myanmar business today - vol 2, issue 6

February 6-12, 2014Myanmar Business Today

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mmbiztoday.com February 6-12, 2014 | Vol 2, Issue 6MYANMAR’S FIRST BILINGUAL BUSINESS JOURNAL

Myanmar Summary

Contd. P 7...

for Myanmar,

The World Bank has an-nounced a $2 billion de-velopment programme in

Myanmar, which will focus on improving energy and health-care in one of Asia’s poorest countries.

The announcement was made during a visit by bank presi-

Myanmar, and will help boost a country where less than 30 percent of the population has reliable access to electricity and large parts of the rural commu-nity have little or no access to healthcare.

“We are increasing our sup-

under way in Myanmar because we want to help the government

even more quickly,” Kim said

cess to electricity in a country like Myanmar can help trans-form a society. Children will be able to study at night, shops will stay open and health clin-

Htet Aung

Contd. P 7...

Telenor and Ooredoo given 15-year licenses, services expected within 6 months

A man uses his mobile phone on a bridge in downtown Yangon. Last week, the government granted licenses to two interna-tional companies who are expected to begin operations within six months.

Soe Z

eya Tun/Reuters

When UK-based busi-nessman Ryan Taylor arrived in Myanmar

in early 2012 looking for po-tential business opportunities in the recently opened country, it took him three days to track down a SIM card.

one, I couldn’t believe that it

Oliver Slow cost me more than $100,” he said. “I’d been in Thailand a few days prior to that and had got one for free.”

After a short visit, Ryan re-turned to Myanmar a few months later and found that the SIM card he had bought no longer worked. “Apparently, because I hadn’t used the SIM

Contd. P 9... Contd. P 9...

Myanmar Summary

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2LOCAL BIZ

MYANMAR’S FIRST BILINGUAL BUSINESS JOURNAL

Board of EditorsEditor-in-Chief - Sherpa Hossainy

Reporters & WritersSherpa Hossainy,Kyaw Min, Shein Thu Aung,

Phyu Thit Lwin, Htet Aung,

Su Su, Aye Myat, Daisuke Lon, Yasumasa Hisada

Art & DesignZarni Min Naing (Circle)

DTPMay Su Hlaing

TranslatorsShein Thu Aung, Phyu Maung

AdvertisingTay Zar Zaw Win, Seint Seint Aye, Moe Hsann Pann

Advertising Hotline - 09 7323 6758

Managing DirectorPrasert Lekavanichkajorn

[email protected]

EmailEditor - [email protected]

Advertising - [email protected]

Designer - [email protected]

PhoneEditor - 09 42110 8150

Designer - 09 7310 5793

PublisherU Myo Oo (04622)

No. 1A-3, Myintha 11th Street,

South Okkalapa Township, Yangon.

Tel: 951-850 0763,

Fax: 951-8603288 ext: 007

Shwe Naing Ngan Printing (04193)

Printing

Subscription & CirculationAung Khin Sint - [email protected]

092043559

Nilar Myint - [email protected]

09421085511

Bangladesh Aiming to Court Neighbouring Myanmar

-tance on their country’s relationship with Myanmar as its eastern neighbour emerges from decades of eco-nomic stagnation.

Speaking at the seventh meeting of the Bangladesh-Myanmar Joint Trade Commission (JTC), which was

Hoque, vice president of Bangladesh-Myanmar Cham-ber of Commerce and Industry said that Bangladesh needs to take its neighbour seriously in strengthening economic ties in order to boost trade.

“Businesspeople should be involved very seriously in designing any future plan,” he told Bangladeshi press.

Shwe Mann ‘would cooperate with Suu Kyi’

Parliamentary Speaker Thura Shwe Mann said last week that he would cooperate with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi if she becomes the country’s Presi-dent following the 2015 elections.

However, Shwe Mann, who is also chairman of the rul-ing Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), made it clear that amending the constitution to ensure that Suu Kyi can legally become President, should she win the election, is not at the top of his party’s priori-ties.

“If she was elected president, I would work together with her for the sake of the country’s development,” he said. “I have no objection to her becoming president.”

Aircraft Fuel Consumption Increases for Fifth Consecutive Year in 12-13 Fiscal

Myanmar sold 28.58 million gallons of aircraft fuel

Across the country, there are 11 airports distributing -

lay as well as smaller destinations such as Dawei, Myeik and Mawlamyine.

year previously.

Yangon Stock Exchange ‘needs K32 billion in start-up capital

-change, which is being tipped to be implemented in 2015, will need K32 billion ($32.5 million) in starting capital.

-

ter Maung Maung Thein as saying, “The exchange will be established with a starting capital of K32 billion with

percent stake,” before adding that the government is

Chief Lawyer for the go ahead, and that Japan’s Daiwa

venture.“There are standards for companies to be listed on

the exchange. Not every company will be listed, only companies that meet the standards required,” Maung Maung Thein said, according to the report.

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3LOCAL BIZ

Myanmar Summary

The majority of Chinese investments in Myanmar are in the latter's growing oil and gas industry.

File

s

China’s foreign in-vestment in Myan-mar has reached

Phyu Thit Lwin and Htet Aung

mar Investment Commis-sion, as it continues to be the largest investor in the formerly isolated nation.

“China not only stands at the top of investment

also seen an increase in border trade and regu-lar trade annually,” said

Joint Secretary of My-anmar’s Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI), U Aye Lwin.

The majority of Chinese investments have been in the areas of electricity, mining, hydropower and oil and gas. Oil and gas is the area with the highest Chinese investment, fol-lowed by electricity.

ures, in 11 sectors, Chi-nese companies are op-erating 381 enterprises,

of income from foreign-backed projects.

operations totaling $6.3 billion, or 18.65 percent of the total, followed by South Korea, with 71 op-

of $2.9 billion, or 8.69 percent.

cials revealed last month that they are targeting Myanmar-India border trade to reach $3 billion by 2015.

Myanmar’s relatively new quasi-civilian gov-ernment has eased tax at border stations, say bor-der entrepreneurs, which

ish between the neigh-bouring countries.

“Due to the current situation, border trade has increased. Also, road conditions have improved which has helped the sit-uation,” said one border trader, revealing that the majority of goods traded were beans and forestry products.

Htet Aung

Myanmar hopes to boost Gross Domestic

cal year to K66.2 trillion ($67 billion), according to Dr Kan Zaw, minister for national planning and economic development.

Speaking at the First Pyidaungsu Hluttaw Ninth Regular Meeting, Dr Kan Zaw said that

trillion.

number of national targets. Among them, we are

than last year,” he said, revealing that the target

percent to 6.5 percent.

Myanmar Summary

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mmbiztoday.comLOCAL BIZ 4

Myanmar Summary

Aur

elia

Rus

ek

Aye Myat

Myanmar has attracted $1.92 billion dollars in foreign investment to

boost its hotel and tourism sec-

revealed.

leased by the Ministry of Hotels, the bulk of investment comes from Singaporean companies, which make up $880 million, followed by Thailand ($235 million), Japan ($183 million) and China ($150 million).

The investment is spread over 39 projects in the sector, some of which have been completed, while others are still under con-struction.

hotel rooms in 923 hotels, mo-tels and guest houses across the country, according to the Direc-torate of Hotels and Tourism.

The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism has granted opera-tion licenses to a total of 1,350 tourism companies including one foreign company, 25 joint

panies.It has also issued 196 tourism-

related transport licenses and 3, 667 tour guide licenses.

According to the Myanmar Investment Commission, it has allowed more investment in the hotel building and manufactur-ing sectors this month, creating new job opportunities.

To meet the growing demand for hotels, the ministry has ap-proved the establishment of 11 more hotel zones in three re-gions of the country, namely

tharyi.

long been popular tourist des-tinations, but Tanintharyi is growing in popularity due to its pristine beaches and close proximity to Thailand, which is becoming more accessible as Myanmar’s government opens border stations as tourism in-terest in the country increases.

Meanwhile, the number of tourist arrivals is expected to rise this year as many foreign visitors are destined to visit My-

mits to be hosted by Myanmar

Last year, Myanmar attracted over 2 million tourists, of whom

through airports.Visa-on-arrival for visitors

their travel to the country.

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Myanmar Summary

President Thein Sein has called on development partners in the country to cooperate with the govern-ment.

Reu

ters

President Thein Sein has urged devel-opment partners

working in the country to cooperate with the government as Myanmar continues its transition towards genuine democ-racy.

Speaking at the Myan-mar Development Coop-eration Forum, which was hosted in Nay Pyi Taw un-der the theme of “Acceler-ating Actions for Progress

-sive Coordination”, Thein Sein spoke of the need for systematic management in order to continue the economy’s growth.

The government, he said, is predicting a 9.1 percent GDP growth for

which will be aided by -

velopment plan that will streamline Myanmar’s aid, support and assis-tance needs in line with development priorities, making the country’s de-

Almost three years into his presidency, which may be extended beyond national elections cited for 2015, Thein Sein said that the government is implementing four phas-es of its reform process, notably political reform, economic reform, public administration reform and private sector devel-

opment reform.

said, has created favour-able conditions for na-tional reconciliation with mutual understanding built with ethnic minor-ity groups, although his comments come at a time when his government is coming under heavy criti-cism from the interna-tional community for an-other alleged massacre of Rohingya Muslims in Ra-khine State - something the government is deny-ing took place - as ten-sions continue between Rohingya and Rakhine Buddhists.

With regards to eco-nomic reform, Thein Sein said that the country saw a 7.3 percent GDP growth in 2012-2013, up from a predicted 6.7 percent growth and the country continues to attract for-eign investment despite some concerns regarding creaking infrastructure and high land prices.

He added that the re-form of public admin-istration would involve reducing central control and improving the capac-ity of local governments, while the fourth referred to improving conditions for trade, as well as logis-tical and institutional in-frastructure.

In the remaining months of his term, Thein Sein said that his govern-ment will focus on seven

Aye Myat

key priority areas, those being electricity, water supply, agricultural de-velopment, employment,

-opment and trade and in-vestment.

The two-day forum, organised by the Minis-try of National Planning

-ment, was also attended by World Bank President

-nomic and Social Com-mission for Asia and

Secretary Noeleen Heyzer as well as other ministers and businesspeople.

This year’s event is the second of its kind, fol-

-ment Cooperation Forum which was hosted in Nay Pyi Taw in January 2013.

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Myanmar Summary

Myanmar's employment market is expected to see a growth in the coming years, particularly as international companies, such as telecoms giant Ooredoo, move into the country.

Oor

edoo

Phyu Thit Lwin and Htet Aung

ouths in Myanmar look set to take advantage of the increasing number of

businesses arriving in the coun-try, as job opportunities will be created, according to sources within the employment indus-try.

U Than Soe, editor-in-charge of Job Opportunity Journal told

Myanmar Business Today that a mushroom in sales and ser-

local employment market.Others in the employment in-

dustry urged young people look-ing for work to maintain profes-sionalism if they want to gain good jobs with international as well as local companies.

high demand. For example. CityMart is always looking for

or high school to apply. It is im-portant that applicants present themselves well, dress nicely and speak in a good way, as the jobs are in the customer service industry,” said a responsible person from ThuKaSuSan em-ployment agency.

Meanwhile, the much-publi-cised reforms in the telecom-munications sector, particularly

at a time that the two interna-tional companies, Telenor and Ooredoo, roll out their services, is likely to lead to further job prospects.

“Ooredoo Myanmar requires

pany will open sales centres throughout the country,” said Thiri Kyar Nyo, Ooredoo’s Pub-lic Relations Manager. “During the most recent Ooredoo My-anmar job fayre, we had a great

she said. The government has also an-

nounced that it plans to host job fayres in order to help create job prospects as the country’s economy opens up.

Zin, who operates an overseas employment agency, respective ministries will help to organise job fayre where employers and employees can communicate directly.

“Myanmar will host job fay-res in the future. These fayres should be in the remote areas where there are few job oppor-tunities available,” U Thaung

Phyu Thit Lwin

Due to weak technology and knowledge in the breeding of livestock,

most of the marine products exported by Myanmar abroad are done so as raw materials, according to sources in the in-dustry.

Sources believe that entrepre-neurs are losing a huge amount of potential income as their products lack value and if My-anmar can implement systems to improve the quality of their exported products, then the

“Through using technology other countries produce 500 tonnes for every one hectare of land, but in Myanmar that num-ber is more like 10 tonnes,” said Daw Toe Nandar Tin, chairman of the Myanmar Marine Prod-ucts Dealers Association. “We don’t have the necessary tech-nology here. Many farmers here

tend to use much more tradi-tional techniques to breed their livestock and we need to change that culture if we want our ex-ports to grow,” she added.

There are currently 130 freez-er factories exporting marine products abroad, but the major-ity of those only export the raw materials as they do not have the necessary or technology to produce the value-added prod-ucts,

Daw Toe Nandar Tin added that another problem is that

eases due to the conditions in many of the breeding grounds and urged the government to help the entrepreneurs and contribute to advanced technol-ogy within the industry.

Many businesses operate their own aqua-culture ponds and cool storage facilities but many have said that costs are high, electricity power supply is inadequate and technology and

knowledge are not good enough to produce international quality products.

