ASEAN in Figures 2003

EDUCATION
6
Education, both formal and informal, is a process by which human beings and soci
eties can reach their full potential. Education is also a lifelong process. A fu
ll understanding of the education situation in a country or for a region would r
equire looking at many dimensions. The education indicators presented in this ch
apter concentrated on four areas, namely: (i) financial resources, (ii) particip
ation in education, (iii) output and efficiency, and (iv) outcomes. Education in
dicators reported here belong to primary, secondary and tertiary levels. Primary
education is the level of education where children are provided with basic read
ing, writing, and mathematical skills together with elementary understanding of
such subjects as history, geography, natural science, social science, art, and m
usic. Secondary education continues to build up on the knowledge provided by pri
mary education and aims at laying the foundations for lifelong learning and huma
n development. Tertiary education whether or not leading to an advanced research
qualification, requires minimally the successful completion of secondary educat
ion for admission. FINANCIAL RESOURCES Public Current Expenditure on Primary Edu
cation as a Percentage of GDP and per Pupil as Percentage of GDP per Capita The
public current expenditure on primary education as a per cent of GDP and expendi
ture per pupil as per cent of GDP reflect the investments given to primary educa
tion by governments. To be complete, these two indicators have to be based on pu
blic current expenditure at central, provincial and local government levels on a
ll public primary schools and subsidies to private educational institutions, tea
chers and pupils. In some instances, data on current public expenditure on educa
tion may refer only to the Ministry of Education, excluding other ministries tha
t spend a part of their budget on educational activities. For the data in table
6.1, the status of the indicators as to the inclusion of different types of expe
nditures, except in the case of the Philippines, is not clear and therefore comp
arisons and interpretations should be viewed with reservation.
Educational
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ASEAN in Figures 2003
Data from the reporting ASEAN countries show that the primary education expendit
ure is typically lower than 3% of GDP, except Indonesia which reported 5%. The P
hilippines and especially Lao PDR, show rising trends. Malaysia shows a gradual
downward trend in the earlier years but seems to have stabilized towards the end
of the decade. A dramatic decline also occurred in Indonesia between 1995 and 1
999 from almost 10% to 5%. Since 1993, the expenditure-GDP ratio for Singapore h
as been stable at 0.6% until 2000 and increasing slightly to 0.7% in 2001. This
means regaining the same percentage of GDP covering expenditures of the public s
ector in primary education in the early 1990s. While the public current expendit
ure on primary education as percentage of GDP can never be close to 100%, it is
theoretically possible to have the public current expenditure per pupil as perce
ntage of GDP per capita to reach or exceed 100%. However, in four countries for
which the latter indicator is available, it does not exceed 15%. Except for Sing
apore, the indicator fluctuates somewhat, but seems to have stabilized at around
10% for two reporting countries at the end of the decade. Since 1996, the indic
ator has steadily risen in the Philippines reaching almost 14% by 1998. Upward o
r downward trend for this indicator can have many causes which include sharp cha
nges in enrolment rates of government expenditures on primary education. Figure
6.1 Public Current Expenditure on Primary Education as % of GDP
Figure 6.2 Public Current Expenditure on Primary Education per Pupil as % of GDP
per Capita
208
Educational
ASEAN in Figures 2003
Table 6.1 Public Current Expenditure on Primary Education as Percentage of GDP a
nd per Pupil as Percentage of GDP per Capita
Definition: (a) Public current expenditure in primary education expressed as a p
ercentage of GDP. It shows the share of the value of the total production of goo
ds and services in a given year that has been devoted to primary education. (b)
Public current expenditure per pupil in primary education expressed as a percent
age of GDP per capita in a given financial year measures the average cost of a p
upil in primary education in relation to the country's GDP per capita. Unit of mea
surement: %
Country As % of GDP Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia The Philippines Singapore
1990 1.60 1.45
1991 1992 1.80 1.49 1.08 0.70 1.90 1.62 1.25 0.70
1993 2.40 1.41 1.38 0.60
1994 2.70 1.33 1.34 0.60
1995 9.87 1.22 1.55 0.60
1996 9.67 1.37 1.34 0.60
1997 9.48 1.15 1.96 0.60
1998 5.68 1.19 2.16 0.60
1999 5.43 1.15 0.60
2000 1.14 0.60
2001 0.70
Per Pupil % of GDP per Capita Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia The Philippines Singapo
re
Notes:
10.7
11.0 6.8 8.7
11.7 8.1 8.2
10.2 9.1 7.9
9.7 8.9 8.0
8.9 9.9 7.9
10.3 8.5 8.0
4.6 8.7 12.4 7.9
5.9 9.3 13.7 8.1
6.8 9.2 7.4
9.1 7.9
9.0
The Philippines covers expenditures for elementary education of the Department o
f Education, and other national government agencies during the calendar year whi
le enrolment is by school year. Singapore education expenditures are by nancial y
ear (April-March), GDPs by calendar year.
Sources: Brunei Darussalam Ministry of Education through Survey of `Educational In
stitutions' public and private school started 1997. Lao PDR NSC. Malaysia Ministry
of Education. The Philippines National Education Expenditure Accounts, 1991-199
8. National Statistical Coordination Board. Singapore Budget Book and National A
ccounts.
PARTICIPATION Universal access to, and completion of, primary or basic education
is a self-evident goal upon which the foundations for building the human capaci
ty rests. Increased participation, regardless of sex, in secondary and tertiary
levels of education is a necessary step to be able to move forward in the proces
s of achieving equity, capacity building, access to information, and strengtheni
ng science. Participation in formal education is normally measured by Gross Enro
lment Ratio (GER) and Net Enrolment Ratio (NER). The purpose of NER is to show t
he extent of participation in a given level of education for children or youths
belonging to the official age-group corresponding to the level of education. In
GER, the total enrolment in a level of education, regardless of age, is expresse
d as a percentage of the official school-age population corresponding to the sam
e level of education. For reference, the official school ages and duration of pr
imary and secondary education levels for ASEAN member countries are given in tab
le 6.5.
