The first government initiatives for hill tribe development were taken in 1951 with the aim of providing general welfare services in remote, relatively inaccessible and poverty-stricken communities. To intensify development activities, the government established in 1959 the National Committee for the Hill Tribes15 as the first national-level organization in charge of formulating policies focusing on hill tribe development. To date, the government policy towards the hill tribes is based on the Cabinet decision of 6 July 1976, which states the government's intention to integrate hill tribe people into the Thai state and to give them full rights to practise their religions and maintain their cultures as "first class", self-reliant Thai citizens. In addition, due to rapid environmental degradation in highland areas, the government now places further emphasis on natural resource conservation in its highland development policies. This has led to recent efforts to promote "subsistence production" (to achieve sufficient self-supply) and natural resource protection with further environmental considerations, rather than cash-crop production which depends on modern technology.
In the period when hill tribes were allegedly associated with communist insurgency, the Thai authorities endeavoured to improve relations with hill tribes and to promote permanent settlement where services could be concentrated and movements controlled. When the insurgency problem subsided in the early 1980s and international pressure on drug-abuse prevention and control grew, the focus shifted to curbing opium production by both local and international agents. With the growing environmental concern, the focus has shifted again, this time to natural resource conservation.
Currently there are eleven government ministries involved in hill area development, namely the ministries of Interior, Defence, Public Heath, Education, University Affairs, Agriculture and Cooperatives, Science, Technology and Energy, Finance, Communication, and Industry, and the Prime Minister's Office. Under these ministries are 31 departments and 168 agencies with either a mandate or a commitment to support hill tribe communities. The national economic and social development plans and the Master Plan on Community Development, Environment and Narcotic Crop Control in Highland Areas are the key plans underlining the government's support activities to hill tribe communities.
The Eighth National Economic and Social Development Plan (1997-2001)
1997 Thai constitution and the Eighth National Economic and Social Development Plan16 (1997-2001) have provided the direction for the development of hill tribes to be self-reliant and able to improve their quality of life17. The plan aims at dealing effectively with the challenges of social change and with the unbalanced pattern of development (characterized by unequal distribution of wealth, urban-rural disparity, social problems and environmental degradation) and at realizing the long-term vision of Thailand becoming a fully developed country by the year 2020.18
The Ninth National Economic and Social Development Plan (2002-2006)
The Ninth National Economic and Social Development Plan is based on the philosophy of "self-sufficiency economy" bestowed by His Majesty the King as the guiding principle of national development and management. The plan takes into consideration Thailand's past development performance, the management of rapid changes under globalization and the need to strengthen "desirable" values. Building on the eighth plan which advocated a holistic people-centred development approach, the ninth plan places the main emphasis on the balanced development of human, social, economic and environmental resources, with the priority goal of pursuing good governance to achieve real sustainable people-centred development19.
The ninth plan is consistent with the previous plan, which focused on human resource development and people's participation in national development. The plan aims mainly at poverty alleviation, recovery with sustainability and stability, good governance and strengthening development foundations. It also emphasizes the growing significance of the role of civil society in decision making. Participatory planning approaches were widely applied during the formulation of the plan. Hill area development will be a part of human resource development and social protection strategies, particularly for the poor and the underprivileged. The plan is enacted in the fiscal year 2002 (October 2001-September 2002), with the aim of promoting lifelong learning processes through education reform and skill development.
Following the Cabinet resolution of 7 February 1989 on hill tribes and narcotic crops, the First Master Plan (1992-1996) was formulated to serve as a framework among the concerned government agencies in preparing their own operational plans. As a follow-up, the Second Master Plan (1997-2001)20 was drawn up to solve problems in highland areas, with special emphasis on the integration of hill tribe people into the national administration system. Under the master plans, the following main aspects of assistance to hill tribes are stipulated:
A number of organizations carry out support activities in line with the plans and policies as described in the previous section. Since the research objective is to analyse the role of education for sustainable rural development in mountain communities, the first chapter will describe examples of the relevant support activities of the Department of Non-formal Education, Ministry of Education, of the Department of Agricultural Extension, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, and of the Department of Public Welfare. According to their policies on assistance to hill tribes, which are translated into field-level programmes and projects, these departments set up divisions working specifically on highland issues both at the central and local levels.
