The project aims to address the limited understanding of the linkage between investments, development, demographic change and the impact of climate change in the East West Economic Corridor (EWEC) in Lao PDR. The main objective of the project is to strengthen the local and institutional capacity for stimulating climate change resilient investment flows along the EWEC. This will be achieved through strengthened local and institutional capacity and knowledge for climate resilient urban development and infrastructure, and government and other actors’ ability enhanced to leverage public and private finance. Activities include assessing development conditions, settlements, and climate change perceptions, along with workshops to transfer climate change knowledge to government officials. The outcomes will inform strategies for coordinating public-private investments, assessing financial flows, and developing policy proposals.
Country Capacity Strengthened.
Strengthened local and institutional capacity and
knowledge for climate-resilient
urban development and infrastructure
Private sector mobilization.
Government and other actors’ ability to
leverage public and private finance
The EWEC in Lao PDR, which runs through Savannakhet Province, is characterized by increasing levels of investment and cross-border trade. As a result, the province is facing higher GDP growth rates and is urbanizing faster than the rest of the country. Concurrently, the EWEC towns are increasingly being impacted by hazards associated with climate change, with floods due to heavy rains and droughts being among the most prominent. Due to poor road access and lack of basic services and infrastructure, poor and vulnerable people in the EWEC are heavily impacted in the face of extreme weather events. Hence, as the country strives for resilience and climate adaptation by 2030, there is a crucial need to transform the Greater Mekong Subregion corridors into
resilient economic corridors.
