Myanmar Programme 2017 1. Political update
During 2016, U Htin Kyaw (NLD) was chosen by parliament to become the 9th president of Myanmar. He formed a cabinet consisting of 21 union ministers In addition to NLD affiliates, U Htin Kyaw’s cabinet features two union ministers from the former ruling party USDP as well as one from the Mon National Party. These were elected in the 2015 elections and were subsequently elevated to become union ministers. 
The new president also founded two new entities – the State Counsellor office and that of Ethnic Minister office. Democracy icon and NLD chairperson Daw Aung San Suu Kyi (barred from the presidency by a controversial clause in the constitution) became the first ever State Counsellor, a new position created to circumvent the constitutional restriction and in effect elevate her above the president. In addition to U Htin Kyaw, two vice presidents were chosen by parliament, one from the USDP (previously the largest party) and one from the NLD (currently the largest party following a landslide victory in the 08 November 2015 elections).
The nature of this new cabinet is in stark contrast with that the cabinet of former present U Thein Sein, (2012 - 2016) which consisted of 38 union ministries, with all union ministers coming from his USDP party. Both vice presidents also hailed from the USDP. 
Pinpointing the achievement of a national ceasefire as the new government’s number 1 priority, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi took up the lead of the Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC), inviting ethnic armed groups who didn’t yet sign the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA). The  21st Century Panglong Conference has started in August 2016, a highly anticipated gathering where parties are hoping to hammer out a peace agreement. In preparation for the Panglong conference, 17 out of 21 invited ethnic armed groups came together to discuss 4 issues: discussion and endorsement of the Panglong manual; adoption of basic principles regarding security and defence; and amendment of the framework for political dialogue. This kind of co-operation was unthinkable in the recent past.
At the conclusion of the new government’s first 100 days in office it faces some criticism from analysts saying that parliamentary sessions lack substance, are dominated by the speaker’s tight control. Critics also claim that the new government has produced few clear policies (amongst them a nationwide ban on commercial logging), especially in regards to business regulations. June-July also saw two religious riots occurring in the country, a constantly lingering threat to stability and inclusive progress. Heavy rain also caused flooding in parts of Myanmar with newspapers accusing the new government of being slow to respond. Squabbles between ethnic political parties and between ethnic political parties and the NLD continue to bubble under the surface. Efforts and discussions between smaller (ethnic) parties to merge have not yet let to any concrete results.

2. Programme & Theory of Change Update
The Myanmar School of Politics is a joint programme of NIMD and partner organisation Demo Finland and will in 2017 be focussed on the following elements:

MySoP Core Course (MySoP-CC) – three core courses in 2017
The MySoP core course focuses on strengthening the democratic role of political parties in a cross-party setting by enhancing democratic skills, knowledge and praxis. MySoP in principle works with political parties at the region/state level. With the MySoP core course we aim to enhance regional politician’s capacities and constructive, policy oriented engagement in politics. By offering members of political parties the opportunity to meet and work together in a multiparty setting both during and after the training sessions, the core programme promotes the establishment of a political culture of multiparty dialogue. 

Alumni activities (MySoP- AA): two in 2017
After completing the MySoP core course, graduates are invited for regular MySoP alumni activities, mostly 3 day-sessions. Linking MySoP alumni with each other across regions furthers peer-learning by providing the space to discuss common challenges and opportunities By furthering cross-regional contact, these activities also nurture collaboration and help strengthen alliances between like-minded parties. By enabling party members from the same party to get to know each other across states and region also strengthens the national fabric of political parties. At least one of the planned alumni sessions will feature the issue of programmatic parties.

Multiparty Dialogue Platforms (MySoP-MDP)
After careful preparation and assuring buy-in in 2016, 2017 will see the start of the first MySoP Multiparty Dialogue Platform in Shan State. The platform will host and facilitate a cycle of meetings and initiatives aimed at exploring innovative cross-party approaches and solutions to economic, social or political challenges at the state/region level. The process towards setting-up an additional platform in another state will also commence in 2017. 

International learning agenda:
In 2017 one exchange will be held between Myanmar politicians and Indonesian politicians as well as a representative group of the alumni of NIMD’s former ‘democracy schools’-programme in Indonesia. Most probably the topic of this exchange will be decentralised governance.

The ToC that was developed is still valid. Political actors are defined as the combined main target group of the Strategic Partnership: - (representatives of) political parties - politicians - (Members of) Parliament and its Committees - Other elected representatives at local levels. NIMD will primarily focus on political parties.