Myanmar approves UNESCO's peace education project

Myanmar has approved UNESCO's peace education project in northern Rakhine state.

The country reaffirmed its commitment to promote peace education as a means of fostering mutual respect for cultural diversity at the school level.

The project is to be jointly implemented by the UNESCO and the government in three townships in the state-Maungtaw, Buthidaung and Rathedaung with the fund support by the Belgium government.

Under the project, 350 teachers from 40 conflicted-affected schools will be trained in peace education and it will benefit 10, 000 students, Xinhua reported.

The project also aims to reactivate 40 parent-teacher associations and set up three community learning centers.

Following the recent communal violence in Rakhine state which has affected hundreds of schools and thousands of students, the government and international community have identified peace education as one of the priority to address underlying causes of the communal tension.

The overall aim of the peace education project is to enhance the capacity of schools teachers, students and their parents to facilitate inclusive problem-solving process and consensus- building around community priority and to strengthen the commitment to an inclusive civic national identity.