USAID Cooperative Agreement #486-A-00-05-00019-00: CRS Vietnam IVWD Progress Report #9, Q 1-2 / FY 09

The project focuses on two provinces, Ninh Binh and Quang Nam, and targets children with disabilities (CWD) and young people with disabilities. The project's first six months of the IVWD extension phase (October 2008-June 2010) saw significant progress in consolidating IE systems at the provincial level. Provincial education departments (DOETs) in both Ninh Binh and Quang Nam formally established IE Support Centers, which are professional units directly under DOET. These centers expanded capacity building activities for IE key trainers to ensure project sustainability through regular support and monitoring activities. The IE junior secondary model was implemented in 5 schools in Ninh Binh, with support from the MOET Secondary Department. The youth vocational training and employment component of IVWD, implemented by World Concern, concluded on 31 December 2009. A total of 309 young people with disabilities benefited from community-based vocational training in Ninh Binh and Quang Nam; 93% of them are now employed or self-employed. At the policy level, CRS continued its support for curriculum development for IE management and IE modules integrated into regular teacher training programs for all teachers in Vietnam. The IE management curriculum was formally approved by the MOET Higher Education Department in March 2009, and the teacher training curriculum was approved in January 2009. The ITTP component continued to strengthen in Hanoi, with a greater ownership role shown by the Hanoi College of Information Technology (HCIT) in all project stages of need assessment, planning, management, and monitoring. ITTP beneficiaries expanded to include a deaf/hearing impaired class for the first time. In Ho Chi Minh City, CRS selected Van Lang University to host the ITTP facility in the south, following a thorough assessment of several potential institutions. CRS faced several administrative and context-specific challenges in this reporting period, including coordination among the four MOET departments participating in IVWD and at various educational levels, which was more limited during this period than before. Results from the IE junior secondary model remain a bit behind expectations due to time constraints by partner staff and the complex nature of IE at the secondary level. The official approval process for the ITTP program in Ho Chi Minh City faced delays due to the inexperience and subjective attitude of project partners towards choosing an appropriate government management agency. However, initial efforts in accessibility adaptation, recruitment, facilities installment, and curriculum setup have been invested with high appreciation of students and their families. The project has made significant progress in civil society and community mobilization, with 11 Parent Associations formed to date in Ninh Binh and Quang Nam provinces. These associations have been heavily involved in awareness raising and community mobilization on disability issues. CRS is also supporting PAs in its privately funded civil society and grassroots democracy project in Thanh Hoa province, and plans to expand the model in Quang Nam using additional private funding in FY 2009-10. Local education partners have shown increased ownership in project activities, leading to strengthening of their own IE management capacities and the sustainability of IE in Ninh Binh and Quang Nam provinces. The establishment of two IE support centers provides a foundation for the DOETs to sustain and further expand IE activities throughout the province. Almost all activities and indicators set in the Implementation Plan FY 2009 are on track, especially under the no-cost extension components. These include the establishment of IE secondary model at 5 schools in Ninh Binh, the setup of an IE support room and a group of key teachers in all supported schools under IE secondary model in Ninh Binh, and the increased skills of 10 Parents associations with the involvement of 68 parents in rehabilitation for children with hearing and mobility impairments.