Myanmar records steep fall in number of students taking matriculation exams

Statistics released by Myanmar’s military regime show a dramatic decline in the number of students taking matriculation exams, especially in areas no longer under junta control.According to state media reports, a total of 220,843 students registered this year for matriculation exams. On Monday, the first day of the week-long exam period, 208,889 students participated in the Burmese-language exam, the reports said.However, in some states and regions, the number is far lower than in the rest of the country. In Sagaing Region and Rakhine, Kachin, Karenni, Chin, and northern Shan states, only 21,319 students took the Burmese-language exam.This contrasts with a total of 75,810 students from the same areas who took the exams in 2022, representing a 72 percent decline in participation.Conflict is the chief reason for the precipitous drop, with many civilians facing long-term displacement due to clashes and junta airstrikes on resistance-held territory.But other factors also account for the low exam turnout, according to veteran Rakhine politician Pe Than.“It’s also because young people are not interested in taking exams organised by the regime. They are also too afraid to go out in public now due to the junta’s conscription law. Some have fled abroad, and others avoid classrooms,” he told Myanmar Now.The decrease in exam-takers has been especially striking in Rakhine State, where only 1,564 students are participating this year, compared with 41,755 in 2022.Most of the students taking part in the exams are in the state capital Sittwe and the port town of Kyaukphyu. Most of the rest of the state is controlled by the Arakan Army, which is working to establish its own education system, according to Pe Than.“The Arakan People’s Revolutionary Government is introducing the Arakan education system to ensure that students and young people in the regions they control in Rakhine continue to have access to education,” he said.But the country as a whole has also seen steep declines since the military seized power in February 2021. In 2020, the last year before the coup, 971,266 students registered for the matriculation exam—more than four times this year’s number.In Mandalay, which remains under regime control, many parents have boycotted schools run by junta authorities, choosing instead to enrol their children in classes organised by the National Unity Government (NUG).“My son is not attending the junta-run school. He is studying through an online school provided by the NUG,” said one parent. “After passing, he will be able to continue his education at other institutions.”However, some parents concerned about prolonged disruptions to their children’s education have opted to send them back to junta-controlled schools, according to one mother living in Mandalay’s Amarapura Township. On March 18, NUG spokesperson Kyaw Zaw announced that a total of 50,000 students have received certificates after passing the NUG’s Basic Education Completion Assessment, which has been administered three times.

Myanmar records steep fall in number of students taking matriculation exams

While the decline has been greatest in conflict zones, the country as a whole has also seen a sharp drop since the military seized power four years ago

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