From 2014 to 2017, the Victim Assistance Support Team (VAST) was part of World Education Laos’ Integrated Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) Victim Assistance Support Project. In Xieng Khouang Province, VAST conducted a comprehensive needs assessment to identify gaps in services for…
World Education Laos, through funding from the U.S. Department of State, established the first-ever Women’s Entrepreneurial Center (WEC) in Laos in 2017. The WEC’s goal is to foster the development of women-owned sustainable small businesses in Laos by providing a…
The World Education Laos TEAM project enabled Persons with Disabilities, especially women and girls, to attain and maintain maximum independence to fully and equally participate in all aspects of life. The approach for this project used a social model of…
Funded by the U.S. government, the Comprehensive Mine Risk Education (MRE) Project aims to reduce injury and death from unexploded ordnance (UXO) by informing school-age children about how to protect themselves and their peers. Formerly known as the UXO Education…
68% of the Laos population live in rural areas, where subsistence farming remains the dominant livelihood for many families. The poverty rate in rural areas of Laos is 2.9 times that of urban areas, and one-third of the…
To improve UXO accident victims’ rate of survival and rehabilitation after an accident, World Education has, for over a decade, been improving Laos’ emergency and trauma care medical systems through training and the provision of equipment. Since 1995, World Education…
The Reducing Childhood Diarrhea (RCD) project in Xieng Khouang province, northern Laos combined community mobilization, education, and simple technologies to reduce the impact of diarrhea on children’s health. The project combined a behavioral change intervention proven to have impact in…
Only about 15% of households in Laos have access to formal financial sources. Poor rural communities in Laos do not have access to secure and reliable financial services. Consequently, families are unable to make significant investments in developing their livelihoods,…
Survivors of unexploded ordnance (UXO) accidents in Laos often become physically or emotionally disabled after their accidents. For many UXO survivors, injuries prevent them from returning to work, and their families fall into hardship because of medical costs and decreased income. With…
For the survivors of a traumatic UXO incident, the medical care often costs more than the average family’s annual income, and survivors who have serious injuries to the face, torso, and arms frequently cannot return to the jobs in which they…
For centuries, Lao silk textiles have been admired for their beauty, quality, and unique designs. The domestic and international demand for textiles has been high. Over the past 25 years, however, the silk industry in Laos has suffered a decline,…
In 1997, to build the capacity of the government of Laos, World Education Laos (then the Consortium) implemented an English Language training program in Xayabouly and Oudomxay Provinces. The Consortium hired two consultants, one for each province, who were based…
During the decades following the Vietnam War and other various violent tremors throughout Laos, many citizens fled to Thailand for refuge and consequently stayed there for many years while awaiting an uncertain future. World Education Laos was founded and began…