Everyone is a farmer

Because there is no work, most people don’t have a salary. That’s why everyone is a farmer. Most families live off their rice field, the fish they catch and sometimes some food from the forest. That’s dependant on the season. They don’t have a steady source of food.

The whole family works together to harvest rice one time per year. In May they plant and in October and November they harvest. Everything happens by hand. Sometimes it’s very busy. There are no machines and that’s why the kids have to help as much as they can.

The money they earn from their rice field has to last the family a whole year. Sometimes a little bit of it can be sold to buy new clothes or to pay for the doctor. Richer families have a boat and can catch more fish this way and sell it.

How much money does a teacher make? 

The currency in Laos is the Laotian kip. For 1 euro you can buy about 12.000 kip. A teacher makes between 15 and 25 euro's per month. That’s not enough to live off. That’s why he often also has a rice field and sometimes a pig or a buffalo to make extra money. Teachers can’t always come to school, because they have too much work to do at home.

Allowance

The parents rarely have money for medicines, reparations to the house or to replace worn out clothes. That’s why a lot of the small kids walk around in rags. The kids don’t have any toys. They make their own toys out of twigs and other things they can find. Most kids have never been in a city. Parents don’t have a car. Sometimes they might have a motorbike or a scooter that they can carry four kids on, but often there is no money to buy gas. The kids never have any money to buy anything for themselves.

Clothes

Most kids only have one school uniform that is passed on from the eldest kid to the youngest.

Candy

In some villages there is a kind of store. It’s a small booth where little bags of self-made candy are sold, like deep-fried banana pieces. On the photo the banana pieces are drying before they will be deep-fried. People buy sugar per 50 grams (half a cup) because they don’t have enough money for a kilo. Cigarettes are sold per piece. 

No bank, but a buffalo

People don’t bring their money to a bank, if they have any at all. If it’s been a good year, they buy a young buffalo, cow or pig. When the animal has grown, it can be sold when the family needs money. Like when someone is sick and medication has to be bought. People save up to buy gold. This is sold again in times of need. 

Parents must find a school building themselves!

The government only pays the salaries of the teachers. The parents have to take care of getting a building, furniture and books. Sometimes the villagers will pay for the food of a class-assistant themselves. That’s why a few coins per month have to be paid to send one child to school. This is a lot of money for many families. A high school education is often too expensive. Money is needed for books, uniforms and also a bike, because the kids have to travel further to get to school. Large families can’t afford to have all of their kids go to school for a long time.