MINISTRY OF EDUCATION EDGES BLINDLY FORWARD ALONG APPROVED

UNCLAS ASHGABAT 000215

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

STATE FOR SCA/CEN (PERRY),SCA/PPD, CA/VO/F/P

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV TX CVIS KPAO
SUBJECT: MINISTRY OF EDUCATION EDGES BLINDLY FORWARD ALONG APPROVED
MASTER PLAN

SUMMARY
--------------


1. (U) Assistant Secretary Richard Boucher's discussion with the
Ministry of Education one day after the inauguration of President
Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov revealed the ministry's grudging
acceptance of the president's stated intention to reform higher
education and extend the years of secondary schooling, but a
steadfast unwillingness to budge on curricular reform for secondary
education. However, it appears the ministry is moving full steam
ahead on all the promises President Berdimuhammedov made both during
his campaign and at his inauguration. Minister Shemshat
Annagylyjova, who was replaced only a day after the meeting with
former Minister of Education Hydyr Saparliyev, appeared unable to
grasp the changes taking place around her, but the entire ministry
is hampered by a lack of understanding -- and lack of will to
understand -- gaping deficiencies in its approach to reform. End
Summary.

CURRICULUM REFORM IN HIGHER EDUCATION
--------------


2. (U) Boucher led a large delegation consisting of the Charge,
USAID Regional Director Chris Crowley, the USAID Country Director
and A/PAO, into the meeting to demonstrate the importance the United
States places on education. At Annagylyjova's left hand were Head
of the International Department Nursahet Bayramov, Deputy Minister
Jemal Bashimov and Staffing Chief for the Ministry Enebay Ovezova.
Annagylyjova herself maintained a serene equanimity throughout the
meeting, though Bayramov occasionally interjected. The minister
vowed that the ministry would put "all its efforts" into
implementing the president's educational plans as of September 2007:
a return to 10 years of secondary school education, a 5 year
curriculum at higher education institutes, and an increase in
exchanges and foreign language learning opportunities. The ministry
had already forwarded to President Berdimuhammedov plans formulated
by "several large working groups" for changes to higher education
curricula, as well as introduction of new foreign languages into
secondary schools.


3. (U) Boucher asked whether the ministry had the "teachers,
curriculum, and books" to implement these changes, to which the
minister replied that implementing the 10-year framework was merely
a matter of redistributing the current hours of student classroom
time so that students would sit in fewer hours of class daily and
would not, she implied, go to school on Saturdays. (Note: The
minister suggested -- inaccurately -- that Saturday was not a school
day under the Soviet system and that students used to have only 6
hours of class per day as opposed to the current "7 to 8." End
Note.) Boucher asked whether the ministry intended to "modernize"
curricula, to which the minister responded that such changes would
come only to higher education; one of the new working groups would
comb the Internet for higher education curricula from other
countries and would use these to revise Turkmenistan's current
curricula. Boucher offered that post might provide a curriculum
expert and that other assistance might be provided with current
fiscal year funds, as long as post could reach an agreement with the
ministry on such a program by April. The minister dissembled,
saying that once the working group review was complete, the ministry
might approach the embassy "if there is a need." For secondary
school curricula, the minister volunteered -- in keeping with the
president's campaign and inauguration promises -- that physical
education would be reintroduced and that a new emphasis would be
placed on foreign languages. The minister stated that specialized
schools -- those which used to offer English before the state in
2006 mandated English in all schools -- would now also offer other
foreign languages, such as Turkish, Arabic, French and German
courses.


4. (U) Boucher offered that the United States was prepared and
willing to work in tandem with European Union efforts to assist the
host government's transition, especially in educational reform; the
minister, vaguely aware that the ministry had worked with the EU in
recent years, deferred to Bayramov, who said that the ministry had
been "working intensely" with the EU-TEMPUS program to provide
training programs and review higher education curricula. Boucher
tactfully noted that the ministry had a "broad task" ahead, given

the desire to implement major changes to the educational system
within eight months.

SOME ROOM TO MOVE ON INTERNET, EXCHANGES
--------------


5. (U) Shifting to a discussion of the Internet, Boucher noted that
post hoped to reopen three Internet Access and Training Program
(IATP) centers and the Turkmenbashy American Corner, which were all
closed in Spring 2006, and eventually to expand to additional
centers. (Note: The IATP sites at Ashgabat's National Library and
at semi-governmental counterparts in Dashoguz and Balkanabat, and
the Corner were all closed in May 2006 because of oblique government
pressure. While the IATP sites were slated to reopen in March with
new counterparts in Balkanabat and Ashgabat, post has had to wait
for explicit Ministry of Foreign Affairs approval to reopen the
Corner. End Note.) Annagylyjova stated that "all" of
Turkmenistan's institutes of higher education were connected to the
Internet, and that the libraries at the Agricultural Institute,
Turkmen-Turkish University and Turkmen State University were
completely wired for unfettered student access. Moreover, the
ministry had proposed to President Berdimuhammedov wiring
Turkmenistan's 71 youth palaces with Internet and establishing
related extracurricular activities at the centers, which also served
as community centers. The Charge offered that this was the first
time post had heard of such centers. (Note: Post is aware of at
least two such centers in Ashgabat -- holdovers from the Soviet
period -- but they were not well-advertised and post is skeptical
that they were focal points of the community as the minister seemed
to suggest. End Note.)