Myanmar Summary

jynfwGif;tvkyftudkifaps;uGufwGif ta&mif;pifwmrsm;? 0efaqmifrIvkyfief; rsm; rsm;jym;vmonfESifhtrQ ta&mif; 0e fxr f ;ac:,lrIrSmvnf; trsm;qHk ; tqihfodkY a&muf&SdaeaMumif; tvkyf

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Reuers

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mmbiztoday.com

7LOCAL BIZ

Myanmar Summary

ics will have lights and energy to power life-saving technology.

poverty.”About a tenth of the fund,

roughly $200 million, will con-tribute to programmes that will supply universal healthcare to the country by 2030. The fund-ing, the bank says, will increase access to essential health servic-es for women and children and provide much-needed health-care to those who cannot af-ford it. Another $80 million in grants is already helping rural communities in schools, roads, water and other infrastructure

projects, while other aspects of the projects include improved access to telecommunications

-cial management systems and providing grants to schools and poor students.

“World Bank’s support to developing electrical power is very good. Many places in the

supply, so this is needed,” said economist U Thar Lwin.

However, during his address Kim warned Myanmar against corruption as increased inter-national aid comes into the country amid the unprecedent-ed reforms currently taking place.

Recalling an incident in Bang-ladesh when he was forced to shut down a programme due to corruption, Kim warned Myan-

fate.“I would not hesitate to do

evidence of corruption in any of the projects,” he said, adding that the Bank will monitor the programmes closely to ensure that the funds go into the neces-sary areas.

World Bank ceased opera-tions in Myanmar, then Burma, in 1987 after the then-ruling military junta stopped pay-ments on debts worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Through

aid from Japan, last year Myan-mar was able to clear debts to World Bank and Asian Devel-opment Bank, seeing a return of the banks at a time of much-needed development.

During his visit, Kim also met with President Thein Sein as well as other government mem-bers, opposition leaders and businesspeople in the capital Nay Pyi Taw.

open the market to other operators.

WM

Shein Thu Aung

The Myanmar and Japan governments have agreed to revise a bilateral avia-

tion accord allowing more Jap-anese and Myanmar airlines

countries, it was announced last week.

The original accord, signed in 1972, stipulated that only one airline from each nation

agreement was signed follow-ing a meeting between Japan’s Ambassador to Myanmar Mikio Numata and director general of the Department of Civil Avia-tion under Myanmar’s Trans-port Ministry Tin Naing Tun.

Currently All Nippon Air-

--

nese cities. The new agreement means that other airlines will

-tries with Japan Airlines one of the airlines expected to capital-ise on the new agreement.

“The revision is expected to respond to growing needs for

and further promote bilateral exchanges,” a release announc-ing the deal said.

Japan is a close ally of the cur-rent Myanmar government and is involved in a range of pro-jects within the country, most notably in infrastructure as the formerly-isolated nation con-tinues unprecedented reforms aimed at lifting the economy and bringing genuine democ-racy to the country.

Japan has cleared much of Myanmar’s debt to them and is heavily involved in the Thilawa

-lion dollar industrial project

as plans to upgrade Myanmar’s transport network.

Phyu Thit Lwin

Myanmar’s intellectual property law is ex-

by June, sources within the in-dustry revealed recently.

Work began on implementing IP law in 2003 and in 2010 the Ministry of Science and Tech-nology pushed further forward the plans to have it up and run-ning.

continues to process the copy-right law. In 2010, the Min-istry took accountability and urged parties to progress with the law. We are waiting for ap-proval from the President’s Of-

expecting it in June,” said U Min Tayza Nyunt Tin, manag-ing partner for MN Associates Intellectual Property Law Firm.

Copyright extends to four parts-creation copyright, trade-mark, literary and artist work copyright and industrial patent copyright. As Myanmar attracts an increasing number of foreign visitors and businesses, IP Law is seen as a crucial law.

-

products and pharmacy prod-ucts very much. When Myan-

Free Trade agreement, foreign

country and if copyright law is not enacted properly, then the state economy could lose around 20 percent,”” Nyunt Tin added.

Myanmar Summary

Reuers

jrefrmEdkifiHwGif ÓPypönf;rlydkifcGifhudk 2003 ckESpfrS pwifum a&;qGJcJhNyD; taMumif;trsKd;rsKd;aMumifhxGuf&SdvmEdkif jcif; r&Sdao;bJ vuf&SdwGif 2010 ckESpf rS pwifí odyÜHESifhenf;ynm0efBuD;|merS vTJajymif;wm0ef,laqmif&Gufvsuf&Sd&m ,ckESpftwGif; rlydkifcGifhOya' xGuf&SdEdkif aMumif; od&onf/

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Myanmar Summary

An estimated 70 percent of Myanmar's work in the agricultural industry.

Su Su

Britain’s Business Ambas-sador for Agriculture, James Townshend, has

clarity on the issue of land titles if the country is to attract fur-ther investment in the agricul-tural sector.

visit to the country last month, which also saw him attend the

Townshend said that visibility is needed when it comes to the ownership of land and to avoid problems such as land grab-bing, something that has been an issue for land owners in My-anmar since the country’s mili-tary-ruled days.

“It would be an impediment to the development of the [agricul-ture] industry, not least because the people who lease the land wouldn’t have any security. If investors don’t have security, they can’t suitably make that investment needed to deliver a competitive agricultural sec-tor,” he said, echoing a number

of points made by potential in-vestors who have called on the government to ensure a more stable business environment if they want to continue attracting investors from abroad.

Townshend also spoke of the importance the agricultural sector has in terms of lifting the economy as well as providing jobs for the country’s citizens, in a country where it is estimat-ed that 70 percent of the work-ing population are employed in agricultural areas.

Also during his trip, Town-shend made a visit to the town of Pathein in Ayeyrwaddy re-gion to inspect the site of a joint-venture between local

which will produce export-qual-

Sand and Stone

Htet Aung

The sand and stone mar-kets have performed well

ment and private construc-tions as well as apartments and housing complexes continue to thrive in Myanmar, sources in the industry say.

According to construction ac-cessory businessmen U Kyaw Kyaw and Ko Than Htay, while sand and stone have seen a rise in popularity for the construc-tion of buildings and proper-ties, demand for brick has seen a slight fall.

“The prices for bricks at construction accessory shops

because there is so much of it available. However, sand and stone orders are high, particu-

Ko Than Htat, who added that a high amount of demand for sand and stone comes from Thanintharyi Region in My-anmar’s south and close to the border with Thailand.

He added that, due to the brick market being seasonal, many brick traders manufac-ture the product in bulk, which leads to a fall in the price of the product.

The price for units of pricks has fallen from K125 each to K115 given the current climate.

Myanmar Summary

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File

s



I(FMI) last week announced that it has successfully com-

shares at a price of K10,000. The shares were issues on Jan-

demand after the successful completion of issuing 2.5 mil-lion shares to existing shareholders and the company an-nounced that it expects total gross proceeds from the sale to reach K27.5 billion ($27.9 million), of which the proceeds

the Myanmar arm of the project. Other projects from the country including development of

its FMI Air operations following the granting of a temporary

Meeyahta International Hotel Ltd, a 10-acre property devel-

Daisuke Lon

Myanmar Summary

for so long, it had just expired. With all the challenges already presented from operating with-in Myanmar, the last thing you need is trouble using a phone.”

Thankfully, woes like Ryan’s will soon be a thing of the past as last week the government

two international companies looking to roll out their services across the country.

Qatar’s Ooredoo and Telenor of Norway were announced as the bid winners on June 27 2012, but had to wait seven months, while the Ministry of Communications and Informa-

Telecommunications Law, to be granted the 15-year licenses.

According to a press release from the ministry, the licenses will “authorise each operator to build, own and operate a telecommunications network and to provide the full range

ecommunications services on a nationwide basis.”

During the country’s military-run era, the telecommunica-tions industry was tightly con-trolled and SIM cards would often cost upwards of $1,000.

cantly since then, but even to-day on the black market they are rarely available for less than $100.

It is thought that when Oore-doo and Telenor role out their services within the next few months, SIM cards will be available for K1,500 ($1.70). In a country where an estimated 10 percent of the 60 million population has access to a mo-bile phone, clearly there is huge potential for growth for the two companies, who will also com-pete alongside local operators Myanmar Posts and Telecom-

arpon, both who are planning to

team up with other internation-al companies in order to make themselves more competitive in the market.

Telenor, which is part owned by the Norwegian government, plans to launch its services within eight months and is looking to achieve 90 percent

years. The group also said in a release last week that it plans to breakeven on its investment within three years.

“A major milestone has been passed with the acceptance of the nationwide telecommuni-cations license agreement with the Myanmar government. Tel-ecommunications is a strategic sector in enabling the advance-ment of key industries, and this license agreement marks the beginning of an exciting journey in Myanmar’s develop-ment,” said Jon Fredrik Bak-

enor Group. Ooredoo have revealed that

they plan to roll out their ser-vices within six months.

“We are delighted to be here today to accept our license,”

attended the ceremony to sign the license in Nay Pyi Taw. “The government of Myanmar can be proud of a well-run license pro-cess. We look forward to contin-uing to work alongside the Un-ion Government as Myanmar develops socially, economically and technologically.”

The licenses were granted pri-or to approval of the telecom-munications rules and regula-tions, which will be released in February, U Than Thun Aung, director at Telecommunications Department of the ministry told local research group Thura Swiss. The drafted rules and regulations include licensing, spectrum, access and competi-

the ministry said it will invite

tenders for services including

to private companies.

Myanmar is planning to reach

AN countries on visa exemp-tions by 2015, sources from the Ministry of Immigration and Population revealed last week. Currently, Myanmar has visa exemption agreements with Laos, Vietnam, the Philippines and Cambodia, while an agree-ment with Thailand was agreed in late 2012 but has been put on hold due to the current un-rest taking place in Myanmar’s

Su Su eastern neighbour. The current

aim for visa exemption agree-ments not just for tourists but also to help grow the export and import sectors between the countries in order for trade to

Than, director of the ministry.

of people from within the re-gion will come for the meetings. An agreement would also help

boost tourism development,” he added.

Myanmar Summary

jrefrmEdkifiHtaejzifh tmqD,HEdkifiH tcsif;csif; ADZmrvdkbJ vGwfvyfpGm vnfywfoGm;vmEdkif&eftwGuf a'o wGif;EdkifiHrsm;tMum; ADZmuif;vGwfcGifh oabmwlnDcsufrsm;udk vmrnfh 2015 ckESpftrD&&Sdatmif aqmif&Gufvsuf&Sd aMumif; vl0ifrIMuD;Muyfa&;ESifh jynfolU tiftm;0efMuD;|merS od&onf/

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Waltraut Ritter

The Worldbank Knowledge

Myanmar as second low-est among 157 countries across all key variables relating to ICT, innovation, education as well as economic incentive and insti-tutional regime; Transparency International’s 2013 Corrup-tion Perception Index lists My-anmar in the bottom group of countries, and the most recent Internet World Statistics report (2012) shows that internet pen-etration is around one percent, although with the entry of two international telecom opera-tors, Telenor and Ooredoo, roll-ing out voice and data services nationwide starting this month,

move up fast. The growth of in-ternet access in Myanmar will predominantly be mobile inter-net access. Seven percent of the population use mobile phones; the lowest cost for an Android smartphone (with Myanmar font) is $60-70 and a SIM card with data services cost between $5 and $130, depending on the channel through which one gets access to a SIM. Huawei’s smartphones are the market leader at the moment, followed by Samsung.

With the opening of the coun-try in the past two to three years, what are the prospects for building the foundations for a knowledge society, a society where knowledge and exper-tise become the most critical resource and asset for national development?

Recent reports and studies about Myanmar (ADB 2012, Cheesman 2012, McKinsey 2013) describe the backward-

ness of everything related to information, from information laws, information access, ICT infrastructure to internet gov-ernance.

Building the soft infrastruc-ture, capacity, skills and mind-set is another challenge. Nwe Nwe Aye says that the govern-ment in Myanmar is still heavily circumscribed by secrecy and lack of transparency, and that there is “no sense of political rule as a participative process” (Nick Cheesman et. al. (ed.) Myanmar’s Transition: Open-ings, Obstacles and Opportu-

The culture of an authoritarian

technology may act as a cata-lyst, but there are quite a few

Reu

ters

countries with excellent ICT infrastructure and non-existing or low civic rights and public transparency as well.

Reporters without Borders and the Burma Media Associa-tion claim that “the structure of the new Burmese Internet as

-thorities more surveillance op-tions, while reserving the fast-est and best-quality access for the government and military”. They say that Myanmar’s use of Blue Coat technologies (the Silicon Valley tech company providing internet censorships equipment and services such as Deep Packet inspection) in gov-ernment agencies raises ques-

policy and surveillance.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB), which resumed opera-tions in Myanmar in 2013, is advising the government on ICT strategy and public administra-tion reform. Following their tender for the development of an e-Governance Master Plan, it was just announced a few days ago that IT services provider In-fosys will be appointed as advi-sor for the $1.5 million project, which also includes six months training for 100 engineering students. Building ICT capacity is the basis for information and data management across the public sector, and also the ba-sis for any Open Data initiative. All major global tech companies

Myanmar Summary

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mmbiztoday.comFEATURE 11

Myanmar Summary

Tan Ren Rong

Myanmar has under-gone huge changes in recent years in an

attempt to open the country’s doors to foreign investment and catch up with the increasingly modernised world. Looking at

obvious that modernisation is creeping into the country, with multinationals including Mer-cedes, Chevrolet and Hilton entering the market, with many new hotels opening to accom-

-eigners each year.

