Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS)

Photo shows the participants of this year's regional training program together with the training team. Photo credit: ADB.

Honing Project Management Skills to Achieve Development Goals

Thirty-nine government officials and specialists joined this year’s Regional Training in Project Management organized by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Bangkok from 5 to 9 May. The training program is designed to support the Brunei Darussalam–Indonesia–Malaysia–Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA), Indonesia–Malaysia–Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT), and the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) in project planning and implementation. It fosters a results-based project management approach that aligns projects to sector strategies.

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Creating Climate-Ready Regional Health Systems

From 2015 to 2020, ADB pioneered a regional technical assistance project, funded by the Nordic Development Fund, to help countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion better understand the link between climate change and human health and explore ways to enhance health system capacities to respond to climate-induced health threats.

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Population Mobility Mapping

Tracking Human Mobility Dynamics to Inform Public Health Interventions in Cambodia and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic

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2nd Meeting of the GMS Energy Transition Task Force

The GMs Energy Transition Task Force (ETTF) met in Siem Reap on 4-5 December 2023 to discuss updates and plans related to its work streams, including trends, opportunities and related initiatives in the region.

The meeting agreed on these next steps for 2024.

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6th Meeting of the GMS Urban Development Working Group

The 6th Meeting of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Urban Development Working Group (UDWG) was held via web-based conferencing on 21 June 2023.

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52nd GMS Tourism Working Group Meeting (TWG-52)

The 52nd GMS Tourism Working Group Meeting (TWG-52) was held on 21 November 2023. It was attended by senior and mid-level officials representing the National Tourism Organizations (NTOs) of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) countries, Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office, development partners and organizations including the ASEAN Japan Centre, GMS Secretariat and private sector.

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Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand, and Viet Nam on Track toward Achieving Targets for International Foreign Arrivals in 2023

Cambodia recorded 4.4 million international tourist arrivals in the first 10 months of 2023, a 180% increase over the same period in 2022. Tourism Minister Sok Soken remarked that based on this figure, Cambodia is expected to receive approximately 5.4 million foreign visitors in 2023.

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ASEAN Accelerates Cross-border Payment Implementation

ASEAN member countries agreed to fast track the implementation of cross-border payments in ASEAN at the 43rd ASEAN Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia. This paves the way for ASEAN member countries to utilize local currencies when transacting in the region and promote regional payment connectivity. This move encourages the use of local currencies to support cross-border trade and investment in the ASEAN region.

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ASEAN Federation of Forwarders Associations Emphasizes Intra-bloc Logistics Connectivity

The ASEAN Federation of Forwarders Associations (AFFA) met on 2 December 2023 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, for their 33rd annual meeting, and discussed facilitation of goods transportation via inter-governmental cooperation in the region.

ASEAN countries have emphasized the development of logistics services, infrastructure, and trade facilitation measures, and promoting intra-bloc connectivity.

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Alternative Accommodations in Southeast Asia

This brief explores how bookings for alternative accommodations have soared in Southeast Asia and why stronger regulation can help maintain quality standards, increase tax revenue, and maximize local economic benefits.

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