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Burma

EXAMPLES OF OUR IMPACT

• USAID has provided $75 million in disaster relief to communities affected by Cyclone Nargis.
• USAID provides basic medical care to Burmese IDPs, migrants, and refugees along the Thailand-Burma border.
• USAID provides scholarships and ongoing interim education to Burmese within Burma and refugees in Thailand to continue their studies.
  

USAID/ASIA SITE
www.usaid.gov/rdma

CONTACTS
General Development Office
Michael Stievater
Athenee Tower, 25th Floor,
63 Wireless Road
Lumpini, Patumwan
Bangkok, 10330 Thailand
Tel: (66-2) 257-3000
Fax: (66-2) 257-3099
E-mail: mstievater@usaid.gov

Officer in Charge
Nitin Madhav
Washington, DC
Tel: (202) 712-1307
Email: nmadhav@usaid.gov

This seven-year-old Burmese girl’s life was saved through a USAID-supported disease surveillance program. She had been infected with H5N1, a virus that kills more than 60 percent of its victims, and was successfully treated with Tamiflu by rapid-response teams that were checking her district after an outbreak of avian influenza. (Photo: World Health Organization)

Overview

The United States is committed to improving the welfare and well-being of the people in Burma.  To help achieve this goal, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) provides humanitarian assistance to people in Burma, internally displaced persons (IDPs), as well as migrants and refugees in 10 Thai provinces along the Thailand-Burma border.  USAID is also strengthening capacity of the Burmese people to lead and participate in their communities, and foster civil society development. The problems of human rights abuses, poverty, and limited education and health care in Burma are dire under the ruling military junta, which remained in power in 1990 after losing the multi-party elections.  The deteriorating social and economic conditions under the current regime, and the protracted armed conflict with ethnic minority groups, have driven many Burmese to relocate and search for better security and livelihood opportunities.  An estimated 500,000 people are displaced in eastern Burma.  About 150,000 Burmese refugees and up to 2 million migrants live in Thailand.

Programs

Investing In People: Health
Health programs along the Thailand-Burma border provide basic medical care to Burmese people living in eastern Burma and in refugee camps.   They emphasize preventative and curative health care and provide training and expertise to community-based health organizations and clinics providing quality primary health care.  USAID supports programs to combat avian influenza (AI), HIV/AIDS, and other infectious diseases in Burma.  To prevent outbreaks of AI, USAID supports technical assistance and training to develop and implement poultry and wild bird surveillance programs, strengthen laboratory capacity, and prepare and equip rapid response teams.  To mitigate the spread of HIV/AIDS in the country and throughout Southeast Asia, USAID focuses on HIV/AIDS prevention activities for at-risk people, behavioral research, condom marketing, care and support of people living with HIV/AIDS, and coordination with complementary programs in neighboring countries.  USAID is training health workers to treat multiple drug-resistant tuberculosis and prevent its spread.  It is monitoring the quality of antimalarial drugs and the effectiveness of these drugs to ensure that parasites’ resistance to combination therapies does not spread.

Investing In People: Education
USAID supports education programs for Burmese IDPs, migrants, and refugees in Thailand.  These include training and assistance to strengthen community-based organizations that provide primary education, literacy instruction, and special education in most refugee camps along the Thailand-Burma border.  Activities include teacher training, technical assistance, and curriculum development for Burmese community-based organizations.  USAID also funds a distance-education program for Burmese students who are denied education because of their political affiliation or background.  USAID supports training for English teachers working through civil-society organizations in Burma.

USAID supports activities that strengthen independent media and improve access to information and news about Burma. USAID also helps community-based organizations by training them to provide assistance to people in need.

Governing Justly and Democratically
USG assistance supports democracy, civil society, and humanitarian programs in Burma. These include human rights protection for displaced populations, providing individuals and civil society groups with the skills to advocate for improved governance and democratic practices.  USAID works to strengthen independent media, improve access to information, and build the capacity of Burmese journalists.

Humanitarian Assistance: Migrant Rights In Thailand
USAID provides social services and commodities, such as rice and cooking oil, for Burmese refugees and migrants in Thailand and IDPs in eastern Burma. USAID supports dialogue with the Government of Thailand and advocates for legal rights and services for Burmese migrants working in Thailand.

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