6. (U) Annagylyjova then described the ministry's cooperation with
the United Nations Development Program's Infotuk program. The
ministry had "just received notice to open" the 27 schools where
Infotuk had installed computer equipment several months ago. Charge
interjected that post wanted to re-introduce to the ministry the
opportunity for the Global Connections program (a program the
ministry initially promised to consider and accept but then rejected
outright, on the basis that Turkmenistan already had Infotuk and did
not need additional such programs). As Boucher explained, the
Global Connections program could be implemented in 20 schools
initially, to expand over time. Annagylyjova replied that Infotuk
would open in 27 schools "almost tomorrow" and that once this
rollout was complete, the ministry would be willing to discuss
Global Connections. Boucher asked how many schools Turkmenistan had
(2,000 secondary and 1,000 kindergarten) and observed that "there's
a lot of room" for expansion from the 27 schools currently involved
with Infotuk.


7. (U) Boucher related that President Berdimuhammedov had made
positive comments about international exchange programs and in
particular about the Future Leaders Exchange Program (FLEX). The
United States was prepared to put forth more slots for such exchange
programs or create such programs, but what kind of plans did the
Ministry have in this area? The minister referred to late President
Niyazov's approval of the FLEX program and to President
Berdimuhammedov's promises to expand exchanges, and disingenuously
claimed that the Ministry "worked closely with (Charge d'Affaires)
Jennifer Brush" on the FLEX program. The ministry eagerly awaited
the list of finalists for this year's competition in order to "do
its best to bid farewell and good luck" to the departing students.
The minister reiterated a ministry statement that the FLEX program
yielded concrete results -- namely, fluency in English -- for those
students who participated. Boucher agreed; the FLEX program was
unique because of the host family component and there was "no other
purpose" to the program than to provide exposure to the United
States and to learn about the world. Along these lines, did the
ministry have in mind any exchange programs of its own, funded
perhaps with revenue from the sale of oil and gas? The minister and
Bayramov referred to bilateral agreements between Turkmenistan and
China, India, Turkey, Romania, Yugoslavia, Ukraine and Malaysia
establishing student exchange programs that took Turkmenistan
students to those countries. Turkmenistan's government selected the
participants from its higher educational institutes according to the
student's academic record and the student's commitment to "widening
his outlook." The agreement granting Malaysia's Petronas the right
to work in Turkmenistan also stipulated that 50 percent of the

revenues coming to Turkmenistan under the mutual agreement would
fund a scholarship fund that took Turkmenistan students to Malaysia
annually for oil and gas and chemistry studies. Already 50 students
had graduated from the program and were working in Turkmenistan's
energy sector.


8. (U) Boucher said he understood that the Turkmenabat Pedagogical
Institute -- which he would visit on February 16 -- hosted students
from Afghanistan. Bayramov clarified that 30 Afghan students
annually attended the Institute for a year of preparatory Turkmen
language training, after which they could attend a vocational or
higher education institute anywhere in Turkmenistan, and take
advantage of local student benefits such as stipends and dormitory
privileges. Boucher commended such an effort, as the United States
had also emphasized educational development in Afghanistan, where
human capacity was severely underdeveloped. Annagylyjova,
meanwhile, had praised the Institute lavishly as the only
specialized teaching institute for secondary school teachers in
Turkmenistan, and the base of efforts to "enrich the world outlook"
of local youth. However, it was clear that the ministry was unaware
of Boucher's intended visit to the Institute and discussion soon
turned to assurances that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(representative Azat Niyazmuhammedov nodded, fatigued) would take
care of the logistics of the visit. In closing, Annagylyjova
breezily acknowledged that the ministry had much to do before
September, but that -- God willing -- it would happen.

COMMENT
--------------


9. (SBU) President Berdimuhammedov's first decree as president,
signed February 16 and given prominent coverage in all state media,
extended secondary schooling to 10 years and higher education to 5
years. The Medical Institute and some arts institutions will expand
to six years. Clearly, reform of the education system has become a
key component of the social contract in this new political stage.
And within educational reform, some reforms -- albeit still
superficial at this stage -- are proceeding apace while others have
shown no potential for movement, such as the need for curricular
reform of secondary schools.


10. (SBU) Post is convinced that, even though Minister Annagylyjova
was on her way out, her dismissal will not fix the ministry's
intransigence. Newly appointed Education Minister Saparliyev, for
example, took a year before he would agree to meet with Charge.
After Charge expressed her disappointment to MFA officials at
Saparliyev's re-appointment, they assured her that his interim year
as Ambassador to Armenia had been "life-transforming," and that she
would be impressed by the change. End Comment.

BRUSH