Weekly Business News from Myanmar

Government plans to take back 5 approved palm oil plantation projects in Tanintharyi Region since the areas are not suitable for palm oil plantation
After further research, it is found that all five oil palm plantation projects in Tanintharyi Region which were approved under the previous government, and after MIC and the Ministry of Resources and Environmental Conservation conducted ground examination in the area, they found that the area is not suitable for palm oil plantation. The Government is planning to take back the projects, according to U Aung Naing Oo, secretary of Myanmar Investment Commission. “As the appropriated area had large trees and bamboo groves, it is not suitable for oil palm plantation. So we have obtained the approval from the President’s Office to take back the project lands,” he told the press on March 22. The companies that received approval for palm oil plantation projects are located in Myeik District and Kawthaung District in Tanintharyi Region. There are two Malaysian companies, one Thai company, one Korean company and one local company. Among them Myanmar Auto Corporation got the biggest area for palm oil plantation.
Kayin communities and civil society groups urged the government to cancel all proposed and suspended coal-fired power plant in Kayin and across the country
Kayin communities and civil society groups applauded Nay Pyi Taw’s decision announced last month to halt a proposed coal power plant in Hpa-An and urged the regional government to confirm the cancellation. Meanwhile, a total of 130 civil society groups issued a joint statement to urge the government to cancel all proposed and suspended coal-fired power plants across the country. On March 14, Union Minister of Electricity and Energy U Win Khaing announced at a press conference that the government will not grant permission for the proposed 1,280MW coal power plant. This decision has gained the praise and appreciation of communities and groups who campaigned hard against the project. “We are very happy and appreciative to hear the announcement of the Union Minister that this project has been cancelled. Despite our happiness at the result, we remain cautious. We hope that state-level government representatives will help reduce our concerns by following in the footsteps of the union minister and announcing their support for the project’s cancellation,” Saw Aung Than Htwe, a member of Hpa-An communities, said.
Key Progress on Illegal Ivory Trade Suppression in Thailand
Thailand attaches utmost importance in combating wildlife trafficking, closely cooperates with international organizations and actively participate in actions to terminate ivory trade in Thailand. According to the latest analysis of the Elephant Trade Information System (ETIS analysis), Thailand's status on illegal ivory trade has been upgraded from the "primary concern' to the "secondary concern" by CITES which was announced at the 7th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES (CoP17) in 2016. This positive development was highly complimented by CITES Secretary-General, The upgraded status comes as a result of the progress made under Thailand's National Ivory Action Plan (NIAP) in regulating ivory trade in the market.
Yangon plans to build an international sea port at the mouth of the Yangon River (U Phyo Min Thein, Chief Minister of Yangon Regional Government)
Plans to build an international sea port at the mouth of the Yangon River, which will be strategic for Myanmar and its neighbours, are underway, Yangon Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein said yesterday at the meeting with Vice President held at Republic of Myanmar Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industries (UMFCCI). “Singapore has not much production. But as it is a hub for the flow of goods, having a port and related supply chain has helped the nation’s economic development. For the same reasons, plans are being discussed to develop a sea port at the mouth of the Yangon River,” U Phyo Min Thein said. The current Yangon port is the most developed one among the nine ports in Myanmar and 90pc of local businesses use it to transport goods. Currently, most ports in Yangon are internal river ports. The only open sea port is being developed in Thilawa. Thus, more ports with strategic open sea access are required for the nation to develop, U Phyo Min Thein said.
The government is working with development partners and private companies in order to meet the housing needs of low-income people
Though Myanmar’s real estate sector last year faced many challenges, the government is planning to meet the housing needs of low-income people by working with development partners and private companies, according to speakers at the recent Myanmar Infrastructure Summit 2018. Win Naing, deputy director at the Department of Urban and Housing Development (DUHD), said in address on the second day of the event that housing needs would follow the population growth over the next two decades. He estimated that an additional 4.8 million units would be needed for an estimated population of over 70 million people in Myanmar by 2040, over 22 per cent or 1.07 million units would be Yangon residents. To fulfill the housing needs of Myanmar citizens, the DUHD has calculated supply projections for future demand and is planning to produce 20 per cent of the targeted units. Among them, 90 per cent of the housing units built by the DUHD will go to low income people while the remaining 10 per cent will be for middle income people.
