For trade balance to be achieved, Vice President, U Myint Swe called for joint efforts with local entrepreneurs to implement effective export promotion and import regulation

Vice President U Myint Swe, Chairman of the Private Sector Development Committee, stressed the need to seek ways for promoting export and to import essential goods and raw materials for producing value-added goods for export market.
“It is needed to boost export of domestic goods and reduce import of foreign goods apart from essential products, including products which are important for the country’s health and education sectors and semi-finished goods,” said the Vice President at the 19th regular meeting between the Private Sector Development Committee and Myanmar entrepreneurs at the Republic of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI) office in Yangon yesterday.

“When we implement the trade promotion demanded by our country today, we need to effectively practice the export promotion and import regulation so that our country can see appropriate trade balance which can develop the economy,” he added.
The Vice President said that he believed that the country’s trade balance is likely to be better than the current situation through encouragements of local small-and-medium enterprises for import substitution and imports of goods under exact regulations.
In fiscal year 2017-2018, total foreign trade was US$ 33.52 billion out of which the private sector contributed US$27.24 billion or 81 per cent.

Trade value up to 10 August 2018 reached over US$ 13 billion and the value is over US$ 1.6 billion for the same period last year. The private sector contributed over US$ 11.1 billion which is 85.47 per cent of the total.
Since its formation, five works were designated and five work committees were formed to implement these works.
The Private Sector Development Committee coordinated and discussed the works of the five work committees in its bi-monthly meetings, and the committee’s seventh work coordinating meeting was held on 27 April.
To support the private sector development works, meetings with entrepreneurs were held since December 2016, where sector and group wise difficulties were resolved.

Up to July, 262 suggestions were made by traders and responses were sent to the relevant businesses.
In some matters yet to be concluded, the five work committees are arranging public-private dialogues between the relevant ministries and private businesses. To increase investment, the Union Government has been enforcing and relaxing laws, frameworks, rules, regulations, procedures and processes, according to the age and system.
The new Myanmar Companies Law went into force on 1st August. From August onwards, an electronic registry system and e-payment system for the on-line registration has been operating becoming steps for the e-government system.
The Vice President also urged the departments concerned to make efforts for granting permits through digital system. The private sector development committee was formed over one and a half years ago by the Office of the President on 24 October 2016 to effectively implement Private Sector Development Framework placing special emphasis towards private sector development as it is vital for the country’s economic development as well as socio-economic development of the people.

PSDC meetings were held once every two months in order to conduct the Private Sector Development Framework and seven such meetings have already been held.
Entry of illegal goods through the border is threatening the existence of SMEs (small and medium enterprises) and since no taxes were paid to the State, it is causing difficulties for foreign investors to compete in terms of technology and market share.

As such, special groups were formed in Kachin, Shan, Mon, Kayah and Kayin states, in addition to setting up inspection gates in Yepu and Mayanchaung gates to prevent and control entry of illegal goods through the border.
Following the information given Tamu border traders’s association, Kayin State Government cracked down illegal betel nuts smuggled from Thailand, resulting in an increase in export of betel nuts volume of 1,223 tons to India.
Also present at the meeting were Vice Chairman of the Private Sector Development Committee and Union Minister for Commerce Dr. Than Myint; Union Minister for Transport and Communications U Thant Sin Maung, Union Minister for Planning and Finance U Soe Win, Yangon Region Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein; Deputy Ministers U Aung Htoo and U Win Maw Tun, Deputy Governor of Central Bank of Myanmar U Soe Thein, Yangon Region Ministers, officials from five work committees, UMFCCI President and members, Permanent Secretaries, Directors-General, representatives of chambers of commerce and industries from regions and states. — Myanmar News Agency

(Global New Light of Myanmar: http://www.globalnewlightofmyanmar.com/trade-balance-required-through-effective-use-of-export-promotion-import-regulation-vice-president-u-myint-swe/ )

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