July 3-9, 2014

Myanmar Business Today

mmbiztoday.com
mmbiztoday.com July 3-9, 2014| Vol 2, Issue 26 MYANMARS FIRST BILINGUAL BUSINESS JOURNAL
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
Inside MBT
GSP Negotiations with US in Final Stage
T
he Ministry of
Commerce has
announced nego-
tiations with the United
States regarding My-
anmars GSP status are
nearing the end.
GSP, or Generalised
System of Preferences,
is a system where up to
5,000 products may be
exported by a nation to
the United States (in this
case) duty-free, absolving
them of entry duty fees.
These negotiations
come after the United
States extended limited
trade sanctions on My-
anmar for another year,
which includes a ban on
doing business with indi-
viduals and companies on
the SDN list, as well as a
ban on the importation of
jadeite and rubies.
The sanction exten-
sions were carried out
according to their [USA]
protocols, as set require-
ments have not been met.
GSP is a commerce-re-
lated issue, and negotia-
tions regarding that have
reached the last stage, U
Toe Aung Myint, direc-
tor of International Trade
Promotion under the
Htun Htun Minn Ministry of Commerce,
said.
The visit to Myanmar
last month by United
States Secretary of Com-
merce Penny Pritzker saw
agreements made for My-
anmar to apply for GSP
status as soon as possible.
The US Ambassador
und om cIuIs ussured us
that the decision to grant
GSP sLuLus wus noL uecL-
ed by existing sanctions,
said U Toe Aung Myint.
Myanmar currently has
GSP status with 38 coun-
tries, including 28 in the
European Union.
Advisor to the minister
for commerce, Dr Maung
Aung, said while its likely
Myanmar will be granted
GSP status, it will not be
soon.
Myanmars exports re-
ceived GSP status in the
past, however, it was
withdrawn in July 1989
due to non-compliance of
standard regulations.
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Myeik Economic Zone
Master Plan Proposed
A
plan for an eco-
nomic zone in
Myanmars South-
eastern Tanintharyi re-
gion has been submitted
to the regional govern-
ment, according to the
Ministry of Electric Power
and Industry of the re-
gion.
The Myeik Economic
Zone will be privately
owned and will include a
harbour and adjoining in-
dustrial zone, in addition
to zones that will stream-
IIne LIe ow oI goods
between the harbour and
adjacent warehouses and
businesses.
The implementation of
the project is being led by
young people and thats
why the regional- govern-
ment is supporting it,
Dr Win Aung, Tanintha-
ryi Regional Minister for
Power and Industry, said.
We wouldve needed to
apply to the Union Gov-
ernment if this project
was larger, but it is on the
scale of a small-medium
enterprise, he added.
The Myeik Future De-
velopment Public Compa-
May Soe San ny (MFDPC), which was
set up in March, intends
to start implementing the
project within this year,
however, they requested
revisions to the existing
master plan.
The 1,000-acre project,
which is to the east of
Myeik Airport, will still
require negotiations with
local residents regard-
ing compensation for the
land required in the pro-
vision of the master plan.
Previously 1,500 resi-
dential plots were allo-
cated but there were no
market or public spaces
included, except for one
school. We asked that
the plan be re-drawn as it
had many issues, U Aung
Myo Lat, managing direc-
tor of the (MFDPC), said.
He said that although
the company has received
K100 billion for the pro-
ject, and has invited other
businesses to invest, it
will take many years to
complete.
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Contd. P 9...(Myeik)
The Missing Middle Ground: US Invest-
ment Reporting Requirements P-3
Myanmar: Professional Skill Gaps, and
Rising Wages P-4
Myanmar for The First Time Allows
Registration of Secured Loan on A Local
Asset P-7
July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
2
LOCAL BIZ
MYANMARS FIRST BILINGUAL BUSINESS JOURNAL
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Business News in Brief
MEP calls gas tur bi ne tender
The Ministry of Electric Power has invited foreign
and local investors to submit proposal for renting gas
engine or gas turbine generator at Kyaukphyu in Ra-
khine state, a ministry announcement said. Natural gas
resources Ior LIe projecL wIII be SIwe ProjecL`s osIore
gas. The deadline for submission of technical and com-
mercial terms of the proposal is 15 July.
