Weekly Business News from Myanmar

Myanmar’s avocado growers are suffering for poor prices on their crops due to the poor harvesting techniques and unsystematic picking of avocados
Avacado growers in Myanmar are suffering from poor prices for their crops due to poor harvesting techniques, says an industry representative. “Due to the unsystematic picking of avocados, the farmers don’t receive good prices when their crops are sold,” said U Myo Nyunt, deputy chair of Avocado Producers and Exporters Association. “Harvesting the avocados by hitting the branches of the trees, irregular fruit sizes due to different planting seasons different seeds used, and poor packing is leading to low prices,” U Myo Nyunt said. "The fruit sizes are not the same as they are grown naturally and some seeds are planted after they are eaten. The avocados that are sold are from different species and differ in quality, so the farmers cannot earn good prices. They are sold for industrial use instead," he said.
Due to the lack of technology and a strong market, coffee growers and producers are still facing the challenges despite Myanmar has more than 35,000 acres of coffee plantations which can produce 12,000 tons of coffee per yield
Myanmar has more than 35,000 acres of coffee plantations, most of which are grown in Shan State and Mandalay Region, according to coffee entrepreneurs. Those plantations can produce 12,000 tons of coffee per yield. Of them, 85 percent is Arabica, 14 percent Robusta and one percent other kinds of coffee. Although Myanmar has specialty coffee species, coffee growers and producers still face challenges due to the lack of technology and a strong market. A ceremony of public coffee cupping took place on March 14 in which tasters from Singapore, Hong Kong and Myanmar testing the quality of five samples of coffee seeds produced from Ywangan in Shan State.
Singapore listed energy and utilities firm, Sembcorp industries was opened USD $ 310 million worth the new Sembcrop Myingyan Independent Power Plant (IPP) in Myingyan to generate power for 5.3 million people needs
Singapore-listed energy and utilities firm Sembcorp Industries marked the official opening of the US$310 million Sembcorp Myingyan Independent Power Plant (IPP) in Myingyan, Mandalay on March 16. With a contracted capacity of 225 megawatts, the plant is one of the largest combined-cycle gas turbine plants in Myanmar. It is also the country’s most efficient power plant, featuring advanced technology to maximise power output and minimise greenhouse gas emissions. Sembcorp Myingyan Power Company began operations in October 2018 with the Ministry of Electricity and Energy (MOEE) providing 37 million standard cubic feet of natural gas per day to the plant from the Shwe Natural Gas Project. That will enable the plant to generate around 1,500 gigawatt hours of electricity per year, helping to meet the power needs of approximately 5.3 million people, said Neil McGregor, Group President and chief executive of Sembcorp.
Chin State Government signed four Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with private companies for the projects worth USD $ 54 million at the Chin State Investment Fair which was held in Yangon
The Chin State government signed four memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with private companies for projects totaling more than $54 million at an investment fair held at the weekend in Yangon, which aimed to stir up foreign investment interest in one of the poorest states of Myanmar. Among the four companies, the biggest project signed for was with Norway Power Co. Ltd. for a power project worth $50 million which will be the first foreign investment in the Chin State. According the director of the State’s Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA) U Min Zaw Oo, the government also signed MoUs with local companies for an agricultural goods production project worth $1 million with Chin Taung Yadanar Co., an urban housing project worth 3 billion kyats (nearly $2 million) with the Khumi Institute and a hotel project worth 2.4 billion kyats (nearly $1.6 million) with KL Amazing Co. Ltd.
The first stakeholders’ symposium for updating the National Export Strategy (NES) was held at UMFCCI to boost Myanmar’s Export performance in the global economy
The first stakeholders’ symposium for updating the National Export Strategy (NES) was held on 15th March at UMFCCI in Yangon with the attendance of Vice President U MyintSwe. The Symposium marks the start of an inclusive process that will result in the NES 2020-2025 later this year, aimed at boosting Myanmar’s Export performance in the global economy. The NES is originally designed by the Government in 2015. The public and private sector stakeholders collaborated at the symposium to discuss the current state of Myanmar’s export performance and key topics that the NES 2020-2025 will address. Chairman, UMFCCI, Zaw Min Win said “This symposium is a great platform for public and private stakeholders to discuss opportunities for Myanmar export development within the fast-paced transformation of the global economy. It’s also an occasion to look into current challenges relating to the performance of Myanmar’s export, including a strong export and policy framework to support growth.”
Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) approved seven investment proposals with over 1,100 job opportunities
The Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) meeting (4 / 2019) was convened at the meeting room of MIC in Yangon on 15th March 2019. U Thaung Tun, Chairman of MIC and 11 members attended the meeting. The meeting approved seven projects in production and sales of flower seeds from Japan, manufacturing and marketing of plastic mould and plastic accessories (spare parts) from Hong Kong, production and marketing of plastic product from Myanmar, Hotel Service from the People’s Republic of China, floating storage unit for storage of LPG as transit point from Singapore, education service from Myanmar and education services for hospitality and business management from Myanmar.
Under the guidelines of Ministry of Commerce, UMFCCI is striving to establish Digital Economy Association to boost digital economy including e-commerce sector in Myanmar
Plans are underway to establish Digital Economy Association in order to boost digital economy including e-commerce sector in Myanmar. To handle the problems of e-Commerce, to protect consumer rights and to support the local Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), the association will be established by Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFFCI) under the guidelines of Ministry of Commence. Central Executive Committee, UMFCCI, Dr. Tun Thura Thet said “To be successful e-Commerce sector in the country, we need our owned strategy that will be inclusive by supporting infrastructures, payment methods and technical systems to fulfill the gaps. If we apply e-Commerce sector effectively, our Country will lead to cashless society, our GDP will increase and the logistics sector will be advanced.”
Chin State Government invited local and foreign investors to study the investment opportunities in Chin State
Myanmar is intensifying efforts to draw investors to Chin State, which is the poorest region in the country. At a Yangon fair held over the weekend to promote business and investment opportunities in Chin, the state’s chief minister Salai Lian Luai said promising sectors included hotels and tourism, agriculture, mining, textiles, infrastructure as well as hydropower and wind power. Chin State remains among the least developed regions in Myanmar. To-date, there are only a handful of local hotel businesses operating and no foreign investments in the state. “The state government invites local and foreign investors to study the investment opportunities in the state. We will help them,” Salai Lian Luai said. Held to help potential investors understand both existing and untapped areas of investment in the region, the Chin State Investment and Product Fair was co-organised by the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC), Ministry of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations, Directorate of Investment and Company Administration, Chin State government, and Chin State Chambers of Commerce and Industry. The event was supported by UK-funded Dana Facility and law firm VDB Loi Company.
Tanintharyi fishing communities feel that their livelihoods have been hurt by the work on LNG fired power project involving Total and Siemens
Residents of coastal villages in Tanintharyi Region say their livelihoods have been hurt by work on an LNG-fired power project involving European companies Total and Siemens. FISHING COMMUNITIES in the coastal Kanbauk area of Yebyu Township, Tanintharyi Region say their livelihoods have been disrupted by work on a liquid natural gas power generation project involving two large European companies. The project involves building an offshore import terminal and a power plant with a capacity of 1,230 megawatts at Ohnbinkwin village, as well as a transmission line northwards to Bago Region, where the electricity will join Myanmar’s national grid. An existing underwater pipeline from the Yadana offshore gas field makes landfall at nearby Daminseik village, meeting an overland pipeline that continues on to Thailand. The Yadana field is operated by the French energy giant Total, which has partnered with German multinational Siemens to develop the LNG-fired power plant in Ohnbinkwin. The Kanbauk project is one of four unveiled by the Ministry of Electricity and Energy in January last year, when the companies involved were granted a “notice to proceed” at a ceremony in Nay Pyi Taw. These projects are part of an ambitious plan for universal electricity access in Myanmar by 2030.
Global World Insurance was started crop insurance for the first time in Myanmar since January 2018 as a pilot project and it’s passed over one year
The pilot project for the first ever crop Insurance is now enters for more than a year, and it covers about 300 acres from Ayeyarwady, Mandalay and Yangon now. According to the source, agricultural sector provides almost one-third of Myanmar’s GDP, representing one-fifth of the country’s exports to the international marketplaces. With the permission of Ministry of Planning and Finance, Global World Insurance started crop insurance for the first time in Myanmar since January 2018 as a pilot project. The insurance aims to help farmers by covering damages to crops as a result of erratic weather conditions in Myanmar and it covers only paddy for now, Global World Insurance said. Crop Insurance is yield base design. GWI added the premium rate for 1 acre is 5000 kyats per year, based on the market price of paddy. But the premium rate may vary depending on crop varieties, growing season and regions, GWI said.