Myanmar's Ministry of Construction is drawing a new master urban development plan for 56 cities and towns across the country

A new master urban development plan for 56 cities and towns around Myanmar is being drawn by ministry of construction said Daw Moe Thida, deputy director from ministry of construction, in a property seminar.

“Yangon alone is developing in Myanmar. That’s why we have to allow other cities to get attention from investors. Yangon's population is expanding disproportionally,” Daw Moe Thida added.

Yangon is over five times as large as Mandalay, and its population is expected to double in the next 15 years. In neighboring Thailand, Bangkok is has grown to over 20 times as populous as the next largest city. According to the 2014 census, Yangon region has a relatively high population density with 716 people per square kilometer, followed distantly by Mandalay with 200.

Due to the high demand of housing in Yangon, property prices are rising greatly. About 100,000 houses are needed in Yangon every year, but ministry of construction can only fulfill 20 percent of this demand.  At the same time, YCDC and the housing department have struggled to implement affordable housing projects. The majority of houses were built by the private sector.

“We can also rely on the private sector for our housing plan. The government alone devised and invested on housing plans in the past. Now private sector is stepping forward,” said Daw Moe Thida.

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