Prospects of education in Myanmar

[OKKAR66129@xxxxxxx]

The New Light of Myanmar ( Wednesday, 22 December, 1999 )

Prospects of education in Myanmar  

Human resources development

The type of universities, degree colleges and colleges and their locations 
are of interest as it is 1inked to development of human resources. The goal 
of Myanmar Naing-Ngan today is to build a new peaceful, pleasant, modern 
developed nation. It is not only for a higher social standard but also for 
perpetuation of our nation. All can know this objective cannot be attained 
easily. The people of Myanmar know the conditions that have to be faced by 
Myanmar Naing-Ngan. As a Myanmar who has been living in Myanmar all his life 
I cannot be less than a foreign self-styled Myanmar affairs expert politician 
or mediaman in knowledge Myanmar affairs.

In striving for the said objective of Myanmar Naing-Ngan, the. State first 
endeavoured for peace and stability. It 
could also be the first priority programme of the government.

It hardly needs any elaboration as all with good knowledge of Myanmar affairs 
and a positive view know why peace and stability is first priority in the 
programme of the government. It cannot yet be said that Myanmar Naing-Ngan is 
cent per cent peaceful and stable today but it can indeed be said it is 
nearly cent per cent so. I could write the sentence Myanmar Naing-Ngan is 
nearly cent per cent peaceful and stable in a few seconds by as the people 
know the State had to strive for a decade with patience to resolve the armed 
conflicts that had been in the country for over 40 years.

Endeavours for peace and stability are primary and vital for the goal of the 
State, as it has been borne out by developments in the country today. Peace 
and stability made it possible for the State to build economic bases in the 
country. Another factor that gave an opportunity is human resources 
development.

One point of interest to me is that the direction of the State's building 
economic bases is the same as that of human resources development.

The strategy of road links that form a basic economic structure is building 
roads all over the country, not leaving out border areas, from extreme north 
to extreme south, from extreme east to extreme west. The direction of road 
links is taking the greatest place in the least developed areas. A remarkable 
feature of Myanmar is having many rivers and creeks (e.g. Rakhine State and 
Ayeyarwady Division). These difficulties are being well overcome by the 
strategy of road links. It is being borne out by building of river-crossing 
bridges that is a part of that strategy. The strategy of getting water for 
cultivation of crops that is the basic structure for agriculture is also 
being implemented at every place with given conditions of water resources. 
Generation of hydro-electric power is also being started where there are 
natural resources. The work aimed at services from telecommunications to 
television broadcasting is a network covering all eight directions in the 
country. The aim of describing all this emanates from the appreciation that 
the State is starting with the most basic works without any intention to 
leave out any region.

The sector where investment is being made in great magnitude in the process 
of peace and development is that of education. Presently can been seen signs 
of the government getting set to pour in a great deal in education with great 
hopes. Development of human resources is the most primary in building a new 
peaceful, pleasant, modern developed nation.

An interesting point is that the government is creating a learning 
environment to spread all over the country just the way it is building the 
economic base. At the closing of training courses of the Union Solidarity and 
Development Association on 17 November 1999, Patron of the Association Senior 
General Than Shwe said it was planned and implemented to develop human 
resources to have the least of disparity between regions and have regional 
development in the country.

The Academy for Development of National Groups at. Ywathitgyi has been 
upgraded to be the University for Development of National Races since 1991 
and it has since been providing under-graduate and graduate studies. Of great 
significance are Nationalities Youth Resource Development Degree Colleges set 
up this year. They have been set up in Yangon and Mandalay. It has been done 
so with the aim of enabling youths of national races in need of social help 
to pursue higher education. They will teach not only arts and sciences but 
also administration and engineering subjects. It is learnt that youths of 
national races trained by these colleges are to go and serve in their native 
under-developed areas. It is aimed simultaneously at human resources 
development and regional development.

Substantial investments are also made in teaching medical science and 
engineering sciences. For extension of medical education, Institutes of 
Nursing, Institutes of Para-medical Sciences and Institutes of Pharmacy are 
newly opened in Yangon and Mandalay. Moreover, an Institute of Dental 
Medicine has been opened in Mandalay. Now, under the Ministry of Health, a 
primary health university has been opened, and nursing schools are opened in 
States and Divisions. So far there have come to be 16 training schools. Prior 
to 1988, there had -been eight courses for post-graduate medicine diplomas. 
In 1999, there have come to be 23 diploma courses. Prior to 1988 there had 
been 12 post-graduate medicine courses. In 1999 there have come to be 20 of 
them. Previous there was no doctorate course. In 1999 there have come to be 
seven medical practice basic doctorate courses and seven practical medicine 
doctorate courses.

There have also been extensions with regard to engineering sciences. Formerly 
there had been only one Technological University (Institute of Technology) in 
Yangon. In 1991, one like that was opened in Mandalay, and another opened in 
Pyay, so there have come to be three of them. They have been built to give 
masters degrees and doctorates. In addition to 19 Government Technical 
Institutes, 14 degree-giving Government Technological Colleges have been 
opened in 1999. Opened in States and Divisions, they make it possible to 
study engineering subjects all over the country. In 1988 there was only one 
Institute of Computer Science and Technology. In 1997 another was opened in 
Mandalay.

Upgrading of colleges into degree colleges and degree colleges into 
universities has been carried out all over the country. Taunggyi University, 
Magway University, Pathein University, Sittway University, Monywa University, 
Myitkyina University, and Pyay University are ones that came into being from 
1992 to 1999. There came to be Universities of Distance Education in Yangon 
and Mandalay, and new Institute of Education and Institute of Foreign 
Languages in Mandalay. In Dagon Myothit, Yangon, a university that can accept 
the highest number of students was opened in-1993. Formerly the institute 
that taught economics was only in Yangon. Now, an Institute of Economics has 
been opened in Monywa, upper Myanmar, since 1998 At the Institute of 
Economics in Yangon, courses leading to the degree of Master of Business 
Administration are being run.

Seen as a stance bearing testimony to deep and extensive nature of the 
objective in education is the opening of the International Theravada Buddhist 
Missionary University in Yangon. The ceremony of presenting Buddha Dhamma 
Diploma for the first time was held on 12 November 1999 and 87 students from 
various countries got the diplomas. When we measure development in the world 
we must also consider the ability to preserve and hand down to coming 
generations values and cultural heritages of human society and the world. 
Part of this essence is also being brought out by the Universities of Culture 
opened in Yangon and Mandalay.

We must build balanced education. Rather than education of profound knowledge 
of only a part, it is necessary to have versatile education capable of 
all-round development of human resources.

Teaching arts, sciences, proficiency, morals, staunch spirit and social 
responsibility is the essence covered by the term education. The 
responsibility of education must aim as high as complete human resource 
development. 

Author: Ko Yin Aung