The Department of Non-formal Education (DNFE) of the Ministry of Education aims at providing the public countrywide with access to lifelong education opportunities23, particularly for the out-of-school and the underprivileged based on their readiness, needs and interests at any time. DNFE employs various strategies, such as decentralization, participation, network construction and mobilization, in such a way that the target groups at all levels can obtain basic and vocational education, skills training as well as up-to-date information through a variety of non-formal and informal education programmes.
DNFE has three main tasks: (1) organize and promote non-formal education, (2) render support to, cooperate with and encourage the formal schooling system, and (3) organize and promote informal education, for which hill tribe people are one of the target groups.24
2.2.1.1 The DNFE hill area policy
"Education for all" is the underlying theme in DNFE activities. In compliance with the new national legislation for education reform, based on the 1999 National Education Act, DNFE emphasizes the following:
To enhance educational opportunities for hill tribes, DNFE in 1998-1999 set a policy to develop highland non-formal education based on the community learning centre (CLC26) model27. The centres provide educational services to promote literacy among the hill tribes. Hill tribes have opportunities via DNFE programmes for informal education such as learning from local wisdom, including culture and community-based knowledge. Local (folk) media plays an important role in passing on knowledge and social values through secular kinds of performances28.
2.2.1.2 DNFE support activities29
The Hill Area Education project
Jointly organized in 1981 by DPW and DNFE, the Hill Area Education project (HAEP) aims at providing educational services responding to the needs and problems of hill tribe communities, through a flexible, low-cost, community-based learning model. HAEP uses an integrated approach combining support of governmental and non-governmental organizations with community participation.
The HAEP philosophy is to reinforce already available knowledge and resources in the villages to implement participatory education for community development. In order to raise the sense of community ownership, a highland community learning centre (HCLC) is built by the villagers, using local materials. A volunteer teacher, as a community member, is sent to live in an HCLC, which any community member is welcome to visit.
Classes are conducted both for children and adults, based on a community-oriented curriculum which includes 35 percent of basic skills (including Thai language and mathematics) and 65 percent of life and social experience (consisting of 19 basic topics/units and a completely open-ended local curriculum)30. The curriculum is not graded. Completion of curricular objectives does not have to conform to fixed course duration. Children are required to spend some 6 000 hours to complete the entire course (see Annex VI for primary education for the hill area community curriculum) and adults about 1 200 hours.
Learning achievements are assessed by teachers along with villagers or officials according to different methods and criteria including gender, age, ethnic group, etc31. In addition to learning classes, HCLC offers radio and satellite programmes32. Self-study by community members is also encouraged.
In commemoration and in honour of Her Royal Highness the Princess Mother, His Majesty conferred the name "Mae Fa Luang" to HCLC. Countrywide, by 2000 there were HCLC in 648 villages with 1 236 volunteer teachers and 97 000 learners33. Currently Mae Fa Luang educational
activities are divided into three categories:
Mae Fa Luang CLC in Chiang Rai (Lahu tribe community)
The Somdet Ya project, implemented on a pilot basis from 1999 to 2004 as collaboration between Her Majesty the King's Mother Project, the Tambon (sub-district) Chang Koeng Administrative Organization and DNFE, is carried out in the vicinity of the Mae Chaem district centre in Chiang Mai province.
The Somdet Ya project has four objectives: (1) provide three-year education opportunities up to the ninth grade (M3), including life skills training (such as agriculture and traditional weaving) to hill tribe youths; (2) serve as a suitable model for hill tribe education in accordance with the National Education Act 1999; (3) give opportunities for disadvantaged children to be volunteer teachers in their communities; and (4) encourage community participation in education and training. There are currently 30 students (18 boys and 12 girls, mainly Karen), who have completed six years of primary education under Mae Fa Luang, staying in the school compound (community learning centre) and sharing every aspect of life34.
