South-East Asia

Regional cooperation

Introduction

Luxembourg has continued its financing of the Mekong River Commission (MRC) in order to support, among other things, the production of an environmental adaptation strategy for the countries bordering the Mekong basi. Another sub-regional project that Luxembourg has continued to implement in 2019, in cooperation with Switzerland and Germany, was the Mekong Region Land Governance - Phase II project in support of good land management in the Mekong region.

The International Labour Office (ILO) has also continued to implement a project in three countries in the region (Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar) relating to the cornerstones of social protection. The project aimed to expand social security systems in the region, with the ultimate goal of achieving universal health coverage in these three countries. In 2019, midway through the project, at the close of the project, a regional association was created to consolidate cooperation between the participating countries and to build capacity among local operators.

Together with other partners, Luxembourg supports a global programme implemented by the WHO which aims to support the establishment of universal health coverage by 2025, by providing technical support for the implementation of the national strategy to reform the health sector in Laos (EU-Luxembourg-Ireland-WHO Universal Health Coverage Partnership).

In South-East Asia, Luxembourg has also continued its support for the promotion of inclusive finance. Thus, the Luxembourgish NGO ADA (Appui au développement autonome) is supporting the Lao microfinance association (MFA), and the transformation of village banks into formal microfinance institutions. In addition, through the mechanism for responsible inclusive finance (RIFF-SEA), the Social Performance Task Force (SPTF) runs training courses in social performance management and co-finances projects enabling microfinance institutions (MFIs) to improve their social performance, and find a good balance with commercial viability. Finally, since 2019 the ATTF/House of Training (HoT) has been offering training in finance to finance sector professionals in Laos.

Highlighted project

Since April 2014, the Mekong Region Land Governance (MRLG) project has aimed to improve the land security of small-scale farmers in the Mekong region by contributing to the design and implementation of appropriate land policies and practices. It responds to national priorities in terms of poverty reduction, increasing economic development and supporting small-scale farmers, so that they can be secure and take sound decisions about land use and management. On the basis of the success of phase I, where partnerships were put in place, the current phase of the project remains focused on land governance issues in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, but is also evolving towards support for strategic ownership by those engaged in reform in the processes of producing national, sub-national and regional policies.

Priority areas of intervention

Reduced inequalities
Peace, justice and strong institutions
Partnerships

Key achievements 2019

Support for the use and sound management of land in the Mekong region via the Mekong Region Land Governance – Phase II project in cooperation with Switzerland and Germany
Support for an environmental adaptation strategy for countries bordering the Mekong basin
Partnership with the ILO in the area of regional social security, including in Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam
WHO global programme to support universal health coverage by 2025
Support from Luxembourg in terms of inclusive finance through the Luxembourg NGO ADA, RIFF-SEA and ATTF / House of Training