The two-day function was co-organised bythe Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) and theSoutheast Asian Ministers of Education Organisation’s Regional Centrefor Lifelong Learning (SEAMEO CELLL).
Prof. Dr Teuchi Akitoshifrom Japan’s University of Tsukuba said Japan has a widespread system ofKominkan from urban to rural areas, creating opportunities for peopleto learn throughout their lifetime.
These CLCs also run technical and cultural activities, helping consolidate community solidarity, he added.
Participantsat the function said the Kominkan model partly contributed to Japan’srising from a war-torn country to a global power within 20 years.
Pilotedin Vietnam since 1997, the model has been multiplied nationwide witharound 11,000 CLCs in 98.77 percent of all communes and wards, servingtens of millions of people.
Director of MOET’s ContinuingEducation Department Nguyen Cong Hinh said such a rapid expansion ofCLCs has proved their role in eradicating illiteracy, universalisingprimary and secondary education, and supporting poverty alleviation.
However, he pointed out to some problems in CLCs’ operations, noting that only 30 percent of the centres work effectively.
Hinhattributed this fact to limited capacity of centres’ managers,monotonous activities, the shortage of learning material, as well as thelax coordination between universities and CLCs.
Educationalexperts, therefore, urged the sector to improve the capacity of theCLCs’ staff, adapt learning activities to the local life, mobilise alllocal resources for the work, and learn from developed countries’expertise in the field.
In 2013, the Vietnamese Prime Ministerapproved a project on building a learning society between 2012 and 2020with concrete targets on illiteracy eradication, educationaluniversalisation, the improvement of workforce’s computer, foreignlanguage and professional skills, and people’s engagement in soft skilltraining programmes.-VNA