While these new foreign com-panies undoubtedly create new jobs for the local people, it usu-ally favours those who have had the privilege to pursue a higher education, particularly those who have studied or worked

Myanmar, women are tradi-tionally taught to be gentle and obedient, and were discouraged from being career-minded as it is thought to be the business of the men. According to infor-mation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) website, while two-thirds of women work, which is often at roadside stores and sometimes building roads in rural areas, they are engaged mainly in unskilled work at a low, unstable salary. With a meagre 18 percent of women in the country having secondary education or higher,

the vast majority of women, usually in rural parts of the

-vant skills for white- collar jobs that earn better pay. This con-tributes to a widening income gap between the rich and poor, especially with the opening up of Myanmar’s markets to for-eign investment, which usually provides better paying jobs for skilled workers.

In order to gain an insight into the challenges faced by women in the workforce, I interviewed a number of career women within the country who have climbed their way to the top of

-come successful entrepreneurs, professionals, managers and di-rectors.

With gender discrimination prevalent across much of Asia, one may expect it to be rife in Myanmar. However, the gen-eral consensus of the interviews was that it is not seen as a huge issue by the women I inter-viewed and, on the whole, wom-en are well-respected by men and are considered, on most parts, equal to that of men. A prominent example would be that of the popular leader of the opposition, Aung San Suu Kyi.

In the workforce, such as the private sector, there appears to be virtually no gender discrimi-nation, especially in the up-per management, as individu-als tend to be more liberal and open-minded. Performance, it seems, is the most important criteria for promotion in this sector and an equal amount of respect can generally be ex-pected from the other party. However, there are some limi-tations in the government and public sector where gender may play more of a role in decid-ing promotions. This is partly

usually requiring military ex-perience or connections that women may lack in comparison to men, as well as the capabili-ties of women not being given as much recognition by senior executives as it is in the private sector. Improvements in these sectors are slowly making their way through the changing of laws to allow women ministers in previously all-male ministe-rial roles.

At universities in central My-anmar, while the amount of fe-

A shopworker serves customers at a phone shop in downtown Yangon.

Soe Z

eya Tun/Reuters

male attendees and applicants are higher than that of males, entrance marks for certain courses, such as Medicine, are

-males than for males. However, with the education sector slowly changing and being improved, as well as previously male-only

courses being opened up to in-clude females, gender equality in terms of education is on its

-terviewees, noted that an engi-neer in charge of renovations for her recently opened fast-food restaurant, Harleys, was a young woman. Hence, evident

“In terms of hiring staff, according to sev-eral business women, they revealed that

while the basics of education are important, most employers will hire based on the can-didate’s willingness to work and be trained”

changes in the education sec-tor are showing, where more women are working and leaving their marks in male-dominated industries, such as engineering and construction.

-cording to several business women, they revealed that while the basics of education are important, most employers will hire based on the candi-date’s willingness to work and be trained. Though, of course,

like accounting, experience

deciding factor. For hotels like Chatrium Hotel, as the Market-ing Communications Manager

Myat Mon shared, ascending to a senior executive level usu-ally requires good experience plus higher education beyond a university degree, such as a Master’s Degree in respective areas such as Business Admin-istration.

While there may be occasional gender preference when hiring for stereotypically male jobs,

-chitecture or construction, it is

-tions and experience is slowly starting to have more emphasis. Hence, many businesswomen

continues to grow and progress, especially with more interna-tional businesses establishing

bring along their own work cul-ture and norms that will lead to increased foreign interaction. With the introduction of more international norms and work

culture, gender discrimination will be lessened and as individ-ual capability and contribution will be given more focus.

When asked about how most career women juggle family and work responsibilities in Myan-mar, it was shared that most of them either work with their husbands in their own business or have husbands who do not mind them working as long as they are able to perform family duties, such as looking after the children, though some do hire domestic help to assist them. In some cases, it is the women who become breadwinners of the family, and many of them

between family and work.“Successful women entrepre-

neurs are masters of this bal-ancing act. I’m still trying to be-come a master,” said Veronica Aw of Nervin Café, a mother of three children.

The women I have inter-viewed all feel that they are

become career women, and feel that they have accomplished a lot. Being successful in their careers and family life, they feel that greater recognition is also given to them as others ac-knowledge that they are capable of handling both their work and family life well.

While it cannot be expected in Myanmar for there to be full equality in marriage, Veronica Aw, among other businesswom-en and entrepreneurs, believes that men and women should aim to share family responsibil-

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mmbiztoday.comFEATURE 12

The majority of interviewees said that gender discrimination is not a major problem in Myanmar.

Soe Z

eya Tun/Reuters

are preparing their investment plans for the country, many of them coupled with educational programmes or civil society col-laborations.

Myanmar has an active civil society working on various as-pects of information society, from press freedom to civic-driven public libraries, such as Beyond Access, an organiza-tion that aims to transform the country’s vast network of 5000 public libraries into connected information and service hubs, MIDO (Myanmar ICT develop-ment organization, which or-

-

and the Myanmar Blogger So-ciety, which now collaborates with telecom provider Ooredoo. These networks and organisa-tions could play an important role in building the soft infra-structure of the future informa-tion society. Another initiative with potentially wide reach is the introduction of Wikipedia Zero, whereby the Wikimedia Foundation, through a partner-ship with Telenor, gives free ac-cess to the encyclopedia’s vast information.

The legal side of Myanmar’s information and internet gov-ernance also needs to be re-

formed. Currently there exist a number of outdated but still valid laws, such as the “Burma

instated by the British Colonial regime, which is part of the on-going discussions on constitu-tional reform ahead of the 2015 elections.

This year, however, there is a great opportunity to introduce open data initiatives in Myan-mar: the country is conducting

years. Supported by UN organi-sations, the data collection will take place in March and April, and provide a sound basis for all further socio-economic de-velopment.

Reliable information has been a scarce resource in the past dec-ades, and the country data com-piled by various international organisations such as UNDP, ITU, and Worldbank has many gaps or only shows estimates,

country’s population range be-

about livelihood, economy, and exact size of the many ethnic groups in the country is vague. The latter is widely discussed in the media in the preparation of the census. Some ethnic groups are worried that the census sur-

Building an inclusive knowl-

of data, information and knowl-edge are available for all. Build-ing intalligible resources is a strategic task for any country, regardless of its state of socio-economic development.

-lished on Open Knowledge Foundation Blog and has been republished here with the au-thor’s permission. The author can be contacted at [email protected].

Reuers

ities in a marriage, rather than the woman being the only or sole family caregiver. A work-ing mother would be unlikely to be able to devote 100 percent of

-dren, so she believes responsi-bilities between both parents should become more equalized especially in a rapidly growing economy that brings about ris-ing costs of living.

As for the issue of unskilled and lowly educated women in more rural areas of Myanmar, associations like the Myanmar

-

formed in 1995, help organise workshops and courses that teach important and relevant

email correspondence for these women, as well as try to ensure more girls are able to continue studying these skills.

When asked about their thoughts on women’s role in the

time, all interviewees were pos-itive that women would play a larger role in the workforce as policies and mindsets are start-ing to become more equalised and liberal, as well as increas-ing living costs putting pres-sure on both women and men to achieve better-paying jobs. It was also predicted by Daw Lynn Lynn that there would be more women managers and directors

in the future, as she believes Burmese women are hardwork-ing, and would hence climb their way to upper management more easily.

“Women, or anyone for that matter, who are determined and hardworking in their goals

their way to the top,” the found-

Daw Cho Cho Toe said, and her ideals were also reinforced by many successful women I had the pleasure of talking to.

It is only when one dares to chase their passion that one is determined to pour their heart into it, and have their passion drive their careers and life, not

and challenges head-strong,

like the women I interviewed have demonstrated, and from it, success will come inevitably. “Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own mind -Roosevelt”: this way of

into the mindsets of current and future generations of girls by the government’s future policies and actions, as well as

with the assistance from associ--

couraged by families to ensure upward social and economic mobility of women in Myan-mar.

Tan Ren Rong has interned at Consult-Myamar Co Ltd, a business consultancy based in Yangon. She is planning to pursue a Diploma in Interna-tional Business in April 2014.

Views are author’s own, and do not necessarily represent those of Myanmar Business Today.

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mmbiztoday.comREGIONAL BIZ 13

Myanmar Summary

downtown Bangkok.

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Khettiya Jittapong

Long-term foreign inves-tors say they are sticking with Thailand despite its

political woes but the threat of worsening chaos may scare away new money as compa-nies scope out other options in neighboring countries such as Indonesia.

Protesters trying to topple the government have rallied in the capital, Bangkok, since No-vember. This month they have forced ministries to close and blocked major roads. They say they will stop a general election being held on February 2.

"Assuming the political woes go on, foreign investors may decide to shift to other coun-tries like Indonesia, Vietnam and Myanmar," Kyoichi Tana-da, president of Toyota Motor Corp's Thai unit, said this week.

"Many investors want to in-vest in Thailand. If the situa-tion has not been resolved, the ones which are already invested may not go away, but whether they will invest more, it's ques-tionable," said Tanada, also vice-president of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce, which

in the Southeast Asian country.Thailand gets more than half

of its foreign director invest-ment from Japan. That foreign capital brings much-needed money into a country that re-

in 2013 and may again this year.It is the biggest car market in

Southeast Asia and a regional production and export base for top manufacturers such as Toy-

ota, Nissan and Ford. It is also a major global pro-

duction center for hard disk drives with big players such as Seagate Technology and West-ern Digital having operations in the country.

Thai partners are putting a brave face on things.

Hemaraj Land and Develop-ment runs seven big industrial estates, home to factories for the likes of Ford Motor, General Motors and Caterpillar.

David Nardone, its chief ex-ecutive, said 10-20 percent of new customers had postponed signing contracts to take up fa-cilities since December.

"It's short-term disruption," Nardone said, hopeful there would be a recovery in the next few months. "There may be some people who don't know Thailand so well and they may take longer, have more ques-tions and wait for clarity."

The optimists point to 2010, when more than 90 people died in another protracted bout of political unrest. Foreign direct investment jumped 88 percent that year, the stock market

-

omy bounded ahead by 7.8 per-cent.

This time, however, the pro-tests have gone on for three months and government work is being disrupted.

Some $60 billion of infra-structure spending may not get started this year, for example.

the ninth month in December to a two-year low and investors worry about a possible escala-tion of violence, which will hold back Southeast Asia's second-largest economy after Indone-sia.

"Political instability is always

Long term investments pro-jects may be reconsidered and other locations may be reas-sessed," said Rolf-Dieter Dan-

of commerce in Thailand.Foreign direct investment

probably totaled almost $13 billion in 2013 but could drop

even if tension eased and inves-tors returned in the second half, said Pimonwan Mahujchariya-

wong, an economist at Kasikorn Research Center in Bangkok.

Investment also dropped in

disrupted the activities of global

diversify their investments to

to reduce risks (either from pol-itics or disasters)," Pimonwan said, adding FDI could return to a more normal $8-9 billion per annum in the next 3-5 years.

fundamentals - a relatively large market of around 67 million people, a growing middle class, pro-business environment, good infrastructure and geo-graphical advantages includ-ing access to emerging markets such as Myanmar - helped it stand out in Southeast Asia and attract investment.

Jongkie D. Sugiarto, chair-man of the Association of In-donesia Automotive Industries (Gaikindo), said Indonesia with

placed to catch up.But the regulatory environ-

ment had to be improved and the domestic market developed, he said. "We also have to build our infrastructure, from ports to the provision of electricity

and gas, roads and so on. How can we possibly ask car compa-nies that want to invest in In-donesia to build power plants

This year was always going to be tough for Thailand.

"Lackluster exports and weak consumer spending from 2013 have resulted in low average capacity utilization at around

of inventory accumulation," said Sutapa Amornvivat, chief economist at Siam Commercial Bank SCB.BK, expecting private investment growth of about 3

than the average 10-year rate of 6 percent.

we think Thailand still makes a very good long-term bet," she said.

That sentiment was echoed by Honda Automobile (Thailand), part of Honda Motor.

"New potential investors may be spooked by the politi-cal woes," said Pitak Pruitti-sarikorn, its executive vice-president. "For Honda, we have been in Thailand for more than

-dent in Thailand's long-term outlook." Reuters

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“Political instability is always prevent-ing investment flows. Long term in-vestments projects may be recon-sidered and other locations may be

reassessed”



Robin Emmott

Beijing's top diplomat has called on China and the

-sider a multi-billion-dollar free-trade deal, a once unthinkable step that shows a big improve-ment in relations between two of the world's largest markets.

"There are bright prospects -

tion," Chinese State Councillor

Catherine Ashton ahead of a visit to Brussels by President Xi Jinping in March.

"work jointly to create condi-tions for launching a feasibility

agreement."British Prime Minister David

in December he was a strong advocate of such a free-trade deal.

-sion, which handles interna-tional trade negotiations on

an "investment agreement" to

countries to do business in Chi-na.

Talks on that formally began in Beijing last week, a big step that many see as a potential forerunner to a free-trade deal.

-plain of poor treatment in China, such as being forced to

share sensitive know-how to win access to Chinese funding and local contracts.

China has doubled since 2003 to more than 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) a day, but China receives just 2 percent of the

Talk of a free-trade deal, which would create a market of almost 2 billion people, seemed unthinkable just a year ago, when Brussels prepared to levy punitive import duties on bil-lions of dollars of Chinese solar

ever trade dispute between the two partners.

