MYANMAR: A CGIAR COVID-19 HUB FOCUS COUNTRY

Myanmar’s economy was one of the fastest-growing national economies from 2015 to 2018[1], yet this growth halted in 2020. Measures undertaken to contain the spread of COVID-19 have caused significant disruptions in the food, land, and water systems in Myanmar, posing severe risks to food, nutrition, and water security, local businesses, and national economies^[2]. Farmers have been forced to adopt risky and unsustainable coping mechanisms to buffer the COVID-19 shock.

Leveraging the significant resources CGIAR has within target countries, researchers working through the CGIAR COVID-19 Hub are engaging with governments and other national partners in Myanmar and elsewhere to respond to country demands for innovative and evidence-based solutions for emergency response and recovery.

CGIAR COVID-19 Hub research priorities:

• Topic 1: What are the impacts of COVID-19 on access and use of groundwater and surface water resources for agri-food value chains? Which actors in the value chain are affected, and what factors shape their exposure to disruptions caused by COVID-19? What are viable adaptive strategies of value chain stakeholders to cope with COVID-19 and build resilience in the short-, medium-, and long-term?

• Topic 2: In what ways does intersectionality influence how women and men from different social groupings experience the pandemic’s impacts on food and nutrition security and opportunities to support socially inclusive adaptation and recovery? What are the implications of COVID-19 shocks on food and nutrition security, income, and health at the individual, household, and community scales? What structural factors underpin these impacts, and how can the barriers be addressed to better serve those individuals, households and groups most affected by the pandemic?

Expected research outputs:

• A survey data set on impacts of COVID-19 on inland aquaculture and fisheries value chains in Myanmar;
• A working paper on the impacts of COVID-19 on agri-food value chains and options to build sustainable and resilient value chains response to COVID-19 short-term and long-term shocks;
• Gender- and socially-disaggregated data providing a nuanced understanding of how women and men belonging to different social groups have experienced COVID-19 in terms of food production systems, value chains, and food and nutrition security;
• A technical report providing an overview of different groups of women and men and implications of COVID-19 on these different groups, structural barriers, and options for adaptation, recovery and building resilience; and
• A communication product (a short synthesis report) updating the CGIAR COVID-19 hub activities in Myanmar and policy options to build recovery and resilience food, land, and water value chains and systems in Myanmar.

Learn more about CGIAR COVID-19 Hub work in Myanmar.

Learn more about CGIAR COVID-19 Hub work in other focus countries:

• Bangladesh
• Ethiopia
• Malawi
• Nigeria

[1] https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.CD?locations=MM

[2] Boughton, D., Goeb, J., Lambrecht, I., Headey, D., Takeshima, H., Mahrt, K., Masias, I., Goudet, S., Ragasa, C., Maredia, M.K., Minten, B., Diao, X., 2021. Impacts of COVID-19 on agricultural production and food systems in late transforming Southeast Asia: The case of Myanmar. Agricultural Systems 188.