Distance education
The Distance Education via Satellite project was initiated under the Seventh National Economic and Social Development Plan (1992-1996), which emphasized human resource development as an important means to guide the nation's development. In 1994 the Cabinet passed a resolution to grant the Ministry of Education permission to launch the Distance Education via Satellite project in collaboration with the private sector. The project was an attempt to apply advanced satellite communication technology to improve the education system. The purpose was to expand educational opportunities and to raise educational standards for students in remote areas to be able to receive quality education by satellite television broadcast. The Ministry of Education and the Thaicom Foundation signed a memorandum of assistance and collaboration for the use of a satellite in distance education management.
Distance education through television programmes via satellite has also become an alternative technology for the implementation of the government policy of expanding basic education from six to nine years35. DNFE is designated to supervise the administrative organization of the Thaicom project. For this purpose the Thaicom Distance Education Centre was established under DNFE. An educational television station has also been established to broadcast satellite distance education programmes, transmitting signals from the Thaicom-linked satellite. The Thaicom Distance Education Centre collaborates with the DNFE Centre for Educational Technology and the DNFE Development Division responsible for the production of distance education programmes and printed materials.
The project planned to acquire a total of 6 000 sets of the equipment (a small satellite dish, an integrated receiver and decoder and a television set). So far, a total of 15 590 sets have been obtained and installed, including in remote areas36.
Since its inception in 1967 the Department of Agricultural Extension (DOAE) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives has aimed to help raise farm income and upgrade rural standards of living, which would result in stability for the economy and society as a whole. The department has been tasked to provide extension services and transfer knowledge and technology on crop production and agribusiness to farmers and to promote and enhance the formation of farmers' groups as units to obtain and disseminate agricultural information and carry out activities.
The DOAE approach has evolved over time. In the first phase (1967-75) extension was done mainly through "institutions" (of farmers, youth groups and so forth), with emphasis on large demonstration plots, production contests and exhibitions. The ratio of extension agent to farm families was 1:4000. During 1975-77, upgrading farmers' standards of living by productivity improvement and increasing production through irrigation were among the government's priorities. Farm family development by newly recruited home economists was also encouraged. In the following period (1977-92) the government sought a World Bank loan to strengthen and expand the extension delivery system. The extension agent-to-farm family ratio was improved to 1:1000. With marketing and socio-economic changes, the current agricultural system emphasized human resource development (for extension personnel and farmers) and the use of appropriate technology. Regional and provincial governments are given more responsibilities. Collaboration with other governmental agencies, private sector and local organizations is also encouraged37.
2.2.2.1 The DOAE hill tribe policy
Highland agriculture development has been carried out since 1979. The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives adopted the highland agricultural policy under the Eighth National Economic and Social Development Plan, with the objective of supporting appropriate farmer occupational development for sustainable quality community life and environment.
The DOAE highland development strategy involves:
In line with the government's Master Plan for the Development of Highland Communities, Environment and Control of Narcotic Crops, DOAE has also set up policies on highland agricultural extension as follows:
Accordingly, DOAE has the following responsibilities for highland agricultural extension: policy and work-plan formulation for occupational promotion, according to the National Social and Economic Development Plan; project monitoring and implementation supervision; and collaboration with other agencies (see Annex VII DOAE highland agricultural extension structure).
2.2.2.2 DOAE support activities
The highland agriculture extension unit
The DOAE Highland Agricultural Extension Sub-Division (under Horticultural Crop Promotion Division) was established to collaborate with the Royal project. There are five programmes:
Community Agricultural Services and Technology Transfer Centres (ATTC: Agricultural Technology Transfer Centres39)
The Agricultural Technology Transfer Centre (ATTC) programme was established in 1999 with the aim of transferring agricultural knowledge and providing one-stop services to local farmers. The underlining concept was farmers' participation in decision making and in formulating and managing their own farm plans. Community-centred development is the basis of ATTC implementation. ATTC activities are carried out in collaboration with a wide range of partners including the Royal project, the Royal Irrigation Department, the Livestock Department, district health centres and the Tambon (sub-district) Administration Organization.
In order to reinforce community-based approaches and in line with the government's decentralization policy, ATTC was renamed in 2001 the Community Agricultural Services and Technology Transfer ATTC. It aims to address the need of small farmers for further support and to seek alternative strategies for a more integral and systematic development approach that can truly serve the needs of local communities40.
