Myanmar and China authorities will be signed a bilateral agreement for trading cattle at the border area due to the high demand from China

With Chinese demand for cattle on the rise, Myanmar and China will soon sign a bilateral agreement for trading cattle at the border, U Khin Maung Lwin, assistant secretary of the Ministry of Commerce (MOC), told The Myanmar Times.

An agreement to start an official barter system for cattle between Myanmar and the Yunnan Province government in China will soon be signed. The barter system is a trading mechanism under which exports and imports are officially recorded and legalised. Currently, China does not officially allow imports from Myanmar.

This will be followed by a second agreement on matters related to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the People’s Republic of China (AQSIQ), which is required for exporting cattle, between the China’s Ministry of Commerce, the MOC and the Myanmar Veterinary Department under Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation (MOALI).

“Much has been negotiated regarding the trade of cattle between the Veterinary Department and China. After adding more points to the proposal sent by China and getting recommendations from the Attorney General Office on our side, the draft agreement has been sent back to China It looks like we may be signing the agreement soon,” U Khin Maung Lwin said.

As China does not officially recognise imports from Myanmar, trading at the border has been a one-sided trade endeavour that frequently places Myanmar at the losing end. For example, Myanmar traders are forced to open bank accounts in China in order to do business with the Chinese. However, these accounts are frequently frozen by the Chinese authorities. Last March, more than 200 accounts belonging to Myanmar citizens were frozen for months while the Chinese conducted investigations on money laundering and other illegal activities at the border. Such moves have severely impacted trade activities at the border, resulting in losses for local traders.

But with demand for Myanmar cattle from China on the rise, “if a bilateral agreement between the Myanmar and China is signed and a barter system can be adopted, there will be mutual benefits on both sides,” said U Win Htay, vice chair of Myanmar Sugar and Sugarcane Product Entrepreneurs Association.

“If we have government-to-government (G2G) agreement for the trade of cattle, our side will receive good advantages. Firstly the market will stabilise and secondly, there will be limited losses if financial problems occur,” U Sein Aye Maung, chair of Magwe Region Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said during a meeting between Vice President U Myint Swe and local businesses.

For now, a temporary shelter is being set up in Kutkai in northern Shan State to check the health conditions of Myanmar cattle bound for export across the border, according to the MOC.

“China has stated that it intends to buy cattle from a so-called disease-free zone at the border. We cannot create a disease-free zone now, so we have created an area to conduct disease control. We are planning to export [cattle] from this disease-control zone after vaccinating the animals,” said Dr Kyaw Htin, deputy chair of Myanmar Livestock Federation.

The MOC officially allowed cattle exports at the end of 2017 with the aim of generating more income and job opportunities for livestock breeders. Although an official bilateral agreement legalising the trade has not yet been signed, China has already ordered one million head of cattle since 2017, Dr Kyaw Htin said. 

According to the official statistics, more than US$260 million in revenues have recorded since breeders were allowed to export cattle. The MOC collects taxes of 2 percent per cattle traded. However, although about 700,000 head of cattle is exported every year, only about 300,000 are trade via legal routes due to the lack of legal avenues, said Dr Kyaw Htin.

Under the existing laws, cattle dealers have to obtain health recommendation letters and vaccination certificates from the Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department. These must be submitted to MOALI before they are able to export cattle, The Myanmar Times understands.

However, illegal exports still take place due to difficulties in obtaining the relevant documentation and other restrictions such as registration charges which hinder animal breeders, officials said. For example, the application for approval and issuing of reports takes two to three months. In the meantime, breeders must incur the daily feeding costs for the cows while waiting for the documentation to be processed.

Officials warn that for exports to be conducted via official routes, the government needs to facilitate easy transport and trade of the cattle even as it carries out procedures to control the spread of diseases.

“Even after an MOU is signed between Myanmar and China, it depends on the policies set to facilitate the trading process by both governments. If there are too many rules and regulations, people will still use illegal routes to some extent,” said Dr Kyaw Htin.

“If there is more transparency and flexibility in the cattle business via official routes, breeders will benefit from more profit. This, in turn, will promote the business. If there are restrictions on the business, there is little chance for the sector to grow. The cattle need to be seen as a business product. The lesser the barriers, the higher the potential for growth and development,” he said.

(The Myanmar Times: https://www.mmtimes.com/news/livestock-breeders-call-bilateral-agreement-cattle-exports-china.html )

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