Weekly Business News from Myanmar

Japanese Government will provide the grant of 612 million Yen for Human Resource Development Scholarship project and social-economic development in Myanmar
The signing ceremony for Exchange of Notes on rendering assistance to Myanmar by Japan was held at the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations in Nay Pyi Taw on Monday. The ceremony was attended by Union Minister for Investment and Foreign Economic Relations U Thaung Tun, Deputy Minister for Planning and Finance U Set Aung, Deputy Attorney General U Win Myint, Permanent Secretary for Ministry of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations U Aung Naing Oo, Director General from Ministry of Education and Japanese Ambassador to Myanmar Ichiro MARUYAMA and officials of the Japan Embassy.
Businesses needed the political stability in order to facilitate investment in Myanmar (U Zaw Myint Maung, Chief Minister of Mandalay Region)
“In order to facilitate investment, businesses need political stability. And in that sense, Mandalay is the perfect place to offer this condition,” Mandalay Chief Minister Zaw Myint Maung told an audience of European investors and businesses. The European Chamber of Commerce in Myanmar (EuroCham) in collaboration with the Mandalay Region Chamber of Commerce (MRCCI) organised the forum “Business Climate in Upper Myanmar” on May 21. Many European businesses see Mandalay’s location and access to Upper Myanmar as a key asset but raise concerns about the opaque bureaucracy and shortage of skilled labour. “Mandalay is at the crossroads between big Asian players, like China and India, and [the city] could become a main trading and communications centre,” said Fabian Lorenz, attorney-at-law, Luther Law Firm Limited.
Thailand’s leading hotel operator, Centara Hotels & Resorts and Kaung Myanmar Aung (KMA) signed a MOU to begin the development and renovation of six hotels in Myanmar
Centara Hotels & Resorts, Thailand’s leading hotel operator, and KMA Hotels Group, a subsidiary of Kaung Myanmar Aung (KMA) Group of Companies, have announced the signing of a MOU to begin the development and renovation of 6 hotels located at some of Myanmar’s most popular tourist destinations, all to be managed under Centara brands. Work on the project will begin in 2019, TravelDailyNews reported. This project will see three of KMA Hotels’ existing properties located in Inle, Naypyitaw, and Taungoo undergo refurbishment prior to reopening, and the development of 3 new hotels in Bagan and Than Daung.
Myanmar government showed their eager embrace of Chinese tech giant Huawei to participate in Myanmar’s future communication network construction
As the U.S. government hit it with severe sanctions in its escalating trade spat with China, Myanmar government officials showed their eager embrace of Chinese tech giant Huawei, pledging to allow the controversial company to help build the Myanmar’s communication network. The pledge was made on Friday at the Myanmar Indoor Coverage Digitalization Summit 2019, jointly organized by the Federation of Myanmar Engineering Societies (Fed. MES) and Huawei and attended by officials from the Ministry of Construction, the Ministry of Transport and Communications and the Fed. MEM. Despite the U.S cutting relations with Huawei over national security concerns, Deputy Director General of the Posts and Telecommunications Department, Ministry of Transport and Communications U Soe Naing praised Huawei for its “support and trusted network solutions for Myanmar’s communication network development.”
Myanmar fish breeders are preparing to adhere to Good Aquaculture Practice (GAQP) system to ensure Myanmar fishery products meet the regulations of European Union market and other importing countries
As Myanmar’s farmed fish is now allowed for exporting to the European Union, breeders are preparing to follow requirements to ensure Myanmar fishery products meet the regulations of importing countries, including the European Union (EU), according to the Myanmar Fisheries Federation (MFF). To ensure the safety of all food, the European market requires suppliers to have Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) and Good Aquaculture Practice (GAqP) certificates. Myanmar has only a small number of entrepreneurs who hold those certificates, so, fish breeders are preparing for this. In a bid to meet EU import standards, fishery products must be produced by only those hatcheries that are compliant with Good Aquaculture Practices (GAqP). MFF is working together with fish farmers, processors and the Fisheries Department under the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation, to develop a GAqP system.
Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation is planning to increase quality of fishery exports to meet international standards
The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation is pushing the quality of fishery exports higher to make sure Myanmar’s fishery products meet international standards. “We are committed to improve the fishery sector to ensure sustainability by following the standards and guidelines practiced globally,” said Dr. Aung Thu, Union Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation, at the annual meeting of Myanmar Fishery Federation on May 12. The Fishery Department works under the oversight of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation, and has drafted the National Aquaculture Development Plan (NADP). The plan was conceived in collaboration with Myanmar Sustainable Aquaculture Programme, the Myanmar Fishery Federation, universities and civil organizations.
Italian oil and gas company ENI Myanmar B.V (ENI) will start its oil exploration process in onshore block RSF-5 in Magwe Region by the end of this year
Italian oil and gas company Eni Myanmar B.V (ENI) will commence oil exploration in onshore block RSF-5 located in Magawe Region by the end of the year, the company announced on May 20. Exploration work will start between November and December, it said. The block sits across 320,000 acres and ENI is allowed a six-year exploration period. Eni won the bid to explore at RSF-5 in 2014 and signed an agreement with the government and Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise in 2015. ENI owns a 90 percent stake in the RSF-5 block while local company Myanmar Petroleum Exploration and Production owns 10pc. An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)for the proposed drilling project at block RSF-5 will be conducted by ENI submitted to the Environmental Conservation Department. Results will be announced to the public next month, according to the company.
The foundation laying ceremony of all in one project for fishery sector was held in Pantanaw township of Ayeyawaddy Region which will help to increase 20% more of the export income
The foundation laying ceremony for the 500 TPD Processing plant, 10,000 Ton Cold storage factory, 300 TPD fishmeal factory was held in the project zone in Pantanaw Township of Ayeyawaddy Region on Saturday. It’s part of the mega project, Food Industry complex which includes all the stages from hatching to production of value-added products in one place. Global Earth Argo & Aqua Industry Public Company has developed the project since 2017 with 200 million USD worth investment. Union ministers for Agriculture, Livestock & Irrigation and Commerce and many other officials attended the ceremony.
Local and foreign investors are invited to invest in any sector they desire Chin State where have huge opportunities to invest
Salai Lian Luai, Chin chief minister, sees big opportunities for growth and returns for investors willing to channel funds into the state. Besides hotels and tourism, Chin, he said, requires large investments in infrastructure such as roads and power grids to draw a higher volume of tourists and connect the state to rest of the country. Owing to its difficult and mountainous terrain, Chin State is one of the poorest states in Myanmar with the least investment. Yet, it is also the most scenic. In Chin, the most successful sectors are hotels and tourism because of the scenery and attractions such as Nat Ma Taung National Park, Reeds Lake and Kanpatlat township, which is home to the famed Mount Victoria.
The Industry 4.0 in Myanmar conference was held in Yangon to create an inclusive digital economy in Myanmar
It is of primary importance, Myanmar Minister of Industry U Khin Maung Cho told the more than 100 gathered at the Novotel Yangon Max hotel Friday morning for the Industry 4.0 in Myanmar conference, to create an inclusive digital economy. Industry 4.0—a term with a fluid definition but that generally refers to commercial and industrial advances in automation and digital connectivity, and their resulting social and economic impacts—will “affect more than just manufacturing,” U Khin Maung Cho said. “We have to develop our country to match with the other countries surrounding Myanmar.” The event was hosted by the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Myanmar, known also by its German-language acronym AHK Myanmar, and defining the titular term was itself a recurring theme of the conference. It is often described as the next step in a process that began with steam-powered mechanization at the turn of the 19th century and in the 20th progressed through electric-powered assembly lines and, later, computer technology. The conference’s slogan, “leapfrogging across sectors,” hints at the notion that Myanmar is developing at a time that could enable it to “leapfrog” over several of these stages of production directly into the new, digital economy.