More than 400 basic education schools are planned to be opened this year in territories controlled by the Karenni resistance.
Basic education schools, managed by various organizations and adhering to different standards, will be opened with efforts to ensure as much coordination as possible.
Schools managed by the Karenni State Government's Ministry of Education opened in the last week of May. Deputy Minister of Education Khu Bu Reh stated that preparations have been made to ensure the safety of students in affiliated schools.
"We are planning bomb shelters around the schools. We used to teach students from border areas how to evacuate and hide when they hear aircraft. We plan to do the same in Karenni schools this school year”, he said.
Recently the Junta claimed that in the state capital their administration was back in charge, and that they planned to open schools only in Loikaw. But so far only 3 high schools have opened out of 125 schools that were part of their schedule.
According to Junta statistics, there were 459 government basic education schools in Karenni State before the coup. In the 2023-24 school year, the Junta opened 109 schools in Karenni State about 25 % and the resistance areas enjoy 75% of basic schooling.
The schools in the liberated areas are preparing to implement the Mother Tongue Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) system. This year, around 80 basic education schools operating under the Karenni Ministry of Education will use that system.
The MTB-MLE system is primarily intended for implementation in schools located in the Demoso East, Loikaw East, and Hpruso East areas, while other schools will follow different curricula.
"At the moment, prioritising a single curriculum standardisation is not feasible. Our focus is on ensuring children everywhere have access to education”, Khu Bu Reh explained.
Residents who were temporarily evacuated during the clashes and have since resettled in Loikaw are now initiating the enrollment process for their children to attend school.
On May 1, the Progressive Karenni People Force (PKPF) announced that 23 schools were destroyed by conflict in Karenni State during the post-coup period