Educational
209
ASEAN in Figures 2003
Net Enrolment Ratio in Primary Education by Sex As reported, Brunei Darussalam h
ad almost reached 100% net enrolment ratio by 2001. Indonesia achieved this targ
et at the beginning of the decade, but had an appreciable downward trend thereaf
ter, while the Philippines has been consistently approaching this target in the
recent years. Figure 6.3 Net Enrollment Ratio in Primary Education, both Sexes,
%
The data indicate two groups of countries - one which has consistently attained
a net enrolment ratio of more than 90% (Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, the Philip
pines, and Singapore) and the other group with around 80% (Cambodia, Lao PDR and
Myanmar). Viet Nam started in the lower group and moved over to the higher grou
p in the second half of the reporting period. Thailand has not provided data for
both sexes, but the separate net enrolment ratio for girls and boys indicates t
hat the overall ratio would be between 86% and 87%, and as such would be closer
to the higher group. Figure 6.4 clearly indicates that the primary net enrolment
ratios of boys were almost always higher than those of girls for all reporting
countries except Malaysia. For Singapore throughout the reporting period, and In
donesia since 1998, the net enrolment ratios for girls and boys, however, were n
ot significantly different. A marked widening of gender gap is noticeable in the
Philippines in 1997 but in 1999 the net enrolment ratios for girls exceeded tha
t for boys.
210
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ASEAN in Figures 2003
Table 6.2 Net Enrolment Ratio in Primary Education by Sex
Definition: Enrolment in primary education of the official primary school age-gr
oup expressed as a percentage of the corresponding population.
Unit of measurement: %
Country Both Sexes Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar
The Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Male Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Ind
onesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Fema
le Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines
Singapore Thailand Vie Nam
Notes:
1990 100 66.3 99.1 96.1
1991 1992 97.2 100 58.0 71.8 85.1 96.1 99.0 62.7 78.8 85.2 95.9
1993 100 66.5 76.2 85.4 95.1 78.0
1994 99.0 65.2 76.4 87.1 95.3
1995 97.0 68.6 73.6 92.7 96.4
1996 84.7 96.0 71.9 75.8 94.3 95.7
1997 77.8 76.2 74.8 95.1 96.0
1998 78.3 92.0 76.4 75.2 95.7 95.5 92.6
1999 85.5 93.0 77.3 77.0 97.0 95.9
2000 83.8 92.0 79.8 77.5 96.8 95.7
2001 98.7 93.0 80.3 78.0 97.0 94.3
98.0 96.4
97.0 61.7 93.2 96.6
97.0 66.8 93.6 96.3
97.0 70.8 94.0 95.5
97.0 68.8 93.9 95.8
95.0 72.0 94.9 96.9
95.0 75.4 94.7 95.3 96.3 87.0
79.8 94.8 97.9 96.3
92.0 79.4 94.6 97.4 95.8 93.5
93.0 80.3 94.4 96.8 96.2
92.0 83.7 96.0 96.2
93.0 84.3 96.0 94.5
95.0 95.9
95.0 54.1 93.1 95.6
95.0 58.4 93.6 95.4
95.0 62.0 94.2 94.6
95.0 61.5 94.3 94.8
94.0 65.0 95.6 95.9
93.0 68.3 95.3 93.4 95.1 86.0
72.4 95.4 92.1 95.7
92.0 73.3 95.1 94.0 95.1 91.7
93.0 74.2 95.0 97.2 95.6
93.0 75.7 97.1 95.1
93.0 76.3 97.4 94.0
Myanmar 2001 data provisional. The Philippines referred to as net participation
rate in public and private elementary schools of enrollees 7-12 years old. Singa
pore resident students in national schools only.
Sources: Brunei Darussalam Ministry of Education through Survey of `Educational In
stitutions' public and private school started 1997. Cambodia Ministry of Education
, Youth and Sport. Indonesia National Socio Economic Survey. Lao PDR Ministry of
Education (2000): EFA for 1991-1997 data and Ministry of Education (2002): Annu
alReport for 1998-2001 data. Malaysia Ministry of Education. Myanmar Department
of Education Planning and Training. The Philippines Department of Education. Sin
gapore Students' Register. Thailand school reports.
Educational
211
ASEAN in Figures 2003
Figure 6.4 Net Enrolment Ratio in Primary Education Male and Female
Net Enrolment Ratio in Secondary Education by Sex With regard to secondary educa
tion, by 2001 Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Singapo
re have achieved improvements in the net enrolment ratios of 11 to 19 percentage
points over those of 1990 or 1991. The fastest growth is registered by Viet Nam
between 1993 and 1998. The country with the highest achievement, Singapore, has
managed to attain consistently high net enrolment rates of over 90% since 1994.
For the six countries for which these ratios are available for boys and girls s
eparately, the difference in the ratios ranges from 0.2 to 6 percentage points i
n the case of Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia at the end of the reporting peri
od (figure 6.6).
