Myanmar migrants living along the Thailand-Myanmar border: Experiences related to pandemic and migration decisions

ImportanceIn Myanmar, amid political and civil unrest, droves of Burmese are displaced to neighboring countries including Thailand. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, little is known about the available healthcare services and health and well-being among refugees and migrant workers within resettlement areas along the Myanmar-Thailand border.ObjectiveTo explore the unmet needs of migrants along the Thailand-Myanmar border during the COVID-19 pandemic and their reasons for leaving Myanmar.DesignA qualitative study that used focus groups with migrant schoolteachers and school masters was undertaken. An interpretative analysis approach was used to analyze the data from the focus group sessions. The study followed the COREQ (COnsolidated criteria for REporting Qualitative) checklist.SettingIn July 2022, community stakeholders from migrant schools located in the vicinity of Mae Sot, Thailand were referred to the study team.ParticipantsA purposive sample of 17 adult participants was recruited from 4 migrant schools. The participants were schoolteachers and schoolmasters who had traveled from Myanmar to Thailand 1 to 20 years ago.Main outcomes and measuresThematic analysis was used to scrutinize qualitative data for the outcomes of health and well-being, barriers, and reasons for migration.ResultsThree main themes were identified: "issues related to the pandemic", "teenage marriage and pregnancies" and "migration decisions". The issues related to the pandemic included behavior changes in children, a diminished quality of education, and barriers to receiving COVID-19 vaccines and accessing other health care. There were more dropouts due to teenage pregnancy/marriage during the shelter in place mandate. Migration decisions were affected by concerns over health, civil unrest, and military harassment.Conclusions and relevanceThis study presented the difficulties experienced by Myanmar migrants currently living along the Thailand-Myanmar border. The reasons for leaving Myanmar included health and safety. Suspending education during the pandemic caused more school dropouts due to teenage pregnancy/marriage. Additionally, behavioral changes in children, a diminished quality of education, barriers to receiving COVID-19 vaccines and access to other health care services were reported. Future studies should focus on how migration stress and access to mental health care impact the migrant population

Investigation of Japanese Encephalitis Virus Infection in Bogalay Township, Myanmar in 1999

An investigation was in Nyi-naung-wa village, Bogalay township for Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus infection and the possibility of a JE outbreak. JE virus antibody was determined among the pigs and the people living near the pig farms in that village and at an adjacent village as a control. The known JE virus vector Culex mosquito species were also identified in both villages. Haemagglutination inhibition (HAI) methods were used for the detectioon of JE and dengue antibodies. Homotypic or monotypic JE antibodies were detected in 33% of the pigs tested. No homotypic nor monotypic JE antibodis was detected among the villagers. Although there was no JE virus infection among the people, because of the presence of JE virus infection among the pigs and the presence of Culex mosquito vector in that area, the possibility of a JE outbreak in humans in that area, if the number of pig breeding per household increase and the mosquito density become higher is discussed

Evaluation on dry forage yields and nutritional characteristics of introduced herbaceous legumes in Myanmar

The study was carried out to evaluate the forage yields, nutritive values and in vitro fermentation parameters of herbaceous legumes. Five varieties of introduced herbaceous legumes; Stylosanthes guianensis cv. Ubon stylo, Macrotyloma axillare cv. Archer, Centrosema brasilianum cv. Ooloo, Stylosanthes guianensis cv. Stylo 184 and Macroptilum bracteatum cv. Cadarga were evaluated at the research farm, University of Veterinary Science, Yezin, Myanmar. No fertilizer and no irrigation were applied for cultivation to test drought resistance. Dry forage yield, nutritive values and gas production at four harvesting times were measured with 4×5 factorial arrangement (5 legumes and 4 harvesting time) in randomized complete block design. There was no interaction between legumes and harvesting time on forage yield, nutritive values and fermentation parameters but they were affected by the main effects of legume types and harvesting time. Among the legume forages, the highest dry forage yields were found in Ooloo, Ubon stylo, and Stylo 184, and followed by the DM yield of Archer and Cadarga. The DM yield of the second harvest was significantly higher (p<0.05) than those of the first, third and fourth harvest which were not significantly different from each other. As a chemical composition, the DM content of Archer was lower (p<0.05) than those of other varieties. Among the legumes forages, the lower CP content was found in Cadarga. The higher NDF was observed in Ooloo. Ooloo, Ubon stylo and Cadarga showed higher ADF in comparison with the other two varieties. Among the harvesting time, the lowest DM content was found at the first harvest. The highest CP content was found at third harvest. The NDF content was not significantly different. The lowest ADF content was found in fourth harvest. According to the dry forage yield, Ubon stylo and Ooloo had the highest dry forage yield and in term of nutritive values, Stylo 184 and Archer had higher nutritive values. As the main effect of forages, Stylo 184 and Archer had higher gas production in comparison with the other varieties. As the main effect of harvesting time, the fourth harvest had the highest gas production in comparison with other harvesting time. It could be better for cultivation by application of fertilizer and irrigation to get more forage yield and quality. &nbsp

Prevalence and seroprevalence of Plasmodium infection in Myanmar reveals highly heterogeneous transmission and a large hidden reservoir of infection.