Myanmar will double its efforts to meet an ambitious goal of distributing LPG to one million households by 2020
A PUSH to get more households to cook with liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) forms a key plank of a plan by the Myanmar government to ramp up the use of the fuel and devote more of the country’s electricity supply to targeted sectors. Zaw Aung, director general of the Oil and Gas Planning Department, said at the recent World LP Gas Association (WLPGA) Myanmar Summit that Myanmar would double its efforts to meet an ambitious goal of distributing LPG to one million households by 2020. Myanmar is home to more than 10 million households, and fewer than 100,000 of them use LPG for cooking. Zaw Aung said Myanmar would improve LPG business in cooperation with local and foreign associations beginning this year. The plan includes expanding LPG usage not only for households but also for vehicles and industrial and commercial purposes as part of a more sustainable approach on energy. “We are now formulating LPG rules and regulations in accordance with the Petroleum and Petroleum Products Law. It will reinforce foreign investment in the energy sector and support sustainable LPG development as well as expansion of LPG usage,” he said.
A seminar on SMEs financing landscape in Myanmar was held at UMFCCI office in Yangon as part of the financial literacy project
A seminar on the SMEs financing Landscape in Myanmar: A Multifaceted Approach took place at UMFCCI in Yangon, on Sunday. The seminar focus on financing and loans, financing necessary, Credit Bureau and Credit history, loan products and services as well as the challenges and opportunities of SMEs. This is the part of the financial literacy project and it is intends to know more about SMEs managements and services, personal finance, budgeting, income and expense tracking, insurance and retirement planning, said the organizer. Founder, Matrix Institute of Professionals, May So Pyay Nyan said "SME is very important role to reduce the poverty alleviation in the country. We intend for the financial market and capital market development.
Myanmar plans to upgrade 3 local airports in Heho, Magwe, and Pakokku, to international standard airports, as part of China's Belt and Road Initiative, and also to receive more Chinese tourists (U Kyaw Win, Union Minister of Planning and Finance)
Some local airports will be upgraded to international-standard airports as a part of a slew of projects under China’s Belt and Road (B&R) initiative, according to U Kyaw Win, Union Minister for Planning and Finance. Backed by rising incomes, some 13 million Chinese are travelling abroad yearly but less than half a million came to Myanmar due to the lack of good connecting airports with international flight capacity, U Kyaw Win said during a meeting with the Vice President held yesterday at Republic of Myanmar Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industries (UMFCCI) office. “There are airports in Heho, Magwe and Pakokku that already have runways but lack the capacity to handle international aircraft. The Chinese want to visit Myanmar but we don’t have good airports to accommodate them. So, we will upgrade them to become international airports so that they are able to receive these tourists,” U Kyaw Win said.
European Chamber and German development agency GIZ provided recommendations on how to increase investments in Myanmar's healthcare and tourism sectors
Last week, the European Chamber, together with German development agency GIZ, presented research findings on the barriers to investment and investment promotion in Myanmar’s healthcare and tourism sectors. With the objective of enhancing the investment environment in Myanmar, the chamber conducted a detailed analysis of Public Private Partnerships (PPP) in the country and provided recommendations driving momentum for policy change and cooperation between the public and private sectors. In healthcare, research findings and subsequent dialogues revealed the role of the private sector in contributing to reaching the national target of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by 2021 is not specifically referred to in the country’s National Health Plan 2017-2021. Furthermore, it noted that there was little sector-wide consultation between the public and private sector. In fact, competition for limited human resources between the two sectors is rife, with foreign and former Myanmar national medical specialists ad doctors currently still barred from entering the country.
Some of Myanmar’s leading companies have improved their performance in corporate governance and transparency mainly due to their cooperation with international firms
SOME OF Myanmar’s leading companies have improved in corporate governance and transparency, due largely to their cooperation with international firms, a report has found. The report, by the Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business (MCRB), ranked First Myanmar Investment (FMI) Group, City Mart Holdings Ltd (CMHL), and Serge Pun & Associates as the top three performers among 182 large Myanmar companies that were assessed through their corporate websites, including listed and public enterprises. CMHL rose from eighth place in the last report to No 2 in terms of transparency this year. This year marks the fourth year of the report, known as Pwint Thit Sa. Big players, such as Aya Bank, Max Myanmar, Shwe Taung, Grand Guardian Insurance, Dagon Group and Myanmar Thilawa SEZ Holdings, scored high marks. The report also noted that Myanmar Awba, Myanmar Citizens Bank, and First Private Bank significantly improved disclosure of corporate governance information compared with their efforts in the report for 2016.