Mekong Leadership Program and Capacity Building Activities (Mekong LEAD and Mekong BUILD)

Human Resources Development (HRD) is among the top priorities of the Mekong-ROK Cooperation framework. During the 2nd Mekong-ROK Summit on 13 November 2020, Leaders of the six member countries highlighted “the value of HRD in building skilled labour force and achieving co-prosperity in the region”, focusing on development of human capital in the strategic areas. Despite the strong and active interest in the Mekong-ROK HRD endeavors, regional cooperation and activities have been difficult, given the multisectoral nature and the lack of an innovative HRD strategic approach. The Mekong-ROK Leadership Program and Capacity Building Activities (the Mekong LEAD and Mekong BUILD) aim at addressing the uneven distribution of knowledge and capacity among countries and building trust and confidence in the added-value of region-wide cooperative actions. Mekong LEAD and Mekong BUILD provide an opportunity for greater use of country-to-country knowledge sharing and capacity building using a mix of mechanisms, such as high-level, high-quality training, policy dialogues, technical exchanges and joint studies. While Mekong LEAD provides a platform for Mekong leadership’s engagements and interactions on the regional development issues, Mekong BUILD creates a solid foundation of research evidence to support Mekong LEAD, rendering research more relevant and closer to the policymaking process. Read more...