Project Description
The Ayeyarwady Integrated River Basin Management Project (AIRBMP), funded by a US$100 million World Bank credit, aimed to establish a foundation for sustainable water resources management in Myanmar. A key element of this effort was the State of the Basin Assessment (SOBA), a comprehensive technical study of the environmental, social, and economic conditions of the Ayeyarwady River Basin (ARB). SOBA served as the evidence base for future basin planning, identifying current trends, challenges, opportunities, and trade-offs across the basin. Six technical packages underpinned SOBA, each addressing a distinct thematic area. Package 5, delivered by ICEM in partnership with MMRD and CESD, focused on socio-economic aspects of the ARB.
Objectives, Activities, and Outcomes
The objective was to strengthen the baseline understanding of demographic, sectoral, and macroeconomic trends in the ARB. The team conducted three main assessments: (1) demographic trends to identify population dynamics and implications for natural resource use; (2) sectoral development, analyzing key economic sectors such as agriculture, industry, and services; and (3) macroeconomic analysis to assess how ARB development affects national economic trends. This human-focused analysis complemented the natural systems data collected by other teams and provided vital insights to inform integrated river basin planning and sustainable economic development strategies in Myanmar.
Links
State of Basin Assessment (findings)
State of Basin Assessment (Sectoral Development and Macroeconomics)
