Background and Rationale

The recent linkages in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) countries has not only increased economic cooperation among the countries, but has also highlighted that issues such as water, bio diversity, environment and development needs a regional approach rather than by individual countries. This means that decision makers and leaders both in the government, NGOs and industrial sector need to know about the region in this globalised world. The current education, training and research approaches in the context of human resource development are largely confined to country based studies. Thus, there is a need for a regional approach in dealing with development issues in GMS. Moreover, lack of human resources in many of the GMS countries do not allow many talented mid-career people, both in the government and NGOs, to obtain long-term education leave to upgrade their knowledge in order to respond to emerging challenges in the region. There is, therefore, an urgent need to provide flexible and contextualized program to this important group of future leaders. With ASEAN countries coming up as a more united body, it is more urgent than ever to develop capacity in GMS region.

Utilizing the extensive research, teaching and outreach experience it has in GMS, Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) has embarked on a Certificate leading to Master’s Degree in GMS Development Studies (GMS-DS) program. This is a series of modular courses that will allow maximum flexibility to mid-career officers and scholars to improve their knowledge and skills for problem solving in the GMS. This could also be useful to students in the leading institutions in the GMS. All courses are offered by faculty members at AIT who have long been engaged in research, teaching and outreach activities in the region.

Characteristics of GMS Development Studies
This program will have the following characteristics:
1. Modular approach

The whole program will consist of a series of one-credit modules in parallel and in sequence. One module will consists of 8 days of teaching (2 hours each day) – total 15 hours of lecture (1 credit).

2. Development practice and solution orientation in GMS

The major difference that GMS Development Studies has from other existing courses is in its practice and solution focus and its geographical focus, especially issues entailing cross-border and regional approached.
 
3. Accumulation of credit to lead to master’s degree

Each module will enable participants to gain credit from AIT. This can be accumulated so that the participants can utilize the credit earned through this program as a credit for master’s degree at AIT, if they later decide to pursue a post graduate degree.

4. Geographical flexibility

AIT serves as a secretariat for Greater Mekong Subregion Academic Research Network (GMSARN), which is a network of thirteen academic institutions in GMS. The course concepts have been discussed in this network in several occasions, and in the future, the courses are planned to be offered jointly with these member institutions.

Courses and Curriculum
The following courses have already been developed and will be offered from 2009. This program is scheduled for launch during June-July 2009 at AIT. One student is allowed take not more than nine credits at a time.
 • Energy resources, consumption and management in the Greater Mekong Sub-region
Rationale: Energy is crucial to the sustained growth of the GMS. This region continued to grow at an average rate of over 6% since 1992 and its economy stood at $1.4 trillion in 2007. Poverty has also declined significantly: in 2003, there were 30 million less people living under $1 per day compared to 1990 - in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand, and Viet Nam. In Guangxi and Yunnan provinces, poverty declined by 50% and 66% respectively in 2003-2004 compared to a decade earlier. Such rapid growth also brings with it rapid energy consumption that has risen at rates faster than the overall GDP.
The distribution of energy resources as well as the energy consumption in the GMS is uneven -  countries that have large demand for energy, such as Thailand and Viet Nam, do not have sufficient energy resources, while countries such as Lao PDR and Myanmar, have large potential energy supplies, in terms of hydropower and gas resources, but low economic activity. Energy consumption in GMS increased at 8%, and electricity consumption has risen at 9.5%. The average per capita electricity consumption in GMS is  870 kWh, but it varies significantly across countries. Sub-regional cooperation in energy among the GMS countries could help reap economic benefits through increased supply reliability, reduced reserve capacity requirements, and reduced system losses. Efforts at strengthening energy institutions through cooperation in data exchanges and training of energy professionals, are critical for the success of national rural electrification, and its strong anti-poverty dimensions. This course aims to present the GMS energy issues to its stakeholders so that a regional approach in managing and utilizing energy resources would be beneficial to the citizens of GMS.
Catalog Description: Energy resources in the GMS region, current energy consumption trends, accessibility of modern energy in the various sectors, rural electrification issues in the GMS, energy policies in the GMS countries, and sub regional cooperation possibilities to optimally use the energy resources.

• Water Governance in the Greater Mekong Sub-region
Rationale: Many waters, and not only the mighty Mekong River itself, are flowing through the Greater Mekong Sub-Region. Those waters affect in many ways the lives of the 300 million people living there, mostly through the provision of livelihoods, food and hydropower. This population and the countries of the GMS are facing many social, economic and environmental challenges in sharing, developing and managing water resources, and in delivering water services across the major river basins, as well as in the numerous sub-basins, watersheds, natural lakes, aquifers, wetlands, and human-built dams and reservoirs. In turn, urbanization and industrialization across the GMS are unmistakably strong trends, profoundly altering land and water uses, quality and quantity.
This course first provides basic generic elements for the understanding and analysis of water governance systems, i.e. the range of political, social, economic, legal, organizational, institutional and administrative systems that are in place to develop and manage water resources, and the delivery of water services, at different levels of society. The course also proposes an overview of water resources and water related activities and issues in the GMS. More specifically, it intends to provide insights onto water governance in the GMS. This course reviews the situation, practices, challenges and prospects of water governance at country level, and at transboundary / regional levels in the GMS. Specific sectors and issues are addressed and analyzed, namely irrigation, hydropower and dam construction, management of transboundary waters, water and environmental policies, the origin and management of conflicts, the role of information and the media in water governance, and challenges to improved governance. Overall, the course promotes a systemic perspective over water resources development and management, and the use of interactive participatory teaching approaches such as role-playing games, case studies, simulations and guided discussions.
Catalog Description: Governance systems classification and features; elements of institutional analysis; elements of water policy analysis; status and potential of water resources in the GMS; National legislations on water resources; transboundary waters and international governance systems; irrigation policy; hydropower generation development; dam construction; monitoring-evaluation and information systems for water governance; strategies and prospects towards improved governance in the GMS.

