Dr Frank Rijsberman, Director General of Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), Mr Suriyan Vichitlekarn, Executive Director of Mekong Institute (MI) and Dr Prasun Kumar Das, Secretary General of Asia-Pacific Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (APRACA) signed an Institutional Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 9 May 2023 at the APRACA Secretariat, Bangkok, Thailand.  

The MoU aims to strengthen technical cooperation among the three organizations to support the development of a long-term partnership and provide a framework for cooperation among the organizations with the overall goal of enhancing the capacity of the institutions responsible for supporting the sustainability of the service deliveries to improve and achieve sustainability as per the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in the GMS countries.

The MoU envisaged a common platform for better access and exchange of information, knowledge, and expertise in the field of sustainability that can benefit the services that the GGGI, MI and APRACA provide to their members within the framework of their strategic objectives. The MoU also provided emphasis for the coherent action by the signing organizations in promoting human resources for improved services delivery, inclusive growth, and support climate-responsive economic development and biodiversity conservation.

Within the framework of this MoU, all the three organizations will bring in their expertise to help demystify critical questions on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) for sustainable transformation in the investment matrix by the national financial institutions. The MoU also focused on documenting and promoting global best practices in climate-smart agriculture; sustainable management of forestry, wetlands, and other natural resources; and collaborations with other resource agencies.