“Southeastern Myanmar” is taken to include the States and Regions adjacent to the Thai border, plus Bago Region (East). It is characterized by mostly mountainous terrain made up of the Shan Plateau, a highland region that merges into the Dawna and Tenasserim Yoma ranges forming the physical boundary with Thailand. The population of southeastern Myanmar is estimated to be approximately 11.5 million (2014 Census data), with a large majority of the population living in rural areas and pockets of urban areas in Shan (South), Bago (East), Mon, Kayin and Tanintharyi.

Myanmar's southeast has been the centre of a series of long-standing armed conflicts and, while it is now the centre of a number of ceasefire agreements, landmine incidents have been recorded in as many as 21 townships. Kayin and Bago are suspected to contain the heaviest landmine contamination and have the highest number of recorded victims.

According to the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology, southeastern Myanmar is somewhat protected from the most devastating natural hazards which are generally more likely to affect other parts of the country though three townships are considered to be flood-prone (Hpa-An and Hlaingbwe in Kayin, and Laihka in Shan-South).

Areas of Myanmar's southeast are also vulnerable to fire hazard, most notably Mon and Shan. While the other states are considered to be at low risk of fire hazard, the losses can still be significant and the financial value of property losses due to fire in Tanintharyi were, with Yangon, the highest in the country between 2000 and 2007. Major fires are generally caused by climatic conditions, use of flammable construction and household materials, as well as unplanned development and other social factors.