Myanmar President Thein Sein announced in June a raft of reforms aimed
at rolling back decades of state control over the economy.
Widely referred to as the second
wave, the reforms seek to include public welfare and kick-start an economy that
is the most backward in the region. These and the political reforms announced
earlier are unprecedented and have already brought international praise to the
president and his country. Shortly following the reforms, opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi made her first overseas trip in more than two decades when she
attended the World Economic Forum in Bangkok.
“We are on the right track
towards democratization,” Min Lwin, Myanmar’s ambassador to Indonesia, told the
Jakarta Globe in an interview on Wednesday.
“The changes underway are
happening so fast that sometimes even as the ambassador it’s hard for me to
keep up,” he said.
The ambassador, who took up his
post three months ago, added that the changes are irreversible and that there
is no going back to a military regime-style of government. And he praised the
role that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, in particular Indonesia,
played in helping to nudge Myanmar towards reforms.
Min Lwin also said that
preparations are now in full swing for Myanmar to host the 2014 Asean Summit.
Last year, Asean members agreed that Myanmar would take over the chairmanship
of Asean in 2014, following the wave of democratic and economic reforms.
He noted, however, that while the
country is confident of having the physical infrastructure in place to host the
summit, it needs to work on the substantive side, which means leading
discussions and initiating new proposals.
“We have shied away from such
meetings for a long time,” Min Lwin said. “Now we will hold the chairmanship of
Asean in 2014 so we have to learn from Indonesia and others.”
A delegation from Myanmar will
visit Indonesia to learn from Indonesia’s turn as chairmanship last year.
Min Lwin also said that Myanmar
is now open to foreign investors, especially businesses from fellow member
Asean countries as it needs to build its economy. The country is looking for
investors in natural resources, forestry, education, health care, finance and
telecommunications.
Myanmar on Friday passed a law
that paves the way for foreigners to invest more in the emerging nation,
including a provision allowing foreigners to own 50 percent in a joint venture.
“We wish that the Asean business
community, including Indonesia, will invest in Myanmar,” Min Lwin said. “We are
family, and we want our family members to have the opportunity first.”
Indonesia, he noted, has always
stood by Myanmar especially when the nation has faced difficulties. Even in the
latest incident involving the plight of the Rohingya, Indonesia has offered to
assist in resolving the problem.
Indonesia earlier this year
announced plans to establish an office in Myanmar to assist Indonesian
state-controlled companies, but State Enterprises Minister Dahlan Iskan
revealed that proposal has been delayed, citing the issue of the Rohingya — a
minority Muslim group in Myanmar that is not recognized as citizens by that
country.
Among the state-controlled
Indonesian companies that are interested in doing business in Myanmar are
cement maker Semen Gresik and energy company Pertamina. Myanmar is among the
neighboring Southeast Asia countries where Gresik plans to invest $300 million.
Like Indonesia, Myanmar is
abundant in natural resources including lumber, crude oil and natural gas.
Myanmar’s proven oil reserves stand at 3.2 billion barrels and gas reserves at
11.8 trillion cubic feet.
Destry Damayanti, chief economist
at Bank Mandiri, Indonesia’s largest lender by assets, said that Myanmar would
make a good production base for Indonesian firms, especially those groups that
engage in the agriculture sector.
Myanmar, which relies primarily
on agriculture for its economy, once was the world’s biggest exporter of rice.
Furthermore, Destry noted that
Myanmar also should become a labor-intensive industrial nation, similar to
Indonesia.
“Myanmar, however, is not yet a
good market, so it would be better for Indonesian companies to use the country
as a production base, then export the goods back to Indonesia,” she added.
Myanmar, shunned by Western
nations just a year ago for its authoritarian rule, has seen a revival of
interest among international lenders and aid organizations.
The World Bank is setting up an
office in the country and plans to invest $85 million in community-based
projects that might include schools, roads and water.
Shoeb K. Zainuddin
Additional reporting by Tito Summa Siahaan
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