Myanmar: Third Greater Mekong Subregion Corridor Towns Development Project

Water and other urban infrastructure and services / Urban flood protection - Urban policy, institutional and capacity development - Urban sanitation - Urban sewerage - Urban solid waste management - Urban water supply

The objective of the Project is to strengthen competitiveness of the GMS economic corridors through investing in urban infrastructure in corridor towns. Local economic development in corridor towns will contribute to broader regional economy through increased traffic and trade along the GMS economic corridors. The proposed project will be the third phase of the GMS corridor towns development initiative. The first phase is being implemented in ten towns while the second phase is under preparation in seven towns in Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam. As Myanmar could not be included in the second phase, it was agreed that the third phase will focus only on Myanmar.

Chronic underinvestment in urban infrastructure has resulted in seriously deficient municipal services throughout Myanmar. The piped water supply systems in the project cities are fed by untreated water and serves only city centers. There is no reliable data available, but nonrevenue water likely account for over 50% in all of the three cities. The project cities do not have any form of central sewerage system. Households discharge domestic wastewater through septic tanks. Effluent from septic tanks infiltrates to groundwater, or ends up in roadside drains. The stormwater drains thereby function as open sewers. Solid waste management is inadequate, with limited collection services and poor final disposal. Uncollected waste is generally burned or dumped into roadside drains, which is causing environmental pollution and urban floods. Lack of urban infrastructure and limited capacity to manage municipal services seriously discourage external investments that are critical to socioeconomic development and growth.