212
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ASEAN in Figures 2003
Table 6.3 Net Enrollment Ratio in Secondary Education by Sex
Definition: Enrolment in secondary education of the official secondary school ag
e-group expressed as a percentage of the corresponding population. Unit of measu
rement: %
Country Both Sexes Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar
The Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Male Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Ind
onesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines Singapore Thailand Vie Nam Femal
e Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines
Singapore Thailand Vie Nam
Notes:
1990 14.0 54.7 80.4
1991 1992 74.0 20.4 55.4 80.5 22.1 56.8 81.3
1993 22.9 57.6 79.3
1994 24.4 58.5 90.3
1995 51.0 27.9 62.3 92.8
1996 23.7 54.5 29.8 63.4 92.6
1997 16.6 57.8 30.5 64.0 92.5
1998 14.2 57.0 29.9 65.2 91.9 61.6
1999 14.4 59.1 31.8 65.4 90.6
2000 16.6 60.3 77.3 31.9 66.1 91.7
2001 85.4 60.6 31.7 73.4 92.7
78.3
66.0 78.4
66.4 79.5
67.1 77.2
67.9 89.4
50.7 69.8 92.4
53.6 71.2 58.7 92.3 46.0
57.4 73.4 61.6 92.6
56.1 75.2 62.5 92.1 61.1
58.4 76.7 62.7 90.8
59.1 77.3 91.8
59.2 77.6 92.6
82.7
69.2 82.7
70.4 83.1
71.7 81.6
73.0 91.3
51.2 74.8 93.0
55.4 77.8 68.2 92.9 50.0
58.3 79.7 66.5 92.4
57.9 81.5 68.1 91.7 62.2
59.9 83.3 68.2 90.4
61.6 83.1 91.5
62.0 82.9 92.8
Cambodia and Viet Nam Lower secondary. Myanmar 2001 data provisional. The Philip
pines referred to as net participation rate of enrollees 13-16 years old. Singap
ore resident students in national schools only.
Sources: Brunei Darussalam Ministry of Education through Survey of `Educational In
stitutions' public and private school started 1997. Cambodia Ministry of Education
, Youth and Sport. Myanmar Department of Education Planning and Training. The Ph
ilippines Department of Education. Singapore Students' Register. Thailand school r
eports.
Educational
213
ASEAN in Figures 2003
Figure 6.5 Net Enrolment Ratio in Secondary Education, both Sexes, %
The overall pattern is that girls seem to exhibit appreciably higher net enrolme
nt ratios for secondary education, except in the case of Singapore where the rat
ios for girls and boys converged in the second half of the reporting period. Fig
ure 6.6 Net Enrolment Ratio in Secondary Education, % Females and Males
Ratio of Girls to Boys in Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Education The ratio of
girls to boys in a particular level of education (table 6.4) is aimed at gettin
g information on the disparity of access to education between the genders at tha
t education level. Two operational variants of the indicator seem to exist. One
is the Gender Parity Index (GPI) defined as the ratio between the female and mal
e gross enrolment ratios by UNESCO1. The other is the ratio of number of females
enrolled to males enrolled as used by the World Bank2. While the first definiti
on of the
1 2
Gender-sensitive education statistics and indicators, a practical guide, UNESCO.
Used for combined primary and secondary enrolments. World Development Indicator
s 2002, p. 25.
214
Educational
ASEAN in Figures 2003
ratio has the theoretical advantage of being insensitive to the number of girls
and boys (including both students and non-students) in the population, the metho
d seems less intuitive for applying to tertiary education. Among the countries r
eporting the ratios, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and
Singapore have used the second definition. The methodologies used by others were
unknown. On the latter case, Brunei Darussalam exemplifies those countries, as
reflected in its ratio of girls to boys in primary schools, significantly improv
ing from 66% in 1991 to 109% in 2001. This only shows a corresponding increase i
n the enrolment of girls during the period. The graph of the reported data (figu
re 6.7) brings out an interesting pattern. The ratios are being spread out furth
er from equality for girls and boys as level of education changes from primary t
o secondary and then to tertiary. At primary level, almost all the reporting cou
ntries show either stable ratios of more than 90% or continously improving ratio
s that approach the 90% level where 100% represents equality of participation in
education by girls and boys. Figure 6.7 Ratio of Girls to Boys in Primary, Seco
ndary and Tertiary Education, %
Here are some of the interesting patterns. Brunei Darussalam is the only reporti
ng country with higher participation of girls in primary education that crosses
over to lower participation at secondary level. Most of the countries stayed aro
und 10 percentage points on either side of line of equality for secondary educat
ion, but Cambodia, Lao PDR and Viet Nam drop further to lower participation of g
irls than in primary education. Malaysia, Myanmar and the Philippines, all havin
g modest gender disparities at primary and secondary levels, reached highest par
ticipation advantages of girls at the tertiary level that reached a peak in the
case of Myanmar of 175 girls for every 100 boys participating in tertiary educat
ion in 2000. Singapore shows a somewhat lower participation of girls in national
schools at primary and secondary education levels. The lowest is at the tertiar
y level. This reflects the larger number
Educational
215
ASEAN in Figures 2003

of boys in the school-going age population. The participation of girls in Singap

ore schools is at least the same or higher compared to other countries. Of the f
ive reporting countries for tertiary education, Lao PDR has the lowest participa
tion of girls at around 55 girls for every 100 boys.
It should be noted that the ratios reported may not be strictly comparable among
the countries, or even between different years for a country, due to possible d
ifferences in definitions adopted. Table 6.4 Ratio of Girls to Boys in Primary,
Secondary and Tertiary Education
Definition: (i) Percentage of girls to boys enrolled at primary or secondary or
tertiary level of education. (ii) Ratio of the gross enrolment ratio of girls to
those of boys at primary or secondary or tertiary level of education. Unit of m
easurement: %
Country
Primary Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philip
pines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Secondary Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia
Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Tertiary B
runei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines Sin
gapore Thailand Viet Nam
Notes:
1990
77 95 93 90 94 66 102 94 97 96 49 84 73
1991 1992
66 77 95 94 90 95 85 72 64 103 97 97 97 84 42 87 75 110 77 95
100 99 96 99 84 37 95 76 108
1993
121 94 78 95 94 95 90 92 86 93 92 67 104 100 106 96 101 84 85 39 99 132 76 106
1994
110 92 79 95 94 95 91 92 86 93 92 67 104 99 104 94 104 84 89 40 100 132 78 113
1995
111 93 79 95 94 95 92 88 93 94 67 105 100 105 92 106 84 88 39 104 160 131 80
1996
109 95 80 95 95 96 92 94 88 92 97 68 106 101 105 92 109 85 88 42 107 164 117 79
111
1997
112 81 93 82 95 95 95 92 90 94 58 95 69 105 101 105 90 86 94 48 110 166 128 81
1998
112 82 92 82 95 97 96 93 94 91 94 53 95 70 104 101 107 91 109 86 94 49 112 158 1
28 80 116
1999
113 84 92 83 95 97 96 93 94 90 95 52 95 74 104 98 106 91 111 96 58 116 168 123 8
4
2000
112 85 93 83 95 97 96 93 94 97 53 95 73 104 105 105 92 111 93 55 115 175 125 86
118
2001
109 86 93 95 98 93 98 55 96 104 94 106 93 91 123 156 87
Cambodia covering lower and upper secondary. Lao PDR refers to lower secondary.
