unnamed

KB Bank Myanmar kicks off its financial services in Yangon

THE KB Bank Myanmar launched its financial services as the first subsidy of the foreign bank yesterday. The opening ceremony of the bank was held at the Lotte Hotel in Yangon and was attended by Yangon Region Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein, Korean Ambassador to Myanmar Mr Lee Sang hwa, Chairman of Korean Association in Myanmar, President of KOCHAM Mr Park JeongHwan, President of UMFCCI U Zaw Min Win and other officials.

The KB Bank Myanmar is the first subsidy of the foreign bank of Korean KB Kookmin Bank and awarded a banking licence by the Central Bank of Myanmar on 23 December 2020. The bank is opened at 104 University Avenue Road in No (9) Ward o Kamayut Township of Yangon and will serve banking services with new technologies like other local banks.

The CEO of KB Bank Myanmar said,” The bank will offer all banking services like other local banks. It started opening the saving accounts on 11 January. We will keep offering mobile banking services and foreign remittance services in the coming weeks.” The KB Bank Myanmar Ltd will operate 10 branches in Myanmar- 5 in Yangon Region and another 5 in other regions and states during five years.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

139499559_1686151381577200_5832778873963141618_o

Future of Agriculture and Livestock Investment Dialogue

Date: 28th January 2021

Time: 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM

Venue: Zoom Webinar

Cost: Free

Details:

The Directorate of Investment and Company Administration has planned to host “The Future of Agriculture and Livestock Investment Dialogue Webinar” on 28th January 2021 at 10 am virtually.

At the webinar, senior officials from concerned ministries and representatives from private sector will join as speakers and panelists. And it will cover investment policies and opportunities in agriculture and livestock sectors.

All participated are requested to register at http://bit.ly/3nREX1p. It’s free! For more information, please contact phone number 01-658132 and email dica.ip.mm@gmail.com

Source: Directorate of Investment and Company Administration

139556449_3988219361189566_825822351185599008_n

Effective Remote Communication

Date: 29th January, 2021

Time: 8:00 pm

Speakers:

U Zar Ni Win Htet (Head of Business Group, Samsung Electronic Myanmar)

Daw Aye Mya Thida (HR Director, Coca-Cola Myanmar)

U Kaung Myat Min (Head of Grab Food Myanmar)

Moderator: Doctor Aung Tun Thet (Chairman, UNGC Network Myanmar)

Organizer: Myanmar B2B Management Magazine

Free Online Event : Live on Myanmar B2B Management Magazine Facebook Page

141385421_1486843131519668_1733696023592505867_o

Digital Economy Webinar at MDEA AGM 2021

Date: 30th January, 2021

Time: 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Presentation of Digital Economy by : U Min Min (Director-General, Department of Trade)

Speakers:

U Aye Chan (Chairman, RGO47, ECAM)

U Aung Kyaw Moe (2c2p)

Moderator: U Thaung Su Nyein (CEO & Managing Director of Information Matrix Co., Ltd.)

Free Online Event : Live on MDEA Facebook Page

Organizer: Myanmar Digital Economy Association (MDEA)

gems-1

Myanmar mineral exports down by $500 mln as of 15 January

The value of Myanmar’s mineral exports has drastically fallen to US$352.6 million as of 15 January in the current financial year 2020-2021 since 1 October, reflecting a tremendous drop of $500.5 million compared to a year-ago period, the Ministry of Commerce’s data indicated. The mineral exports hit 853.13 million in the corresponding period of last FY. The coronavirus impacts led to the slump in mineral exports this FY. The heightened COVID-19 measures also shut down the events like gem emporium and expo, a trader said. So far, excavation of over 1,250 mining blocks has been permitted on a manageable, small, medium, and large scale, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation.

Due to the limited extraction of natural resources, exports of forest products and minerals had dropped significantly in the previous years. Permits for mining blocks were suspended in 2016. However, after two years, Myanmar’s mining sector has now been opened to local and foreign investors, according to the ministry. Within two years of implementing the Myanmar Mines Law, the Mines Department has approved more than 140 out of 3,000 proposed mining blocks. Many more blocks are to be granted the permit. At present, evaluation teams in Kachin, Kayah, Shan, and Kayin states and Sagaing, Taninthayi, and Magway regions are screening mining applications, based on the opinions of the respective departments and the state/regional governments. The Myanmar Mines Law was enacted on 24 December 2015. However, the law came into force when the rules were issued on 13 February 2018.

