Final Report - Idea Exchange: Local Governance in Myanmar

Cover Page, Idea Exchange: Local Governance in Myanmar Final Report

Charles David Crumpton and Phone Pyae Soe report on a covening by the Myanmar Advocacy Research Group that included a review of current evidence on the circumstances surrounding local governance and practical local experience, with participants reviewing the meaning and implications of this evidence.

On 30-31 July 2024, the Myanmar Advocacy Research Group (MARG) conducted an in-person and virtual event at Chiang Mai University Uniserv’s Green Nimman Residence facility in Chiang Mai, Thailand. With a total of 118 registrants and 79 attendees (41 in-person, 38 virtual; see Appendix A for a description of in-person participants in terms of gender identity, organizational affiliation and ethnic identity), the level of participation far exceeded IDRC and MARG’s anticipated participation of 30 in-person and virtual participants. This reflects MARG’s assessment of extensive domestic and international interest in the subject matter of the current and future state of local governance in Myanmar among practitioners, activists, researchers, funders, and educators.

The two-day event included a review of current evidence on the subnational contextual circumstances surrounding local governance and practical local experience in four states and regions and a deliberative process among participants to review the meaning and implications of this evidence. The first day of the event focused on evidence presented by local researchers and practitioners from Karen State, Karenni State, Sagaing Region, and Tanintharyi Region. The second day featured the deliberative process facilitated by members of the MARG team.