Wednesday 18 December 2013

Journalism school eyes June 2014 opening

Plans for a journalism school in Yangon supported by international organisations and donors have moved a step forward with the signing of an agreement on December 7. The school’s backers now say a June 2014 opening is likely, although many details remain unclear.

As The Myanmar Times reported in September, Germany’s DW Akademie, France’s Canal France International, global NGO International Media Support (IMS) and Sweden’s Fojo Media Institute will help set up the institution, with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and governments of Denmark, France, Germany, Norway and Sweden also offering support.

On December 7, Minister for Information U Aung Kyi and AurĂ©lie Filipetti, France’s minister for culture, signed a “cooperation agreement on cinema and media” at the Women’s Forum in Yangon.

“Our goal is to improve skills and reach the same levels as international media for the young people who interested in journalism,” Ms Filipetti told the press afterward.

She added that journalism in Myanmar had a bright future, with people able to “get the news freely from now on”.

The Myanmar Journalism School is set to open in July 2014, offering a one-year diploma course in journalism.

“The trainers, syllabus development, recruitment of trainers, coaching and monitoring for this diploma course were contributed by IMS and Fojo Media Institute,” said U Khin Maung Htay, a co-founder and director of the school’s local partner, Forever Group.

UNESCO said in a statement that the signing of the agreement indicates that the new school will initially target working journalists before eventually merging with the bachelor of ars (journalism) course offered by the National Management College to create a “centre of excellence” for journalism.

Monika Lengauer of DW Akademie said that while all parties are committed to the project, many details are still unclear – including where the school will be located.

“We have a plan to open this school but we have not decided on the location and also the curriculum is not ready. We will find out everything that is necessary depending on the situation in Myanmar.”

source: The Myanmar Times

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