Ministry of Education and Sports, Australia and UNESCO put gender equality at the centre of education
Vientiane, 3 November 2026 – The Ministry of Education and Sports of Lao PDR (MoES) launched a new five-year Action Plan on Gender Equality and Mothers and Children that will guide action across the education, science and sports sector. The Action Plan was developed under the leadership of the MoES with support from the Australian Government through the BEQUAL programme, and informed by findings from a Rapid Gender Assessment in the Education Sector supported by UNESCO Regional Office in Bangkok and Office for UN Coordination for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCO Bangkok).
The launch event was chaired by Dr Daravone Kittiphanh, Vice Minister of Education and Sports alongside Ms Soohyun Kim, Regional Director of UNESCO Bangkok and Ms Benita Sommerville, Deputy Ambassador of Australia. It brought together MoES departments, teacher education institutions, students, mass organisations, development partners, organisations of persons with disabilities and civil society organisations.
The Action Plan aims to address barriers that prevent girls, boys, women and children from accessing equal opportunities, participating fully in education and learning in safe and supportive environments. It also seeks to strengthen institutional capacity to address gender-based discrimination, harmful gender norms and violence, while promoting greater awareness of child protection and rights among teachers, learners, families and communities.
“The launch of this Five-Year Action Plan demonstrates our strong commitment to advancing gender equality and protecting the rights and wellbeing of women and children across the education, science and sports sector,” said Dr Daravone Kittiphanh, Vice Minister of Education and Sports, Lao PDR. “From 2026 to 2030, we will work together to strengthen policies, raise awareness, build capacity and improve coordination so that every girl, boy, woman and man can learn, participate and thrive in a safe, fair and supportive environment. We sincerely thank the Australian Government for its partnership in developing this Plan, and UNESCO for its valuable support in conducting the rapid gender assessment that helped inform our priorities and actions.”
Developed through a series of drafting and validation workshops led by the Committee for the Advancement of Women, Mothers and Children within MoES, the Action Plan provides a framework for translating national commitments into concrete institutional actions.
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