Laos is to begin teaching Korean language at secondary schools from next year.
The decision came after Laos and South Korea signed a memorandum of understanding on November 26.
Under the agreement, three schools will offer Korean language courses on a trial basis.
In addition, South Korea’s Ministry of Education will send Korean language teachers to Laos and promote cooperation between universities in the two countries to nurture Korean language teachers at Lao universities.
The ministry will also support research projects on Korean studies to be carried out at Souphanouvong University in northern Laos, and the development of teaching materials in the Lao language.
Apart from Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar have also decided to introduce the Korean language course at selected secondary schools.
Currently, a total of five Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand, are officially teaching the Korean language at secondary schools.
In Thailand, for instance, more than 40,500 students from 133 schools are learning Korean, and it has also been included in the college entrance exam since 2016.
Some 4,900 students from 43 schools in Indonesia, 1,300 from 18 schools in the Philippines, 1,600 from 12 schools in Vietnam and 1,000 students from 10 schools in Malaysia are currently learning Korean, according to statistics by the South’s education ministry.
