)
raise the profiles of the sub-regions amongst UN agencies and donors; and
d.) contribute to the Mid-term Review of National Education Policy and the regional synthesis
report on EFA MDA in Asia-Pacific.
The Sub-Regional Synthesis Reports are divided into three sections with inputs from three different
sources. The first section (Part I) presents the background and overview of the sub-region and key
thematic and cross-cutting issues, based on the findings from thematic reports and studies submitted
by EFA partners, development agencies, and members of the TWG on EFA; the second section (Part
II) summarizes achievements and challenges in attaining the six EFA goals for the sub-region using
internationally standardized data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), complemented with
information from national reports and summary questionnaires; the third section (Part III) consists of
country summaries of progress for the six EFA goals focusing on sub-national analysis, based on the
national reports. Moreover, Part II includes a sub-regional statistical profile (MDA core indicators,
tables and graphs, and thematic maps). The Annex also includes country statistical profiles and
statistical tables. These statistical inputs were provided by the UIS.
This report focuses on the Mekong Sub-Region with particular attention to Cambodia, Lao PDR,
Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam which all participated in the EFA Mid-Decade Assessment.
1.2 Overview of the Report Structure and Content
Organization. This Report is divided into three parts. Part I provides an overview of the historical
context in which the education systems of today have evolved. After a general overview of the
demographic, social, and economic context, a brief history of the develop ment of the education
systems is presented. The historical development is divided into three periods – traditional or “premodern”,
the colonial period, and the post-colonial or “modern” period. The current systems are
then described briefly, including financing, identification of the “unreached” populations, and the
identification of the major cross-cutting issues. A careful reading of the history in Part I will support
a better understanding of the evidence presented in Parts II and III.
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Part II provides a regional comparative analysis of progress toward the EFA goals at the half-way
point of the current decade. The analysis is presented goal-by-goal, with one chapter for each of
the six EFA goals. Part III provides an analysis of progress toward the EFA goals for each country,
with one chapter for each country.
Data Sources, Part II. In the regional comparative tables presented in Part II, there are two data
sources. The data source for the qualitative data is the responses to the EFA MDA questionnaire
distributed by UNESCO Bangkok. The source for the numerical data is the UNESCO Institute for
Statistics data set prepared especially for this Report. These figures are based on data supplied by
the authoritative sources of the respective governments, in most cases the education management
information system (EMIS). In some cases, the data supplied do not conform completely to the year
indicated in the table; in such cases, notes at the bottom of the table indicate the year to which the
data refer. In other cases, the available data do not conform exactly to the definitions used in the
table, and the figures given are either national estimates or estimates by UIS, as indicated in the
table notes. In still other cases, no relevant data are available, which is indicated by “…”.
Data Sources, Part III. Part III presents country tables, rather than comparative tables. For these
data sets, the respective governments, typically ministries of education, are solely responsible. For
ease of identification, the captions for all national data tables contain the name of the country.
In national tables given below, the national data source is indicated. Sources are given without
reference to country.