Military-AA conflict shutters over 2,300 schools across Arakan State

By Admin 03 Jan 2024

DMG Newsroom
3 January 2024, Sittwe

Out of more than 2,830 basic education schools in the 14 Arakan State townships where military tensions are running high between junta troops and the Arakan Army (AA), over 2,300 have been temporarily closed.

All the schools have been closed in Pauktaw, Mrauk-U, Ramree, Ponnagyun, Kyauktaw and Minbya townships, where the regime and AA are engaged in fierce fighting. The majority of schools are also closed in Kyaukphyu, Taungup, Myebon, Ann, Rathedaung, Buthidaung, Maungdaw and Sittwe townships. 

“As there is no stability in the region, we are not sure if the exams can be held. Children will suffer if exams can’t be held. Some children could be forced by circumstances to discontinue schooling,” said a schoolteacher who fled Pauktaw.

According to the Arakan State Education Office, there are 186 basic education schools in Pauktaw Township, and only some schools on Myengu Island are currently open.

Almost all the 244 schools in Mrauk-U Township have been closed due to the conflict, and most residents have fled Mrauk-U town.

“We don’t know when we will be able to return. Schools were closed for years due to Covid-19 and political instability, and I don’t want children to have their schooling affected again,” said a mother from Mrauk-U town.

Schools are also closed in Ramree town as town residents fled fighting on December 18.

In November, the Arakan State Education Office instructed that all basic education schools in the state must be kept open, an edict that has proven untenable in recent weeks due to the escalating conflict.

“Schools have been closed since the fighting broke out. We want the Education Department to do something for children displaced by the fighting so that they don’t lose access to education,” said a parent from Ramree.

There are over 3,100 basic education schools across Arakan State, and 534,700 students enrolled for the current academic year, according to the Arakan State Education Office.

When asked by DMG about how the Arakan State Education Office plans to provide schooling for displaced students, Arakan State chief education officer U Ba Htwee Sein said: “[I’m] not allowed to give an interview to DMG.”

UNICEF Myanmar says more than 4 million children have lost or limited access to education due to armed conflicts in Myanmar.