The next step is to train people in getting the patrol report data from the paper reports into the computers which have already been installed in the sites and at the HQ in Yangon. This will be done by use of another modular training course which will be translated (as was the first) into Burmese. There will also be training in approved elephant population survey techniques.

This will be the first time that standardized surveys will be done in Myanmar and it should be a challenging exercise simply because of the logistics. This is also the first time that such standardized teaching and data recording has been attempted over the global range of an endangered species.

While MIKE is specific to elephants, much of the training given is of immediate relevance to day-to-day duties of field conservation staff and goes some way to fulfilling the requirements of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) listed competencies for conservation staff, which is also the first opportunity of its kind. Many participating countries see the MIKE programme as not only a way to improve their elephant management but also as a means of introducing standardization of field data collection for other conservation objectives.

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