The Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) is facing increasingly complex and interconnected development challenges driven by climate change, resource pressures, rapid economic integration, and evolving geopolitical and financing landscapes. In addition to climate-induced floods and droughts, the region is increasingly affected by transboundary environmental challenges such as heavy metal contamination in shared river systems, degradation of water quality linked to mining and industrial activities, and seasonal transboundary haze and air pollution arising from land-use change and biomass burning. These challenges transcend national borders and directly affect public health, livelihoods, food systems, and ecosystems.

Traditional sector-by-sector development approaches have struggled to address these interconnected risks. Fragmented interventions often result in unintended trade-offs—for example, between economic growth and environmental or health outcomes—and limit the sustainability of results. In response, integrated nexus approaches, including Water–Energy–Food (WEF), Water–Climate–Health, and rural–urban linkages, have gained recognition as effective frameworks for reducing trade-offs, enhancing synergies, and strengthening climate resilience.

However, the effectiveness and scalability of nexus solutions depend heavily on partnership models that can mobilize and align the comparative advantages of diverse actors. Governments, the private sector, communities, academia, and development partners each bring distinct strengths, yet collaboration across these groups in the Mekong region remains uneven and often project-bound. As Official Development Assistance (ODA) becomes more constrained and complex, there is a growing need to understand which partnership models work, under what conditions, and how they can be structured to deliver lasting, system-level impact.

These challenges align closely with UK policy priorities in the Mekong region, including climate resilience, transboundary water governance, nature-based solutions, and evidence-informed regional cooperation. As a Development Partner of the Mekong River Commission (MRC) and through regional programmes such as Climate Action for a Resilient Asia (CARA), the UK emphasizes integrated responses to climate risks, strengthened institutions, and partnerships that crowd-in expertise and resources.

The Mekong Institute (MI), as a regional intergovernmental organization and trusted convenor, is well positioned to support these shared objectives. Under its Strategic Plan 2026–2030, MI places strong emphasis on Sustainable Development through a Nexus Approach and Partnership, marking a shift toward integrated, programmatic, and partnership-driven solutions. With support from FCDO, MI proposes this focused research initiative to generate practical, policy-relevant insights that inform UK engagement and regional action.

To strengthen sustainable development and regional resilience in the Mekong region by identifying effective nexus approaches and partnership models that reduce trade-offs and enable coordinated action from 2026 to 2030.

Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) is a leading cause of childhood morbidity and mortality in the Mekong region. Thousands of children in Cambodia and Lao PDR—especially in rural and underserved communities—lack access to early diagnosis and life-saving interventions due to limited healthcare infrastructure and specialist capacity.

The Regional Public Health Laboratory (RPHL) Network was established to strengthen national laboratory systems across the Asia-Pacific region. Comprising 14 member countries and headquartered in Thailand, the Network promotes collaboration in laboratory systems strengthening, aiming to improve the timely detection of emerging pathogens and diagnostic services, in alignment with the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) and the International Health Regulations (IHR) core capacities. 

The RPHL Network and the Mekong Institute (MI) are implementing the GC7 Integrated Laboratory Systems Strengthening Regional Strategic Initiative, funded by The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, to enhance laboratory capacities in the Asia-Pacific from 2024 to 2026. This initiative has three main modules as components: (1) enhancing laboratory capabilities in member countries, (2) fostering regional knowledge-sharing for timely diagnostics, and (3) establishing a fully operational RPHL Network Secretariat for sustainable governance and collaboration. The RPHL Network leads Modules 1 and 2, while MI plays a central role as the fund overseer and implementer of Module 3. 

Supported by the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Youth (SOMY) and through ASEAN Youth Programme Fund (AYPF), the Youth Convergence is implemented by MI.