ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with a sketch of the main features that distinguish rural from urban areas in Myanmar. It provides general living conditions in rural areas and the challenges faced by rural populations in different regions of the country. The chapter focuses on how rural residents use a variety of strategies to help them cope with multiple economic stresses. Myanmar's rural population includes people from a wide variety of ethnic, religious, and geographical backgrounds encompassing coastal, dry and arid, and mountainous environments. A number of persistent challenges continue to undermine the welfare of rural people. The challenges are: insufficient income; marked increase in the frequency and scale of natural disasters; the depletion of natural resources; and land tenure insecurity. Rural households use a variety of strategies to deal with man-made and natural disasters. Most take on multiple tasks during the agricultural off-season, while cutting expenditure on food, education for their children, and healthcare.