The ministry undertakes the screening process of the proposals for medium and large-scale mining blocks. As per the regulatory changes in 2018, regional and state governments are given the power to process applications for artisanal and small-scale mining blocks. Under the new regulations, foreign firms can invest in large blocks covering up to 500,000 acres (about 202,000 hectares). In contrast, local firms can invest in all kinds of blocks. Investors can seek a permit to mine for minerals such as gold, copper, lead and tin. The licences cover prospecting, exploration, and production. Myanmar’s mineral exports have shown a marked increase in the previous FY2019-2020, touching $1.87 billion, an increase of $405.48 million compared with the year-ago period, according to data from the Ministry of Commerce. In the FY2018-2019, mineral exports were pegged at just $1.465 billion. Myanmar’s mineral products constitute 10 per cent of overall exports. About 80 per cent of mineral products are shipped to external markets through sea trade. At the same time, 20 of them are sent to neighbouring countries through border trade channels.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

A medical worker receives the AstraZeneca's COVISHIELD coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine in Yangon, Myanmar, after the country received 1.5 million doses of the vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, January 27, 2021. REUTERS/Shwe Paw Mya Tin

Announcement on launching of COVID-19 vaccination programme in Myanmar

Myanmar will kick-start COVID-19 vaccination programme on 27 January 2021. The government worked to acquire the high-quality and reliable COVID-19 vaccines in various ways such as proposals to the COVAX facility, purchase by the State Fund and government-to-government friendship programmes. On 22 January 2021, Myanmar received 1.5 million doses of Covishield/AstraZeneca in terms of friendly relations between the two neighbouring countries.

Moreover, 2 million doses of Covishield/AstraZeneca, out of 30 million doses, purchased by the State Fund will arrive in Myanmar in the first week of February, followed by the arrival of vaccines from COVAX facility in March and the purchased vaccines by the State Fund in April respectively.
The vaccination programme will begin for the health workers and volunteers in the front-line of COVID-19 control measures on 27 January 2021, for the Pyithu Hluttaw representatives on 29 January 2021 and for the Amyotha Hluttaw representatives and the Tatmadaw Hluttaw representatives on 30 January 2021.

Then, the nationwide vaccination programme will start on 5 February 2021, and it will reach members of Union Government, region/state government and the public. The programme will prioritize the elderly persons, people with the underlying diseases and those who are vulnerable to the diseases living in the townships under the stay-at-home measures. Among these townships, the programme will also prioritize people in townships and areas with a higher rate of infection in relation to the availability of doses for the vaccine. The following vaccines will be used for the remaining persons in prioritized order.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

34763119040_2b454bcd74_c

Mon State calls for investors in the fisheries sector

Mon State is calling on both local and foreign investors to take advantage of its strategic location and geography to invest in the fisheries sector. The Chair of the Mon State Fisheries Federation said that interested parties can invest in the sector to produce finished and value-added products. Other players in the industry see such investments as an opportunity to further develop the state and its economy. They would like to invite investors to gain access to modern technology.

Mon State in return can offer our land, lakes, and labour. Mon State is geographically connected to the Andaman Sea and Gulf of Mottama in the West with more than 140 miles of coastline. Fisheries related businesses are a key driver for the state’s economy. Shipping by sea is readily available and transportation by road is also an option for exports to China, Thailand and India. Mon State should invite businesses that will invest in canned fish or dried fish factories said by the local businessman. The state usually produce more than 100,000 tonnes of prawns and shrimps every year.

As much as 12,000 tonnes are exported to China, Singapore and Malaysia annually. Approximately 80 percent of the fishery products that are produced within the state are exported to China. Mon’s call for investors comes on the back of a decline in fisheries exports due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While the value of Myanmar’s fish export market increased form US $ 732.2 million in the 2018-19 fiscal year to $858.9 million in 2019-20, this figure is projected to drop drastically as the market has been plagued by difficulties arising from the COVID-19 outbreak.

The government will try to negotiate with other countries to connect and export fishery products to their markets. Moreover, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation need to negotiate with the Myanmar Fisheries Federation and the respective departments to issue COVID-19 free certificates on the fish produced in the country. This will help identify and set standards, upgrade the technological skills of the staff and improve the knowledge of the cold storage facilities. It is also added that the Department of fisheries and Cooperative Department will also collaborate to improve local fish consumption.

