School project at Thit-Htaunk-Kkun Village Background
Background on the school project at Thit-Htaunk-Kkun Village
The village is very poor compared to its nearby villages since most of the villagers are labourers living hand-to-mouth without any own farm. Hence they also requested us to raise some fund for construction of a new primary school building.
The following is the proposal that wasa initially senty and approved
by Generosity in Action.
1. Project Title : Construction of Primary School Building at Thit-Htaunk-Kyun
Village
2. Project Area : Thit-Htaunk-Kyun Village near Bagan
3. Project Executing Agency : Voluntary Team headed by a director of New
Horizons Travels
(On behalf of Generosity In Action in U.S.A.)
4. Co-operating Agency : Ministry of Education
5. Duration : Nine months
6. Budget : US $ 8500 (funded by Generosity In Action)
Click here to view photos of the village taken in April 2004
This photo of the school under construction was taken May 2004
I. Introduction
The people of Myanmar place a great value on education. And the government
of the Union of Myanmar is striving to raise the enrollment of five-year
olds in schools throughout the whole country. But the education outcomes
are unsatisfactory. According to official estimates, three in ten five-year
olds cannot enroll in kindergartens and only 40 percent of those who begin
kindergarten finish the primary cycle. Although the Ministry of Education
is solely responsible for providing good-quality-education-services to
all children of the country, currently government's spending in education
as a share of national income is among the lowest in the world. Hence,
lacking of schools with enough capacity and enough teachers has come to
arise in many remote areas like the proposed project area, Thit-Htaunk-Kyun
Village. Obviously, it makes the whole community lower in socio-economic
level accordingly.
Under the current situations, as we cannot approach to enhance the standard
of education nationwide, no matter how minute our role or contribution
might be, we wish to contribute a little help towards the children upon
their education by building up a primary school with enough capacity and
enough teachers for 60 to 160 of them. It will also benefit the people
in the area to achieve better socio-economic level.
II. Project - new school
Project Area (Project completed July 2004)
Thit-Htaunk-Kyun Village
- 12 miles by road from Bagan along Bagan Nyaung U-Myinchan-Mandalay Highway
The proposed project area is located on the left side of the Bagan Nyaung
U-Myinchan-Mandalay highway and 12 miles from Bagan City of Mandalay Division,
one of the seven States and seven Divisions of Myanmar. Bagan is the most
famous tourist site in Myanmar. A visit to Myanmar without visiting the
Bagan Archeological Zone is regarded as one has never been to Myanmar.
The Bagan area is well developed by the tourism business. Although the
project area is not too far from the archeological zone, Thit-Htaunk-Kyun
Village is one of the grass-root level villages where most of the people
reside there are hand-to-mouth labourers engaged in the nearby farms without
any of their own. The total number of households is 90 and a population
of about 450 with a small dilapidated primary school and opened. The village
was resettled with evacuees from the sandbar in the Irrawaddy which became
awash with floods and no longer habitable. The primary school has one
head master who also teaches the students and one voluntary attendance
only. At the moment there are about 70 students. Therefore the student-teacher
ratio of the school is greater than average.
With the increase in population of the village the number of children
who wish to join the school also increases but then present school building
is not only old but also too small to house more school children. These
villages therefore wish to bring down the old building and build a new
one which can take in more school children for their education. As the
villagers are general farm labourers their income is too low to be able
to build a new bigger school. So they appeal to the government for construction
of a new school building. The government, though willing to help cannot
provide adequate fund for the new school building. The total cost estimated
by the Engineer/Architect being about roughly US$ 8500 including toilet
facilities and storage tank for water supply. Therefore, the villagers
are compelled to look for the rest of the fund needed.
The building will be a one storied building with four rooms on a land
with an area of 1 acre and each room is 20'/24'. In other words the size
of the building is 80'/30' with the corridor of six feet wide in front
of the rooms.
The number of teachers actually allotted by the government for 150 children
is 3. Hopefully the number of teachers will increase to meet with the
increase in the numbers of students.
It is necessary to implement the Construction of Primary School Building
at Thit-Htaunk-Kyun Village for the following reasons:
(1) It is one and only primary school for the education of the students
in that village.
(2) The villagers cannot afford to build the school by themselves.
(3) Apart from the Township Education Department which is responsible
for this school, there are no other donors taking interest in the construction
of the school building.
(4) Tourists can visit the school, its countryside environs.
Please Note: Construction of the building is going to be planned and supervised
by a private qualified architect and an engineer on a voluntary basis.
Objectives
1. To enhance the educational standard of the children that will as well
promote the education of the community in the project area.
2. To help villagers to earn extra income by participating in the construction
project as general labours.
3. To improve level of socio-economic environment relating with education
in the project area.
4. To make it possible for the tourists to visit the area as a tourist
site of natural environs and if possible to encourage the villagers to
participate in handicraft and souvenir industries which will, as a part,
generate their income higher.
Outline of the Project
1. To draw up architectural design and structural plan for the new building.
(completed)
2. To bring down the old building. To carry out site cleaning and pre-construction
works.
3. To construct a storage tank and common toilet for water and sanitation.
4. To undertake the construction works step by step as per construction
schedule.
5. To make necessary school furniture and equipment.
6. As for a future plan, to build up a multi-media teaching room and a
library of Primary School standard when the construction completed.
7. To appoint one or more new teacher to reduce the student teacher ratio.
8. To encourage the villagers to participate in handicraft and souvenir
industries.
9. To educate the community that, after completion of the project, it
is their own duty to sustain the development of the school.
Estimated population that would be benefited by the project
Total population (rural) 450
Villages 1
Number of students enrolled 70
Outcome (Expected Effects of the Project)
1. Improved standard of education of the children in the project area.
2. Facilitated with necessary proper School Furniture and Equipment.
3. Improved socio-economic well being of the people concerned.
4. Improved handicraft and souvenir industries in the project area.
5. Can be sustained socio-economic environment relating with education
due to the awareness of the community if they are being well educated.
Monitoring and evaluation
- Continuous monitoring and supervision of the project.
- Assessment and evaluation of the project.
- Preparation and submission of final report.
Expenditure
Personnel Cost (Voluntary Basis)
Non-personnel Cost
1. Cost for Construction Materials (US $)7,571.25
2. Transportation, Bank Chg., Courier Chg. and other (US $)200.00
Total Non-personnel Cost (US $) 7,771.25
Labour Charges
1. Lumpsum Cost for Masonry Works (US $) $262.50
2. Lumpsum Cost for Carpentry Works (US $) $125.00
3. Lumpsum Cost for General Workers (US $) $337.50
Total Activities Cost (US $) 725.00
Budget
Personnel Cost (US $)0.00
Non-personnel Cost (US $)7,771.25
Labour Charges (US $)725.00
Total Budget required (US $)8,496.25
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