Food Security

Over 20% of Myanmar’s land is used for agriculture, accounts for nearly 40% of the country’s GDP and employs 70% of the workforce.

As Myanmar’s development progresses and her population grows, so will the need to meet the nutritional needs of her citizens. Awareness that it is no longer sufficient to provide simple calories through rice is increasing and the demand for more diverse food sources will only increase over time. Managing food security in a way that is both economically beneficial, equitable for stakeholders and environmentally sustainable is a critical challenge that needs to be addressed.

CESD partnered with Michigan State University (MSU) and the International Food Policy Research Institute to undertake the Food Security Project (FSP) conducted and funded by USAID and launched in 2015. The goal of the project was to provide evidence that would allow all stakeholders, namely the Myanmar government, to promote agricultural reform and rural development through economic growth. The 5 years long project examined a wide range of topics related to food security in Myanmar including the effects of increased mechanization, rising minimum wages, internal and international migration and the transformation of the aquaculture sector. Below is a selection of publications in Myanmar language. All publications from the project can be found here

• Prospects for the Myanmar Rubber Sector: An Analysis of the Viability of Smallholder Production…
  Published November, 2016
  Joanna van Asselt, Kyan Htoo, and Paul Dorosh. 2016. Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy Research Paper 35.
• Rural-Urban Migration around Yangon City, Myanmar
  Published December, 2016
  Research Highlights, Myanmar 5: Kyan Htoo and A Myint Zu. 2016.
• Rural Transformation in Central Myanmar: Results from the Rural Economy and Agriculture Dry Zone Community Survey
  Published July, 2017
  Ben Belton, Mateusz Filipski, Chaoran Hu, Aung Tun Oo, Aung Htun. 2017. Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy Research Paper 64.
• Pulse & Oilseed Traders in Central Myanmar: Value Chain Structure and Conduct
  Published December, 2018
  Ben Belton, David Mather, 2018. Pulse & Oilseed Traders in Central Myanmar: Value Chain Structure and Conduct. Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy Research Paper 118. East Lansing: Michigan State University.
• Rural Transformation in Southern Shan State: Results From the Community Component of the Shan Agriculture and Rural Economy Survey
  Published February, 2019
  Lambrecht, Belton, 2019. Rural Transformation in Southern Shan State: Results From Community Component of Shan Ag and Rural Economy Survey. Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy Research Paper 120. East Lansing, Michigan State University.