24 July

State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi wrote on her Facebook page yesterday that she wanted the Myanmar government schools to be able to deliver the best education just like in some of the world’s public schools where they have the highest educational standards. This was what she wrote:

It has been now three days since the high schools reopened. We have also been giving permission for more schools to reopen as we see more schools meeting the health standards. Among the schools which have received permission are 764 private schools.

There have been some school children who wished to transfer from private schools to the government schools. They will be accepted with open arms. I want our government schools to be able to deliver the best education just like in some of the world’s public schools where they have the highest educational standards. According to the situation of our country, the role of private schools is valuable. That’s why we see to it that they are running smoothly. 

However, at the moment it is not yet possible to give permission to private boarding schools to reopen. Students and parents want these schools to be permitted to reopen. Some are of the opinion that these private boarding schools are as safe as quarantine facilities. However, when we assessed the global situation, we found that private boarding schools could not be considered to be safe. We will keep on allowing more schools to reopen as the safety situation of school children improve. 

(Translated by Kyaw Myaing)