Improving Public Participation in Myanmar's Energy Sector: Participatory Design for Power Generation Development

Hsu Myat Yadanar Thein

ผู้แต่ง

Hsu Myat Yadanar Thein School of Public Policy, Chiang Mai University

คำสำคัญ:

Power generation sector, Public policymaking, Policy implementation, Public participation, Participatory design, Energy planning and development, Myanmar

บทคัดย่อ

The power generation sector in Myanmar is facing public resistance, partly due to a lack of meaningful and inclusive public participation in this policy process. Public participation and meaningful policy deliberation are currently overlooked in the development of power generation projects. This study examines the issue by employing a qualitative research design, including documentary research and semi-structured interviews with key policy actors. The findings reveal three major categories of challenges, namely, institutional, perceptional, and capacity-related, that impede meaningful public participation in power generation projects. To address these challenges, the study proposes to redesign the project development process to integrate public inputs, drawing lessons from a participatory design approach.

เอกสารอ้างอิง

Bobbio, L. (2019). Designing effective public participation. Policy and Society, 38(1), 41–57. https://doi.org/10.1080/14494035.2018.1511193

Chaisomphob, T., Sa-Nguanmanasak, J., & Swangjang, K. (2004). Role of public participation in planning power plant projects in Thailand. https://ph02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/SciTechAsia/article/view/41685

Creighton, J. L. (2005b). The Public Participation Handbook: Making Better Decisions Through Citizen Involvement. John Wiley & Sons.

Fischer, F., Torgerson, D., Durnova, A., & Orsini, M. (2015). Introduction. In F. Fischer, D. Torgerson, A. Durnova, & M. Orsini (Eds.), Handbook of critical policy studies (pp. 1–26). Edward Elgar.

Fung, A. (2006). Varieties of participation in complex governance. Public Administration Review, 66(s1), 66–75. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6210.2006.00667.x

Fung, A. (2015). Putting the Public Back into Governance: The Challenges of Citizen Participation and Its Future. Public Administration Review, 75(4), 513–522. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.12361

Htwe, C. (2022). Spending on electricity tops budget for the first time. The Myanmar Times. Retrieved April 1, 2022, from https://www.mmtimes.com/news/spending-electricity-tops-budget-first-time.html

Jami, A. A. N., & Walsh, P. R. (2014). The role of public participation in identifying stakeholder synergies in wind power project development: The case study of Ontario, Canada. Renewable Energy, 68, 194–202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2014.02.004

Katsonis, M. (2019). Designing effective public engagement: The case study of Future Melbourne 2026. Policy Design and Practice, 2(2), 215–228. https://doi.org/10.1080/25741292.2019.1621032

Kim, K. (2021). Civil Resistance in the Shadow of War: Explaining popular mobilization against dams in Myanmar. DIVA. https://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1540737&dswid=750

Kobayashi, Y., & Phoumin, H. (2019). Natural gas master plan for Myanmar. Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia. https://www.eria.org/research/natural-gas-master-plan-for-myanmar/

Macrotrends. (2022). Myanmar Population (1950–2022). Retrieved March 31, 2022, from https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/MMR/myanmar/population

Ministry of Electricity and Energy. (2015a). Myanmar National Electricity Master Plan.

Ministry of Electricity and Energy. (2015b). Myanmar National Electrification Plan.

Ministry of Electricity and Energy. (2020). Department’s quarterly report [Unpublished raw data], Department of Electric Power Planning.

Nabatchi, T., Ertinger, E., & Leighninger, M. (2015). The future of public participation: Better design, better laws, better systems. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 33(S1), S35–S44. https://doi.org/10.1002/crq.21142

Our World in Data. (2019). Per capita electricity consumption by source, Myanmar. Retrieved March 31, 2022, from https://ourworldindata.org/search?q=electricity+per+capital+consumption+in+ Myanmar

Simpson, A. (2013). Challenging hydropower development in Myanmar (Burma): Cross-border activism under a regime in transition. The Pacific Review, 26(2), 129–152. https://doi.org/10.1080/09512748.2012.759264

Thin, N. K. C. C., & Chann, Y. (2020). Engaging the public in the Tanintharyi region: Policy options for better engagement. International Development Research Centre. https://idl-bnc-idrc.dspacedirect.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/a30a17f2-e85f-4596-880e-ec6a3951c6eb/content