Malaysia, Myanmar, and Singapore percentage of girls to boys enrolled. Myanmar 2
001 data provisional. Singapore tertiary level covers resident students (full-ti
me and part-time) in polytechnic and university. Thailand tertiary enrolment exc
ludes students who are in private universities.
Sources: Brunei Darussalam Ministry of Education through Survey of `Educational In
stitutions' public and private school started 1997. Cambodia Ministry of Education
, Youth and Sport. Lao PDR Ministry of Education (2002) Annual Report. Myanmar P
rimary and secondary Department of Education Planning and Training; tertiary Edu
cation Research Bureau. The Philippines Department of Education and Commission o
n Higher Education. Singapore Student's Register. Thailand Report of Education Sta
tistics, National Statistical Ofce (NSO) of the Permanent Secretary for Education
, Ministry of Education, Ofce of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of University
Affairs. NSO website <http//www.nso.go.th/eng/THA_Indicat/THA_Indicat2003.pdf>
216
Educational
ASEAN in Figures 2003
Table 6.5 Primary and Secondary Levels of National Education Systems
Country Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Base/ Change/ Last Year 1990 1997 1990 1996 1
997 1990 1997 1990 1997 1990 1997 1990 1997 1990 1997 1990 1997 1990 1997 1990 1
997 Pre-primary Entrance Age 3 3 3 3 3 5 5 3 3 4 4 4 4 5 5 * * 3 3 3 3 Duration
3 3 3 3 3 2 2 3 3 2 2 1 1 2 2 * * 3 3 3 3 Primary Entrance Age 6 6 6 6 6 7 7 6 6
6 6 5 5 7 7 6 6 6 6 6 6 Duration 6 6 5 6 6 6 6 5 5 6 6 5 5 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 5 Seco
ndary Entrance Age 12 12 11 12 12 13 13 11 11 12 12 10 10 13 13 12 12 12 12 11 1
1 Duration 7 7 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 5 6 6 4 4 4/5 4/5 6 6 7 7
Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam
Notes:
Base = Base year of this indicator report; Change = Year of education system cha
nge; Last = Latest available year for education system status. Singapore- * Pre-
primary education is provided by community and private organizations.
Sources: UNESCO database in conjunction with country verication for Malaysia and
Singapore.
In 1998, the International Standard Classification of Education 1997 (ISCED97) w
as introduced by UNESCO, which replaced the ISCED76 that had been used for two d
ecades. ISCED97 introduced a new category, postsecondary nontertiary education. St
udents in this category are not counted as either secondary or tertiary. If foll
owed, the new scheme will produce data that will not be consistent with past dat
a series and any time series analysis would then need to be made with caution. H
owever, the effects of ISCED97 on secondary and tertiary education data reported
here have not been specified by the reporting countries. OUTPUT AND EFFICIENCY
Proportion of Pupils Starting Grade 1 Reaching Grade 5 of Primary Education The
effectiveness of efforts to extend literacy depends on the ability of the educat
ion system to ensure full participation of school-age children and their success
ful progression to reach at least grade 5, which is the stage when they are beli
eved to have firmly acquired literacy and numeracy. The usual
Educational
217
ASEAN in Figures 2003
indicator to measure the level of such achievement is the Proportion of pupils s
tarting grade 1 reaching grade 5 of primary education, which can be derived usin
g the reconstructed cohort student flow method. Grade is a stage of instruction
usually covered in one school year. The indicator, in its strict sense, would be
undefined if primary level in an education system does not cover grade 5. For A
SEAN countries there is no such difficulty (see also table 6.5). Care is needed
in comparing and interpreting the reaching grade-5 indicator reported by countri
es as they may have been derived from different models in each case . The childr
en reaching grade-5 indicator, also known as the survival to grade-5 indicator,
could not have a value greater than 100%. Also, a consistent rate of 100% or clo
se to it for a period of years may signify a highly efficient primary education
system or one with automatic promotion. In the latter case, the output and effic
iency of the education system will have a different essence. Most of the reporti
ng countries show steady improvement in the survival rates. Malaysia, Singapore
and Thailand have consistently shown a survival rate of close to 100% indicating
very high retention of children in school to grade 5. Among the rest of the cou
ntries with rates ranging from 57% to 89% towards the end of the reporting perio
d, Myanmar has maintained the largest improvements over the years. Figure 6.8 Pr
oportion of Pupils Starting Grade 1 Reaching Grade 5 of Primary Education, %
3
See also the technical notes at the end of this chapter.
