Myanmar presents plan to attract over $200 billion in foreign investment
The Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) came up with an ambitious business plan that includes a major investment promotion strategy aiming to attract more than $200 billion through “responsible and quality businesses” over the next 20 years.
The Myanmar Investment Promotion Plan 2018 (MIPP), jointly formulated by the MIC and the Japan International Cooperation Agency, outlines three strategic periods to attract foreign direct investment at a time when Myanmar is under heavy international scrutiny for its handling of the Rohingya crisis.
The plan projects to receive $8.5 billion in the first four-year phase starting from 2021-2025, $12.3 billion in 2026-2030 and $17.6 billion in the 2031-2035 fiscal years.
The government said that foreign direct investment was a key driver of economic development and that it was committed to an open, fair and clear investment policy, according to a statement that came with the announcement of the MIPP.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s government is struggling through a chronic economic slowdown. A recently conducted short-term business sentiment survey showed that this year has been the worst across all business sectors and that business confidence had declined compared with last year, with most business people complaining of a lack of clear economic policies from the government.
Furthermore, foreign direct investment into Myanmar declined significantly from $9.5 billion in the 2015-2016 fiscal year to $6.6 billion in 2016-2017, after Western investors became cautious and the country’s image became badly tarnished by what the United Nations determined a genocide against the Muslim Rohingya minority.
This year, foreign direct investment is expected to fall further, although the government has already factored in another slump.
“According to our calculations so far, we will achieve our target of $5.8 billion during this fiscal year,” said Aung Naing Oo, director general of the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration.
An EU monitoring team is currently on a mission to evaluate if the bloc should withdraw its existing Generalised Scheme of Preference – a beneficial trade agreement – offered to Myanmar. If it revokes the scheme, core businesses such as textile production would be hurt badly and investors would highly likely step on the sidelines.
[caption id="attachment_32175" align="alignleft" width="300"] Government district in Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw © Arno Maierbrugger[/caption] The Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) came up with an ambitious business plan that includes a major investment promotion strategy aiming to attract more than $200 billion through “responsible and quality businesses” over the next 20 years. The Myanmar Investment Promotion Plan 2018 (MIPP), jointly formulated by the MIC and the Japan International Cooperation Agency, outlines three strategic periods to attract foreign direct investment at a time when Myanmar is under heavy international scrutiny for its handling of the Rohingya crisis. The plan projects to receive $8.5 billion in...
The Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) came up with an ambitious business plan that includes a major investment promotion strategy aiming to attract more than $200 billion through “responsible and quality businesses” over the next 20 years.
The Myanmar Investment Promotion Plan 2018 (MIPP), jointly formulated by the MIC and the Japan International Cooperation Agency, outlines three strategic periods to attract foreign direct investment at a time when Myanmar is under heavy international scrutiny for its handling of the Rohingya crisis.
The plan projects to receive $8.5 billion in the first four-year phase starting from 2021-2025, $12.3 billion in 2026-2030 and $17.6 billion in the 2031-2035 fiscal years.
The government said that foreign direct investment was a key driver of economic development and that it was committed to an open, fair and clear investment policy, according to a statement that came with the announcement of the MIPP.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s government is struggling through a chronic economic slowdown. A recently conducted short-term business sentiment survey showed that this year has been the worst across all business sectors and that business confidence had declined compared with last year, with most business people complaining of a lack of clear economic policies from the government.
Furthermore, foreign direct investment into Myanmar declined significantly from $9.5 billion in the 2015-2016 fiscal year to $6.6 billion in 2016-2017, after Western investors became cautious and the country’s image became badly tarnished by what the United Nations determined a genocide against the Muslim Rohingya minority.
This year, foreign direct investment is expected to fall further, although the government has already factored in another slump.
“According to our calculations so far, we will achieve our target of $5.8 billion during this fiscal year,” said Aung Naing Oo, director general of the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration.
An EU monitoring team is currently on a mission to evaluate if the bloc should withdraw its existing Generalised Scheme of Preference – a beneficial trade agreement – offered to Myanmar. If it revokes the scheme, core businesses such as textile production would be hurt badly and investors would highly likely step on the sidelines.
