PROJECTS
EU Projects in Myanmar (Burma)
In response to the military coup on 1 February 2021, and aligning with the Council Conclusions from February 2021, the EU does not acknowledge the legitimacy of the military junta, as embodied by the State Administration Council. Consequently, there is no formal partnership between the EU and the de facto authorities in Myanmar.
Following this stance, in 2021, the EU suspended all activities that might be perceived as supporting or legitimising the military authorities. After a careful review of the development assistance portfolio, the EU, in consultation with its Member States, adopted a 'back to basics' approach. This approach is dedicated to supporting the most vulnerable communities in Myanmar by collaborating directly with civil society actors, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and international organisations.
Under four separate special measures between 2021 and 2024 and three annual action plans for the years 2025-2027, the EU has allocated a total of €318 million for its Myanmar initiatives.
The EU remains a leader among Development Partners, demonstrating a strong commitment to the country's development despite ongoing crises. EU assistance in Myanmar is strategically organised around three main sectoral priority areas: (1) Peace and Governance, (2) Education, and Human Development, (3) Sustainable Livelihoods and Green Growth.
Under the first priority area, the EU together with its partners on the ground use complementary approaches to support peace, strengthen good governance and implement the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) nexus.
For Education and Human Development priority, the EU through its networks has been focusing on ensuring access to quality, safe and equitable education, as well as access for youth vocational training and skills development.
In the area of Sustainable Livelihoods and Green Growth, the EU’s work in collaboration with trusted partners, is ranging from improving agriculture to growing small and medium enterprises, promoting responsible businesses and boosting exports, supporting economic development, tackling the challenges of climate change adaptation and access to green energy sources.
Although there are no Team Europe Initiatives as such, the EU and its Member States adopt a collaborative Team Europe approach to development and humanitarian efforts in Myanmar, aiming to enhance the impact and effectiveness of their actions. EU Member States actively involved in implementing projects in Myanmar include Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Sweden.
Actions & Projects
Financial instruments
The EU seeks to ensure coherence between actions supported by bilateral programmes and projects financed under thematic or regional instruments. These instruments often offer an opportunity to provide targeted support to thematic areas such as human rights, civil society, capacity building or environmental protection. They also provide the means to intervene in geographical areas where other initiatives would have difficulties operating, thereby allowing particularly vulnerable populations in conflict-affected areas to benefit from EU support. This complementarity also balances support to government services and support to non-government, complementary services, notably in ethnic controlled territories. The EU Delegation to Myanmar is closely working with the EU Delegation in Bangkok on projects dealing with the protracted situation of IDPs and refugees based in the Thai border, funded through the Aid to Uprooted People budget.
Operational context and methods of implementation
The EU assistance programme is being carried out in a highly complex environment of transition and reforms, marked by conflict in several ethnic areas as well as deep ethnic and religious tensions. Initially, much of the EU's development assistance in Myanmar was channelled and implemented through civil society organisations, NGOs and UN agencies, in collaboration with local partners wherever possible, using multi-donor trust funds and a project approach. As Myanmar continues to open up, the EU is increasingly working with larger scale programmes implemented by EU member states' agencies. The EU's relationship with Myanmar's authorities also evolves regarding the development cooperation modalities, increasingly considering instruments such as blending and working more and more through available systems and institutions within the country to ensure sustainability and effectiveness of aid provided.
In the light of progress with the political transition and the growing presence of other international donors, it is also crucial to ensure high quality and efficient delivery of aid programmes and projects. The EU will play a key role in addressing the challenge of donor complementarity – particularly between EU member states through a joint programming process – to ensure that the existing coordination architecture continues to provide effective aid management. The EU also supported the setting up of an effective Aid Information Management System (AIMS), replicated globally and recognised as the 1st ‘International Aid Transparency Initiative-native’.