PM Hun Manet Sets Out 16 Education Priorities for 2026-2027 School Year

Phnom Penh, November 2, 2026: Prime Minister Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet has issued 16 directives for the 2026-2027 academic year, which opened on Nov. 1, 2026, covering enrolment, school reform, teacher quality and student welfare.

In a message to mark the new school year, the Prime Minister congratulated teachers and students nationwide and said the government treats people as the essential resource for national development, prioritising human capital with knowledge, skills, ethics, discipline and health.

The 16 directives call on the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport to expand enrolment and keep students in school through secondary level by building schools and classrooms and equipping laboratories, libraries and digital infrastructure, particularly in underserved areas.


The ministry must also pursue comprehensive school reform based on model school standards, support children returning from Thailand and students in safe camps, and roll out the "New Education Pathways" with career counselling from Grade 7 and science and social streams from Grade 11.

Other priorities include modernising textbooks, reforming teacher training and upgrading teachers' foreign language, ICT, digital, research and AI skills, strengthening inspections and school accountability, improving student assessment, promoting inclusive education and advancing digital education.

Schools are instructed to strengthen leadership and discipline, with principals and teachers arriving before students and leaving after them, while institutions must improve hygiene, safety and campus environments, build climate resilience and look after the mental health of teachers and students.

Parents and guardians are urged to enrol their children, monitor their studies and behaviour, foster reading at home and guide their use of technology. Students are encouraged to study hard and avoid drugs and social ills, while ministries, authorities, the private sector, civil society and development partners are asked to step up support for Cambodia's human capital development.

Source: Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet, Prime Minister of Cambodia


Reported by The Khmer Daily Network