• Aquatic Resources Management and Aquaculture Development in the Greater Mekong Sub-region
Rationale: The food security of 70 million people living in the Mekong River Basin is based on rice and fish. The Mekong River stands third in the world as having the highest number of freshwater fish species and fourth in terms of tonnage caught. The freshwater capture fishery is one of the single most important economic activities in the basin. The average basin consumption of freshwater fish is 56 kg/person/year showing the importance of aquatic resources for people’s livelihood. However, these aquatic resources have been threatened by an array of human activities such as dam construction, expansion of navigation pathways, changes in hydraulic regimes and habitat destruction. This course reviews the status of aquatic resources in the GMS and its management approaches emphasizing holistic systems approach as a pre-requisite for the development of aquaculture and aquatic resource systems. It looks at key issues of sustainability of the aquatic resources in the GMS and both the positive and negative impact of human activities on the sustainable development aquatic resources in the region.
Catalog Description: Aquaculture and aquatic resource systems classification; status and potential of aquaculture and aquatic resource systems in the GMS; systems approach and system modeling for understanding resource poor livelihood systems; aquatic resources as an entry point for poverty alleviation and sustainable development; institutions and support services; strategies for promoting the sustainable development of aquaculture and aquatic resource systems in the GMS.

• Environment in the GMS Region: Core Issues and their Management
Rationale: Sub-regional economic cooperation and integration play a vital role in the future of Asia and the Pacific in helping to promote peace among nations, increase prosperity, and reduce poverty. The Greater Mekong Sub-regional development has been the driving force in bringing together the six countries that share the Mekong River namely Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam to become one of the world’s fastest growing sub-regions. However, this rapid economic growth imposed high pressure on the regional environment. This course focuses on highlighting the major environmental issues, its management and pollution mitigation approaches in the GMS region.
Catalog Description: GMS region, water pollution, wastewater pollution, air pollution and climate change, industrial pollution, biodiversity concerns, solid waste generation and management.
• People and their Development in the Greater Mekong Sub-region
Rationale: Despite relentless efforts by the state, business and the non-state actors in reducing poverty, still a large number of people in the GMS region are poor. This course aims at familiarizing the students on the current debate on poverty, efforts to reduce it and look for outlining changes in policies and practices.
Catalog Description: The course deals with the concepts of poverty analysis and poverty alleviation in South-east Asia, Sectoral Approach to reducing poverty in the GMS, Experience of poverty alleviation programmes and policies in Asia, Regional Development in the GMS, The Non-state Actors in Development in the GMS.

• Cross-border Migration in the Greater Mekong Sub-region
Rationale: Populations of the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) are increasingly mobile, and much of this mobility is internal to this sub-region. With the rapid integration of economic and transportation systems, including the creation of various economic corridors, mobility is bound to grow even more rapidly in the coming decade. This raises both important development and policy issues. With increased migration people can experience both important socio-economic benefits and become vulnerable to greater insecurities and exploitation, including the exploitation of migrant workers and increased smuggling and human trafficking. The lack of a comprehensive policy framework, the prohibitive cost of registration and documentation as well as defective or nonexistent protection mechanisms has encouraged flows of illegal migration, increasing the vulnerability of migrant populations. Female migrants in particular often face discriminatory treatment and potential sexual exploitation. As a majority of domestic workers, they are often denied protections by State agencies because labor laws do not apply or because law enforcement agencies are reluctant to interfere in the private sphere of one’s home. Institutional responses have been slow and their terms dominated by receiving countries. This course aims to examine mobility in the GMS, its impacts on migrants and receiving populations and the management responses and instruments this rapidly increasing mobility calls for in the GMS.
• Regional economic integration and the people in the Greater Mekong Sub-region

Rationale: In the past decades, GMS has move rapidly towards regional economic integration, through build-up of cross-border infrastructure as well as the facilitation of intra-regional trade. Such development has increased the movement of capital, goods and people across the border in the region. With the diversity in ethnicity and gender norms as well as disparity across the region, the benefit from regional economic integration can be experienced differently across different gender, class, ethnicity and age. This course discusses the regional economic integration policies and the effect of the policies to the people and their development in GMS. The policies and its effects are debated from a strong gender and equality perspective.
Catalog Description: Economic integration policies; Cross-border trade and people’s mobility; Economic integration, border development and diversity of people

