Cambodia : Secondary Education for Human Capital Competitiveness Program

Education / Secondary

Information and communication technology / ICT strategy and policy, and capacity development

Macroeconomic context and government strategy. For the past 2 decades, the growth of the Cambodian economy, projected to reach 5.3% in 2023, has been driven by lower value-added sectors such as garments, tourism, trade, and construction. Remaining competitive in the region in the longer term will depend on shifting toward higher-value-added economic activities, especially technology-driven industries, which require a skilled and educated workforce. The proposed Secondary Education for Human Capital Competitiveness results-based lending (RBL) program is a time and subsector slice of the broader government program, the Cambodia Secondary Education Blueprint 2030 (CAMSEB 2030), focusing on priorities in upper secondary education (USE).b The RBL program is closely aligned with the country's new medium-term development strategy, emphasizing human capital development as the first of five pillars, and enhancing quality education, science, technology, and technical skills training.

Binding constraints. The CAMSEB 2030, developed with Asian Development Bank (ADB) technical assistance (TA), identifies persistent constraints in secondary education, including four binding constraints to USE: (i) low access and completion, (ii) poor alignment with 21st century skills, (iii) inadequate learning assessment system, and

(iv) lack of clear alignment of secondary and post-secondary education pathways.

Low access and completion. While Cambodia has made significant progress towards universal enrollment with gender parity at the primary level, USE enrollment remains low at 41.2% (46.1% for girls) due to high opportunity costs and perception of low-quality education. Many school facilities are still not conducive to the interactive styles of teaching that teachers are being trained to use. Many schools also do not meet the minimum service standards (MSS) required to ensure equitable resource allocation and quality assurance from the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS). These are major factors contributing to student dropout and disproportionately affect students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. General technical high schools (GTHSs) established to provide labor-market relevant alternatives to students interested in technical skills and who may otherwise leave the academic track, lack quality standards and sufficient resources. With a low USE completion rate of 38.4% (42.5% girls) and only 6.8% of young people completing post-secondary education, many enter the workforce insufficiently prepared with the required knowledge and skills.

Poor alignment with 21st century skills. While USE reforms have been implemented since 2016, integration of technology in pedagogy remains limited, and the curriculum is not fully aligned with further education or job-related skills. Building digital competencies of students and teachers is essential to ensure graduates are equipped with the knowledge and skills to thrive in Cambodia's future economy. There is also a shortage of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and foreign language teachers with subject-specific knowledge to deliver quality USE and provide guidance to students on future studies and career opportunities.

Inadequate learning assessment system. The USE assessment system relies heavily on the Grade 12 final examination. This high-stakes assessment does not reflect the higher order thinking skills encouraged by the strengthened curriculum or the new pedagogy in which teachers are being trained. It promotes rote learning rather than motivating teachers to identify students least mastered competencies and address the learning gaps. Teachers also lack the skills to use formative assessment to inform their teaching. School-based assessment is not recognized by higher education or training institutions due to the lack of standardized quality across schools.

Weak linkages to post-secondary STEM education and careers. Government and development partner investment in secondary STEM education has contributed to increased enrollments in the science stream at grade 11. However, poor learning outcomes and the pressure of the grade 12 national examination cause many students to switch from the science stream to the social science stream in grade 12.g This has led to a decrease in enrollment in tertiary STEM fields from 27.1% (17.4% women) in school year (SY) 2017/18 to 25.6% (13.6% women) in SY2021/22.h Higher education institutions (HEIs) have to bridge the learning gap of social science stream students pursuing STEM degrees by offering a year of foundational courses. This duplicates education system resources and increases costs to families. Girls both enroll at higher rates and perform better than boys at the USE level, but more support is needed to increase their readiness for and participation in post-secondary STEM education and in the workforce.

Impact of the pandemic on student learning and education budgets. School closures during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic disrupted learning for more than 3.2 million Cambodian K-12 students. While the MoEYS strove to continue education through distance learning modalities, school closures led to learning losses that will likely have negative impacts on future workers' productivity and may lead to income disparities. The pandemic caused a contraction in the MoEYS share of total government expenditures falling to 9.5% in 2023 from 14.2% in 2019 as resources were diverted to health and welfare responses. With the strong commitment of the new government to enhance the quality of education, science, and technology, the education budget is expected to rebound to at least pre-pandemic levels.

High quality human resources to develop a knowledge-based society established and

developed.

Secondary education graduates meet international standards, are competitive in global markets, and act as catalysts for Cambodia's social and economic development.

Output 1: Access to quality upper secondary education improved. Output 1 activities aim to increase student enrollment and reduce dropout, especially for disadvantaged students, and include guidance counseling programs, scholarships, and additional learning support activities being offered in more schools. Output 1 will expand

the proportion of schools meeting MSS for inputs including climate-adaptive solutions. School facilities will be updated with furniture that facilitates professional collaboration among teachers and active and collaborative student learning, and sex-segregated functioning bathrooms. The program will also support GTHSs through the development

of MSS for education improvements at the school level.