Who we are
TheHILLS Myanmar
Founded in 2017, TheHILLS Myanmar is a non-profit organisation registered in Myanmar and Italy . The organisation aims to improve access to education in Myanmar's Chin State and surrounding areas. It directly supports teachers, students, and schools from primary level to higher education. With its flagship programme Chin State Academic Research Network (CSARN) the organisation also fosters development of high quality research for evidence based programming and effective advocacy around sustainable development in the region.
Our team
Our team is made up of local and international researchers, academics, educators, development practitioners, and policy makers, connected by a common passion for research and education, and with extensive knowledge and lived experience of Chin State. The specialists in our network bring a wealth of experience in different thematic areas and extensive technical skills in programme management. Our experts are based in Myanmar, Hong Kong, Italy, the UK, Australia, Thailand, and India.
Objectives
The mission of TheHILLS Myanmar is to support education and sustainable development in Chin State and surrounding areas. Our specific objectives are to:
Support access to education in Chin State
Enhance access to higher education for young scholars from Chin State
Foster development of a research and policy-making community that is engaged in rigorous and evidence-based discussions on Chin State sustainable development
Promote gender equality
Make high-quality research and advisory services available to organizations working in Chin State
Increase understanding of gaps, challenges, and opportunities in the context of Chin State sustainable development, with special focus on education, gender, and research
About Chin State
Chin State is a mountainous region of western Burma/Myanmar, bordering Northeast India and Bangladesh as well as Rakhine State, Magwe and Sagaing Regions. It is home to approximately 479,000 people. In predominantly Buddhist Burma/Myanmar, 85 percent of people in Chin State are Christian, of many different denominations.
According to the international legal concept of indigenous peoples, the majority of people in Chin State are indigenous and self-identity as such. Although people in Chin State are unified to some extent through shared history, religion, cultural heritage, geographical homeland, and traditional practices, the origins of the collective term Chin are disputed (‘Chin’ is accepted by many, but not all) and many people prefer to use nomenclature such as Laimi, Zomi, Muun, Zotung, Mara, Matu, Khumi and so on to denote their identities. These identities are also shaped by complex systems of kinship and clans which often also stray into neighboring countries and regions, prompting some to look to a larger overlapping identity of 'Zo'.
Chin State is one of the most linguistically diverse parts of Burma/Myanmar, with many mutually unintelligible dialects and no common language. For most children, Burmese is their second or third language and they are unlikely to use it much before entering school.
Chin State is one of the most isolated regions in Burma/Myanmar, with inadequate road infrastructure, communication systems, healthcare and education facilities, electricity and running water. During rainy season many roads - particularly in remote northern and southern parts of Chin State - are virtually impassable. In Paletwa township, southern Chin State, there are very few roads and people primarily travel by boat on the Kaladan river and its tributaries. In other areas of Chin State many villages are connected by a network of paths rather than paved roads. Shifting cultivation is the primary subsistence livelihood for the largely rural communities in Chin State. Chin State continues to be affected by on going armed conflicts which have taken place in Paletwa township since 2015.
In February 2021, the coup d'état occured after over 10 years of military back parliamentary has been installed. The Civil Disobedience Movement and anti-coup protest was quickly spread over the country against the military coup. Ongoing armed conflict has severely affected the region, bringing the education system to standstill, and resulting in a significant part of the population becoming either internally displaced or seeking refuge in bordering countries such as India, Thailand and Malaysia.