ATTCs are normally located in community areas, such as sub-district government offices. ATTC steering committee members are appointed from among community representatives and state officials. The management is under the chairmanship of the district DOAE chief, in collaboration with an extension agent, who is also the director of ATTC. Resource farmers are encouraged to use certain sites in sub-districts to demonstrate and transfer their knowledge to other farmers41.
For highland agriculture in particular, there are currently 10 ATTCs. They are located in the same areas as the Royal project. Depending on the altitude of the community location, vocational training and technology transfer focus either on rice production or vegetable cultivation or other cash/alternative crops, such as avocados and flowers. Training sessions normally last one to three days (see Annex VIII for examples of ATTC activities).
Hmong community members at an ATTC adjacent to the
Royal project
(Hang Dong district, Chiang Mai)
Box 4: ATTC, Ban Huai Soi, Hang Dong district The Ban Huai Soi ATTC collaborates with the neighbouring Royal project (e.g. transfer of the production technology of the Royal project to farmers) and DNFE CLC (e.g. supplementing necessary equipment and material, joint demonstration and training). ATTC has submitted a proposal on water resources, which is the main concern of the area, to the Royal project. About 25 farmers visit ATTC every month, mostly in the mornings and evenings (off-farm hours). Inquiries are most often about insects. ATTC provides training on such subjects as fertilizer making or mechanics, based on the instructions from the central DOAE office. Farmers rarely express their needs for training in agriculture. Possessing ATTC membership helps hill tribe villagers obtain ID cards. The activities of ATTC are expanding, particularly with enhanced local development and decentralization. ATTC personnel view the role of ATTC as consultation. They would like to see the training budget, which is currently of 3 000 baht per training, increased. The total training budget was 100 000 baht in 2000 and 40 000 baht in 200142. There is no policy to establish a new ATTC, but the central DOAE office plans to expand the coverage area of each ATTC. Under the Ban Huai Soi ATTC, there are currently three village volunteers. Until recently, they received 1 500 baht as compensation for their 10 days of work at ATTC each month, but this year's budget for village volunteers is unclear. One hill tribe farmer started to work as a village volunteer 11 years ago, as he was interested in acquiring knowledge and working for the government. To date he remains a village volunteer, since he can access new knowledge and information quickly, can assist other people and gain the villagers' trust. He sees the role of villager volunteers as teaching villagers in need. He has a plot in the Royal project, where he decided to grow mango. He earns approximately 60 000 baht a year from agriculture and his wife earns 10 000 baht from seasonal work (two months a year). He wishes to have more income to send their children to higher education. Another hill tribe farmer has given up being a villager volunteer, due to the uncertain budget situation for hill tribe village volunteers. For him, a village volunteer represents a bridge between the government and villagers. ATTC can be useful in terms of consultation and material support. He considers it necessary for the ATTC staff to visit more villages to assess local needs and provide effective advice. He takes care of a plot in the Royal project. He earns about 30 000 baht a year off farm and 50 000 baht a year on farm. To increase income, he considers the ATTC/Royal project's support on expanded market opportunities as important. Sources: Field interviews, DOAE and hill tribe volunteer farmers |
The Volunteer Hill Tribe Farmer project
The Volunteer Hill Tribe Farmer project was first implemented in 1977. Under the project, selected villagers are trained in various agricultural techniques in order to support the work of extension workers, including assistance to the work of ATTCs. There are currently 369 volunteers countrywide (all hill tribe people), 69 of whom are from Chiang Mai. They do not necessarily have to be familiar with agricultural knowledge, but literacy and local language capacity are required43.
Established in 1940, the Department of Public Welfare (DPW) of the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare is the core organization that provides social welfare services and establishes networks in order to provide services to all target groups.44 DPW responsibilities include child welfare, protection and adoption, assistance to disabled persons, social services for old persons, the destitute, disadvantaged women, socially handicapped and low-income families, disaster relief, prevention and suppression of prostitution, and land allocation.
