Bent Roads: Exploring the Impact of Development Projects in Two Communities in Myanmar

This report outlines the findings from community-based research on gravel extraction and road building in two villages in Win Yay Township, Dooplaya District, which is situated in the Karen National Union-controlled area of Myanmar. At a time when attention is focused on the State Administration Council (SAC) and conflict, this report highlights some of the intersecting challenges facing ethnic nationalities and Indigenous Peoples in Myanmar. In Myanmar, ‘development’ projects like this one have side-lined the voices of local communities, failed to provide meaningful benefits for the affected communities, often worsening the economic sustainability of community livelihoods, and recurrently come hand-in-hand with militarisation. The construction of the road leaves the communities more vulnerable to conflict, as the SAC historically and currently uses road construction to support its military incursions in Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) areas.