Source: Myanmar Times

Investors expect growth to accelerate in Myanmar over next three years

Investors expect business to return to normal in Myanmar by the third quarter of this year. Many also reckon that the technology, media and telecoms (TMT) sector would see the most investments or merger and acquisition activity in the next two years, according to polls taken at a conference held online by Ascent Capital Partners recently. Indeed, the Myanmar economy is expected to recover and reach growth levels of as much as 7 percent this year mentioned by the Union Minister for Investment and Foreign Economic Relations during the conference.

The Union Minister said that recovery will be backed by the government’s Myanmar Economic Recovery and Reform Plan (MERRP), which will prioritise sectors like manufacturing and services in the year ahead. Measures such as civil service reforms and digital transformation will also be implemented by the government. The Managing partner of Ascent Capital said that the firm’s three-year outlook for Myanmar is one of cautious optimism. Myanmar’s economy and business environment are still severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and it is unclear at this moment when full recovery will take place.

It is also mentioned that Ascent Capital focuses on longer timeframes and that government initiatives like the MERRP are important catalysts to drive growth in the economy over the next three years and beyond. As a Myanmar-focused investor with long-term plans in the country, they certainly intend to raise future funds but do not have the immediate need to do so. In terms of existing investments, this would depend on the opportunities that present themselves at the right time. But the general outlook is for the long term, in the next seven to ten years.

Ascent Capital is a private equity firm registered with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. The firm manages a Myanmar-focused investment fund which it says is the largest Myanmar-focused investment fund globally. The fund, which prioritises the consumer, education, healthcare, financial services, logistics and TMT sectors, closed in October last year with US$88 million in capital commitments. It is backed by the likes of Singapores’s Temasek Holdings, the Asian Development Bank and local drinks tycoon U Aung Moe Kyaw.

Source: Myanmar Times

Natural cave in Kayah State to be developed as tourist attraction

A natural cave, locally named as Mei Htauk Noon, in Nan Kit village of Pasawng Township, Kayah State, to be developed into an ecotourism site. The Directorate of Hotels and Tourism of the state is working together with the members of the local tourism development committee, the Destination Management Organization and local hotelier association for a tourist attraction in the post-COVID-19.

A local official of the department said that Mei Htauk Noon cave still has natural beauties such as stalactites and drop of water slowly trickles through cracks in the cave roof. It is still an unspoiled natural cave that can attract both local and foreign visitors. The cave is located within around 2 to 3-hour drive from Loikaw Township.

The road to this cave is being developed by the local people led by the senior monk of township Sangha committee. The development works also include the construction of road and electrification inside the cave with about 600-ft in length and 60-ft to 100-ft in width inside it. Other interesting places near the cave are a 100-year-old monastery with the displays of two huge ivories and ancient Buddha images, Woha waterfall and scenic views of Thanlwin River.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

rice_30

Bangladesh negotiates with Myanmar to buy 100,000 tonnes of rice

Bangladesh has reopened negotiations with Myanmar to purchase 100,000 tonnes of rice, said the chair of Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF). Bangladesh signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Myanmar for its self-sufficiency of foodstuffs and cooperation in the rice sector in 2017. Myanmar exported 100,000 tonnes of rice to Bangladesh in the 2017-2018 financial year. Later, Bangladesh stopped importing rice from external markets as they do not have staple food. However, Bangladesh’s government called for a tender to purchase rice again to control the market’s rise amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The two countries’ counterparts are under negotiations for the purchase of 100,000 tonnes of rice. They get back on track, and the negotiations are still underway. It has not reached any agreement yet, the MRF chair affirmed. Myanmar rice’s export price hit a record high in 2020 as the local and foreign demand picked up, MRF stated. Myanmar shipped over 648,158 metric tons of rice and broken rice to foreign trade partners between 1 October and 1 January this FY, generating an income of over US$245.096 million, as per MRF’s data.

Moreover, Myanmar regained rice market shares from certain countries on account of high quality. The price also remarkably increased in November and December 2020. In 2020, the export prices of Myanmar white rice (low quality), broken rice and parboiled rice significantly rose compared to the previous years’ rates. The prices move in the range of US$375-485 per metric ton depending on different varieties. The export price of Myanmar’s rice is relatively lower than the rates of Thailand and Viet Nam. Yet, the prices are higher than those of India and Pakistan’s market prices, MRF’s data indicated.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar