Situation in Myanmar
Government | nominally civilian parliamentary government |
Capital | Naypyidaw |
Population | 54,584,650 (July 2012 estimate) |
Ethnic groups | Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Indian 2%, Mon 2%, other 5% |
Religion | Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, other 3% |
Language | Burmese and many ethnic languages |
Population Growth | 1,07% |
Life Expectancy at Birth | 65,24 years |
Infant Mortality | 47,74 deaths/1,000 live births |
Child Malnutrition | 29,6% |
Population Access to Safe Water | 71% |
Population Access to Sanitation | 81% |
Electricity Consumption | 4,63 billion kWh |
Literacy | 89.9% |
Access to Internet | 110,000 (0.2%) |
GDP per capita (PPP) | USD 1,300 (2011 estimate) country comparison to the world: 206 (out of 226) |
GDP Growth | 5,5% |
Consumer Price Index (annual % change) = Inflation | 8,9% |
Labor force | Agriculture 70%, Industry 7%, Services 23% |
Poverty | approximately 32% of the population lives in poverty and Burma is the poorest country in Southeast Asia |
Human Development Index | 149 out of 187 in 2011 |
sources: CIA World Factbook, UNDP, UNICEF
View all our projects in Myanmar
How we help
- Support activities could not be undertaken in Myanmar because they were deemed illegal, so programmes were mostly supported from across the border in Thailand.
- People from Myanmar move to Thailand to find work. They bring their children who cannot easily integrate into the Thai education system, so 'migrant' schools have been constructed.
- War in many ethnic areas has motivated hundreds of thousands of people to flee to Internally Displaced Person (IDP) camps in Myanmar or across the border to Thailand, China, and Bangladesh as refugees. They cannot leave camps so access to education, especially 'higher education' is limited. We support an extensive system of 'higher education' schools and colleges for these youth.
- Many areas are still strictly off-limits for foreigners in Myanmar. To support development work where it is most needed, we have started a social entrepreneurship grant programme for local youth, often in remote and inaccessible areas.
- University education is sporadically stopped or heavily restricted and censored. Due to lack of investment, quality is abysmally low. We support Myanmar students to study outside of Myanmar at accredited colleges and universities.
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