LIFT held a meeting in Myitkyina on 30 November to respond to questions related to the call for proposals titled Nutrition and decent work programmes benefitting vulnerable households in IDP camps and host communities in Kachin and northern Shan States. More than 60 representatives from local and international organisations and township-level civil society organisations attended the meeting.

The question and answer session was conducted mostly in Myanmar language for the benefit of Myanmar organisations. The objective of the meeting was to introduce the LIFT’s programme in Kachin and northern Shan and the call for proposals launched on 13 November. LIFT published written responses to inquiries on 23 November. The meeting in Myitkyina was to clarify and respond to further questions and to reach local CSOs based in Kachin State.

In September 2018, LIFT conducted a scoping mission for the new programme and designed a programme framework with the overall objective of reducing poverty and vulnerability of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and host communities affected by conflict in Kachin State and northern Shan State. There are four components to the programme: 1) Nutrition; 2) Livelihoods and access to decent job opportunities; 3) Safe migration and anti-trafficking, and 4) Equitable and safe land access and tensure rights. The new programme is in line with LIFT’s Strategy (2014-2018), particularly in strengthening resilience and sustainable livelihoods of poor and vulnerable populations in Myanmar and is aligned with the four shifts in LIFT’s refreshed strategy (2019-2023).

There were 26 questions asked during the meeting and they are published here with the responses. The presentation delivered at the meeting is here.

Details of the call for proposals are at https://www.lift-fund.org/news/announcing-call-proposals-kachin-and-northern-shan-states. The deadline for proposals is 15 January 2019.