Research

The Mekong River is a common good... Fair sharing of this resource promotes peace and development. Since 2003, AFD has supported the Mekong River Commission (MRC), a unique cooperation area for the Basin countries.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) Group have been prolific partners for over 20 years. We cofinanced over 70 projects amounting to $13.8 billion. Since our first cofinancing initiative in Viet Nam...

Semestrial Panoramas are special issues of the MacroDev series written by AFD analysts; They present a synthesis of macronomic et socioeconomic analyses of emerging and developing countries. In addition to short, country-focused articles, a thematic section sheds light on broader economic and...

It’s a story of hardship, desperate poverty – and escape. Khim Mae Soe’s journey from Myanmar to Thailand casts into sharp relief the travails of those trying to build a better life abroad. To mark International Migrants Day on 18 December, Khin Mae Soe tells us her story. If a years-long...

A large, predominantly rural territory rich in natural resources, Myanmar (formerly Burma) enjoys a strategic geographical position between the Indian subcontinent, China and Southeast Asia. Since 2011, the country has initiated a fragile process of democratic transition and is witnessing...

AFD Group’s regional strategy for Southeast Asia aligns with the priorities of French development policy defined by the Interministerial Committee on International Cooperation and Development (CICID), and with France’s vision of the Indo-Pacific, in the context of implementing the Sustainable...

In the Burmese capital of Yangon, poor neighborhoods are extremely vulnerable to communicable diseases such as Covid-19. Not only is “social distancing” impossible for those who live in overcrowded areas. They have limited or no access to high-quality health or hygiene facilities.

A comparative analysis of agroecology network led to a classification based on their conditions of emergence, their structure and governance mechanisms. The study points the strengths and weaknesses of the existing networks at the different scales. It shows that the different agroecology schools...

The Irrawaddy dolphin has seen its population plummet by half in the last 60 years. This species is classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.  The objective of this project, implemented by the NGO Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), is to preserve the dolphins...

The relationship between the European Union and AFD Group is particularly strong in Southeast Asia, taking the form of an ongoing dialogue on strategic aspects and sectoral priorities, in line with our respective priorities in response to country needs...

The Boulangerie Française offers trainings in bakery jobs, which facilitates the integration of disadvantaged young people into the labour market and improves their living conditions. Meeting with May Myat Thy, a bakery student at the training centre in Yangon, Myanmar. This project is...

Whether it’s olive oil from Tuscany, palm sugar from Cambodia, or berry juice from Thailand, certain goods are inherently connected to their places of origin – their “geographical indications,” as they’re officially known. Between 2014 and 2017, AFD supported a regional project for geographical...

Based in Yangon, AFD's Myanmar office is attached to the Southeast Asia Regional Division.

AFD and the The French Facility for Global Environment are supporting a new program launched by NGO the Wildlife Conservation Society and aiming to strike a better balance between economic development and the preservation of biodiversity. The signing of a partnership agreement between AFD and...

This study looks at an emerging trend in which wealthy families, individuals, and corporations in Asia set up foundations to institutionalise their giving. This giving is motivated by a myriad of factors beyond prestige and status, including the desire to give back to society, religion, family...

AFD’s field of intervention in Southeast Asia covers seven ASEAN member countries: we’ve had a long-standing presence in Cambodia, Laos and...

Myanmar’s National Health Laboratory (NHL) began life as l’Institut Pasteur in 1903. Like many other Burmese health facilities, it has become run down and lacks the appropriate infrastructure to perform essential duties.

Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, life has become even harder for many migrants. Not least in Southeast Asia, where people fleeing Myanmar have found a less than a warm welcome in neighboring countries. We catch up with a Burmese woman who is struggling to provide for her family in...

The Mekong River is a common good and its fairly-shared management can be a source of peace and development. This delta is one the biggest water reservoirs in the world along with Amazonia. 80 million people directly or indirectly rely on this delta for their living. The Mekong’s efficient...

How do accelerating environmental changes impact inequalities and how do rising inequalities affect in reverse environmental dynamics? This paper is built on a systematic mapping (2019-2021) studying the relationship between those two crucial aspects in five Mekong Countries: Cambodia, Laos,...