At the subregional level, Luxembourg has been supporting the Mekong River Commission (MRC), based in Vientiane, since 2011. The MRC’s mandate is to ensure that the river and the basin’s natural resources are properly managed, to provide a favourable economic environment and socially just development, while protecting the environment. Currently, the support amounts to €1 million for the 2021-2025 period.
Another regional project in which Luxembourg has been involved since 2014, together with Germany and Switzerland, is the Mekong Region Land Governance (MRLG) project, currently in its third phase (2023-2025), to which Luxembourg contributes US$1.5 million. Through support for the development of laws and legal remedies, the MRLG project aims to provide small-scale farmers, especially those from ethnic minorities, with sustainable and equitable access to and control over their agricultural and forest lands. The project thus contributes to improved policies and practices implemented in Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam, supported by regional platforms.
In 2013, Luxembourg Development Cooperation co-founded the Universe Health Coverage Partnership (UHCP), and is one of the nine donors to the body. The UHCP’s secretariat is hosted by the WHO. The UHCP’s aim is to support beneficiary countries to achieve universal health coverage, i.e. access to high-quality health services that are affordable for all.
Since 2017, Luxembourg has also supported the promotion of inclusive finance. Thus, through the Responsible Inclusive Finance Facility (RIFF-SEA), the Social Performance Task Force (SPTF) continues to support microfinance institutions in Laos, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam in managing their social and environmental performance. RIFF-SEA offers co-financing and training in social performance management, with the aim of raising awareness among regulators, investors and microfinance institutions to ensure that financial services in the region protect and benefit low-income clients.
In Myanmar, in view of the ongoing political crisis, support for multilateral humanitarian projects continued in 2024. Thus, Luxembourg Development Cooperation is assisting the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to support Myanmar’s civil society in preventing human rights violations and strengthening accountability measures. Luxembourg is also positioning itself as a key partner in the programme entitled “Building Federal Democracy in Myanmar” (2023-2024), which seeks to establish a new constitutional framework in Myanmar, by establishing effective and accountable institutions and by promoting inclusive and participatory governance at all levels.