Myanmar / Indawgyi Lake

Sustainable regional development, participatory management of natural resources and empowerment of the civil society in rural areas through biosphere reserve development at Lake Indawgyi

Lake Indawgyi and its region in Northern Myanmar are the basis of life for approximately 50,000 people which makes it a wetland of international as well as biodiversity conservation importance. The population of Lake Indawgyi is heavily dependent on the region's natural resources. Also, through the political opening of the country the use of resources is changing which leads to an ever-greater degradation of forests, fish stocks and water.

From 2014-2016, the Succow Foundation, together with its partner Fauna and Flora International (FFI), carried out a project to nominate Lake Indawgyi as a biosphere reserve. Processes for participatory protected area management, sustainable land use and democratization of resource use were initiated. In 2017 Lake Indawgyi was recognized by UNESCO as a biosphere reserve.

From 2019-2023, the Succow Foundation, together with FFI and local civil society groups, further developed and mainstreamed these processes: natural forest management, fuelwood cultivation of native species and agroforestry have increased forest cover on 1,647 ha of degraded forest land in the buffer zone.

As rice cultivation is key to both the ecology of the lake and the livelihood of the local people, the project has supported rice farmers in converting to organic cultivation and in certification and value chain development. More than 300 rice farmers are now practicing organic farming.

The construction of 160 small-scale small wastwater treatment plants and village waste management were also supported. The measures reduce nutrient inputs into the lake and preserve habitats for water birds such as Sarus cranes and Asian gill-billed storks.

In order to add value through international tourism, we promoted community-based ecotourism, e.g. by developing a community lodge and training courses to professionalize local ecotourism groups.

Together with village fishery committees and the fisheries authority, we developed the participatory regulation of fisheries and continue to accompany their implementation process.

Throughout the project, the focus was on the development of local civil society organizations such as community forest associations, ecotourism groups and organic farming associations to develop strong partners in the management of the biosphere reserve.

This also proved particularly important after the military coup.