Myanmar

Geographically, Myanmar is one of the largest countries in South-East Asia.

Its ethnically diverse population is estimated to be around 54 million. The agricultural sector, including livestock and fisheries, is still considered to be the backbone of the economy, and almost half the labour force is engaged in agriculture for their livelihood.

Myanmar is also one of the poorest nations in the world and is the poorest country in Southeast Asia. It ranks 144th among 193 nations rated in the 2023 Human Development Report of the United Nations Development Programme. 32% of people live in poverty with a further 30% described as “economically insecure”. The incidence of poverty in rural areas is significantly higher than in urban areas, and rural areas lag behind in health, social and educational indicators.

COVID-19 and the military coup of early 2021, which brought increased conflict between some of the country’s ethnic groups and the regime, have led to increased poverty and displacement among rural people.

In addition to this, Myanmar is vulnerable to cyclones and flooding.

Our Partner

AID partners with the Church of the Province of Myanmar (CPM) to address these challenges, working together to implement programs aimed at improving access to Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) and improving livelihoods, including small business training and improved agricultural practices.

The church is very active in responding to people affected by conflict and natural disasters.

CPM consists of six dioceses and three mission dioceses, with the provincial office based in Yangon. The church population is estimated at over 60,000, from predominantly Karen, Kachin, and Chin ethnic groups.

The development and emergency response work of CPM is coordinated through the provincial development desk in Yangon, which aims “to build healthy and self-reliant communities and churches”.

AID is committed to supporting further capacity building within the Church and its development desk, ensuring staff members are fully equipped to meet various development challenges as they are presented.

The Work We Support

1. Clean Water and Food Security

ABM AID supports CPM to work closely with local communities, in mainly remote parts of the country, to access clean water and achieve food security*.

One such community that has been supported to gain greater access to clean water, is Homalin, on the Chindwin River in Sagaing Region.
People in Homalin have, with the support of CPM, built a well and water system that provides clean and safe water to 50 people from 22 households.

Guests attending diocesan office training and local community members also benefit from this water supply for showering, cooking, drinking, and cleaning. Participants now keep the well clean by adding a cover and using pipelines and a motorized pump to fill the water tank, eliminating the need to manually draw water.

Additional training was provided in hygiene and sanitation. Previously, people relied on primitive sanitation methods, such as digging holes in the ground. Now, they use toilets, regularly wash their hands, and understand the importance of building toilets at least 15 m away from wells. They also received education on gender issues, domestic violence, and gender equality.

One way to increase food security is to train people to develop viable livelihoods and provide them with small start-up capital.

A group of women in a village in Hpa-an Diocese (in Kayin State in Myanmar’s southeast) previously earned money by hiring out their labour to embroidery and weaving establishments, but now they are able to weave and sell their own products via their own small businesses, achieving self-sufficiency for their families. Despite having limited formal education, these women are now successfully operating their own hand-weaving businesses. And with financial management training, they have also learned to manage their income effectively. A later stage of this work will provide the group with small start-up capital to buy looms and materials.

Naw Pat K’law is 27 years old. She says, “I am a mother of two children, with a third on the way. Life has been a journey of perseverance, as I take on random jobs in embroidery and weaving to support my family. Though I have the skills and passion for this craft, I lack the capital to start my own business, which has limited my ability to provide more for my family.

“Despite these challenges, I am determined to create a better future. With the right support, I believe I can turn my dream into reality. If given the opportunity to start my own weaving business, I can produce more cloth and generate a higher income than I ever have before. This would not only improve my life but also allow me to contribute to my community by creating beautiful, handcrafted textiles.

“I am ready to embrace this new chapter with hope and hard work, knowing that with a little help, I can achieve much more than I ever thought possible”, she said.

In Pyay Diocese in Bago region, north of Yangon, men were trained in repairing motorcycles. Michael Khaing Htoo was one of them.

“Our village is very far from the city”, said Michael, “making transportation quite challenging. A passenger car typically travels from our village to Pyay City once a day to buy groceries, food, and other necessities. However, if one of the passengers misses the car, they have to wait until the next day.

“So, motorcycles are incredibly useful for our community, allowing us to travel anywhere and anytime. Unfortunately, when a motorcycle breaks down, we have always had to send it to a repair centre, which is expensive and far from our village. This is why motorcycle repair training is so valuable for our community and us. We need this training to repair our motorcycles and assist our community with our newly acquired expertise.

“My main work involves agriculture and husbandry. The Health Department has assigned me to vaccinate animals in our community, especially cows, pigs, and buffaloes. To do this, I rely heavily on my motorcycle to travel everywhere in the community. In the past, I used to worry a lot about my motorcycle breaking down during my travels. Now, thanks to the training I received, I no longer have to worry about that.

“I am immensely grateful to our trainer, to the Development Department of Pyay Diocese, and to ABM AID for this invaluable training”, Michael said.

2. Emergency Responses to People Displaced by Conflict and Disaster

Since early 2021, ABM AID has been supporting the urgent needs of people in Myanmar displaced by conflict and natural disasters through an ongoing emergency appeal. You can learn more about this appeal here.

How You Can Help

• $75 can provide training to a village in either child protection or gender awareness
• $100 can provide all the piping from a newly dug tube well to people in a village
• $150 can provide training for a community group in hygiene and sanitation as part of a WASH activity

You can contribute to this work to build sustainable livelihoods and provide access to clean, safe water for rural communities in Myanmar. Your support continues these transformative projects, creating hope, dignity, and opportunity for more remote families struggling with poverty to improve their own lives.

* having access to sufficient safe and nutritious food that meets dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. The World Bank.