Yomo mulls lond oer from Mgonmor shore-
holder
Yoma Strategic Holdings said it has received a written
noLIce Irom Myunmur`s Serge Pun & AssocIuLes oerIng
LIe rIgIL Lo ucquIre LIe economIc benehL oI ;o percenL
of the land in Pun Hlaing Golf Estate (PHGE), accord-
ing to Singaporean media reports. The 250 acres of land
comprises a 222-acre golf course and country club and
27.5 acres of land development rights, alongside some
related businesses infrastructure and facilities. Yoma
estimates the land value of 100 percent of PHGE and
the related businesses, infrastructure and facilities to
be ubouL $1oo mIIIIon. I IL uccepLs LIe oer, LIe group
intends to undertake a rights issue to fund the transac-
tion.
Mgonmor to introduce copitol morket for eco-
nomi c gr owth
The Myanmar Ministry of Finance will shape a capi-
tal market in the country after joining the Financial
Services Agency (FSA) and the Japan International
Agency (JICA), state-run media reported. The develop-
ment of capital markets depends on the Yangon Stock
Exchange, which is expected to come into practice in
2015, Deputy Minister of Finance Dr Maung Maung
Thein said. Tatsushi Terada, deputy secretary general
of Financial Services Agency, pledged Japan will share
its experience on stock exchange with Myanmar so that
the country can boost its economy through capital mar-
kets.
Myanmar , Si ngapor e J V to bui ld Thi lawa j etty
A joInL venLure compuny Ius goL LIe om cIuI nod Lo
build a jetty and petrol storage tanks at Thilawa port
in Yangon. Singapore-based Puma Energy Irrawaddy
PLe Ld und IocuI hrm AsIu Sun Energy Iormed u new
company, Puma Energy Asia Sun, for the project under
a build, operate and transfer agreement with the gov-
ernment.
Coterpillor ossists in $qo.g-m Mgonmor pouer
plant pr oj ect
American machinery manufacturer Caterpillar Inc is
assisting in a project that will help meet Myanmars in-
creasing power demand, with the 52MW Ywama Power
PIunL IocuLed In Yungon, LIe hrm suId. TIe $q6.-mII-
lion facility entered commercial operations in Febru-
ary, and was delivered on a turnkey basis by Caterpillar
Energy Solutions local dealer, Myan Shwe Pyi Tractors
Ltd (MSP CAT). Caterpillar delivered turnkey power
plant supply, project management and commission-
Ing oI u IucIIILy LIuL Iouses 1 CAT CGz6o-16 gus gen-
erator with complete electrical and mechanical balance
of the plant equipment. MSP CAT is also supplying a
long-term operation and maintenance contract for
Singapore-based UPP Power Ltd the owner of the site.
The power plant is delivering electricity to the Myan-
mar Electric Power Enterprise (MEPE) under a 30 year
contract.
WongP sets up Myanmar uni t, bui lds ASEAN
pr esence
WongPartnership has become the latest Singaporean
hrm Lo open un om ce In Myunmur, us LIe hrm IuuncI-
es a regional strategy. WongPartnership has opened a
base in Yangon, its second in the ASEAN region. The
buse wIII InILIuIIy be sLued by u IocuI Myunmur puruIe-
guI und u SIngupore-quuIIhed Iuwyer, wIo wIII reIocuLe
from Singapore. WongPartnerships co-managing part-
ner RucIeI Eng suId LIe hrm`s sLruLegy Is Lo Iocus on
growth in the ASEAN region. Myanmar has been a hot
spot for foreign investments, and weve been advising
a growing number of transactions and projects, said
Eng. TIe hrm Ius recenLIy udvIsed Myunmur GoIden
Star Beverage on its joint venture with South Koreas
oLLe CIIsung Beveruge, ucLed Ior Pun PucIhc HoLeIs
Group in its Yangon hotel development joint venture
and assisted Amara Communications in its bid for a
public telecommunications licence as part of a consor-
tium.
Myanmar Summary
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
3
LOCAL BIZ
Myanmar Summary
US Govt Needs to Clarify Its Investment
Reporting Requirements
A
merican business-
es had until the
end of the June to
hIe un unnuuI reporL wILI
the US government de-
tailing their investment
activities in Myanmar.
Under General License
17 (GL 17), US businesses
engaging in new invest-
ment in Myanmar must
report their investment
activities to comply with
the Reporting Require-
ments on Responsible In-
vestment in Burma. Any
US person investing more
than $500,000 in Myan-
mar, or investing in the oil
and gas sector, is required
to submit a report.