218
Educational
ASEAN in Figures 2003
Table 6.6 Proportion of Pupils Starting Grade 1 Reaching Grade 5 of Primary Educ
ation
Definition: Percentage of a cohort of pupils who enrolled in the first grade of
primary education in a given school-year and who eventually reach grade 5. The p
roportion is based on the Reconstructed Cohort Method, which uses data on enrolm
ent and repetition rates for two consecutive years. Unit of measurement: %
Country Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philip
pines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam
Notes: Myanmar
1990 97.2 24.5 68.2 98.3 97.6
1991 47.7 97.3 29.5 67.6 98.5 99.7
1992 76.0 48.7 97.2 29.1 63.4 98.4 99.0
1993 78.0 42.0 97.5 30.9 67.5 98.7 99.0
1994 80.0 57.4 97.9 35.1 66.5 98.7 97.5
1995 81.0 52.3 97.9 36.1 67.2 98.7 95.1
1996 81.0 56.6 98.1 34.5 68.0 98.7 99.1
1997 82.0 54.0 99.0 35.8 68.6 98.6 99.4
1998 82.0 52.6 99.1 41.2 69.8 98.6 99.1
1999 83.0 51.5 98.0 48.5 69.5 98.5
2000 59.9 98.6 53.7 67.2 98.6 88.9
2001 97.2 57.3 67.1 98.1
Sources: Indonesia <http://www.pdk.go.id>. Lao PDR Ministry of Education (2000):
EFA for data from 1991-1997 and Ministry of Education (2002) Annual Report for
1998-2000 data. Malaysia administrative records, Ministry of Education. Myanmar
Department of Education Planning and Training. The Philippines Department of Edu
cation. Singapore Students' Register.
OUTCOME Literacy Rates of 15-24 Years Old by Sex Literacy indicators provide a m
easure of the stock of literate persons within the population who are capable of
using written words in daily life and to continue to learn. It reflects the acc
umulated accomplishment of education in spreading literacy. Furthermore, literac
y is closely linked to indicators reflecting basic needs such as education, capa
city building, information and communication. Literacy rate is often linked to s
chool enrolment ratios and population reaching grade 5 of primary education, bot
h of which influence the accumulation of the stock of literates. In this context
, the literacy rate of the 15 to 24 years old (table 6.5) has a special signific
ance. It can reflect the recent outcomes of the basic education process and is t
herefore considered a summary measure of the effectiveness of the education syst
em. A high literacy rate among the 15-24 years old suggests a high level of part
icipation and retention in primary education, and its effectiveness in imparting
the basic skills of reading and writing. Since persons belonging to this age-gr
oup are entering adult life, monitoring their literacy levels is important in re
spect to national human resources policies, as well as for tracking and forecast
ing progress in adult literacy.
Educational
219
ASEAN in Figures 2003
Among the eight ASEAN countries reporting, six have made good progress towards 1
00% literacy by 2000. Their progress could be compared with member countries of
the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Most OECD cou
ntries do not achieve 100% literacy either; and some, like Mexico and Turkey rec
orded only around 95% to 97% (see UNSD Millennium Indicators database; <http://w
ww.milleniumindicators.un.org/unsd/mi>). Meanwhile, the data of the ASEAN countr
ies do not indicate much disparity between female and male literacy rates except
for Cambodia and Lao PDR, where female literacy rate is around 10 percentage po
ints lower than for males in 1999. The overall positive results indicate the eff
ectiveness of the primary education systems of these countries in the previous d
ecade. Figure 6.9 Literay Rate of 15-24 Years Old, Males and Females, %
220
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ASEAN in Figures 2003
Table 6.7 Literacy Rate of 15-24 Years Old by Sex
Definition: Literacy is the ability to read and write with understanding a short
simple statement related to one's everyday life. Literacy rate of a particular ag
e group is the number of literate persons of that age group expressed as a perce
ntage of the corresponding population.
Unit of measurement: %
Country Both Sexes Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar
The Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Male Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Ind
onesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Fema
le Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines
Singapore Thailand Viet Nam
Notes:
1990 96.6 99.0 98.1
1991 1992 98.1
1993 65.3 97.1
1994 97.6 97.3 98.6
1995 97.5
1996 68.7 97.7
1997 98.1
1998 67.3 98.3
1999 81.7 98.4
2000 98.4 81.4 95.1 99.5 98.0 94.8
2001 98.3
96.3 98.9 97.8
98.1

79.7 97.9
98.2 96.6 97.3
98.0
81.8 98.2
98.5
79.5 98.5
87.1 98.6
98.7 88.4 94.5 99.4 97.8 95.6
98.5
96.9 99.1 98.4
98.1

53.4 96.4
97.1 98.1 98.7
97.1
58.0 97.2
97.7
57.0 98.1
76.6 98.1
98.2 74.8 95.7 99.6 98.1 94.0
98.1
Singapore resident population only.
Sources: Brunei Darussalam Ministry of Education through Survey of `Educational In
stitutions' public and private school started 1997. Cambodia SocioEconomic Survey
1993 and 1999, Demographic Survey of Cambodia 1996 and General Population Census
of Cambodia 1998. Lao PDR SPC (2001) MICS 2000. The Philippines 1990 and 2000 C
ensus of Population and Housing and 1994 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass
Media Survey, National Statistics Ofce. Singapore population census. Thailand 19
90 and 2000 Population and Housing Census, National Statistical Ofce (NSO) and 19
94 Literacy Survey, NSO and NSO webpage <http://www.nso.go.th/eng/THA_Indicat/TH
A_Indicat2003.pdf>. Viet Nam MICS 2000.
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Adult Literacy Rate by Sex The general target of all countries, obviously, is 10
0% adult literacy. While all countries reporting here still fall short in this,
most have made consistent improvements in adult literacy over the years, reachin
g overall adult literacy rates of around 90% or better in later years, except fo
r Cambodia, and possibly Indonesia. Most ASEAN countries report literacy for pop
ulation 15 years and older. Malaysia reports for ages 10-64. This should be note
d in viewing table 6.8 and figure 6.10. Figure 6.10 Literacy Rate of Adults 15 Y
ears Old, both Sexes, %
Out of nine countries reporting adult literacy rates, data by sex were available
for seven. For the reporting countries, though females and males share the same
pattern of trends in literacy, female literacy is consistently lower than that
of males except in the Philippines where the rates are practically identical. Th
e gap is largest in Cambodia with a difference of around 20 percentage points th
roughout, while Myanmar seems to have closed a previously existing gender gap by
1999.
