Myanmar’s two iconic rivers, the Ayeyarwady and Thanlwin rivers, are invaluable sources of natural bio-diversity, cultural heritage, and livelihoods for the many riparian communities that depend on the rivers. As development pressures on these rivers increases, it is imperative that communities, civil society and government work together to better understand and protect the rivers as natural resources.
MIID’s Participatory River Management Project, funded by OXFAM, promotes dialogue and collaboration between multiple river-related stakeholders, with a specific focus on developing women’s participation and leadership. This project focuses on building a common understanding of changes and pressures on the rivers and creating an enabling environment for inclusion of communities’ voices in decisions made about natural resources in the Ayeyarwaddy and Thanlwin River basins.
Activities include capacity building for local government and communities on public participation, advising on sustainable use of the community’s natural resources, and multi-stakeholder regional conferences. The project works in tandem with another MIID project, the Myanmar Healthy River Initiative (MHRI).