Evidence-Based Policy Research for Bottom-Up Federal Reform

Bottom-Up Federal Reform

IPSJ advanced policy-oriented research on strengthening bottom-up implementation of Autonomous Local Education Boards through:

•Pre-focal workshops in Sagaing, Karenni, and Magway (October–December 2025);

•Focal stakeholder meetings in Mon, Magway, and Sagaing (September–October 2025); and

•Ongoing policy research and drafting to inform inclusive, decentralized education governance in a future federal democratic system.

Policy Research: Strengthening Bottom-Up Implementation of Autonomous Local Education Boards for a Federal Democratic Transition (Kayin, Mon, Magway, Sagaing)

Myanmar is at a historic crossroads in its political transition, with growing aspirations for a federal democratic system. This transition offers a rare opportunity to reimagine governance structures that promote inclusion, equity, and local empowerment. Education governance stands out as a vital entry point for advancing democratic participation, strengthening local autonomy, and ensuring equitable access to quality education.

Autonomous Local Education Boards (ALEBs) present a promising model for realizing these goals. By enabling communities to directly shape educational priorities, budgeting, and curricula, ALEBs can align education governance with the principles of federalism. This bottom-up approach not only strengthens democratic processes but also ensures that education reflects local needs, cultures, and languages.

In Karenni State, for example, ethnic education networks have long practiced localized education management, including community-led curriculum development in local languages. However, these initiatives remain informal and lack formal recognition or integration within a broader federal framework. Strengthening the bottom-up implementation of ALEBs could formalize such initiatives, ensuring sustainability, inclusivity, and alignment with democratic governance.

Despite the potential of ALEBs, there is currently limited empirical research and policy guidance on how they could be effectively implemented in Myanmar’s diverse socio-political landscape. IPSK, by this project seeks to address this gap by producing evidence-based policy recommendations to guide the bottom-up implementation of ALEBs, contributing to a federal democratic transition that is inclusive, participatory, and grounded in local realities.

The policy research project aims to:

(a) Assess the feasibility of implementing Autonomous Local Education Boards in selected project areas;

(b) Engage grassroots stakeholders to identify perspectives, needs, and priorities for local education governance; and

(c)  Produce a high-quality policy research paper offering practical recommendations for the bottom-up implementation of ALEBs.

Project Activities: Preparatory Workshops: Local Education Board (LEB) Workshop

The Local Education Board (LEB) Training Workshop, titled “Strengthening Bottom-Up Implementation of Local Education Boards for a Federal Democratic Transition,” was designed for educators providing interim education services, local education groups, and stakeholders engaged in community-based schooling.

During implementation, the project conducted three of the four planned seven-day preparatory workshops in Karenni, Magway, and Sagaing regions, engaging approximately 120 participants from diverse backgrounds, including teachers, community leaders, youth representatives, ethnic education networks, and civil society actors. Rather than prioritizing large participant numbers, the workshops emphasized broad regional representation to capture diverse local perspectives.

The workshops generated critical insights into the challenges, opportunities, and expectations surrounding Autonomous Local Education Boards (ALEBs) and created structured platforms for public dialogue on federal principles and bottom-up education governance.

The primary objective of these workshops was to engage directly with teachers and local education boards operating federal schools in liberated townships administered by non-state actors. By examining organizational practices, field-level challenges, and lived experiences, IPSJ aims to develop evidence-based policy recommendations for a decentralized and inclusive federal education system. At the same time, the workshops strengthened the capacity of local actors and fostered consensus around accountable and effective models of local education governance, contributing to Myanmar’s broader transition toward a federal democratic system.

The Local Education Board (LEB) Workshops I and III were conducted with approximately 50 Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) educators from Sagaing and Magway Regions. These workshops were complemented by 10–15 semi-structured and key informant interviews, as well as a systematic review of relevant documents, including laws, policies, budgets, and standard operating procedures. Leveraging the networks of IPSJ Study Group (Book Club) participants, strategic linkages were established with education board members across multiple townships in Sagaing and Magway Regions. Data collection was undertaken through focus group discussions (FGDs), in-depth consultative sessions, and individual interviews, with CDM teachers participating in both group-based workshops and structured interviews.

Local Education Board Workshop II was conducted with educators from Karenni State, representing a wide range of community-based education roles. Participants included volunteer teachers from internally displaced persons (IDP) camps, staff from the Interim Education Committee (IEC) Education Department, representatives of the Karenni Youth Union, and individuals with formal educational backgrounds from the region. The cohort comprised both younger practitioners and senior community educators, as well as representatives from interim governance structures in Karenni State.

The workshops followed a structured seven-day curriculum that progressed from theoretical foundations to practical policy application. Day 1 focused on the role of basic education in federal democracy, examining the linkages between education and democratic governance. Day 2 focused on establishing Local Education Boards through bottom-up institutional development, while Day 3 explored decentralization and power-sharing models in education governance. Day 4 examined transparent and equitable local education financing, followed by Day 5, which addressed strategies for maintaining educational continuity in conflict-affected settings. Day 6 focused on aligning education with human rights and federal transition principles, and Day 7 synthesized local practices into policy-relevant recommendations at the federal level.

Overall, the education policy research project is expected to strengthen local education governance capacity, provide practical models for decentralized education within a federal framework, and generate evidence-based inputs to support advocacy and donor alignment. The project will also enhance coordination among ethnic education boards, the National Unity Government (NUG), and local communities, while increasing the visibility of locally driven education innovations.

Focal Meetings and In-depth Interviews

The project also organized four preparatory focal meetings in the project target regions to consolidate research findings from the preparatory workshops. In each region, approximately 25 education stakeholders participated in focal discussions and in-depth interviews, including education officials, community leaders, ethnic education networks, teachers, youth representatives, and community members. These engagements deepened understanding of local education needs, strengthened collaboration among stakeholders from diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds, and supported locally driven dialogue on inclusive education governance. The outcomes of these meetings further informed and refined context-specific policy recommendations.

Research Paper Production

The research is led by Dr. Daisy Kris, a scholar in Constitutional Law, with six IPSJ team members serving as co-authors to ensure academic and policy rigor. One dedicated data collector supported fieldwork, interviews, and data analysis over approximately three months.

The study produced a comprehensive policy research paper titled “Strengthening Bottom-Up Implementation of Local Education Boards for Myanmar’s Federal Democratic Transition: An Action Research Study in Areas Administered by EROs and Resistance Forces,” assessing the feasibility of Area-Based Local Education Boards (ALEBs) and documenting community-led and ethnic education practices, translating grassroots experiences into practical policy recommendations for a future federal democratic framework. The first draft was completed in December 2025, with peer review scheduled for early 2026 and final publication in English and the Myanmar language by mid-2026.