A deal to set a minimum price for the solar panels defused the tensions.

Reuters

Myanmar Summary

Clare Baldwin

US retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc has said it will upgrade its vendor

compliance process in China, requiring more documentation and making use of a computer-based system to help suppliers manage associated paperwork.

The announcement came af-ter state-owned China Central Television (CCTV) criticised the world's No. 1 retailer for cir-cumventing its quality control process and fast-tracking some

margins.Wal-Mart will "ensure the

correct documents and other required items are in place be-fore the products are sold in our stores," the retailer said in

a statement.Documentation includes la-

-gredients, government test reports, China Compulsory

photographs, copies of manu-facturing permits, details sub-stantiating health claims and claims such as "organic" and

-codes and papers on intellectual property.

"This process requires the col-

retention of well over one mil-lion documents annually," the company said.

"Wal-Mart China has now in-vested in a computer-based sys-tem enabling vendors to upload all required legal documents. This system was piloted in

September of 2013 and is now ready for broad-based applica-tion across the supply chain."

Wal-Mart, which operates -

houses in China, said immedi-ately after the CCTV report last week that it keeps a close watch over its supply chain.

It said it only uses its expe-dited special approvals process

as when a supplier changes the size of a product or switches distribution agents.

In the statement on Wednes-day, the company explained ad-ditional steps it would take to address supply chain concern.

Wal-Mart is the latest in a se-ries of foreign companies CCTV has taken to task on issues rang-ing from pricing to poor quality

Myanmar Summary

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products and shoddy customer service. Reuters



Myanmar Summary

William Mallard

After falling by almost

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe came to power just over a year ago, the yen is in a sweet-spot for the economy.

Companies have roared back -

made exports more competitive and while import prices, nota-bly for fuel, have climbed, im-

But should the yen keep fall-ing, the drawbacks of higher import prices and possible an-ger from Washington and other trading powers could start to

-er currency.

"I don't think many people in Japan want a yen decline to around 120 or 130 to the dol-lar," said Bank of Japan (BoJ) economist Nobuyasu Atago, who is now on a stint at the

Research. "Many companies have already moved production overseas and may also become hesitant to boost exports for po-litical considerations."

not clamoring for a further drop and they believe the yen's fall has largely run its course, a new Reuters poll shows. For years, a strong yen had sapped Japan's export competitiveness

Corporate Survey said they both expect and hope the yen will be in its current narrow range of 100-105 to the dollar six months from now, while more than 90 percent predict and want to see the Japanese currency in a broader 90-110 range. Only 5 percent wanted the yen to weaken beyond 110 to the dollar.

Japan. "For us the weaker the yen gets, the tougher it gets,"

of Japan Airlines CO, which pays for its aircraft and fuel in dollars.

"But it is important for Japan's economy to rebound, so a level of around 100 yen is necessary" and weakening a bit beyond 105 yen would be better, Ueki told reporters at a new year's gath-ering of business leaders. "We can adjust to it as long as there is stability."Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd, Japan's leading heavy-machinery maker and

aerospace company, would be "grateful" for a yen slide to 115-120 to the dollar, said chairman Hideaki Omiya.

And yet, he said, "I think the yen is balanced at the moment around the 100-105 yen level. From the viewpoint of both im-porters and exporters, a skewed rate is not good. And with the strong yen reversed, what we need now is stability."

Both China and South Korea - major trading rivals to Japan which compete in a number of markets such as auto and elec-tronics - have raised concerns about the slide in the yen in re-cent weeks.

The United States has wel-comed Japan's economic re-bound after Abe came to power 13 months ago promoting a policy mix of massive BOJ eas-ing and government spending - dubbed Abenomics by the me-dia.

If the yen's fall is the result, rather than the aim, of these growth policies, Washington seems willing to tolerate a gen-tle yen decline - to a point.

"They need to get their domes-tic economy growing," Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said this month. But he said, taking ques-tions at a forum, "their long-term growth can't be rooted in a strategy that ultimately turns in any way towards reliance on an unfair advantage because of the exchange rate.”

Ted Truman, a former senior -

ment and the Fed, said that as long as the Japanese "are not deliberately acting to push down the yen, I don't think, as a matter of economics, the Unit-ed States government would be particularly unhappy."

But it was possible some US

was "encouraging further de-preciation of the yen by wink-ing and nodding, if not overt actions," said Truman, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute

Washington.

Reuters

If that is the case, "I'm sure the Treasury is making clear to the Japanese that if there is any hint of that going on, it will be a big problem," Truman said. "And we have enough problems with Japan as it is."

Still, current and former Jap-

about currency diplomacy say a yen fall to 110 to the dollar might not raise the heat on To-kyo - that the threshold might be more like 120-130 yen.

Treasury and Japanese Fi--

clined to comment on their cur-rency conversations.

IMF Deputy Managing Direc-tor Naoyuki Shinohara, who

-

concerns that the yen's weak-ness could lead to tensions be-tween Tokyo and Washington.

"It is clear that what Japan is trying to do now is beat de-

interview. "There may be some changes in the way (the U.S.

government) communicates due to its relations with Con-gress. But I don't feel Japan's weak yen is seen as a big prob-lem. Reuters

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production overseas and

may also become hesitant to boost

exports for political considerations.”



Myanmar Summary

Faith Hung

Taiwan’s Foxconn Tech-nology Group, the major supplier of Apple Inc’s

iPhone and iPad products, has said it is considering expand-ing manufacturing to the Unit-ed States in a move that could open up new prospects for busi-ness with Apple.

Chairman Terry Gou also said Indonesia will be a top pri-ority for investment this year. That would tie in with Fox-conn’s deal to design and mar-ket phones in the country with BlackBerry Ltd, as the Cana-dian company seeks to reverse its decline in the smartphone business.

“The US is a must-go mar-ket,” said Gou, speaking at the group’s annual year-end party last week. He said many cus-tomers and partners hope Fox-conn, the world’s largest con-tract manufacturer of electronic goods, will set up manufactur-ing facilities in the US.

Foxconn’s ambitious growth plans could see it lift annual revenue to T$10 trillion ($333 billion) a decade from now,

Myanmar Summary

Sui-Lee Wee

China’s commerce ministry has called on the United States to stop anti-dumping investigations into imports of solar power products from China, expressing "serious concern" and vow-

ing to defend its producers.

certain solar power products from China and Taiwan, a move that could have a major impact on the nation's fast-growing solar mar-ket.

The US Department of Commerce said it initiated anti-dump-ing duty and countervailing duty investigations, which will assess whether the products are being sold in the United States below their fair value, or if their manufacturers receive inappropriate lev-els of foreign government subsidies.

"The Chinese side expresses serious concern," the commerce ministry said in a statement on its website. "China urges the United States again to carefully handle the current ... investigations, be prudent in taking measures and terminate the investigation pro-ceedings."

China will assess the impact on its solar industry and "resolutely defend" itself through various mechanisms, the ministry said.

Myanmar Summary

The group, which includes -

sion Industry Co Ltd and Fox-conn Technology Co Ltd, could take advantage of geographical proximity to open up new deals with partners like Apple as they develop new gadgets.

Best known for putting togeth-er iPhones, Foxconn honed its skills by meeting Apple’s exact-ing standards and supply chain rigor. It boasts a workforce of more than 1 million, and the scale to negotiate cheaper com-ponent prices than BlackBerry could obtain on its own.

Gou placed emphasis on Indo-nesia for future development. He said the country, rather than India, will be best able to re-place China as the world’s man-ufacturing hub in the future.

-cials have said Hon Hai wants to gradually invest as much as $10 billion over 5 years with

-

-age aimed at kickstarting the plan. Hon Hai has yet to con-

Reuters

Reuters

Indonesia’s budget carrier Lion Air announced last week that it is planning to

-ing Co 787 aircraft and replace them with smaller 737 models.

The carrier said it needed widebody aircraft to accommo-date more than the roughly 350 passenger capacity of the 787-8, and will place a new order for aircraft in 2015.

already includes a large number of that model. The widebody aircraft it intends to order next year will be used on domes-tic, high-frequency routes, the company said.

The private carrier, which uses Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta In-ternational Airport as its base, has shown impressive growth in recent years and some re-ports are tipping the airline to closely challenge market lead-ers Air Asia. In January, Lion Air announced a venture into the Thai market, operating Thai Lion Air from Bangkok’s Don Mueang arport and also oper-ates a Malaysian venture from Kuala Lumpur.

Su Su

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Lion

Air


mmbiztoday.comINTERNATIONAL BIZ 17

Myanmar Summary

Andrew Callus

If you had spent 10 pounds ($16.50) on BP share on April 19, 2010, you would

now, including dividends. A poor investment, however you cut it, but also a remarkable re-covery.

A day later an explosion at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico would deal

-shore oil spill, and BP would face the wrath of President Barack Obama himself for the death and destruction it caused. Over the next two months, BP shares lost nearly two thirds of their value as the scale of the disaster threatened to sink the company.

Now some investors are sens-ing a better future than they had dared to hope.The shares

and are the second-best per-

start of the fourth quarter.This may have something to

do with the misfortunes of its

at Shell, cost overruns at Chev-

to mention a price-enhancing share buyback program put in place last year, but it is still quite a turnaround in senti-ment from 2010.

Then, the price of credit de-fault swaps in BP bonds showed that even its solvency was in question, and Shell thought it might have to mount a rescue bid.

"It wasn't so much that we wanted to buy, more we thought the British government might ask us to step in," recalled Pe-ter Voser, Shell's chief executive at the time, in a discussion with Reuters last year.

Now, in a change of fortunes, Shell has warned investors that

since 2009 at the end of last year - albeit with little damage to its share price - while BP has reshaped itself.

Despite suffering a huge setback to its reputation after the 2010 oil spill, analysts say the company has come a long way in recent years.

Reuters

for future costs.In a note published on Fri-

-casts across the sector, ana-lysts at UBS predict BP's return on average capital employed

percent - on a par with Shell's.BP shed a big chunk of its

earning power to pay for the spill, but got prices that now look enviable as the industry cy-cle turns down. Rivals are now falling over each other to get as-sets on the block, at the risk of driving prices lower.

A leaner, meaner asset base has emerged, too. Meanwhile, having settled criminal pro-ceedings, and two phases into a three-stage civil trial, an army of lawyers is working to push

-ties way into the future. Barely a week goes by without a new legal challenge from the British group aimed at keeping a lid on its liabilities.

BP in a letter to investors last week, U.S. hedge fund manager

-light Capital said investors were overlooking the company's im-proved return on capital in its core business and remained too focused on the spill fallout.

Greenlight said it had bought BP stock at an average price of

-pany had a net asset value of nearly $70 a share, even assum-ing it will have to pay out far more than it has provided for. BP's U.S.-listed stock traded at

Deutsche Bank - one of 13 in-vestment banks with a buy or outperform note on the stock, according to ThomsonReuters data, compared with three rat-ing it underperform or sell - ar-gues that the net present value of spill litigation has fallen.

"This is not to say that BP's position in the court trial has improved ... rather... it is likely to be multiple years before ad-ditional cash of any magnitude over and above that already

2010 ckESpf {NyDv 19 &ufwGif BP \ &S,f,mwpfckwefzdk;rSm pwmvif aygif 10 aygif (tar&duefa':vm 16.50) &SdcJhNyD; ,cktcg pwmvifaygif 9 aygif (tar&duefa':vm 14.85)

-ance sheet," the bank said in a research note.

The note estimated cash out-

than $1 billion a year over the next decade.

That is only about two weeks' worth of capital spending at current rates.

But numbers rarely tell the whole story, as analysts discov-ered to their cost in 2010 when

-nities to buy BP shares - all the way down from 6 pounds to a low of less than 3 pounds.

Some investors and insiders privately question the direction and style of management since former chief executive Tony Hayward resigned, taking re-sponsibility for the spill.

Hayward's replacement, Bob Dudley, has extracted about $12 billion from the company's troublesome Russian invest-ment and given some $8 billion of it back to shareholders.

But he has yet to prove that the remaining half - which be-came a 19.75 percent stake in state-controlled Rosneft - is anything more than a high-risk minority holding in a company based in a politically unpredict-able country, despite his seat on the board.

"Dudley doesn't seem to have that pally relationship you need with Igor Sechin," said an in-dustry source who has done

"BP's strategic investment in Rosneft allows us access to growth opportunities previous-

ly unavailable to us in Russia, one of the world's largest pro-ducers of oil and gas combined with unparalleled resource po-tential," he said in October last year.

Spill litigation still takes up a lot of management time, too. The outcome of a New Orleans trial under judge Carl Barbier, conducted under the terms of U.S. maritime law without a

BP is also banned, due to its criminal conviction for the rig disaster, from bidding for any new U.S. licenses in the Gulf of Mexico.

Time will tell, but for some, the company still has a long way to go.