Malaria incidence in Myanmar has significantly reduced over recent years, however, completeness and timeliness of incidence data remain a challenge. The first ever nationwide malaria infection and seroprevalence survey was conducted in Myanmar in 2015 to better understand malaria epidemiology and highlight gaps in Annual Parasite Index (API) data. The survey was a cross-sectional two-stage stratified cluster-randomised household survey conducted from July-October 2015. Blood samples were collected from household members for ultra-sensitive PCR and serology testing for P. falciparum and P. vivax. Data was gathered on demography and a priori risk factors of participants. Data was analysed nationally and within each of four domains defined by API data. Prevalence and seroprevalence of malaria were 0.74% and 16.01% nationwide, respectively. Prevalent infection was primarily asymptomatic P. vivax, while P. falciparum was predominant in serology. There was large heterogeneity between villages and by domain. At the township level, API showed moderate correlation with P. falciparum seroprevalence. Risk factors for infection included socioeconomic status, domain, and household ownership of nets. Three K13 P. falciparum mutants were found in highly prevalent villages. There results highlight high heterogeneity of both P. falciparum and P. vivax transmission between villages, accentuated by a large hidden reservoir of asymptomatic P. vivax infection not captured by incidence data, and representing challenges for malaria elimination. Village-level surveillance and stratification to guide interventions to suit local context and targeting of transmission foci with evidence of drug resistance would aid elimination efforts

Impact of Dependent and Independent Variables based on Ordinary Least Squares Method Using Test-Driven Development Approach

Test-driven development (TDD) is a foundation forsoftware evolution but unit tests must be performed beforeproduction code. To enhance both external code quality andprogrammers’ productivity can be insisted on the exponentsof TDD. The consequence of test-driven development onproduct quality and programmer productivity is analyzed themain purpose of this paper. This system builds the ordinaryleast squares method of regression analysis to assess theimpact of the process on dependent variables and independentvariables. This paper’s results observed the positive effect ofdeveloper productivity, and slightly decrease the effect ofexternal quality. TDD can affect advance software products’quality, also mend programmers’ productivity. TDDundertook to help the delivery of high-quality products, bothoperational (fewer bugs) and technical perspective (cleanercode) while improving developers’ productivity. TDD leads toless defects and fewer debugging period which correct codecan be assured by writing tests first and thus serving thedeveloper get a finer understanding of the softwarerequirements. When this proposed system evaluates theordinary least squares of regression analysis based on a fixedtime-frame, the result of external code quality is fewerreduced, and the result of developer productivity isprogressed

Consequences of Dependent and Independent Variables based on Acceptance Test Suite Metric Using Test Driven Development Approach

The fundamental of software development wasTest-Driven Development but the individual tests mustbe carried out previously the production code. Toresearch, the consequence of test-driven developmenton product code quality and developer productivitywas the destination of this paper. This system buildsthe acceptance test suite metric of regression analysisto assess the impact of the process on dependentvariables and independent variables. This paper’sresults observed the positive effect of external qualityover function of the number tests, and slightlydecrease the effect of developer productivity overfunction of the number of tests. TDD can affectadvance software products’ quality, also mendprogrammers’ productivity. TDD undertook to helpthe delivery of high-quality products, both operational(fewer bugs) and technical perspective (cleaner code)while improving developers’ productivity. TDD affectsto less defects and fewer debugging period whichcorrect code can be certified by writing tests first andthus serving the developer get a finer understanding ofthe software requirements

COMPLIANCE OF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE PRACTICES IN BANKING INDUSTRY OF MYANMAR

This study analyzes corporate governance practices in the banking industry of Myanmar. The objectives of the study are to identify the current corporate governance practices in private banks and to explore the compliance of corporate governance practices in the banking industry. To implement this research, the existing system of corporate governance in private banks is first observed. According to the CBM data, there are 24 private banks registered and approved by the central bank. Primary was collected from 14 private banks that have over 7 years of experiences in the banking industry and by making structured questionnaires. 50 respondents from selected 14 banks who are working at middle and top management levels and this survey covered (56%) of total private banks. This study used a descriptive statistics method and Corporate Governance Scorecard based on the questionnaire, which is prepared by five corporate governance principles of the UK Combine Code to analyze the current situation. These principles are leadership, effectiveness, accountability, remuneration, and relation with shareholders. Each principle is measured with the Corporate Governance Scorecard which is a quantitative tool to measure the level of observance of a code. The findings of this study indicate that the fourth principle remuneration was not complied by some banks and most of the banks have fair practice on Combine Code. The recommendation of this study is Myanmar Government and relevant institution needs to develop human resources. To get a market competitive advantage, public trust, organizational dignity the top management should enforce to more practice of corporate governance code

Aquatic Resource Management and Production in Pya-Phon District in Ayeyarwady Region

The present paper intended to highlight aquatic resource management and production in Pya-phon District in Ayayarwady Region within the period of October 2014 to May 2016. The main aim was to access the production from aquaculture and small scale fisheries in the study area with the following objectives to study the fishing frequencies and the use of fishing gears and boats in the study area; to examine the main target fish species composition and the production; to know the family income and the price of fish species. The questionnaire survey was completed for each individual fisherman where information about nominal catch quantity, fishing effort, fishing grounds visited, type and number of gears employed seasonally. During the study period, among a total of 127 individuals of local fishermen, totally 123 individuals (96.85 %) own the fishing boats. Of them, 97 fishermen (78.86%) used engines for their fishing boats. The seasonal variation of fishing effort was 52% in wet season, 37 % in the cool season and 11% in the dry season. Totally nine different fishing gears were found to be used for the fishing of target species. The frequency of daily catchments of each fisherman was recorded as >3.0-4.5 kg of total catchments. The value changes of different recorded fish species, the highest exploitation of fishes were discussed

Buddhist Culture in Meiktila

In the merit-oriented Myanmar, society-building and renovation of temples and pagodas got the highest priority. Throughout the low lands and uplands of Meiktila, the structure of the religious monument was interpreted into the design of architecture, the layout of a kingdom and the rituals of kingship. Cosmology or belief in the fundamental order of the universe pervaded all of the Hindu Buddhist World in Myanmar. The promotion of tangible culture includes cultural identity and achievements in the early stages of Buddhist culture in Meiktila