Weekly Business News from Myanmar

Shan State authority plans to build a 2500 acre wide international standard avocado cultivation zone this year
YANGON- A 2500-acre international level avocado cultivation zone will be built in Shan State this year under the help of the Shan State Government Committee, according to Myanmar Avocado Producer and Exporter Association. “We will be establishing the 25,000-acre wide avocado plantations. Current avocado growers are farmers living in Shan State. They have to grow avocado plants according to their traditional methods. As for our association, we are going to collect quality control and cultivation methods. Later, we will build the avocado plantation zone. We, the association, urged the Shan State Government Committee to establish avocado plantation zone as well as the state government committee replied that they would provide required assistances. Moreover, we will be submitting our plan to the state government committee. If government will locate the land plot which is nearby the farmers as well as us, we are going to implement our project within two or three months.” said Lin Thant Aung from Myanmar Avocado Producer and Exporter Association.
Myanmar Investment Commission prioritizes low-technology and labour-intensive investments
The oil and gas, power supply, manufacturing, telecom and real-estate sectors have topped the list of foreign investments during this year, said Aung Naing Oo, secretary of Myanmar Investment Commission. China stands first on the list of foreign investors, Singapore, second and Thailand, third. “Foreign investors are at the moment most interested in the manufacturing sector,” he said, “The MIC is concentrating its effort to promote the inflow of FDI which can create the most jobs for citizens. The MIC prioritises low-technology and labour-intensive investments.
To discuss cross-border and regional cooperation, delegates from Manipur State of India, Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region, India-Myanmar Chamber of Commerce and the Sagaing Promoters Group held a meeting on 29 January 2018
Delegates from Manipur State of India, Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region, India-Myanmar Chamber of Commerce and the Sagaing Promoters Group met in Mandalay on the 29 January to discuss cross-border and regional cooperation. The Indian government and the Indian business community has been making efforts to strengthen their relationship with Myanmar and other ASEAN countries, including a welcome to ASEAN delegations on their 69th Republic Day in New Delhi – all part of steps to envirorate India’s Act East Policy.
Technology and social media were core issues at the World Economic Forum 2018 and are relevant for Myanmar's young workforce, manufacturing plants and service economy
"Technology companies still need to do more in stepping up to their responsibilities for dealing with harmful and illegal online activity." TECHNOLOGY and social media are core issues at this year’s World Economic Forum among leading executives and politicians. UK Prime Minister Theresa May spearheaded the call for tech companies to tackle extremist content online and for governments to prepare for workforce transitions in a time of technologies such as automation and artificial intelligence. This is as relevant an issue for Myanmar as it is for the UK. Myanmar’s economy is characterised by a young workforce moving into factories and manufacturing plants as well as the service economy. Automation, digital platforms and other innovations are changing the fundamental nature of work just as the sizeable portion of the population is trying to hop on emerging employment opportunities. In a country where both education (i.e. skills provision) and industrialisation are still at a nascent stage, it is crucial for the decision-makers to see the economic imperative for understanding and adapting these shifts.
Myanmar government plans to work with the private sector under a public-private partnership (PPP) to upgrade the Yangon-Nay Pyi Taw-Mandalay Highway (U Kyaw Lin, Deputy Minister of Construction)
The government is planning to work with the private sector under a public-private partnership (PPP) to upgrade the Yangon-Nay Pyi Taw-Mandalay Highway, which is used by 16 million travelers annually, said U Kyaw Lin, Deputy Minister of Construction. “We are discussing options such as applying for foreign loans as well as working together with the private sector under a PPP arrangement, where both foreign and state funds will be involved,” U Kyaw Lin said in parliament Thursday. Due to the lack of modern safety features, the highway, which has been in use since 2009, has been the site of numerous accidents and deaths over the years, leading to harsh public criticism by the public even during the former president U Thein Sein’s administration. But although there were intentions to upgrade the highway, actual implementation has lagged due to a shortage of funds under the national budget. Since 2015, foreign and local companies have been invited to tender for the PPP. A total of 126 companies tendered, of which 26 were selected for consideration on May 2015, said U Win Pe, Director General of Road Department.