"BP has become a litigation-dominated company, and they have an issue in Russia," said oil and gas blogger and independ-ent industry investment adviser Malcolm Graham-Wood.

anything like Shell's, they will have to buy back a lot more that 7 million shares a day to keep the price up."

be around $2.7 billion on a re-placement cost basis for the quarter, down from around $3.9 billion a year ago based on BP's own poll of around 20 ban-ks. Reuters

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BPonfa<u;NrDrsm;udkay;acs&eftwGufvkyfief;ydkifqdkifrIrsm;udktar&duefa': vm40bDvD,Htxda&mif;cscJ h&aMumif; od&onf/

“The shares are flirting with post-spill highs, and are the second-best performer in the

industry’s top five behind Exxon Mobil since the start of the fourth quarter”


mmbiztoday.comINTERNATIONAL BIZ 18

Myanmar Summary

Analysts say that a growing auto industry in Britain could contribute to an improved economy.

David Milliken

Abumper year for Brit-

some hope the econo-my will start to grow in a more sustainable way, with a better balance between investment and spending.

In 2013, Britain enjoyed its best year of economic growth

-pacing other advanced nations. But there was a catch. The re-covery was driven by consum-ers spending more and saving less.

A smooth transition to long-er-lasting growth, propelled by business investment and ex-

-

The car industry is showing signs of leading the way - but there have been false starts be-fore.

-ain's budget watchdog has predicted a rebound in annual business investment - but it is still a third lower than before

2009. It is essential for Britain's recovery.

"The pace of investment - when it comes - will ultimately determine the duration of the

-

speech to businesses last week,

operating close to capacity.

are more willing to pump mon-ey into their businesses than at any time since the crisis - in the services sector as well as manu-facturing.

Rebalancing is often talked about in terms of moving the economy towards manu-facturing and away from ser-

is a shift in spending towards investment and away from con-sumption, rather than between economic sectors.

Other positive signs in-clude a growing appetite among banks to lend. And Brit-ain's stronger economic out-

invest their large cash reserves.

thin on the ground.The exception is the car in-

an upturn in demand well be-fore other sectors and saw more

billion) of new investment in 2013.

Britons bought 2.265 million new cars in 2013, the highest number since 2007 and an 11 percent rise on the year that bucked the trend in Germany,

and France, where they dropped by 9 percent.

One big factor in Britain was probably compensation pay-ments by banks to consumers for mis-sold insurance which were often big enough to be used as a deposit on a new car.

low rates helped fund the rest.It helped drive Britain to pro-

duce 1.510 million cars in 2013, the highest number since 2007, according to the Society of Mo-tor Manufacturers and Traders.

Stefan W

ermuth/R

euters

Britain is a hub for automak-ers including Nissan, Toyota, Honda, BMW, General Motors and Tata Group's Jaguar Land Rover.

-Klinger has invested 10 million pounds in a new plant in Red-

make the light-but-bulky heat shields that protect cars from hot exhaust gases. These will

Oxford, replacing parts made

The investment was only fea-sible thanks to strong domes-tic demand, said Ian Malcolm,

director."The growth in vehicle pro-

duction in the UK is of much -

cause the product we are start-ing to supply is much more dif-

the world," he said.There are some tentative signs

that the growth in automotive investment is being replicated

more broadly.Manufacturers plan the big-

gest increase in investment in -

cial crisis, surveys show, much of it to replace older equipment.

Companies in the services sec-tor showed the strongest inten-tions to invest since 2000, ac-

cording to one survey.And Britain's economic turna-

round means shareholders are

their precautionary cash piles, said Ian Stewart, chief econo-mist at accountants Deloitte.

But it is too early to tell if this is just cyclical or marks the start of a longer-term approach to in-vestment.

Samuel Tombs, UK economist

expected the rebound in invest-ment to be cyclical due to inves-tors' pressure for short-term

"The trend before the reces-sion was for business invest-ment to have a smaller share of GDP. Those pressures may still be around even when the econ-omy is back to health," he said.

-cent below its pre-crisis peak, while U.S. investment was 5 percent below and German in-vestment was 5 percent higher than pre-crisis levels.

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“Every year since 2010, Britain’s budget watchdog has predicted a rebound in

annual business investment - but it is still a third lower than before

the financial crisis of 2007-2009”


mmbiztoday.comINVESTMENT & FINANCE 19

While expats are often drawn to Southeast Asia due to the paradise-like life on offer, many aren't aware of the increased risks of living in the region.

David Mayes

One thing that continues to surprise me about working with expats

in this region is how so few of them have put protections in place for their loved ones in the rare event that something should happen to them. The sad reality is actually that these events are not as rare as most of us would like to believe. All you need to do is take a quick look

-

you will likely come to the con-clusion that, as great as life is in this part of the world, nothing

life in paradise (at least in my opinion that’s what this region is), is that statistically speak-ing life is a bit more dangerous here.

The main reason so many well-paid expats go without proper life insurance coverage - and thus leave their children and other loved ones need-

burdens that would suddenly fall on them in the event of a sudden and unexpected death - is partially due to receiving poor advice from many of those in my industry. In any highly regulated jurisdiction in the world, advisors are required to make sure protection is in place before even beginning to have the conversation about invest-ments, etc. Unfortunately as the latter pays much better and in the international environment advisors have more freedom, life insurance is quite frequent-ly glossed over for the quicker buck of setting up some form of an investment account.

Also adding to the problem is

human nature. Life insurance has been said to be the hard-est thing on the planet to sell, yet nobody wants to go to their grave knowing their children

-port needed to get them through their education and give them a fair chance in the world. The human mind does not like to think about the fact that some-

-nancial planning is essentially a binomial situation. We either live a long time and thus need to save towards retirement, or we die young of some unexpected disease or accident and should have insurance in place to pro-tect our loved ones. Most peo-ple naturally are quite happy to plan and save for retirement be-cause in the back of our minds we would like to believe that car crashes, heart attacks, and cancer are things that only hap-pen to other people. The reality is that these things can and do happen and can happen to any-body. While that is brutal and harsh truth, burying your head in the sand and pretending it isn’t so is a denial that could someday bring extreme hard-ship to the ones that you love most.

To end on a more positive note since this is a slightly gloomy subject to be discussing, I look at paying life insurance premi-ums as the one time in life you can use Sod’s Law to your ad-vantage (that’s Murphy’s Law for the Americans out there). Paying for life insurance is the one time in my life that I am quite willing to make a bet and hope to God that I not only lose said bet, but lose it in a big way.

David Mayes MBA provides wealth management servic-es to expatriates throughout South East Asia, focusing on UK Pension Transfers. He can be reached at [email protected]. Faramond UK is regulated by the FCA and pro-vides advice on pensions and taxation.

Files

Myanmar Summary

Daisuke Lone

oma Strategic Holdings, the Singapore-listed company with business

operations in Myanmar, has -

mar’s fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry, by signing an agreement with the Asia Beverages Co Ltd group of companies (the “ABC Group”).

The agreement also involved -

ners Limited, who will take a 20

percent stake in ABC Group’s assets and businesses relating to the production, branding, marketing and distribution of bottled water, spirits, wines, beers, alcoholic beverages and other FMCG products in Myan-mar.

will involve up to $11.1 million in investment, with $3.3 mil-lion paid up front, and a further

Myanmar Summary

$7.8 million to be paid at a later stage based on certain perfor-mance benchmarks.

Speaking on the agreement, --

ship with ABC Group presents -

expand its entry into the FMCG sector. In addition to working with ABC Group to scale its cur-rent production and distribu-tion capabilities into a larger

FMCG platform, we are also looking to establish relation-ships with local and interna-tional FMCG groups. Beyond that, there are also exciting op-portunities for us to create syn-ergies with the other businesses

-lio.”

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Anindita Dey

The government of India proposes to pursue bi-lateral pacts with Cam-

bodia, Laos PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam (CLMV) in order enhance the footprint of Indian investments and trade in those countries.

Currently they are part of

added that their socio-econom-ic conditions and proximity are more suitable for the Indian business environment and the opportunities could be exploit-

one- to one agreements rather than a combined approach. In-dia has gone ahead with sepa-rate pacts with Singapore and Malaysia.

-ness delegations from each country, have started visiting the countries. According to of-

-rangements towards clinching a bilateral agreement.

They also mentioned that such visits are more of a preparation

-nership) does not work out. The

-

a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) -

ber States and its FTA Part-

Korea and New Zealand to be concluded by the end of 2015. It includes more than 3 billion people, has a combined GDP of about $17 trillion, and accounts

trade.

Import Bank of India, even

environment there.

Reuters

when most of these countries share boundaries and close proximity to India, China, South Korea and Thailand have major share in foreign invest-ments into these CLMV region which in 2012 aggregated to $ 12.5 billion, 11 per cent of the

region. On the other hand, India’s approved direct invest-ments in joint ventures and wholly owned subsidiaries in the CLMV countries dur-ing April 1996-March 2012 amounted to around 700 mil-

For Cambodia in particular, areas of greater export potential are knitted fabric, machinery and instruments, vehicles, elec-trical and electronic equipment.

For Lao PDR, mineral fuels, oil, aircraft, space craft, bever-

over and above the areas with export potential in Cambodia. Similarly, for Myanmar, added areas are animal and vegetable fat, ships, boats, salt, sulphur, optical and technical, medical apparatus, paper, manmade

organic chemicals, footwear, .In its recommendations, the

-proaches to develop the bi-lateral investments into each

agri-related machinery and equipment, development and exploring mineral sources with buyback arrangement, develop-ment of highways, roadways,

railway networks and power systems are some of the areas proposed for enhancing com-mercial relations and manpow-er development. For manpower development, the suggestion is for tie up of the CLMV countries with entrepreneurship devel-opment of India, Ahmadabad, National Small Industries co-operation, New Delhi towards human capability and develop

doing through line of credits,

-stitutional linkages to trade bodies exploring opportunities in these countries.

Myanmar Summary

Su Su

Last the week, the Myan-mar Investment Com-mission (MIC), the group

responsible for assessing busi-ness applications from foreign companies, released instruc-tions clarifying the application process for businesses looking to operate within the country.

In January 29’s edition of the state-run New Light of Myan-mar, the MIC released a no-tice saying, “Investors and ap-plicants need to clearly know MIC’s permit processes as there

is widespread news that getting the greenlight has cost those applicants a lot of money.”

Detailing the application pro-cess, the notice said that inves-

the designated proposal form, which is then submitted to the

Nay Pyi Taw. Applications are then discussed by the Proposal Assembly Team (PAT), which meets monthly in Nay Pyi Taw, which decides whether the ap-plication is to be accepted or re-jected. The PAT then discusses the proposals with the relevant

authorities from the govern-ment and respected ministries,

involving the founders or inves-tors to discuss any concerns.

Regarding some concerns that investors have paid too much money during the application process, the notice declares that, “all applicants are request-ed not to pay service charges and other charges in processing the documents in the process.

In an email sent to its sub-

said of the note, “It appears that the MIC is concerned that

applicants have been required to pay additional government fees apart from the ones already prescribed.”

Myanmar Summary

tdEd,tpdk;&onf uarÇm'D;,m;?vmtdk? jrefrmEdkifiHESifh AD,uferf (CLMV) av;EdkifiH\ oabmwlnDxm;onfh tusKd;wlyl;aygif;aqmif&GufrIoabm wlnDcsufrsm;wGif yg0ifaqmif&Guf&ef twGuf tqdkjyKrIwpfckudk jyKvkyfcJhNyD; tqdkygav;EdkifiHwGif tdEd´,\ &if;ESD; jr§KyfESHrIrsm;ESifh ukefoG,frIrsm; wdk;wuf vm&eftwGufjzpfaMumif; od&onf/

tqdkygav;EdkifiHonf tmqD,HtzGJU0if

vlrIpD;yGm;a&;tajctaersm;ESifh e,fedrdwfcsif;xdpyfaerIrsm;aMumifh tdEd´, pD;yGm ;a&;0ef ;usifESif h tcGif htvrf; aumif;rsm;twGuf oif havsmfaomtaetxm;&SdaMumif; trIaqmifrsm;u ajym Mum;MuNyD; EdkifiHwpfckcsif;ESifh yl;aygif; aqmif&GufrIqdkif&moabmwlnDcsufrsm;udk &&Sdatmif aqmif&GufoGm;zG,fvnf; &Sdaeonf/

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Besides, government promot-ed projects, the study has also suggested Indian companies could participate in multilateral funded projects as World Bank and Asian Development Bank are active in funding projects in CLMV region.

Business Standard

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Daisuke Lone

GOil & Gas last week an-nounced a partnership

with SMART Technical Servic-es, a leading local service com-pany in the Myanmar Oil & Gas Industry.

The collaboration will allow SMART to make drilling and surface equipment available to operators for future Oil & Gas projects in Myanmar.

“This partnership will be ben-

needed knowledge, experience and technology to our talented fellow citizens who are the fu-ture of Myanmar. I am certain that this partnership will be the core stimulant that helps drive

the development of our coun-try,” said U Myint Swe, chief

-ment, who was speaking at the signing ceremony.

in Myanmar since 2012, have a vast portfolio of products and services for drilling and pro-duction, including surface well-

blow-out preventers and riser equipment.

“Today’s announcement re--

ment to grow with Myanmar and partner with local corpo-rates and the government to solve the tough challenges face in the Oil & Gas sector. While we have created in-roads in our Oil & Gas business, there is much to be achieved for the coun-

try and its people,” said Stuart

Its range of land applications range from shallow, low-pres-sure wells to critical service wells drilled to depths of more than 20,000 feet, requiring many casing strings, large rigs and reliable high-pressure and

-shore applications include dif-

-ing platforms such as jack-up

units.-

the region for over 100 years with revenue exceeding $3 bil-

billion. The company has a workforce of close to 7,500 em-

Myanmar Summary

Yangon and Mandalay.

Myanmar will use 63.2 billion yens' (about 610 million U.S. dol-

lars') new Japanese loan for conducting four projects, an of-

The four projects are the up-

-gon, infrastructural develop-ment in Thilawa Port and devel-opment of irrigation facilities in the western Bago region, Minis-ter of Finance U Win Shein was quoted by state media as saying during the ongoing parliament session.

Japan pledged to provide the fresh loan during Myanmar President U Thein Sein's at-

Summit in Tokyo last Decem-ber.

Japan has been providing as-sistance for the development of Myanmar's communication and postal service as well as of-fering to train Myanmar police forces by conducting technical courses.

Japan's investment in Myan--

lion U.S. dollars as of November 2013 since Myanmar opened to such investment in late 1988 and it ranks the 10th in Myan-mar's foreign investment tally. Xinhua

Myanmar Summary

Abh

ijit D

utta

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od& onf/ ,ckvkyfief;yl;aygif;rIaMumifh SMART

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Kyaw Min

Ashipping line connecting Myanmar and Bangladesh will get underway in March in order to boost trade between the neighbouring countries, Bangladesh

Commerce Secretary Mahbub Ahmed announce last week.The vessels were supposed to launch a year ago but were

delayed amid, what Bangladesh reports as political tension between the countries.

our inland ports for use by vessels from Myanmar,” he said, adding that vessels from Myanmar would be allowed to use the ports, which are located at Chittagong, Monla, Naraya-

and Maungtaw in Myanmar. Bilateral trade between the countries stands at $100 mil-

lion per annum, and it is hoped that the shipping lanes will

“Bangladesh and Myanmar re-established the Dhaka-

connectivity,” said Ahmed, who was speaking at the Bangla-desh-Myanmar Joint Trade Commission in Nay Pyi Taw last month.

Myanmar Summary

jrefrmEdkifiHESifh b*Fvm;a'h&SfEdkifiHwdkYonf rwfvwGif a&aMumif;tjyeftvSef ul;oef;oGm;vm&eftwGufaqmif&GufoGm;rnfjzpfNyD;tdrfeD;csif;EdkifiHrsm;t Mum; ukefoG,frIydkrdkwdk;wufzGHUNzdK;vm&eftwGuf jzpfaMumif; b*Fvm;a'h&SfEdkifiH\ ul;oef;a&mif;0,fa&;0efBuD;XmerStBuD;tuJwpfOD;jzpfolMahbubAhmed u vGefcJhonfhtywfwGif aMunmcJhonf/

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jrefrmEdkifiHtaejzifh pDrHudef;av;ck tm; aqmif&GufoGm;&eftwGuf *syef EdkifiHrS acs;aiG *syef,ef;aiG 63.2 bDvD,H (tar&duefa':vm 610 rDvD,HeD;yg;) udk toHk;jyKoGm;rnf[k od& onf/

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OD;0if;&Sdefu vTwfawmftpnf;ta0;ü ajymMum;cJhaMumif; od&onf/

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*syefEdkifiHrS jrefrmEdkifiH\qufoG,f a&;ESifh pmydkY0efaqmifrIrsm;wGifzGHUNzdK;wdk;wufvmap&eftwGuf taxmuftyHh rsm;vnf; ay;xm;cJhovdk jrefrmEdkifiHrS &Jrsm;tm; enf;ynmtaxmuftulrsm; tjzpfoifwef;rsm;ay;&efudkvnf; tul tnDay;cJhaMumif; od&onf/



Myanmar Summary

Maximilian Martin

Part II of this series on creating sustain-able apparel value

chains examines how hu-man capital and improv-ing working conditions can enable progress to-ward sustainability and competitiveness.

Myanmar’s readymade garment industry is still small when compared to that of neighbouring Bangladesh, the world’s second-largest sourcing hotspot. The former’s 350 garment factories cur-rently in operation are utterly dwarfed by the latter’s 5,600. But more than 700 new factories are expected by 2015, and the industry in Myanmar is growing quickly, earn-ing $917 million in 2012; up from $770 million in

potential to create more than 10 million addition-al non-agricultural jobs by 2030. Indeed, one of the most striking com-parative advantages of the country’s location is its availability of abundant, low-cost, and fairly well-educated labour. Key to making sustainable sec-tor growth happen will be managing the workforce well and building human capital fast enough.

Working Conditions Are a Lever of Indus-try Upgrading

Labour conditions in the apparel industry are a leading stakeholder con-cern around the world. At the root of the problem is a widespread percep-tion that decent work and competitive enterprises

other. Owners and man-agers often assume that actions that aim to im-

prove working conditions or safety merely create ad-ditional cost burdens for enterprises, even though these improvements can actually yield productivity returns as well. Research by the International La-bor Organisation (ILO) and others corroborate such a potential win-win scenario, and show how unproductive the wide-spread practice of “man-agement by shouting” is. Improving workers’ voice, empowerment and skills through participatory management is a means to improve working con-ditions and to achieve ef-

-sible practices generate for companies and work-ers alike are often over-looked.

The new report released

global impact investment

‘Creating Sustainable Ap-parel Value Chains’ pro-vides an evidence-based assessment of the pros-pect of sustainable textile and garment value chains and the levers needed for sustainable industry transformation, includ-ing the levers of human capital and working con-ditions.

A Shortlist of Best Practices

In terms of social per-formance, the research surfaced a number of

locations that actively take steps to meet worker needs and enable partici-patory management. The highlights include:

Strong human re-source management practices that include internal posting of job openings and encour-agement of employ-ees to apply for these positions. Sophisti-cated HR practices also include evalua-tion of employees

-ing linesFree meals, free

hour medical center, on-site sports and recreational facilitiesIn-house doctors, nurses, and paramed-ics to assist with pri-mary healthcare and disease prevention (e.g. providing free screenings, diagnosis and basic medicines)In-house canteens overseen by a certi-

mealsBuildings for the

providing housing for more than 80 percent of the employeesA dedicated social re-sponsibility team and innovative initiatives.

an AssetKey to enabling such

a forward-looking ap-proach to maximizing social performance and productivity alike is re-

-petitive asset and to de-rive productivity returns that compensate for the cost of the measures list-ed above. The methodol-ogy pioneered by Better Work, a non-governmen-tal organization, pro-vides an illustration of a practical way forward on working conditions. Bet-ter Work runs country programs that combine assessment services to measure compliance with

A worker at a garment factory in Yangon.

Soe Z

eya Tun/Reuters

ILO core international la-bour standards as well as advisory services to sup-port practical improve-ments through workplace cooperation. Its advisors work directly with each factory to:

-tate a Performance Improvement Con-sultative Commit-tee (PICC), which includes representa-tives of workers and managementCreate and imple-ment improvement plans, and recom-mend training ser-vicesIncrease company performance on sub-sequent compliance assessments through targeted remediation activities.

Similar to other such programs, Better Work aims to achieve a step change in working condi-tions. The training cur-riculum is thus broad and includes HR manage-ment, Occupational Safe-ty and Health (OSH), ne-gotiation skills, training of trainers, supervisory skills training, prevent-ing and addressing sex-ual harassment, as well as training on worker’s rights and responsibili-ties. The main challenges

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of this approach are its re-source intensity, and the struggle to truly embed it in factories so that good practice is not abandoned once there is a change in management.

A Blueprint for Hu-man Capital Building is Ultimately Needed

Training and changes in attitudes are impor-tant, but investments in human capital are ulti-mately the key for My-anmar to deliver on its potential. The ability to enter higher value added production and raise pro-ductivity hits bottlenecks without enough techni-cal skill, and adversarial labour relations lock all parties into unproductive patterns of behaviour and low productivity in the

to-date management skill. This undercuts the ability to pay higher wages.

The shift of the global apparel industry to the developing world has his-torically meant a tremen-dous loss of knowledge and skill. Bangladesh, the region’s leading sourc-ing location, is a prime example of this situation. The country does not have standard training for most professions, nor is there dual education. Bangladesh faces a lack of skilled workers at both the machine operator and mid-management levels, including technical pro-fessions, despite numer-ous private, public and multi-sector workforce initiatives. About 150,000 additional skilled work-ers are needed each year just to keep pace with the rapid growth of the industry. At the operator level, the skills gap is an estimated 25 percent. The entire textile and apparel complex is estimated to

-nologists by 2015, which represents a gap of 65,010 from the current number of degree holders in the industry.

Greater skill at all levels will be required for Myan-mar to avoid this seeming eventuality and actually deliver on the vision of a sustainable global apparel industry—from selecting and deploying chemicals at the beginning of the pipe to in-country pre- and post- production ser-vices such as design and quality testing. This re-

quires human capital on a massive scale.

How to Get StartedImproving working

conditions and building human capital may seem like a daunting task even though clear and concrete steps can now be taken at the factory level. But recognizing the potential often requires a mind-set change. Management practices play an impor-tant role in improving working conditions across

often require low levels of capital investment.

a genuine understanding of their workers’ needs, engaging workers directly on issues rather than sim-ply making assumptions about what workers want. An added complication is that the classical worker lens on issues and priori-

in this industry where 80 percent of the workers are women who typically have to balance work with oth-er important obligations such as childcare. For ex-ample, unscheduled over-time is a top concern for any caregiver. The good news is that best practice examples exist that can address this and other is-sues—provided there is willingness to graduate from widespread adver-sarial owner-manager-la-bor relations, leveraging everyone’s ability to con-tribute to long-term suc-cess and sustainability.

Besides human capi-tal, another lever that is not being pulled suf-

is the process of raising total resource productiv-ity. Covered in the next post in this series is how lean manufacturing and process redesign has the

potential to reduce use of chemical inputs by 20 percent, energy by a third or more, and water by 50 percent. This is good for

-ronment.

About the Author:Dr Maximilian Martin

is the Founder and Glob-al Managing Director of Impact Economy. He also serves as Founding Faculty in Residence at Ashoka U and Lecturer

in Social Entrepreneur-ship at the University of St. Gallen. He previously served as founding glob-al head and managing director of UBS Philan-thropy Services, head of research at the Schwab Foundation, senior con-sultant with McKinsey & Company, instructor at Harvard’s Economics Department, and fellow at the Center for Pub-lic Leadership, Harvard Kennedy School. He holds

an MA in anthropology from Indiana University, a MPA from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. in economic anthropol-ogy from the University of Hamburg.

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mmbiztoday.com

24

Fligghhtss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Bangkok ((BKK) Fligghhtss ffroom Banggkok (BKKK) to Yaangon (RGN)Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by: Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by:PG 706 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 7:15 9:30 Bangkok Airways DD4230 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DMK RGN 06:30 07:55 NOK AirlinesDD4231 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DMK 8:00 9:45 NOK Airlines 8M336 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 6:40 7:25 MAIFD2752 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DMK 8:30 10:15 Thai AirAsia FD2751 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DMK RGN 7:15 8:00 Thai AirAsia8M335 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 8:40 10:25 MAI TG303 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 8:00 8:45 Thai AirwaysTG304 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 9:50 11:45 Thai Airways PG701 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 8:50 9:40 Bangkok AirwaysPG702 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 10:45 12:40 Bangkok Airways FD2755 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DMK RGN 11:35 12:20 Thai AirAsiaY5-237 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 18:05 19:50 Golden Myanmar Airlines PG707 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 13:40 14:30 Bangkok AirwaysTG302 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 14:45 16:40 Thai Airways Y5-238 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 21:10 21:55 Golden Myanmar AirlinesPG703 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 15:20 17:15 Bangkok Airways FD2753 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DMK RGN 16:35 17:20 Thai AirAsia8M331 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 16:30 18:15 MAI PG703 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 16:45 17:35 Bangkok AirwaysFD2754 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DMK 17:50 19:35 Thai AirAsia TG305 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 17:55 18:40 Thai AirwaysPG704 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 18:25 20:20 Bangkok Airways DD4238 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 19:30 20:15 NOK AirlinesTG306 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 19:40 21:35 Thai Airways 8M332 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 19:20 20:05 MAI

DD4239 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DMK 21:00 22:45 NOK Airlines PG705 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 20:00 21:15 Bangkok Airways

FFligghhtss ffroomm Yangoon (RGN)) to Chiaang Maii (CNX) FFligghhtss ffroomm Chiangg Mai (CCNX) to YYangon (RGN)W9-9607 4 7 RGN CNX 14:50 16:20 Air Bagan W9-9608 4 7 CNX RGN 17:20 17:50 Air Bagan

Flligghtss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Sinngapore (SIN) Flligghtss ffroom Singaapore (SIN) to Yangon ((RGN) Y5-233 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN SIN 10:10 14:40 Golden Myanmar Airlines Y5-234 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SIN RGN 15:35 17:05 Golden Myanmar AirlinesMI509 1 6 RGN SIN 0:25 5;00 SilkAir SQ998 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SIN RGN 7:55 9:20 Singapore Airline8M231 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN SIN 8:30 13:00 MAI 8M6231/3K585 1 3 4 5 6 SIN RGN 9:10 10:40 Jetstar AsiaSQ997 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN SIN 10:25 14:45 Singapore Airline 8M232 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SIN RGN 14:10 15:40 MAI

8M6232/3K586 1 3 4 5 6 RGN SIN 11:30 16:05 Jetstar Asia MI518 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SIN RGN 14:20 15:45 SilkAir8M233 5 6 7 RGN SIN 13:45 18:15 MAI 8M235 5 6 7 SIN RGN 19:15 20:45 MAITR2827 1 6 7 RGN SIN 15:10 19:35 TigerAir TR2826 1 6 7 SIN RGN 13:00 14:30 TigerAirTR2827 2 3 4 5 RGN SIN 17:10 21:35 TigerAir TR2826 2 3 4 5 SIN RGN 15:00 16:30 TigerAirMI517 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN SIN 16:40 21:15 SilkAir MI520 5 7 SIN RGN 22:10 23:35 SilkAir

FFliightts frromm Yangonn (RGN) tto Kualaa Lumpuur (KUL) Fligghtts frroomm Kuala LLumpur (KUL)too Yangonn (RGN)AK1427 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN KUL 8:30 12:50 AirAsia AK1426 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 KUL RGN 6:55 8:00 AirAsia8M501 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN KUL 8:55 12:55 MAI MH740 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 KUL RGN 10:05 11:15 Malaysia AirlinesMH741 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN KUL 12:15 16:30 Malaysia Airlines 8M502 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 KUL RGN 14:00 15:00 MAI

Fligghtts frrom Yanngon (RGGN) to HHanoi (HHAN) Fligghtts frrom Hannoi (HANN) to Yanngon (RRGN) VN956 1 3 5 6 7 RGN HAN 19:10 21:30 Vietnam Airlines VN957 1 3 5 6 7 HAN RGN 16:35 18:10 Vietnam Airlines

Flligghhtss ffroomm Yangon (RGN) to Ho CChi Minhh (SGN) Flligghhtss ffroomm Ho Chii Minh (SSGN) to Yangonn (RGN) VN942 2 4 7 RGN SGN 14:25 17:10 Vietnam Airlines VN943 2 4 7 SGN RGN 11:40 13:25 Vietnam Airlines

Flligghtss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to TTaipei (TTPE) Flligghtss ffrom Taipei (TPEE) to Yanngon (RGN)CI7916 1 2 3 4 5 6 RGN TPE 10:50 16:10 China Airline CI7915 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 TPE RGN 7:15 10:05 China AirlineBR288 2 5 6 RGN TPE 11:35 17:20 EVA Air BR287 2 5 6 TPE RGN 7:30 10:35 EVA Air

Flligghhtss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Kunming(KMG) Flligghhtss ffroom Kunmming(KMMG) to Yangon ((RGN)CA906 2 3 4 6 7 RGN KMG 14:15 17:35 Air China CA905 2 3 4 6 7 KMG RGN 12:40 13:15 Air China

MU2032 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN KMG 14:40 17:55 China Eastern MU2031 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 KMG RGN 13:30 14:00 China EasternMU2012 3 6 RGN KMG 12:20 18:10 China Eastern (via NNG) MU2011 3 6 KMG RGN 8:25 11:30 China Eastern (via NNG)

Flligghtss from Yanngon (RGGN) to BBeijing (BJS) Flligghtss from Beijjing (BJSS) to Yanngon (RRGN)CA906 2 3 4 6 7 RGN BJS 14:15 21:55 Air China (via KMG) CA905 2 3 4 6 7 BJS RGN 8:05 13:15 Air China (via KMG)

Fligghhtss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Naanning (NNG) Fligghhtss ffroom Nannning (NNNG) to Yaangon ((RGN)Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by: Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by:MU2012 3 6 RGN NNG 12:20 16:25 China Eastern MU2011 3 6 NNG RGN 10:15 11:30 China Eastern

FFligghhtss ffroomm Yangoon (RGN)) to Honng Kong (HKG) HHonngg KKoong (HKG) Flights from Yaangon ((RGN) KA251 1 2 4 6 RGN HKG 1:10 5:35 Dragon Air KA250 1 3 5 7 HKG RGN 21:50 23:45 Dragon Air

Flligghhtss ffroomm Yangon (RGN) to Guanng Zhouu (CAN) Flligghhtss ffroomm Guang Zhou (CCAN) to Yangonn (RGN) 8M711 2 4 7 RGN CAN 8:40 13:15 MAI CZ3055 3 6 CAN RGN 8:40 10:30 China Southern AirlinesCZ3056 3 6 RGN CAN 11:20 15:50 China Southern Airline 8M712 2 4 7 CAN RGN 14:15 15:45 MAICZ3056 1 5 RGN CAN 17:40 22:15 China Southern Airline CZ3055 1 5 CAN RGN 14:45 16:35 China Southern Airlines

FFlighhts ffroom Yanggon (RGN) to Koolkata (CCCU) FFlighhts ffroom Kolkkata (CCUU) to Yaangon (RRGN) Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by: Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by:

AI228 5 RGN CCU 18:45 19:45 Air India AI227 1 5 CCU RGN 10:35 13:20 Air IndiaAI234 1 5 RGN CCU 13:40 16:55 Air India (via GAY) AI233 5 CCU RGN 13:30 18:00 Air India (via GAY)

Fligghhtss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to GGaya (GAAY) Fligghhtss ffrom Gayya (GAY) to Yanngon (RGGN) 8M 601 1 3 5 6 RGN GAY 10:30 11:50 MAI 8M 602 1 3 5 6 GAY RGN 12:50 16:00 MAIAI234 1 5 RGN GAY 13:40 15:00 Air India AI233 5 GAY RGN 15:00 18:00 Air India

Fligghtts frrom Yanngon (RGGN) to TTokyo (NNRT) FFliightts frrom Tokkyo (NRTT) to Yaangon (RRGN)NH914 1 3 6 RGN NRT 22:00 06:40+1 ALL NIPPON Airways NH913 1 3 6 NRT RGN 11:10 17:05 ALL NIPPON Airways

FFligghhtss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to SSeoul (ICCN) FFligghhtss ffrom Seooul (ICN)) to Yanngon (RGGN)KE472 1 3 5 7 RGN ICN 0:05 8:00 Korean Air KE471 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ICN RGN 18:40 22:55 Korean Air

OZ7463 4 7 RGN ICN 0:50 8:50 Asiana OZ4753 3 6 ICN RGN 19:30 23:40 Asiana

Flligghtss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to DDoha (DOOH) Flightts frrom Dohha (DOH) to Yangon (RRGN)QR619 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DOH 8:00 11:45 Qatar Airways QR618 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DOH RGN 21:05 06:29+1 Qatar Airways

Flligghhtss ffroomm Yangon (RGN) to Nay Pyi Taww (NYT) Flligghhtss ffroomm Nay Pyyi Taw (NNYT) to Yangonn (RGN)Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by: Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by:FMI-A1 1 2 3 4 5 RGN NYT 7:30 8:30 FMI Air Charter FMI-A2 1 2 3 4 5 NYT RGN 8:50 9:50 FMI Air CharterFMI-B1 1 2 3 4 5 RGN NYT 11:30 12:30 FMI Air Charter FMI-B2 1 2 3 4 5 NYT RGN 13:00 14:00 FMI Air CharterFMI-C1 1 2 3 4 5 RGN NYT 16:30 17:30 FMI Air Charter FMI-C2 1 2 3 4 5 NYT RGN 18:00 19:00 FMI Air CharterFMI-A1 6 RGN NYT 8:00 9:00 FMI Air Charter FMI-A2 6 NYT RGN 10:00 11:00 FMI Air CharterFMI-A1 7 RGN NYT 15:30 16:30 FMI Air Charter FMI-A2 7 NYT RGN 17:00 18:00 FMI Air Charter

FFliightts frrom Yangoon (RGN) to Manndalay ((MDY) FFliightts frrom Manddalay (MDDY) to YYangon (RGN)Y5-234 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 6:15 7:30 Golden Myanmar Airlines Y5-233 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 MDY RGN 8:10 9:25 Golden Myanmar AirlinesYH 909 2 4 6 7 RGN MDY 6:30 8:10 Yangon Airways YH 910 1 3 MDY RGN 7:40 10:30 Yangon AirwaysYH 917 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 6:10 8:30 Yangon Airways YH 918 1 2 3 4 6 7 MDY RGN 8:30 10:25 Yangon AirwaysYH 727 1 5 RGN MDY 11:15 13:25 Yangon Airways YH 728 1 5 MDY RGN 9:10 11:05 Yangon AirwaysYH 731 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 15:00 17:10 Yangon Airways YH 732 1 2 3 4 5 6 MDY RGN 17:10 19:15 Yangon AirwaysW9 501 1 2 3 4 RGN MDY 6:00 7:25 Air Bagan W9 502 1 2 3 4 MDY RGN 16:10 18:15 Air BaganK7 222 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 6:30 8:40 Air KBZ K7 223 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 MDY RGN 9:00 11:05 Air KBZYJ 201 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 11:30 12:55 Asian Wings YJ 202 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 MDY RGN 16:00 17:25 Asian Wings

Days - (1) Monday (2) TTueesdaay (33) WWeddnessdaay (4) Thursdayy (5) Friday (6) SSaturday (7) Suunday Days - (1) Monday (2) TTueesdaay (33) WWeddnessdaay (4) Thursdayy (5) Friday (6) SSaturday (7) Suunday


mmbiztoday.comPROPERTY & REAL ESTATE 25

Myanmar Summary

Since plans were announced to begin the development of low-cost housing (LCH)

projects, in an attempt to ful-

land prices in the areas near to the projects have spiraled, ac-cording to sources in the real estate market.

Last year, work began on LCH projects at Ayeyarwon and

say that land prices, particu-larly of farm land, has risen in these areas, leading to a slow in the market.

“In the past, the real estate market in these places was very

and 10 plots of land were being dealt on a daily basis, but now work has begun on the [LCH] projects, less plots are being sold,” said U Myint Thein, a real estate broker in Dagon Myo Thit Seikkan township, near to where the projects are being built.

U Myint Thein said that real estate agents as well as land

Phyu Thit Lwinrise in prices.

The Ayeyarwaddy housing projects at Dagon Myo Thit Harbour township will involve the construction of 70 buildings

be a much larger project with 90 buildings housing 5,000 LCH apartments.

Workers in a boat at Thilawa SEZ.

Land prices at the Thilawa Industrial Zone, located close

since work began on the zone late last year, accord-ing to real estate agents operating near the site.

The project broke ground in December last year, with work begin-

the multi-million dollar

of land in Thanlyin town-ship.

“Nowadays, a huge part of the land being pur-

Kyaw Min chased comes from for-eign entrepreneurs,” said U Tin Maung Htoo, a real estate agent operating in Thanlyin township.

Land price in Thilawa Industrial Zone has es-calated about K-30 lakh, said U Tin Maung Htoo, real estate agent from Thanlyin Township. “Since work has begun, people are beginning to buy land on those sites,” he said, before adding that the plots of land are also attracting interest from businesspeople based in Mandalay region.

Real estate sources also

said that land prices are slowly creeping up in oth-er townships in the area, including Phalan and Thilawa.

“Land near to the Thil-awa project is in high demand,” said Ko Tin Maung Khine, a clerk from the General Admin-istrative Department. “This rise began dur-ing the Southeast Asian Games (which took place in Myanmar in Decem-ber) and many interna-tional businesspeople are buying land in Thilawa at a high cost,” he said.

ing developed with a Jap-anese consortium, includ-ing Mitsubishi, Marubeni and Sumitomo while the Myanmar arm of the pro-ject, Myanmar Thilawa

(MTSH) involves nine Myanmar companies.

According to U Set Aung, chair of the pro-ject’s management com-

the project will be imple-mented in 2015.

Myanmar Summary

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A housing project in Yangon.


mmbiztoday.com

26PROPERTY & REAL ESTATE

A Myanmar youth throws water during the Thingyan Water Festival in Yangon.

Shein Thu Aung

Hansgrohe, the German -

facturer, has recently announced a collaboration with World Vision Organisa-tion to assist in their Area De-

velopment Programme (ADP) in Hpa-An, which is located in Myanmar’s Kayin State.

The aim of the ADP is to im-prove the quality of life for children, by meeting the need for clean and safe water. For the programme, Hansgrohe

donated $8,500, which will go towards the construction of two wells located near to a school, the building of a toilet in a pri-mary school as well providing support for safe drinking water resources such as the renova-tion of wells and paying for san-

itary materials. “We do our part annually in

a small but meaningful way in giving back to society, and with

-prove quality of life by provid-ing a safe environment to dwell in, especially for the children,” said Winnie Quek, Regional Marketing Communications Manager of Hansgrohe.

The goal of the ADP is not only to improve quality of life in the target communities, but also to enhance their capacity to iden-tify and address basic needs by using available resources ap-propriately, leading to more sustainable development.

The project is expected to be completed in September 2018 and World Vision and Hans-grohe said that they hope that Hpa An will have achieved self-

-cant move towards sustainable change.

Hansgrohe was founded in 1901 in Schiltach, Germany and has operations in Myanmar.

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Myanmar Summary

Workers on a construction site in Yangon.

Reuters

Su Su

Despite a surge in prices in 2013, and the contin-ued migration of expats

into Myanmar amid the on-going changes in the country, analysts predict that property prices will stabilise within the country this year.

“Property rental prices can-not rise much further because the cost of renting most types of accommodation reaches its highest level in 2013,” Ma May Htet Aung, managing director

-zima.

One reason prices are expect-ed to stay constant is that many of the condominium projects that began in 2013, and even late 2012, are expected to be completed this year, leading to a potential surplus in properties that should make rental and sale prices more reasonable.

Additionally, according to Property Report, the recently drafted Condominium Law is expected to make the acquisi-tion of properties easier for for-eigners.

Meanwhile, studies by global

-al outlook is expected to spur property markets worldwide, with emerging Asian cities such as Manila and Jakarta in par-

“The growing level of optis-mism and activity we are seeing in most regions has its roots in a belief that the global economy is set for calmer waters ahead,” said David Hutchings, research

and Africa for Cushman and

“This is leading to an increase in risk appetites, which is mani-fest in a push to invest across borders,” he added.

The company expects global property investment to increase by between 10 and 15 percent,

$978 billion a year previously -

-

up about one percent from a year before.

The group expects increase of

in emerging economies such as Manila, Jakarta and Bangalore.

Additionally, Asian investors from China and Japan are ex-

pected to play a bigger role on the global property market, ac-

Myanmar Summary

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mmbiztoday.comIT & TELECOM 27

Myanmar Summary

Telenor, one of the two successful bidders for international telecoms li-

the former capital last week.The concept of BarCamp

originated in Palo Alto, Califor-nia, United States in 2005 and is hosted in over 350 countries worldwide, with many attend-ees travelling internationally. To date, the largest recorded

in January 2013, when over

from 1,700 attendees at the

2010.BarCamps are free-to-attend,

locally organised “unconferenc-

Aye Myat es” where participants can pre-sent about anything they want. Speakers and presenters can come from any walk of life, and organisers are only required to take care of promotion, logistics and infrastructure for the event.

“Telenor is pleased to be an

the international technology and developer community, the event has also been successful in bringing together the many experts and innovators that are helping to advance Myanmar’s digital economy,” said Petter

“At a time when mobile and Internet technology is more

Myanmar has the opportunity to leverage modern mobile

Shein Thu Aung

Tnomic and Social Com-mission for Asia and the

nounced a new initiative aimed at creating jobs and investment opportunities in Myanmar’s growing IT sector.

Speaking during the Second Myanmar Development Coop-eration Forum in Nay Pyi Taw, the initiative was announced by Noeleen Heyzer, Under-Secre-

with the Myanmar government to strengthen the capacity of small and medium enterprises to help meet these challenges, especially through the empow-erment of women and youth. I am very pleased, therefore, to announce this joint $1 mil-lion programme for Myanmar’s young entrepreneurs, which will help the country and its people leapfrog into the global knowledge economy, building cutting-edge skills and com-petitive in these areas,” Heyzer said at the event.

gramme, entitled the Informa-tion Technology Capacity De-velopment (ITCD) Programme, involves a collaboration be-

the Indian and Myanmar gov-ernments and will see 25 IT engineers and entrepreneurs travel to India for 12 weeks of

Mobile phones are seen at a roadside stall in Yangon.

Reu

ters

intensive training in software development, in the hope that this will help provide jobs in the IT sector in Myanmar.

developing specialized training modules, which are in high de-mand in the global IT industry, for more than 100 young engi-neers and entrepreneurs who will be up-skilled at the Infosys training centre. Phase I of the initiative will be launched next

week in Mysore, India.“This presidential initiative is

an important step towards fur-ther integrating Myanmar into the global knowledge econo-my,” said Dr. Heyzer.

“Initiatives such as these will assist Myanmar to more fully

nomic Community and to move towards graduation from the least developed category by 2020,” she added.

Myanmar Summary

communications technology as a central platform and enabler to its development in many ar-eas including education, health-care and banking,” he added.

MICT Park.

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mmbiztoday.com

28IT & TELECOM

Phil Lavelle

The original Nexus 7 en-chanted and enthralled - and did so despite some

slight compromises. The fact that it was so cheap meant it remained outstanding value for a long time. The problem is, a year is a long time in the tab-let world, and competition is

what the doctor ordered.And then in late July 2013,

came the announcement. A new Nexus 7 - so good, they named

-tiated it by adding the year to the name. For clarity, I'll refer to the old one as "the original Nexus 7-inch from now on.)

It's only available in 16GB or 32GB versions, and they are strictly Wi-Fi only. As with the previous incarnation, there's also a cellular version, and the

compatible.If ever there was a tablet that

you could just pick up and carry around with you, chuck easily in a bag and know it's there when you need it, then the Nexus 7 is the one.

Obviously, you'll need a case or some kind of protection as it'd be nothing short of criminal to scratch that beautiful glass screen, but I assume that most people will be practicing Safe Nexus 7 from the get-go.

It would be foolish to just go into the specs without compar-ing the Nexus 7 to its predeces-sor - that's what most people

say, this is one beautiful piece of equipment. The front is one sheet of high gloss Gorilla glass, interrupted only by the minute presence of a front-facing cam-

It's thinner and lighter than

290g, compared to 198.5 x 120

eyed mathematicians will no-tice there is a slight height increase, but it's negligible in

another 9g.One thing you will notice is

two lots of speakers - stereo, if you will. All mod cons here, it appears. They're on the top and bottom at the rear but the idea

in landscape, they'll be at the sides.

Oddly, they're at the back, facing away from you, which seems silly when you consider that HTC has moved the bar with the HTC One.

Altogether, this is a solid de-vice. Where the original Nexus

sometimes felt like a compro-mise due to the price (issues of light bleed and creakiness on the left hand side were com-mon complaints), this feels like a premium, well-put-together piece of kit that should com-mand more than the measly amount Google is asking.

Naturally, the glass makes it less than ideal for outdoor use, but if you set brightness to max-imum it should be able to cope.

Colour reproduction is also far better. A common com-plaint with the original Nexus 7 was that images tended to look faded and washed out. Again, I couldn't grumble too much be-cause of the price, but it was one of those things that us geeks tended to notice and grind our teeth at. Thankfully, everything now just appears much warmer on the Nexus 7 than before.

It's still a world away from the brightness and vividity of Sam-sung's displays employed on the likes of the Note 8 or the Gal-

loathed in equal measure. Some think they look great, while for

you're odd, you won't pick up a Nexus 7, look at the display and feel disappointed in the slight-est.

What you might feel disap-pointed with, however, is the

a Nexus 7 with anything more than 32GB of space - and re-member, Google doesn't do ex-ternal memory these days. In

cloud, you're stuck with what Google deems to be adequate.

And as we've become used to, that 32GB on the box doesn't mean you get 32GB to play with, as the OS takes up a huge

26GB. With the size of some HD games, plus a couple of movies, you'll eat that up fairly eas-ily. Obviously, the 16GB is even more dire in this regard.

Cam

eraEgg

The battery has taken a hit, at least on paper. It's no longer

duty at 3950mAh. But Google appears to have some method in this madness. Aside from the fact that it makes the Nexus 7 lighter than the original, it doesn't seem to have much of an impact.

In fact, I'd say that the battery here is better than the original

at battery management. When this unit goes to sleep, it goes to sleep. Not a slumber, not a doze, but a complete conk-out. And yet, it'll stand to attention at a second's notice when you need it again.

Opinions are author’s own and do not necessarily repre-sent those of Myanmar Busi-ness Today. Techradar

Myanmar Summary

“If ever there was a tablet that you

could just pick up and carry around

with you, chuck easily in a bag and

know it’s there when you need it, then

the Nexus 7 is the one”

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mmbiztoday.comAUTOMOBILE 29

Myanmar Summary

Htet Aung

Local car company Win & SPAM Company has teamed up with Japanese

car trading specialists Wood-stock Company to open a new

The new showroom, located on Pyay Road in Mayangone

Myanmar showroom, and will display high-end cars, the Japa-nese group has said.

Ko Kyaw Thura Tun, director of Win & SPAM told MyanmarBusiness Today that Myan-mar’s car prices were kept un-der control by the government unlike in the past, when even second-hand cars could fetch upwards of $25,000.

Since Thein Sein’s quasi-civilian government came to power almost three years ago, it has made serious reforms in the auto sector, making it easier for citizens to import cars from

An employee waits at a showroom for brand new cars in Yangon.

Dam

ir S

agol

j/Reu

ters

abroad. Thura Tun said that the industry is still in its infancy in Myanmar and will take time to streamline but that the situa-tion is better than in the past.

“Today, the automobile mar-

the past. Customers can pur-chase cars at a reasonable price and there are almost no old cars left,” he said, referring to the government’s “old for new” pol-icy, which meant that cars that were over 20 years old could be

replaced more easily with new-

have imported over 18 types of car, and are displaying between 10 to 20 of each model. We can-not display more than that due to space issues,” he added.

Currently, the cars in the showroom are for display only but the companies hope to have them available for sale soon.

Woodstock trade a range of car models, but specialise in cars from Japan, namely Toyo-ta, Mitsubishi and Nissan.

Phyu Thit Lwin

The Ministry of Industry will soon begin construc-tion of low-cost vehicles

which will be available for less than K6 million ($6,000), a source from the ministry re-vealed last week.

The source, who was speaking under anonymity, said that the ministry will cooperate with a local company to manufacture the cars, which will be mini saloon models, and that an an-nouncement will be made this month regarding the partner company.

In Myanmar’s local car mar-ket, mini saloon cars are in high demand, but sources say that due to the government easing import regulations, the local car

new programme is part of an aimed to help develop the local car industry.

For the production of mini saloons manufacturer in Myan-

mar, car parts were in the past imported from China for sale in Myanmar.

Myanmar Summary

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Reuters


mmbiztoday.comCLASSIFIEDS 30


mmbiztoday.comSOCIAL SCENES 31

U Myint Swe, Chief Minister of Yangon Region Government, speaking at the GE Oil & Gas and SMART Technical Services partnership agreement signing ceremony held on January 27 at Chatrium Hotel, Yangon. GE

U Kyaw Kyaw Hlaing, Chairman of the SMART Group of Companies speaks at the event. GE

Stephane Leyo (left), GE Asia Pacific Marketing Director shakes hands with Yadana S Hlaing, Managing Director of SMART Technical Services. GE

Stéphane Leyo (left), Kovit Kantapasara, President and CEO for GE Thai-land, Laos & Myanmar, U Myint Swe and U Kyaw Kyaw Hlaing, Chair-man, SMART Group. GE

GE Oil & Gas Signs Agreement with SMART Technical Services

U Tun Hla Aung, deputy secretary of the Myanmar Jewels and Gems Entrepreneurs Association. Phyu Thit Lwin

Michael Ahaniss, director of Asia Connect company, addresses the crowd. Phyu Thit Lwin

Michael Ahaniss, director of Asia Connect company, makes a speech. Phyu Thit Lwin

Shae Thot Programme Local Partner Initiative Opening Ceremony

Delegates shake hands at the event. MBT

The press conference is hosted overlooking downtown Yangon. MBT

An agreement is signed. MBT

Delegates shake hands. MBT

A presentation is made at the event. Phyu Thit Lwin A delegate displays gems to media. Phyu Thit Lwin

Gems are presented to the audience. Phyu Thit Lwin

Press Conference for the 2nd Myanmar International Gems & Jewellery Expo 2014


mmbiztoday.com

32ENTERTAINMENT

Former Serbia international goalkeeper Raddy Avramovic looks set to become the new Myanmar Head Coach.

File

s

Raddy Set for Myanmar Top Job

Myanmar are set to pip Southeast Asian rivals, the Philippines,

in the race to sign Radojko ‘Raddy’ Avramovic as head coach, recent media reports have revealed.

According to the Singaporean version of Goal.com, U Zaw Zaw, president of the Myan-mar Football Federation(MFF) revealed that Myanmar, who were knocked out of the South-east Asian Games group stages following a narrow defeat to Indonesia, are in advanced discussions with the former Serbian international.

“We are in detailed consid-eration over the contract. 75 percent [of discussions] are already completed, but we will

Aye Myatment after the contract sign-ing,” the website cited U Zaw Zaw as saying.

Former coach, Korean Park

role after the team was elimi-nated in the group stages of the recent Southeast Asian Games. Following impressive victories against Timor Leste and Cam-bodia and a hard-fought draw against Thailand, Myanmar only needed a draw against

match to qualify for the compe-tition’s Semi Finals.

Myanmar lost the match 1-0, knocking them out of the com-petition, and it was revealed after the match that Park was unaware of the head-to-head rule which meant that Indone-

mar, despite the hosts having

than their rivals. Avramovic made his name

land, where he made over 150 appearances for Notts County.

He has previously managed the Kuwait and Singapore national teams, the latter of which he managed for 10 years,

Football Championship on three occasions, most recently in 2012.

Myanmar football’s golden era came during the 1960s and early 1970s when the country

Asian Games gold medals from

for the 1972 Olympic Games hosted in Munich.

Su Su

Awouldn’t begrudge other music lovers around the world be-ing exposed to the group’s lively brand of rock.

invited to perform at this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW), which will be hosted in Austin, Texas in March, but one thing cur-rently stands in their way. Money.

In an attempt to put together the funds to perform at a concert alongside bands such as The Kooks, Angus and Julia Stone as well

encouraging music lovers to contribute to their trip, giving some originally-thought gifts in return.

$32 will get the pledger a signed CD, $250 a cooked lunch by

pledge proposal being $10,000 for a personalised tour of Myan-mar given by the group’s members.

SXSW began life as a music event in 1987, and has since grown

component.Previous performers at SXSW include The Flaming Lips, Kanye

West and Foo Fighters.

Lucas Wahl

myanmar business today - vol 2, issue 6

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