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Figure 6.11 Literacy Rate of Adults 15 Years Old and Over, Males and Females, %
The adult literacy is generally the cumulative effect of formal primary educatio
n system as well as adult literacy programmes in the past. Its attainment would
take up a time horizon much longer than that for the literacy rates of 15-24 yea
rs old. A comparison of the literacy rates reveals that the proportion of youths
who are literate is higher than that for adults. In 2000 where five of the ASEA
N member countries reported both literacy rates, the difference in the proportio
n ranges from at least 3 percentage points (the Philippines and Thailand) to as
high as almost 10 percentage points in the case of Indonesia.
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Table 6.8 Literacy Rate of Adults 15 Years Old and Over by Sex
Definition: Literacy is the ability to read and write with understanding a short
simple statement related to one's everyday life. Literacy rate of a particular ag
e group is the number of literate persons of that age group expressed as a perce
ntage of the corresponding population.
Unit of measurement: %
Country
Both Sexes Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Phi
lippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Male Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia L
ao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam Female Brune
i Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philippines Singapo
re Thailand Viet Nam
Notes:
1990
81.5 83.6 93.5 89.1 93.0
1991 1992
88.0 88.6 84.7 89.4 81.5 85.7 89.8 93.8
1993
86.7 90.1 93.6
1994
85.2 84.5 93.9 90.5 93.5
1995
62.5 84.1 85.8 90.8 93.8
1996
68.7 85.3 87.1 91.2
1997
87.4 88.4 91.5 94.7
1998
67.3 87.9 89.7 91.9 95.0
1999
71.2 88.2 91.0 92.2 90.2
2000
88.6 93.5 92.6 92.5 95.0
2001
87.8 93.2
93.7 95.1 94.8
92.0 95.2
95.4 96.0
95.5 95.9
87.5 93.7 95.7 95.6
77.9 90.0 88.2 95.8 96.0
81.8 90.8 89.0 96.0
92.2 89.8 96.1
79.5 92.5 90.6 96.3 96.9
82.9 92.8 91.4 96.4 94.0
93.0 92.5 96.6
92.3 96.8
93.4 83.0 91.3
82.0 83.6
84.2 92.0
84.7 91.4
81.5 94.0 85.3 90.7
49.5 78.4 83.3 85.8 91.6
58.0 80.2 85.1 86.4
82.8 86.9 87.0
57.0 83.4 88.7 87.5 93.2
61.1 83.8 90.6 88.1 87.0
84.3 92.7 88.6
83.4 89.7
Malaysia ages 10-64. Singapore resident population only.
Sources: Brunei Darussalam Ministry of Education through Survey of `Educational In
stitutions' public and private school started 1997. Cambodia Socio-Economic Survey
; 1996 Demographic Survey and General Population Census of 1998. Indonesia Child
Indicator, National Socio Economic Survey. Malaysia Population census 1991, 200
0. Asian Development Bank Poverty Database. Myanmar Handbook on Human Resources
Development Indicators; Department of Education Planning and Training. The Phili
ppines 1990 and 2000 Census of Population and Housing and 1994 Functional Litera
cy, Education and Mass Media Survey. National Statistics Ofce. Singapore populati
on census 1990, 2000; intercensal estimates. Viet Nam Population Census 1999.
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Ratio of Literate Females to Males 15-24 Years Old The literate female-male rati
o indicator focuses on measuring progress towards gender equality in literacy an
d the level of learning opportunities available for women in relation to those a
vailable to men. It is also an indicator of the empowerment of women in society.
To measure the disparity between female and male literacy, Brunei Darussalam, C
ambodia, Lao PDR, the Philippines, Singapore and Viet Nam used the ratio of fema
le and male literacy rates. Other countries have not specified the method used.
The data indicate that disparity in literacy between females and males of 15-24
years of age is marked by consistently lower literacy of females throughout or l
owering of female literacy at the second half of the reporting period in the six
reporting countries. Despite possible differences in definitions as noted above
, the overall impression is that the disparity is not drastic. Most of the count
ries appear to stay around 95% equality or better towards 2001, except for Cambo
dia, as indicated by data from table 6.9, where the disparity is still substanti
al. Figure 6.12 Ratio of Literate Females to Literate Males, 15-24 Years Old
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Table 6.9 Ratio of Literate Females to Males, 15-24 Years Old
Definition: Ratio of the female literacy rate to male literacy rate (Literacy Ge
nder Parity Index) in the 15-24 year age group. Unit of measurement: Units.
Country Brunei Darussalam Cambodia Indonesia Lao PDR Malaysia Myanmar The Philip
pines Singapore Thailand Viet Nam
Notes:
1990 1.01 1.00 1.00
1991 1992 1.12
1993 0.67 0.98
1994 0.99 1.02 0.99
1995 0.99 0.81
1996 0.71 0.99
1997 0.92 0.99
1998 0.92 0.72 1.00
1999 0.95 0.88 0.99
2000 0.93 0.99 0.95 1.01 1.00 0.97 0.98
2001 0.95 1.00
Brunei Darussalam Literacy Gender Parity Index. Lao PDR ratio of women's literacy
rate to men's literacy rate. Singapore ratio of resident female literacy ed.
Sources: Brunei Darussalam Ministry of Education through Survey of `Educational In
stitutions' public and private school started 1997. Lao PDR Census 1995 and SPC (2
001) MIC II 2000. The Philippines ratio derived from the literacy rates generate
d from the 1990 and 2000 Census Population and Housing and the 1994 Functional L
iteracy, Education and Mass media Survey. National Statistics Ofce. Singapore Pop
ulation census. Thailand Population and Housing Census 1990 & 2000, 1994 Report
of the Literacy Survey.