2.2.3.1 The DPW hill tribe policy
sDPW personnel's informal contacts with highland communities date back to 1952, when they provided general welfare services based on government policy. Formal contact started in 195945. Cabinet resolution DPW/6/7/1976 recognized the need for revising policies and strategies for hill tribes, based on which the current government policy advocates hill tribes' integration into Thai society with full rights and maintenance of their cultural and religious practices. The resolution designated the Department of Public Welfare of the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare to be the main coordination agency for matters related to hill tribes. The Cabinet resolution of 7 February 1989 further assigned DPW to assist hill tribe communities in terms of political, administrative, economic and social development, and natural resource conservation46.
In line with the Master Plan on Community Development, Environment and Narcotic Crop Control in Highland Areas, the development efforts of DPW focus on human development, permanent settlement and sufficient food production. They are also in accordance with a 1989 Cabinet resolution which stresses coexistence between people and forest resources, participatory and grass-roots development, as well as indigenous knowledge.
While its main mandate is to provide social welfare services, the department also carries out, through its mobile teams, general development and other essential support activities in villages which are not covered by other line agencies. The support activities include agricultural extension, development of home industries, education and health. DPW "will try to make its services accessible to the remaining 308 779 hill tribe people in 1 908 villages who at the moment have no access to" them47. DPW is supposed to complete its services to a village when it is "fully developed" to allow line agencies directly responsible in each field of activity to take over48.
2.2.3.2 DPW support activities
As the main agency to provide assistance to hill tribe people, DPW carries out a wide range of activities, including occupational development, social development, basic public utility development, politics and administration, conservation of natural resources and environment, promotion of highland ecotourism projects, eco-development and "wellbeing families model villages" (see Annex X for hill tribe welfare and development activities).
DPW support to hill tribes is based on the participatory approach and emphasizes the learning process both in planning and in implementing projects (see Annex IX for hill tribe public welfare and development mechanisms). DPW field extension workers (mobile units) encourage community members to discuss and find solutions to the problems facing the community.
The hill tribe welfare and development centres
Countrywide, there are 14 hill tribe welfare and development centres49, which provide welfare services to 465 537 hill tribe people in 1 838 villages in 20 provinces. The centres perform operational and collaborative functions for overall matters related to hill tribe development and welfare and are the bases for mobile teams of extension workers.
The Chiang Mai Hill Tribe Welfare and Development Centre accordingly coordinates hill tribe development and welfare and manages area-centred development for concerned highland communities. The centre has the following objectives:
In Chiang Mai there is also an office for highland economic and social development promotion, which is the regional coordination centre and which provides technical support to the provincial hill tribe welfare and development centres.
DPW mobile units
DPW mobile units provide development and welfare services to remote highland communities whose accessibility is extremely limited and where no line ministries carry out support activities.
Karen village supported by a DPW
mobile unit
(Samoeng district, Chiang Mai)
DPW mobile units consist of permanent workers specialized in such fields as agriculture and home economics. In recent years, as an increasing number of hill tribe people have completed secondary and higher levels of education, more hill tribe youth have applied to join the DPW mobile units.
The Tribal Research Institute
The Tribal Research Institute (initially called The Tribal Research Centre) was set up in 1964 with the approval of the Cabinet, of DPW and of Chiang Mai University. Its objective is to provide a venue for meetings, information exchange and technical transfer among Thai agencies working for hill tribes, conduct research for government welfare and development activities, and disseminate information concerning hill tribes to promote understanding between the hill tribes and the Thai public50. The institute has three main functions: (1) research in social science; (2) information collection, depository and dissemination; and (3) advisory role based on research findings51.
