“Last year we started with capital of more than 30 million kyats for 19 schools. It was just a [pilot program] but, after 18 months, we gained around 10 million kyats in benefits, allowing us to provide pay-raises for 96 teachers,” said MSDC secretary Nai Minn Minn.

The MSDN and MNEC launched the pilot projects in 2013, with an initial capital of 10 million kyats for seven schools based in Aunden Village in the Par-lain area of Ye Township. The Mon organizations also provided 5 million kyats for three schools in Kawdut Village, Lamine Sub-Township; 6 million kyats for five schools in Pa-nga Village, Thanbyuzayat Township; 6 million kyats for three schools in Kamarwet Village, Mudon Township; and 5 million kyats for Winkabar High School in Kyarinnseikkyi Township.

“We conduct field research at the schools that need support. The schools submit a proposal to the specific project that fits with what they want to do, and what their village wants. We then analyse whether their projects will work or not. We then submit the [potential] projects to the donors,” said Min San Ni, secretary of the salary-raising project implementation committee.

The MSDN and MNEC initiated pilot projects with the support of SEED, an international development organization based at the British Council in Rangoon.

The pilot project is based on the initial capital, and any profits from the project are allocated to further support Mon teachers’ salaries.

“With the initial capital, we invested in buying chairs and tables. Since August [2013] we have rented the chairs and tables to locals for wedding ceremonies, donation-offering events, ordination ceremonies and other festival events. When we completed the project in November, we had received more than 2 million kyats,” said the chairman of the school secretary of Pa-nga Village, Thanbyuzayat Township.

According to Min Phone Myint, School Committee secretary for Kamarwet Village, Mudon Township, the Kamarwet committee has also received profits of 3 million kyats.

“We have sixteen teachers for three schools in our village. Our committee is able to support them with more than one hundred thousand kyats per teacher,” said Min Phone Myint.

Nai Min Min continued that on 5th December the committee provided 15 million kyats for eight schools in Ye-chaung-pyar area’s Win-zin Village, Dawei District, as capital to invest for the teachers’ pay-raise project.

Nai Min Min states that this year, the MSDN and MNEC also supported Mon schools in Pa-nga Village, Kamarwet Town, and Aunden Village, with initial capital of 1.7 million kyat, 3 million kyat, and 10 million kyat, respectively.

The Township Mon National Teachers Association was founded in 1972, which launched a grade-by-grade educational system in Mon schools. The Association then founded a small central education organization in 1984-85, and the Mon National Education Committee in 1993.

According to the MNEC, for this 2014-2015 academic year, there are 142 Mon national schools, and 107 integrated government schools, with 800 Mon teachers and more than 30,000 students. Mon teachers have generally received comparatively low salaries, with average salaries of 30,000 kyat per month.