On her recent commer-
cial diplomacy mission to
ASEAN, US Secretary of
Commerce Penny Pritz-
ker celebrated the grow-
ing relationship between
Myanmar and the United
States and encouraged
American companies to
consider Myanmar as a
destination for invest-
ment. Often viewed as
the gold standard for in-
vestment, American com-
panies not only produce
high quality products
and services, but are also
known to institute vigor-
ous standards in terms of
sustainability, corporate
social responsibility, and
respect for human rights
helping to facilitate
broad-based economic
growth and prosperity.
According to the US Em-
bassys website, American
companies have invested
$zq.6 mIIIIon (Kzq.6
billion) in Myanmar and
have planned or already
implemented dozens of
Aundrea Montao corporate social responsi-
bility programs.
In order to reconcile
American business in-
creasing interest in My-
anmar with the countrys
rocky past, the United
States government insti-
tuted the reporting re-
quirements as a means to
maintain this gold stand-
ard and encourage re-
sponsible investment.
The reporting require-
ments have been met with
mixed responses from
both the business com-
munity and human rights
organizations.
On the busi ness si de
The added duty of the
reporting requirements is
made more complex with
LIe IncredIbIy dIm cuIL
business environment,
which makes account-
ing for every operational
component if we are
honest nearly impos-
sible, and in many ways
erodes the competitive-
ness of US companies.
Some businesses also
fear becoming a target
of unwarranted scrutiny
that could damage glob-
al brand identity, while
others feel the reporting
requirements do not rep-
resenL LIeIr specIhc Lype
and level of investment.
Anthony Nelson, direc-
tor of public relations at
the US-ASEAN Business
Council said, US com-
panies view responsible
investment and the per-
formance of CSR as part
of our competitive ad-
vantage. US business is
committed to investing in
Myanmar the right way,
but the reporting require-
ments add an additional
layer of bureaucratic and
legal complexity to US
investment in Myanmar,
that taken along with re-
maining sanctions and
IImILed EX-M hnuncIng,
give a head start to com-
petitors. We encourage
the US government to
continue clarifying the re-
quirements.
While the requirements
are meant to address key
foreign policy concerns in
Myanmar in regards to hu-
man rights and responsible
investment, and even as-
sist US companies in plan-
ning strategic engagement
and due diligence policies,
they are not a catch all re-
porting mechanism.
In early June, the US
Campaign for Burma re-
leased its Report Card:
US Companies Investing
in Burma. Coca-Cola was
the shining star of the re-
port, and it makes sense
given the companys in-
ternal infrastructure de-
veloped over decades
of working in high-risk
countries around the
world. With physical op-
erations and distribution
in Myanmar, Coca-Colas
investment in the country
is clear and transparent
a true representation of
American business.
However, not every type
of investment in Myan-
mar is as clear and clean
cut, and may pose a chal-
lenge to the reporting
requirements in its cur-
rent form presenting
uddILIonuI dIm cuILIes Ior
American companies.
In the same report, Cap-
ital Group was labeled an
irresponsible investor,
and cited by the report
as refusing to answer es-
sential questions about
human rights due dili-
gence policies and proce-
dures, and that it has no
responsibility to answer
because its investments
are passive.
When asked about how
the State Department
deals with incomplete,
inaccurate or potentially
troubling information in
submitted reports, Pub-
IIc AuIrs Om cer SuLrujIL
Sardar at the US Embassy
in Yangon, did not want to
speculate on hypothetical
situations, but did note,
The reports posted thus
far have adhered to the
instructions laid out in
our FAQs. The FAQs re-
fer to the frequently asked
questions found at www.
humanrights.gov, which
also states the reporting
requirements).
According to its pub-
IIc reporL hIed In AprII oI
this year, Capital Group is
a minority investor (less
than 1 percent) in Yoma
Strategic Holdings Ltd
a conglomerate incor-
porated in Singapore and
traded on the Singapore
Stock Exchange and
posses no controlling
stake in the company, nor
does itself have opera-
tions or a supply chain in
Myanmar. The US report-
ing requirements do not
address how to deal with
such passive investments
an emerging limitation
in a process meant for
good that could result in
the misinterpretation of
a companys investment
intensions. Even though
Capital Group has been
labeled an irresponsible
investor, they have fully
complied with US law per
GL 17 and the Responsi-
ble Investment Reporting
Requirements.