• Sustainable Infrastructure Development in Greater Mekong Sub-region: Overview and Specific Applications
Rationale: In view of the importance of developing and managing infrastructure in the GMS, this course is designed to provide a graduate level understanding of the policies, programs and projects of various types of infrastructure in GMS countries. The main objectives of this course are: to strengthen theoretical knowledge on concepts of sustainable infrastructure development; to improve capability and capacity of mastering the knowledge through closing connection with case studies in GMS countries; and to improve students’ practical ability in developing and managing sustainable infrastructure in GMS. The conceptual, policy and practical aspects of the course seek to enable the students to contribute to improved planning and management of the infrastructure development in the GMS.
Catalog Description: Overview of infrastructure development in GMS, Specific sectors and applications of sustainable infrastructure development in GMS, Policy tools and management aspects for sustainable infrastructure development

• Sustainable infrastructure development in Greater Mekong Sub-region: Transportation development
Rationale: In view of the importance of developing and managing infrastructure in the GMS, this course is designed to provide a graduate level understanding of the policies, programs and projects of various types of infrastructure in GMS countries. The main objectives of this course are: to strengthen theoretical knowledge on infrastructure development issues; to improve capability and capacity of mastering the knowledge through closing connection with case studies in GMS countries; and to improve students’ practical ability in developing and managing infrastructure in GMS. The conceptual, policy and practical aspects of the course seek to enable the students to contribute to better planning and management of the infrastructure development in the GMS.
Catalog Description: Introduction and overview of transportation infrastructure development in GMS, Regional and national initiatives in GMS, Economic impact, Cross-border transport, Transportation management in GMS

• ICT for Development in the Greater Mekong Sub-region
Rationale: Effectively deploying and using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the GMS region depends on a broad range of technological, social, and governance issues that require a multidisciplinary approach. The main objective of this course is to provide students with an overview and understanding of the interrelation of ICT at the infrastructure, application, human capacity, and policy levels within the GMS region. The course relies on case studies in areas such as e-health, e-government, and resource management to demonstrate how each of these levels contributes to the effectiveness of ICT.
Catalog Description: Introduction and overview of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure, application, human capacity, and policy in the Greater Mekong Sub region (GMS).

Time Frame

Faculty Members of GMS

• Dr. Amararatne Yakupitiyage
• Prof. Chettiyappan Visvanathan
• Dr. Kyoko Kusakabe
• Dr. Mokbul Morshed Ahmad
• Dr. Paul Janecek
• Dr. Philippe Doneys
• Dr. Shinya Hanaoka
• Prof. S. Kumar
• Dr. Sylvain Roger Perret
• Dr. Vilas Nitivattananon
• Dr. Weerakorn Ongsakul
• Dr. Wenresti Gallardo

Certificate Program

Starting from 1st June 2009, Asian Institute of Technology is pleased to offer Certificate leading to Master’s degree Program on GMS Development Studies (GMS-DS). The courses are designed to cover focused problem areas in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS).

Currently, our courses cover 3 main topics which are
(1) Resources and their management in GMS
(2) People and their development in GMS
(3) Sustainable infrastructure development in GMS.

Development practitioners/ researchers from/ working in/interested in GMS, students in GMSARN member countries and regular students of AIT are welcomed to join our courses.

GMSARN Member

• Asian Institute of Technology
• Guangxi University
• Hanoi University of Technology
• Institute of Technology of Cambodia
• Khon Kaen University
• Kunming University of Science and Technology
• Mekong River Commission
• Nakon Phanom University
• National University of Laos
• Royal University of Phnom Penh
• Thammasat University
• Ubon Ratchathani University
• Yangon Technological University
• Yunnan University

Who can apply?

The courses can be taken either as a non-degree course or as a credit course to serve part of degree programs at AIT. There is no educational level requirement to enroll in the modules for non-degree participants. Non-degree students will attend the courses but do not take exams. They will receive certificate of completion of the course (but not credit).

For students who wish to take the course for credit with the aim of completing certificate or master’s degree will need to satisfy the normal entry requirement of AIT (please see http://www.ait.ac.th/admissions/rp  for entry requirement of AIT). They will take an exam, will receive a grade and credit for the course.

Cost of Study

Registration Fee                  20,000 Baht
Tuition Fee                         14,000 Baht / module

The following personal expenses should be added: a suggested subsistence allowance US$10/day, travel fee, accommodation at the AIT Conference Center at US$43 per night per room (Thai Baht 1,450 equivalent), with other choices like dormitories to choose from. Living outside campus is also possible.

For more information, please contact :
               
Kanokporn Jaroenrith,
Program Officer, GDS
Tel: +662-524-5672
Fax: +662-524-6166
Email : kanokporn@ait.ac.th

Contact Address :

GMS -Development Studies (GMS-DS)
Gender and Development Studies (GDS)
School of Environment, Resources and Development
Asian Institute of Technology
P.O. Box 4, Klong Luang
Pathumthani 12120, Thailand
Email: gms-ds@ait.ac.th
Website: http://www.gms-ds.ait.ac.th/