Support to DPW hill tribe development and welfare
|
As of December 2001 Japan provided 46 volunteers to Thailand, 18 of whom worked in DPW. Of these, 13 engage in DPW support to hill tribe communities. In Ruam Jai village (620 persons) in the Mae Chan district of Chiang Rai province, a JOCV has been assisting community members in horticulture, particularly apricot cultivation and food processing. While the village has been growing apricots (along with peaches and lychee), market prices have declined drastically (from 30-50 baht per kilogram 20 years ago to five baht per kilogram at present). This is the common trend for many of the products the villagers depend on to earn a living. In order to supplement income, many young people from the village migrate to urban centres in search of seasonal employment opportunities. In order to tackle the situation, the Chiang Rai Hill Tribe Welfare and Development Centre and the community members decided to start apricot processing, with the technical assistance of the JOCV, who also assists in promoting marketing of pickled apricots. Pickled apricot earned the government's "One Village, One Product" label, for which the villagers last year had an opportunity to participate in a training session in a Royal project. Currently the village has a contract with a food retail company in Bangkok, which has a stable distribution channel of regular clients. The JOCV has been encouraging community members to opt for more productive methods of horticulture (such as pruning apricot trees) rather than the traditional, less-productive methods. Overcoming communication barriers and cultural differences has been a valuable learning experience for the JOCV. Source: Field interviews |
DPW received assistance from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Japanese government in 1998 in the following areas52:
Box 6: Inter Mountain Peoples Education and Culture in Thailand Association (IMPECT) IMPECT, which has been operating since 1991, is an indigenous and tribal non-governmental development organization founded and staffed entirely by representatives of the indigenous and tribal peoples and communities involved with the association53. It is today a major non-governmental organization acting on its own or on behalf of donor agencies in support of hill tribe communities. IMPECT registered with the government to obtain legal status on 16 March 1993. Representatives from six indigenous groups (Karen, Hmong, Meo, Lisu, Lahu and Akha) and tribal people were chosen from their own communities to form the executive committee of the association. This committee set the policies and guidelines directing the association's work in order to ensure that the work was in line with the problems and needs of highland people and communities. IMPECT currently works with 190 indigenous and tribal communities in eight provinces in northern Thailand (Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Lampang, Mae Hong Son, Phayao, Nan, Tak and Kamphaeng Phet)54. Being a forum of development for indigenous and tribal peoples in Thailand, IMPECT endeavours to ensure that indigenous peoples have the freedom and the right to preserve, revitalize and pass down to future generations their cultures and customs. IMPECT promotes greater self-reliance and mutual assistance among tribal people, who should maintain a sense of pride and dignity as distinct cultures, while having equal rights with other Thai citizens. Under this vision, the IMPECT objectives include development of local leaders, community organizations and networks, promotion of local wisdom in natural resource management, food security and alternative agriculture, protection of the rights and responsibilities of indigenous people as well as data collection and information dissemination. Donors include Netherlands, UNICEF, ILO and the National Cultural Committee. IMPECT activities are conducted on the basis of indigenous and tribal peoples' traditional knowledge and cultures along with an ethic of participatory and sustainable development. In addition to community development work (natural resource management and sustainable agriculture programme, social development and basic human rights promotion programme, basic education promotion and cultural revival programme, advocacy programme, community organization and network strengthening programme), they carry out special projects including a centre for urban tribal youth, a local curriculum development project and an inter-tribal youth education and culture project.
Sources: IMPECT brochure; field interview |
IMPECT supported primary
school for a Karen tribe community (Mae Wang district, Chiang Mai)
15 The National Committee for the Hill Tribes later changed its name to the Committee for the Solution of National Security Problems Involving Hill Tribes and the Cultivation of Narcotic Crops. The Cabinet set up in 1986 a regional organization known as Centre for the Coordination of Hill Tribe Affairs and Eradication of Narcotic Crops under Military Region Three in Northern Thailand.
16 The National Economic and Social Development Plan, which is the guideline for national development of Thailand, is formulated by the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB).
17 DPW Annual Report 1999,
p. 94
18 The objectives of the eighth plan were to 1) foster and develop the
potential of all Thais; 2) develop a stable society, strengthen family and
community, support human development and improve the quality of life; 3) promote
stable and sustainable economic growth and empower the people; 4) use, preserve
and rehabilitate the environment and natural resources in favour of economic and
social development and of a better quality of life; and 5) reform the system of
public administration to allow greater participation of non-governmental
organizations, the private sector, communities and the public in the process of
national development.
19 The objectives of the ninth plan are to: 1) promote
economic stability and sustainability; 2) establish a strong national
development foundation; 3) establish good governance at all levels of Thai
society; and 4) reduce poverty and empower Thai people.
20 In this second plan, there are four major objectives: 1) citizenship, 2) natural resource conservation, 3) permanent settlement and 4) quality of life improvement and preparation for integration into the normal development system without affecting the natural resources (Report on Monitoring the Second Master Plan on Community Development, Environment and Narcotic Crop Control in Highland Areas 1997-2001) .
