Written by Mekong Institute
The two-day Round-table meeting marks the end of the Mekong Institute’s GMS Based Research Cycle. The GMS-Based Research Cycle is a 10-month program offered by Mekong Institute to participants from 6 GMS countries on an annual bass. This program invites young GMS researchers for training on a research methodology and provides a modest grant for implementing sub-regional research in their respective countries. The program is designed to provide young GMS researchers/ professionals the knowledge and skills to undertake research independently or in collaboration with GMS researchers. Its main purpose is to improve the participants’ competence on the key issues and concepts of the research process and the actual implementation of applied research.
In 2009 GMS-based Research Cycle, 22 young GMS researchers were involved in five sub-regional research projects. These projects are: (1) Credit Accessibility of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the Greater Mekong Sub-region: A Case Study of Manufacturing Sectors in Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam, (2) Trans-boundary Production n Agriculture: A Case Study of Maize Contract Farming in Cambodia and Lao PDR, (3) Rural Household’s Accessibility to Public Health Care in Cambodia, Myanmar and Thailand, (4) Impacts of Land and Forest Policies on Livelihood of Ethnic Minorities: A Case Study in the Uplands of Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, and Thailand, and (5) Labor Migration in East West Economic Corridor: A Case Study of Vietnam. All of the research projects were undertaken with financial support from New Zeland Agency for International Development.
The MIRAC Round-table meeting provides a platform for GMS researchers to share the results of their research projects. On this occasion, young researchers were given the opportunity to present their findings in a research forum, validate the research fndings with GMS stakeholders, obtain feedback and recommendations from experts, and discuss the utilization of research forum, validate the research findings with GMS stakeholders, obtain feedback and recommendations from programs. Several experts were invited to present an overview on the research topics in the context of the GMS. Discussants were likewise invited to provide feedback and suggestions on how to improve the research report.