Event Reports

By ASIAN CONFLUENCE

 

 

 

Myanmar and India share a long geographical border and a shared heritage. Connected through land, the North Eastern states of India and the North Western states of Myanmar are the global hotspot in terms of natural resources and strategic relevance. The Brahmaputra river is the symbol of the lives and people of the North Eastern states of India and the Ayeyarwady river largely shapes the culture and livelihood for the people of Myanmar. Both regions are primarily agrarian economies, having immense biodiversity, natural beauty, rich cultural heritage, and ample water resources. Connectivity projects are also being implemented such as India-Myanmar Thailand Trilateral Highway, Kaladan multimodal transit transport project, irrigation, electricity development, health, education, and many other socio-economic projects. While Myanmar acts as a land bridge between India and Southeast and East Asia, we often miss the people living below the bridges, particularly in the border areas.

In view of the above, the Asian Confluence (ASCON) in collaboration with the ASEAN-India Centre (AIC) at RIS and Mandalay Forum for East Asian Studies organised the first ever Brahmaputra-Ayeyarwady Dialogue on 4 September 2020 through video-conference. This Dialogue has reviewed the current phase of the bilateral relations in general and relations between India’s North Eastern states and Myanmar in particular. The Dialogue has covered many cross-cutting issues in order to realize the true potential of bilateral cooperation in engendering and generating livelihood, promoting social development, improving agriculture and the farm sector, boosting tourism, health and educational exchanges, and developing better policies for water management, with a vision of prosperity and livelihood of communities at the border zones. This Dialogue has attempted to make an assessment of opportunities and challenges on current agenda of collaboration, bring together a renewed narrative of cooperation post-COVID era, connect academics and policy makers and to brainstorm and ideate on the different institutional mechanisms required.

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