The knowledge and support technical assistance (TA) will support countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) in transforming the GMS Program into a more effective regional cooperation platform that adds value to member countries’ national development strategies and benefits the local populations of member countries.

Output 1: Coordination and decision-making mechanisms strengthened.
First, for GMS national secretariats, the TA will enhance the capacity of staff through (i) participation in short-term training courses, or specific task-based assignments; and (ii) provision of national consultants. Second, for WGFs, the TA will focus on (i) revising or preparing the work plans of some sector working groups; and (ii) supporting the organization of some WGFs’ meetings Third, the TA will continue to support the organization of the GMS Summit, the Economic Corridors Forum, and the GMS Ministerial Conference.

Output 2: Project identification, resource mobilization, and results monitoring mechanisms improved.
The TA will support the updating of the RIF. The RIF will provide initial information to support project identification at the country level. Spatial planning will help prioritize projects to be included in the RIF. The GMS central and national secretariats, and sector WGFs will regularly review and update the revised RIF to maintain its relevance and responsiveness as a planning tool for project identification, and in the alignment of regional and national programming

The TA will also support enhancements to (i) the GMS project database to allow the monitoring of both project progress and results, and (ii) the GMS website to support project monitoring and sharing of information. The GMS central and national secretariats will continue to support the organization of the governors’ forums, development partners’ meetings, and the regional investment forum to promote project identification and resource mobilization.

Output 3: Knowledge-based strategic planning enhanced
The TA will support the preparation of (i) sector and/or country and regional assessments to inform the preparation of sector strategies, country partnership strategies, and country operations business plans; (ii) promotional materials to disseminate GMS achievements; (iii) GMS statistical handbooks; (iv) corridor performance assessments; (v) thematic seminars that will contribute to more substantive discussions at the GMS Summit and Ministerial Conference; and (vi) studies that support the Governors’ Forum.

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF ADB

The Accountability Mechanism is an independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by an Asian Development Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Accountability Mechanism, they may investigate to assess whether the Asian Development Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can learn more about the Accountability Mechanism and how to file a complaint at: http://www.adb.org/site/accountability-mechanism/main