21 Within the second master plan, the government places greater emphasis on registering and granting citizenship to hill tribe people. The budget was allocated from the Miyazawa loan. (The Miyazawa loan is 5.4 billion baht of assistance received from the Japanese government after the economic crisis for rural development purposes; it ended in September 2000.)
22 Hill Tribe Welfare and Development in Thailand
23 According to the National Education Act of 1999, there shall be three types of education: formal, non-formal and informal. Formal education shall specify the aims, methods, curricula, duration, assessment and evaluation conditional to its completion. Non-formal education shall have flexibility in determining the aims, modalities, management procedures, duration, assessment and evaluation conditional to its completion. The contents and curricula for non-formal education shall be appropriate, responding to the requirements and meeting the needs of individual groups of learners. Informal education shall enable learners to learn by themselves according to their interests, potentialities, readiness and opportunities available from individuals, society, environment, media or other sources of knowledge. (Department of Non-formal Education, 2001)
24 Department of Non-formal Education, p. 11
25 Department of Non-formal Education, p. 9
26 Community Learning Centres, located in and managed by communities, provide various kinds of knowledge in terms of lifelong learning for community members. Activities carried out include basic education, vocational and skill training, information services, as well as activities to promote quality of life. Currently there are 5 868 community learning centres countrywide (DNFE brochure, 2000). See Annex V for CLC structure and management.
27 Case Study: The Hill Tribe Community Learning Centre Mae Fa Luang
28 Education in Thailand 2000/2001, p. 42
29 While the DNFE central office does not have a division specifically dealing with hill tribe issues, it renders support to the regional centres (in the case of Northern Thailand, the DNFE Northern Region Centre is in Lampang, with the hill tribe division).
30 Hill Area Education Project
31 Department of Non-Formal Education, 2001, p.43
32 Case Study: The Hill Tribe Community Learning Centre Mae Fa Luang
33 Field interview, DNFE, 10/07/01
34 Visit to the
Somdet Ya Project in Mae Chaem district, Chiang Mai, 09/07/01
35 The National Education Act of 1999 advocates the provision of 12 years of basic education to all, in line with which the Ministry of Education is in the process of extending compulsory education from six to nine years. (Basic Information for the Establishment of Community Colleges in Thailand)
36 Most of DNFE CLCs visited during the field missions had Thaicom equipment.
37 Department of Agricultural Extension
38 Country Reports for Study Meeting on Sustainable Farming Systems in Upland Areas
39 The Thai name, "Agricultural Technology Transfer Centre", was changed to "Community Agricultural Services and Technology Transfer Centre". However, as the English name and the functions are unchanged, in this case study the Agricultural Technology Transfer Centre and the Community Agricultural Services and Technology Transfer Centre will be referred to as ATTC.
40 Thailand's Experience with Lifelong Learning via Community Agricultural Services and Technology Transfer Centres
42 US$1 = 44.4 baht (2001 average exchange rate)
45 Hilltribe Welfare and Development in Thailand
46 DPW Annual Report, 2000, p.81
47 DPW Annual Report 1999, p.97
48 In reality, there has not been any case where DPW retreated from a hill tribe village, as continuous support is considered necessary.
49 The Chiang Mai Centre covers 11 districts (287 village clusters, 12 893 households, 71 120 persons) and focuses on communities not receiving assistance from other agencies. (Field interview, DPW, 06/09/01)
50 Tribal Research Institute brochure
51 In 1999 the Tribal Research Institute published the following studies: (1) Ways and Means to Develop the Third Group of Hill Tribe Villages (villages that lack potential to settle down); (2) Ways and Means to Develop Labour and Social Welfare Services in the Hill Tribe Villages within the King's Project Areas; (3) Implementation of DPW Policies to Relieve the Unemployment Problem for the Unemployed and the Retrenched - a Case Study of Loans Provided from the Occupational Assistance Revolving Fund; and (4) Study and Research on Social, Traditional and Family Planning Acceptance - a Case Study of the Hill Tribe People within the Royal project Areas (DPW Annual Report 1999, P. 86)
53 As of today there are 27 staff members and two volunteer workers at IMPECT.