Myanmar junta leader, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, said that widespread poverty in the country is due to the fact that the majority of the population is unable to pursue their personal development.
He made the comments during a speech to instructors and trainee officers at the National Defence University on 3 February, according to junta-controlled newspapers.
“Personal grievances, jealousy, and discontent may develop as long as poverty endures. Educational deficiencies have been identified as the root cause of national instability throughout our nation’s history,” the military chief stated.
He also stressed that a strong education sector is essential for the country’s progress, stability, and development.
He further claimed, citing reports on social media, that some people had failed to salute the national flag or sing the national anthem, which he described as a sign of declining patriotism. He also alleged that certain civil servants had engaged in economic and political corruption, attributing this to a lack of patriotic spirit.
The junta chief additionally said that civil servants must manage their income and spending responsibly, noting that action has been taken against some officials for attempting to obtain excessive personal gain.
A June 2025 report by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), titled “An Analysis of Urban Poverty in Yangon,” found that the country’s commercial capital is facing a severe surge in urban poverty.
The crisis is most acute in outlying townships, where large numbers of people displaced by conflict and economic collapse have sought refuge.
The report said that under the National League for Democracy (NLD) government, only 10 percent of Yangon’s population was living in poverty in 2017, but that number had climbed to 43 percent by 2023 following the coup, and that the poverty of the poor is getting deeper.
UNDP Myanmar also reported in October 2025 that young people aged 15 to 35 who make up more than one-third of the country’s population are confronting unprecedented difficulties in accessing education and employment. The report said that ongoing political instability, economic deterioration, and social challenges have severely undermined opportunities for youth learning and job creation.
Meanwhile, data released on 21 January by the Institute for Strategy and Policy–Myanmar (ISP-Myanmar) showed that foreign investment has fallen by nearly three-quarters over the past five years, as international companies continue to exit the country in the aftermath of the military coup.
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