Final
Report: 39th SEAMEO Council Conference
The Empire Hotel and Country Club, Jerudong
Negara Brunei Darussalam
1-4 March 2004
The Empire Hotel and Country Club, Jerudong
Negara Brunei Darussalam
1-4 March 2004
Proceedings
Contents |
| Proceedings |
| Appendices |
Statement
by H E U Myo Nyunt Deputy Minister for Education, Union of Myanmar |
Mr Chairman, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates and Observers, Ladies and Gentlemen, |
On
behalf of the Government of the Union of Myanmar and the Myanmar
delegation, I would like to congratulate His Excellency Pehin Orang
Kaya Laila Wijaya Dato Haji Abdul Aziz Umar, Minister of Education,
Brunei Darussalam, on his appointment as President of the 39th SEAME0
Council and Chairman of the SEAMEO Council Conference being held
in the beautiful city, of Bandar Seri Bagawan. I also wish to congratulate
H E Professor Dr Nguyen Minh Hein, Minister of Education and Training,
Vietnam on his appointment as Vice President. I am confident that
SEAMEO would be greatly enriched and strengthened under the capable
guidance and leadership of Your Excellencies. |
I
would also like to take this opportunity to express our profound
appreciation to the outgoing President, the Honourable Edilberto
C de Jesus, Secretary of Education of the Philippines for his outstanding
leadership and contributions during the past year. The discussions
held during His Excellency's visit to Myanmar in May 2003 was marked
by a cordial exchange of experiences and views on the challenges
being faced by the education sector. |
Allow
me also to extend our very sincere thanks and appreciation to the
Government and the people of Brunei Darussalam for the warm hospitality
that has been accorded to us. |
| Mr
Chairman, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, |
Creativity,
innovation and speed have become the fundamental features of this
age with the advancement of Information and Communication Technology.
It has therefore become essential that our youths as well as adults
be equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to face the
demands of the time. It has become the responsibility of the education
sector to ensure that these needs are satisfied. |
Education
has thus become pivotal not only for individual development but
also for the survival of nations. |
We,
in the Myanmar education sector, are guided by the concept that
education is the main resource of our nation and that our nation
is the main resource of education. We are striving for the development
of a strong foundation in education so that it will serve as one
of the pillars for the advancement of our country. |
Myanmar
is aiming for equitable development of all its regions and the country
has been divided into 24 development zones; so that no area may
be left undeveloped. Regarding education, at least an arts and science
university and degree conferring technological and computer institutes
are being established in each development zone making a total of
154 higher education institutions, in order that advanced technology
and knowledge spread to every region of the country. To ensure that
development occurs from the village grass root level, five areas
of rural development, including education, have been prioritized.
As one of the measures; 480 community learning centres have been
established so that neo literates have a continual supply of reading
materials and to serve as centres for gathering recreation and pursuit
of knowledge. |
| Mr Chairman, |
Annually,
in April or May, both the basic education sub sector and the higher
education sub sector hold seminars on the implementation of the
Thirty Year Long Term Education Development Plan. The seminars bring
together teacher representatives, education specialists and administrators.
The participants review the achievements of the implementation of
the education development plan, and discuss details of the programmes
to be implemented in the new fiscal year. This system has led to
better understanding of the plan through dialogue among the various
plan implementers and the setting of realistic targets and practical
strategies. |
The
third year of the implementation of the Long Term Education Development
Plan in Myanmar has further widened access and improved school retention
rates. In addition to the establishment of new schools, the holding
of School Enrolment Day annually before the beginning of the new
academic year arouses public interest and has brought about significant
increase in enrolment in the Kindergarten and upwards. The focus
this year is to increase enrolment of over aged children. To enable
over aged children to catch up quickly with the rest an accelerated
learning programme has been introduced. The programme with a special
curriculum enables children who are aged 7+ or 8+ to complete primary
education in 3 years and for those who are aged 9+ to complete primary
education in two years instead of the normal five years without
affecting the course content. |
Much
of what has been achieved in the basic education sub sector is the
result of the harnessing of community support. Community participation
has been enhanced by encouraging stakeholders to become members
of the School Boards of Trustees and take part in the construction
and renovation of schools and the establishment of multimedia classrooms
giving them the role of external developers of schools. |
| Mr Chairman, |
During
the third year of the implementation of the long term education
development plan, as more higher education institutions are established
in the country, universities are directed to focus on ways to contribute
to regional development. Research on local resources is being intensified
so that the institutions become specialists of their regions. Higher
education institutions are also introducing courses that fulfill
the needs of communities. In addition, higher education programmes
are being reviewed and new electives added to ensure that they are
responsive to the career needs of students. More effective use has
also been made of the satellite data broadcasting system and the
455 learning centres located all over the country. The system has
been exploited this year to promote resource sharing by higher education
institutions. Faculty development programmes and lecture series
by prominent faculty from a number of higher education institutions
are being transmitted to learning centres located at all higher
education institutions, providing students the added opportunity
to learn from faculty members from other institutions. |
| Mr
Chairman, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, |
SEAMEO
and its specialist centres have been very responsive to the needs
of the region by conducting short and long term training programmes,
seminars and conferences. To have an even higher impact, it is suggested
that more programmes in the form of training of trainer courses
on areas of regional concern be offered, so that cascade courses
can be held in Member Countries. Myanmar is grateful to SEAMEO and
the specialist centres for the offers of scholarships, and it is
making best use of those trained. As education gains an even more
prominent role in the development of human resource, it is to the
interest of all Member Countries to make SEAMEO an even stronger
and more dynamic organization. |
| Thank you. |
