We are excited to announce that World Compassion is starting a new International School in the country of Myanmar (Burma). Historically, educational projects have been a significant piece to World Compassion’s missions approach in restricted nations. Education opens the door to truly transform the lives of children and their families not just intellectually but spiritually.
For 8 years we ran educational programs in Afghanistan. In total 8,400 women and children went through our programs in literacy, English, math, and computers. We saw their lives elevate simply from learning to read and speak English while it opened the door to share the Gospel.
Prior to the pandemic in 2020, we began plans to start a school in Myanmar but had to postpone. Now, five years later the opportunity has never been greater. World Compassion has been working in the country of Myanmar for 17 years and has long-standing, trusted partnerships that we’ll be collaborating with to take on this new initiative.
Due to the poor educational system and low income levels, children are often forced to leave school early to work and help provide for their families. 49.7% of people in Myanmar live on less than $0.76 per day.
If you travel to Myanmar, you’ll see children around the ages of 9, 10, and 11 working in tea shops, selling on the side of the road, working in the fields and even factories. Statistically after age 11, school attendance drops from over 80% to 35.9% by age 16.
Compounding this, in the past five years due to the pandemic and the following civil war, school enrollment decreased by 80%, leaving 7.8 million children out of school. Burmese children have lost more than three and half years of education due to school closures. The public education structure can not handle the need. As a result, private international schools in Myanmar are in high demand.
This new school will meet an incredible need while allowing us the opportunity to reach an entire community for Jesus! As Christian teachers and staff pour into the lives of these students every day, relationships will be built and influence established with not only the students but their families.
The curriculum we will be using is all biblically based across all subjects and also includes a Bible class. As a private international school, we can do this in a nation that is 89% Buddhist. When students graduate, they will finish with a diploma equivalent to a U.S. high school diploma, opening the door for further education. This gives them incredible opportunities compared to the little they have now.
The director of the school recently said, “If we can change THEIR world, they can change THE world.”
Romans 12:2 says that we are transformed by the renewing of our minds. First and foremost we are transformed into the image of Christ by renewing our minds in God’s word and the power of the Holy Spirit. These students will experience this every day!
Over the past seven months we have been prayerfully working with our partners to build the leadership team, researching curriculum, developing building plans, and creating budgets to launch the school. The master plan is to build a new school building that will be able to serve up to 230 students per year. We are approaching this in phases.
The land has already been purchased and is where the director and his family now live. In addition, there is an already existing building on the property that, with some remodeling, will be used as the initial school building.
In the fall of last year while in Myanmar, World Compassion staff met with the local team to walk the property and review plans and budgets.
We are at the point where we need to fund Phase 1—as our team is making the capital investment to do some basic remodeling to the already existing building, purchasing curriculum, and conducting staff training to be ready to open in June.
There’s already a buzz in the local community with parents asking for applications to send their kids. The school will comprise a healthy number of paying students along with orphans and other children from widowed homes who will be sponsored.
World Compassion Terry Law Ministries d/b/a World Compassion and its affiliates are not a part of nor associated with Compassion International. Your gift will be used for these projects and many other outreaches of World Compassion.
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