URGENT APPEAL FROM MEP’s NEW PATRON WILL MILLARD 

(BBC presenter, writer and expedition leader).

Internationally, education is regarded as an indispensable human right. In Myanmar (Burma), however, education has suffered from half a century of military rule and civil conflict. Poor educational resources, out-dated teaching methods and lack of professional training for teachers are widespread in remote and ethnic minority areas, while access to education is particularly difficult for children displaced by conflict. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that there are almost 850,000 stateless and internally displaced people in Myanmar.

Quality education is crucial to Myanmar’s long-awaited transition to peace and democracy, and to reducing poverty; quality education requires properly trained teachers. Since 2011, MEP has been directly involved in the training of more than 2,000 teachers, produced text books now used by around 18,000 children and has taken over 400 teachers through Cambridge exams.

But we urgently need your help to do more. In areas such as Chin State, a remote and mountainous region in western Myanmar known as the Chin Hills, local teachers have been requesting MEP’s help for some time now. Sadly, with increasing demands on our limited resources, so far, we have been unable to respond. Yet the need is great. This area is one of the least developed areas of Myanmar and is home to some of the most remote and isolated communities in the country. In addition to having the highest poverty rate among all states and regions (73%), nearly double that of neighbouring Rakhine State, 52% of children do not complete primary school on time and almost 15% of children do not have access to primary education.

Young people represent a huge source of potential for Myanmar’s development. At this critical time in its transition, education is a platform to improve the lives of the people of Myanmar now and for future generations.

PLEASE HELP US MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

Your generous donations will help fund our vitally important work to train teachers in extremely poor, marginalised and remote parts of Myanmar. Whatever help you may be able to give will be greatly appreciated. Regular gifts are particularly valuable to us as they allow us to plan ahead and be ready to respond where the need is greatest.

£50 could help towards the cost of a motorbike to enable a mobile teacher trainer to reach remote and marginalised communities.

£30 could help us provide monsoon proof kit bags for a team of mobile teacher trainers.

£10 could help towards the Cambridge English exam registration costs of one refugee student, providing them with a valuable internationally recognised qualification.

£50 per month could pay for 2 young trainee teachers to attend a Cambridge English course for 6 months, helping them improve their life-chances.

£30 per month could keep 1 mobile teacher trainer in the field for a month, helping improve the teaching skills of teachers working in hard to reach and marginalised communities.

£10 per month could train 2 community volunteer teacher trainers to train teachers in remote areas.

“The pioneering spirit at the heart of Mobile Education Partnerships (MEP) and their remarkable tenacity in establishing teacher training facilities and educational resources within Myanmar, and on the Thai-Myanmar border, makes me extremely proud to be named as their Patron”. Will Millard.