Over 1,600 students sit for matriculation exams in three regime-held townships in Arakan State

By Admin 12 Mar 2026

DMG Newsroom

12 March 2026, Sittwe

The Myanmar military regime says 1,692 students are sitting for the 2025–2026 matriculation examinations in three townships under its control in Arakan State: Sittwe, Manaung and Kyaukphyu.

According to the regime, a total of 1,799 students registered to take the exams at 10 examination centers across the three townships.

On the first day of the exams on March 11, 791 male students and 901 female students sat for the test, while 107 students were absent.

Two of the three townships where the exams are being held, Sittwe and Kyaukphyu, remain tense due to ongoing military clashes.

In Sittwe, fighting has reached areas just over a mile from the city, and artillery shells have occasionally landed and exploded within the town limits, raising concerns among parents.

“During this exam period, we are watching with our hearts in our mouths. It would be best if everything ends without incident. Although the sounds of heavy artillery are not constant, we hear them from time to time. Since shells have already fallen Sittwe before, I am worried,” said a student’s parent in Sittwe.

While heavy fighting occurred in Sittwe Township during the first week of March following an offensive by the Arakan Army (AA), the situation is currently reported to be calm.

The military regime said the matriculation exams for the 2025–2026 academic year in the three townships will run from March 11 to March 17.

According to data from the Arakan State Education Office, 2,097 students sat for the matriculation exams in regime-controlled townships during the previous 2024–2025 academic year.