Consultation in Nga Yoke Kaung Bay – An Effort to Be a Good Neighbor

Effective consultation prior to the implementation of projects enables companies to establish a foundation for building strong, constructive, and responsive relationships that are essential for the successful management of a project’s environmental and social impact.

Sometimes good, friendly neighbors are hard to come by and a good neighbor goes along way. A good neighbor is considerate, notices who and what is around you, takes the time to talk and reach out to connect. Most importantly, good neighbors are respectful and help each other.

Based on the values of what define a good neighbor, MPRL E&P and its CSR Department along with community based volunteers from Mann field, traveled to Nga Yoke Kaung Bay, along the west coast of Myanmar, to introduce themselves as ‘new neighbors’ to the area.

There are not many companies that are comfortable or confident to conduct consultation on their own let alone before the commencement of an ESIA. The consultation with Nga Yoke Kaung was challenging yet rewarding primarily because two community based volunteers traveled from Magwe to the coast for the first time.

These volunteers were able to stand up in front of strangers in a territory they were unfamiliar with and provided their opinions on MPRL E&P including the many challenges and successes they’ve had working alongside the company as representatives of their community.

Focusing on similarities showed that we intend to be good neighbors because we were considerate, took the time to connect, and respected the community’s opinions and environment.