In order to rehabilitate forests, government will stop logging for at least 10 years in Bago Yoma range, which is rich in teak timber
Logging will be stopped for at least 10 years in the Bago Yoma range, which is rich in teak timber, according to director-general of natural resources and the environment Dr Nyi Nyi Kyaw. A 2015 FAO report found that forest coverage had dipped to only 42.92 per cent of the country’s lands, and Myanmar has the third-most depleted forest coverage in the world. All restricted forest reserves in the Bago Range will be transferred to the control of the forestry department, which falls under the Ministry of National Resources and Environmental Conservation. All logging by villagers in surrounding areas will be banned.
Pa-O region, southern Shan State, will focus on modernizing its agriculture and livestock economy while prioritizing the construction of hydropower stations and the development of vocational schools
Pa-O region in southern Shan State will focus on modernising its agricultural and livestock economy while prioritising building hydropower stations and developing vocational schools as well as ecotourism. In an exclusive interview with The Myanmar Times, U Khun San Lwin, chair of the Pa-O leading body, outlined his government’s key economic priorities, which will form a core part of the upcoming development blueprint. On January 15, the Myanmar Institute for Integrated Development (MIID) and the DaNa Facility (DaNa) signed a US$400,000 three-year grant agreement to improve the economic opportunities for 400 smallholder farmers in Pa-O. Both DaNa and this programme are funded by the UK Department for International Development.
Tanintharyi Region government makes an effort to develop a domestic-based system for the trading of marine products between Myanmar and Thailand
Efforts are being taken to develop a domestic-based system for the trading of marine products at between Myanmar and Thailand as part of a new economic policy for Tanintharyi Region, Chief Minister Dr Le Le Maw told The Myanmar Times. To sell fish and other marine produce or seafood, Myanmar traders currently must travel to specific trading sites in Thailand. That needs to change moving forward.“As we don’t have a strong local market, Myanmar traders have to sell in Thailand,” Dr Le Le Maw told The Myanmar Times at the launching ceremony of Citizen’s Budget of Tanintharyi Region in Dawei on Monday. There are currently plans to establish markets for trading marine products like fish and other seafood in Myeik, Dawei and Kawthoung districts under an auction system, she added. The initial plan includes two markets in Myeik, and one each in Dawei and Kawthoung.
Yangon Stock Exchange permitted TMH Telecom Public Company to be the 5th YSX listed company in Myanmar
In order to increase the customers, listed companies and investment opportunity, Yangon Stock Exchange permitted TMH Telecom Public Company as the 5th YSX listing company in Myanmar. YSX approved the TMH to be listed on 1st December 2017 in accordance with Section 41(c) of the Securities Exchange Law and Section 7 and 8 of the Securities Listing Business Regulations. It is the first telecom company listed in the Myanmar stock share trading market. The company sell not only the existing shares but also the new ones. Senior Executive Manager, Yangon Stock Exchange, Thet Htun Oo said “They offered about 550,000 new shares starting December and the existing share. And they sell a total of about 1.2 million new and existing shares. Each share is sold at 3000 kyats and the demand is very high. YSX invites all public service company. We will take more services to be benefits for our people.”
Co-operative Bank (CB bank) to better serve SMEs applying for loans to develop their business
Co-operative BANK (CB Bank) on Thursday opened a small and medium enterprise (SME) centre in Mandalay to help SMEs apply for loans necessary to grow their businesses. It is the first time an SME centre has been opened in Mandalay and the second of several CB Bank plans to establish across Myanmar. CB Bank offers three types of SME loans. The SME-CGI loan is worth K20million, the SME-JICA loan is worth K500million and the CB-KfW loan, which is being offered in collaboration with Germany, is worth K100million. “So far, we’ve provided 300 CGI loans, 50 JICA loans and seven KfW loans. These loans aim to help SMEs around Mandalay receive access to funds as quickly as possible. So far, many Mandalay SMEs have applied for the loans,” said CB Bank’s assistant general manager Daw San Yi Aung. The loans are being offered in accordance with the Small and Medium Enterprises Law.