In the Greater Mekong Subregion, freight transport plays a crucial role in the expansion of trade and economic development.

Greater Mekong Subregion countries need to strengthen the resilience of their natural and human systems to safeguard the region’s natural wealth and development gains in the face of climate change challenges.

The Greater Mekong Subregion is one of the world's fastest growing regions. However, the rapid pace of economic development, and reliance on natural resources, has been accompanied by considerable environmental damage. 

This edition of the GMS e-Updates features milestones achieved at the 5th GMS Summit, 4th Environment Ministers’ Meeting, sector updates on agriculture, energy, environment, human resource development, tourism, transport and trade facilitation, and urban development.
GMS e-Updates provides information about key activities and major developments in the GMS as the six countries sharing the Mekong River strive to accelerate the region’s development.
In this issue:

Board Information Paper on the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Economic Cooperation Program, Fifth GMS Summit, Bangkok, Thailand, 19-20 December 2014.

This publication examines the Phnom Penh Plan’s contributions to capacity building in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), the many valuable lessons learned on the way, and the challenges ahead.

The Development Partners’ Assistance Matrix for the GMS Economic Cooperation Program is an inventory of development partners’ ongoing and planned subregional projects in the GMS.

This assessment indicates a mixed performance for the Transport Sector Strategy Study, 2006-2015 based on an assessment of the overarching goals upon which the study was based.

The Regional Investment Framework Implementation Plan, 2014-2018 identified a pipeline of 93 high-priority projects from among the more than 200 projects included in the Greater Mekong Subregion Regional Investment Framework, 2013-2022.

This progress report to the GMS Leaders provides a summary of key achievements under the GMS Economic Cooperation Program since the last GMS Summit in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar on 20 December 2011.