Burmese gov’t websites have little information – some don’t exist

Burmese gov’t websites have little information – some don’t exist
by -
Mizzima

Looking for information about the Burmese government?

Don’t go to the official governmental websites because most provide little information and often they do not update what information they have for months or years.

President_Official_website-Lx

A screenshot of the official website of Burmese President Thein Sein, which is fairly up-to-date. Those of other government ministries rarely offer useful, regular information. Some ministry websites do not exist or cannot be accessed. English language information is rarely offered.

In short, they are nearly worthless compared to neighboring countries, which recognize the importance of the Internet and public communication.
 
Thirty out of the 34 ministries of the new government have official websites.

Shockingly, the agency charged managing the government information and communicating with the media and the general public, the Ministry of Information, has no website. Sources said the ministry provides sometimes provides information via modins.net. 

Other key ministries without a website include the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Border Affairs and the Ministry of Electric Power (2).

Moreover, although the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Mines, the Ministry of Sports, the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Education have their respective website addresses, but you cannot access them.

To see a list of ministry websites and addresses, go to http://www.myanmar.com/ministries/index.html

“The websites of the ministries in Burma are almost useless,” he said, and some are more than useless, because they do not even exist. Needless to say, there is almost no information on the ministry websites in English.
 
Both the former junta and the new government claim they have tried to implement E-government system by using the Internet, but there is no evidence that any ministry has come anywhere near to accomplishing that lofty goal.
 
Perhaps the most up-to-date ministry website is the Ministry of Communication, Posts and Telegraph. A quick survey showed that it publishes, on average, about one time a week.
 
Aung Zaw Myint, an executive committee member of Myanmar Computer Professionals Association, said the ministries should make a priority of effectively implementing the E-government system because it can benefit not only citizens but also the government itself.
 
Although all of the official governmental websites have weaknesses, the official website of the president’s office, which was launched in early May, is more up-to-date. More people visit the president’s office website to try to get a sense of what’s going on, according to regular Internet users.