With the support of IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, the Department of Agriculture of Myanmar will launch Myanmar’s Good Agriculture Practices (GAP) to improve sustainable farming practices

With the goal of improving sus­tainable farm­ing practices in Myan­mar; IFC a member of the World Bank Group, Sup­ported the Department of Agriculture of Myanmar’s Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation (MoALI) will launch My­anmar’s Good Agricul­tural Practices (GAP) Pro­tocol and Guidelines. The objective of the guidelines is to boost the productiv­ity and profitability of farmers through sustain­able farming.

The GAP Protocol and Guidelines for 15 crops including tomatoes, peanuts, rice, and chili, among others, will guide cultivators on how to produce safe and qual­ity products for the local and international mar­kets. It will further aim to improve access to quality agricultural inputs, and help farmers develop the necessary skills for sus­tainable farming.

Myanmar’s agricultural sector is a key pillar of the economy and provides employment to about 53 percent of the labor force. Additionally, it is a source of livelihood for about 70 percent of the rural popu­lation. The guidelines will support the government’s objective of increasing productivity, market ac­cess and competitiveness of the agricultural sector by improving the provi­sion of quality inputs to farmers.

“The launch of the GAP Protocol and Guidelines is an effort to boost farmers’ livelihood and develop Myanmar’s agricultural sector, which will contrib­ute to economic growth,” said Dr. Aung Thu, the Union Minister of Agri­culture, Livestock and Ir­rigation. “We appreciate IFC’s support and will push for the implemen­tation of the GAP system across the sector.”

The launch of the guide­lines is part of IFC’s on­going advisory support to MoALI to bolster the sector’s productivity and competitiveness, deliv­ered in partnership with Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Aus­tralia, the Department for International Develop­ment of the United King­dom and the Government of Japan. Over the next two to three years, IFC will be working with the gov­ernment to remove legal and regulatory obstacles to increase private sector participation in sustain­able agriculture, raise quality standards for key export commodities and local food processing, and develop skills related to agri-input usage and im­prove quality standards.

“Quality agricultural in­puts will elevate industry productivity and qual­ity, raising incomes and creating jobs along the value chain,” said Vikram Kumar, IFC Country Manager for Myanmar. “Agribusiness is a strate­gic pillar of IFC’s work in Myanmar. In alignment with MoALI’s mission, we are supporting local firms to increase the availability of good-quality crop pro­tection products and im­prove access to agri-lend­ing products for farmers.”

IFC has already been working with MoALI to promote improved us­age of agri-inputs on the floating tomato farms, supporting its GAP pro­gram in Inle Lake, which involves over 300 tomato farmers, and may affect over 150,000 people de­pending on the lake for their livelihood.

IFC, is a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global de­velopment institution focused on private sec­tors in emerging markets. With more than 2,000 businesses worldwide; they use their capital, ex­pertise, and influence to create markets and op­portunities in some of the toughest areas of the world.

(Myanmar Business Today: https://www.mmbiztoday.com/articles/ifc-supports-government-launch-good-agricultural-practices-myanmar )

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