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Technical Notes
This section provides some material on more technical aspects of the indicators
of this chapter. Most of the material below is taken from UNESCO publications an
d UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) website at http://www.uis.unesco.org (ac
cessed, October 2002). Public Current Expenditure in Primary Education (a) as a
Percentage of GDP, and (b) per Pupil, as a Percentage of GDP per Capita Methodol
ogy: (a) Divide public current expenditure on primary education in a given year
by the GDP for the same year and multiply by 100. (b) Divide per pupil public cu
rrent expenditure on primary education in a given year by the GDP per capita for
the same year and multiply by 100. These two indicators should be based on cons
istent data on public current expenditure that covers central, provincial and lo
cal government spending on all public primary schools and subsidies to private e
ducational institutions, teachers and pupils. Characteristics: A high level of s
pending per pupil could simply reflect low enrolment rather than increased spend
ing by government. Per pupil expenditure as a percentage of GDP per capita shoul
d therefore be viewed in conjunction with enrolment ratios. Low expenditure per
pupil and low enrolment in primary education when compared to high expenditure a
nd/or low enrolment in tertiary education suggests a need to reconsider resource
allocations within the education sector, especially if universal primary educat
ion is being given priority. The use of this indicator must take into account th
e coverage of public current expenditure for primary education and the extent to
which the GDP estimates represent the true level of national economic productio
n. The fact that fiscal year and school year budget periods may be different sho
uld also be taken into consideration. Gross Enrolment Ratios Methodology: Divide
the number of pupils (or students) enrolled in a given level of education regar
dless of age by the population of the age-group which officially corresponds to
the given level of education, and multiply the result by 100. Data sources consi
st of school register, school survey or census for data on enrolment by level of
education; population censuses and population projections for school-age
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population. Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) at each level of education should be bas
ed on total enrolment in all types of schools and education institutions, includ
ing public, private and all other institutions that provide organized educationa
l programmes. Characteristics: A high GER generally indicates a high degree of p
articipation, whether the pupils belong to the official age-group or not. GER ca
n be over 100% due to the inclusion of over-aged and underaged pupils/students b
ecause of early or late entrants, and grade repetition. In this case, a rigorous
interpretation of GER needs additional information to assess the extent of repe
tition, late entrants, etc. Net Enrolment Ratios Methodology: A net enrolment ra
tio (NER) is obtained by dividing the number of pupils (or students) enrolled wh
o are of the official age-group for a given level of education by the population
for the same age-group and expressing as a percentage. Enrolment data by single
years of age for a given level of education and population of the age-group cor
responding to the given level of education is required. Usual data sources are s
chool register, school survey or census for data on enrolment by age. Schoolage
population is normally obtained from the population census data or from estimate
s by Central Statistical Office or similar source. NER at each level of educatio
n should be based on total enrolment in all types of schools and education insti
tutions, including public, private and all other institutions that provide organ
ized educational programmes. Characteristics: The theoretical maximum value is 1
00%. If the NER is below 100%, then the difference with 100% provides a measure
of the proportion of children not enrolled at the specified level of education.
Since some of these children/youth could be enrolled at other levels of educatio
n, this difference may not correctly indicate the percentage of students not enr
olled. For tertiary education, this indicator is not suitable because of the dif
ficulties in determining an appropriate age-group due to the wide variations in
the duration of programmes at this level of education. For primary and secondary
education, there could be some difficulties in calculating the NER for countrie
s where the net enrolment ratios should be of the order of 100%. when the refere
nce date for entry to primary education does not coincide with the birthdays of
all of the cohorts eligible to enroll at this level of education. when an import
ant part of the population starts primary school earlier than the prescribed age
and consequently finishes earlier as well. when there is an increase in the ent
rance age to primary education with the durations unchanged.
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Although the NER cannot exceed 100%, according to UNESCO, values up to 105% were
seen. In such cases there are inconsistencies in the enrolment and/or populatio
n data. It should be noted that net and gross enrolment ratios, indicators deriv
ed from them, as well as related indicators are usually based on school data. En
rolments do not always equate to school attendance. Surveys such as DHS and MICS
conducted in some ASEAN countries as well as in many other developing countries
produce indicators related to school attendance rather than enrolment. Care is
needed in comparing data series with a mix of enrolment and attendance concepts.
Ratio of Girls to Boys in Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Education Methodolog
y: For comparing girls' and boys' participation in formal education, UNESCO suggests
the following options: If we choose a simple indicator of school participation,
the gross enrolment ratio (GER), we can study: i) the current female enrolment r
atio as compared with the male enrolment ratio; ii) the implied, absolute, gende
r gap (introduced in the preceding section with respect to illiteracy rates); it
is here the difference between the male and the female enrolment ratios; iii) t
he gender ratio, here defined as the ratio between the female and the male enrol
ment ratios, and designated as the gender parity index (GPI). In the Millennium D
evelopment Goals section of the World Development Indicators 2002, World Bank us
ed the ratio of the number of female students enrolled in primary and secondary s
chool to the number of male students. Characteristics: If all girls and boys of o
fficial primary school age were enrolled in primary school the simple ratio of t
he enrolments will not give 100% as signifying gender equality, unless the girl
and boy populations are identical. GPI should give better indication of equality
as it is comparing two relative magnitudes (GERs). But because the primary enro
lment will include repeaters who are of official age for secondary education, ea
rly starters not yet of primary school age, and those who are of primary school
age but already enrolled in secondary school. These would also make the ratio of
girl and boy GERs different from 100%. Gross enrolment ratio in general is defi
ned by UNESCO as Total enrolment in a specific level of education, regardless of
age, expressed as a percentage of the official school-age population correspondi
ng to the same level of education in given school-year. In World Education Report
2000, UNESCO defines tertiary level GER as Total enrolment in tertiary education
regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of the population in the five-year
age group following on from the secondary-school leaving age. It is therefore no
t entirely consistent with the GERs for primary and secondary which have well de
fined official school ages. It will have the same problem of determining an appr
opriate age-group as was the reason for UNESCO considering tertiary level NER un
suitable as noted earlier.
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Survival Rate to Grade 5 (Percentage of a Pupil Cohort Actually Reaching Grade 5
) Methodology: The ideal way to assess the survival rate to grade 5 would be to
use the true cohort student flow method. It involves either a longitudinal study
in monitoring the progress of a selected cohort of pupils through the education
al cycle, or through retrospective study of school records in order to retrace t
he flows of pupils through the grades in past years. This method, however, is ve
ry demanding in terms of methodology and resources, and therefore, rarely tried
in practice. In the apparent cohort method the enrolment in grade 1 in a particu
lar year is compared with enrolment in successive grades during successive years
. It is assumed that the decrease from each grade to the next gives the number o
f dropouts. Its main weakness is that it assumes that pupils are either promoted
or else drop-out of the school system. Repetition is ignored. This method is, t
herefore, only appropriate for countries applying automatic promotion. A better
and more commonly used method is the reconstructed cohort method. This method ne
eds data on enrolment by grade for two consecutive years and on repeaters by gra
de from the first to second year to enable the estimation of promotion, repetiti
on and drop out rates. Then, they are used in a reconstructed pupil-cohort flow
to estimate survival to grade 5 and other indicators of internal efficiency. A f
ull explanation of this method is available at the UNESCO website. Multiple Indi
cator Cluster Surveys (MICS) also produces this indicator through school attenda
nce and grade data for current and last year collected through household intervi
ews. However, the Philippines in its MICS 1999 report noted that The 1999 MICS, h
owever, was not designed to ascertain the cohort survival rate or the number of
children who eventually reach grade five. It was not clear whether the report hin
ted the shortcomings of the Philippines MICS in this area in particular, or ques
tioned the validity of the MICS's methodology generally in this context. Character
istics: Survival rate to grade 5 of primary education is of particular interest
because the completion of at least four years of schooling is commonly considere
d a pre-requisite for a sustainable level of literacy. The distinction between s
urvival rate with and without repetition is necessary to determine the extent of
wastage due to drop-out and to repetition. Given that this indicator is usually
estimated using cohort analysis models that are based on a number of assumption
s, care is needed in making comparisons across countries. Since the calculation
of this indicator is based on pupil-flow rates, the reliability of the survival
rate to grade 5 depends on the consistency of data on enrolment and repeaters in
terms of coverage over time and across grades. Literacy Rate of 15-24 Years Old
Methodology: Divide the number of people aged 15 to 24 who are literate by the
total population in the same age group and multiply by 100. Main data sources ar
e population censuses and household and/or labour force surveys.
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Characteristics: The literacy rate of the 15 to 24 years old has a special signi
ficance in reflecting the recent outcomes of the basic education process. Change
s in this group's literacy rate can serve as a proxy measure of the effectiveness
of the formal schooling system over the previous decade, as well as an indicator
of the expansion or contraction of the pool of illiterate adults in the long-ru
n. The literacy rate cannot exceed 100 per cent. It is useful to align measureme
nts of literacy with the standard international definition and to administer lit
eracy tests on a sample basis to verify and improve the quality of literacy stat
istics. Adult Literacy Rate: Percentage of the Population Aged 15 Years Old and
Over that is Literate Methodology: Divide the number of literate adults aged 15
years and over by the corresponding agegroup population and multiply the result
by 100. Main data sources are population censuses and household and/or labour fo
rce surveys. Characteristics: A high adult literacy rate suggests the existence
of an effective primary education system and/or adult literacy programmes that h
ave enabled a large proportion of the population to acquire the ability of using
the written word (and making simple arithmetic calculations) in daily life. It
is common practice to present and analyze literacy rates together with the absol
ute numbers of adult illiterates, because improvements in literacy rates may som
etimes be accompanied nevertheless by increases in the illiterate population, du
e to the changing demographic structure. The adult literacy rate cannot exceed 1
00 per cent. It is important to align measurements of literacy with the standard
international definition given above and, where possible, to administer literac
y tests on a sample basis to verify and improve the quality of literacy statisti
cs. Literacy Gender Parity Index: Ratio of Female to Male Literacy Rates Methodo
logy: Divide the female literacy rate by the male literacy rate. Main data sourc
es are population censuses and household and/or labour force surveys. Characteri
stics: The ratio of the female to male adult literacy rates measures progress to
wards gender equity in literacy and the level of learning opportunities availabl
e for women in relation to those available to men. It serves also as a significa
nt indicator of the empowerment of women in society. The value of the gender par
ity index may be affected by differences in the life expectancy between men and
women, especially for the older age-groups in countries where women on average l
ive longer than men. In such cases, one should derive literacy gender parity ind
ices by age groups.
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References
UNESCO Division of Statistics. Gender-sensitive education statistics and indicat
ors. A practical guide. Paris, 1997. <http://www.uis.unesco.org/en/pub/pub0.htm>
UNESCO (1998). Education for All: The Year 2000 Assessment, Technical Guideline
s. EFA Forum Secretariat, UNESCO, Paris, August 1998. <http://www.education.unes
co.org/efa> UNESCO (2000). Appendix III. World Education Indicators, explanatory
notes. In World education report 2000. <http://www.unesco.org/education/informa
tion/wer/WEBtables/explnotes.xls> UNICEF. MICS2 National reports, the Philippine
s. <http://childinfo.org/newreports/philippines/philippines.htm> (22 October 200
2). United Nations (2001). Indicators of sustainable development: guidelines and
methodologies. September 2001, second edition. World Bank (2002). World Develop
ment Indicators 2002. UN Statistics Division. Millennium Development Goals websi
te. <http://www.millenniumindicators.un.org/unsd/mi>
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