On the human r i ghts
si de
Rights groups view
transparency in US in-
vestment as the para-
mount concern. Ad-
vocates look at the US
reporting requirements
as zero-sum, which re-
ecLs LIe reporL curd`s de-
sire for Capital Group to
dig deeper. Rights groups
have a legitimate desire
to present a transparent
view of American invest-
ment in Myanmar so that
civil society can play an
active role in the coun-
trys economic develop-
ment. As such, human
rights groups want the re-
porting requirements to
go further to account for
every possible scenario.
However, at this point
and time there exists no
middle ground that ac-
counts for every invest-
ment scenario.
Clorifging US report-
i ng r equi r ements
In order for the report-
ing requirements to be
eecLIve und reLuIn LIeIr
value, the United States
government needs to ad-
dress how to make the
process less onerous,
while maintaining high
standards, and work to
clarify the requirements
on how to deal with indi-
rect investment.
First, the US govern-
ment must seek input
from companies interest-
ed in entering the coun-
try, but remain hesitant.
This input, combined
with information ob-
tained in current investor
reports, can help guide US
poIIcy LIuL Is more eec-
LIve und em cIenL Ior boLI
American companies and
human rights stakehold-
ers. A balanced approach
that addresses the needs
of both the business com-
munity and human rights
organisations should be
the goal. While seemingly
incompatible, we must
pusI LIrougI Lo hnd com-
mon ground, understand-
ing that no one group will
get 100 percent of every-
thing they want its just
the reality.
Second, cIurIhcuLIon on
how to report passive in-
vestment should be intro-
duced in the near term.
Reporting standards for
passive investment could
be determined by the de-
gree of stakeholder con-
trol, an investors ability
Lo uecL compuny decI-
sions and operations, and
the percentage of a busi-
ness operations that are
physically in Myanmar.
If the United States
wants to encourage in-
vestment in Myanmar,
then clarifying the report-
ing requirements sooner
than later will help make
this goal a reality pro-
viding strategic economic
advantage to both Myan-
mar and the US.
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In order for the reporting require-

ments to be effective and retain
their value, the United States gov-
ernment needs to address how to
make the process less onerous, while
maintaining high standards, and work to
clarify the requirements on how to deal
with indirect investment.
A man working in the Coca-Cola bottling plant near Yangon. Coca-Cola is among dozens of American
companies investing in Myanmar.Coca-Cola came out as a responsible investor in the US Campaign for
Burmas recently released report Report Card: US Companies Investing in Burma. It makes sense
given the companys internal infrastructure developed over decades of working in high-risk countries
around the world. However, not every type of investment in Myanmar is as clear and clean cut, and may
pose a chaIIenge to the reporting requirements in its current form presenting additionaI difcuIties for
American companies.
L
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
4
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar: Professional Skill Gaps, and Rising Wages
W
ith the relative-
ly rapid open-
ing of Myanmar
to the international econ-
omy following the coun-
trys 2011 liberalisation,
LIe posILIve benehLs Ior
the domestic and interna-
tional business communi-
ties in that country has oft
been trumpeted.
However, there are of
course notable side-ef-
fects to this change that
are, for the people of
Myanmar, more harmful
than not. In particular,
one of these addresses
LIe wuges oered by com-
panies to trained profes-
sIonuIs, und ILs eecLs on
the Myanmar job market.
As with any country that
Ius been cIosed o Irom
the outside world, the so-
cialist regime of General
Ne Win and the subse-
quent SLORC adminis-
tration did more than de-
stroy hints of democracy
and rule of law in Myan-
mar. Rather, they reduced
Yangon (then Rangoon)
from a shining beacon of
educational excellence in
Southeast Asia, to a literal
backwater.
In established disci-
plines, the people of My-
anmar were no longer
learning at the same level
as their regional or inter-
national counterparts,
und In heIds IIke T und
programming there was
Gregory Arnold
virtually no education
available. The results
oI LIIs were uppurenL;
when Myanmar opened
up in 2011, its own do-
mestic workforce could
not match the skills or
abilities of those people
(either from Myanmar or
foreign) who had studied
abroad.
Companies proceeded,
and have continued, to re-
spond Lo LIIs by oerIng
sIgnIhcunLIy IIgIer suIu-
ries for more-skilled em-
ployees. And while this is
a logical trend, it ignores
that the educational sys-
tem of Myanmar, while
improving, will continue
to lag behind the needs
for talented employees for
quite some time.
As such, the responsi-
bility ultimately falls on
the company, with no real
cheap options available.
While Myanmar employ-
ees may be willing to work
for less than their foreign
colleagues, said company
must then be willing and
able to train these individ-
uals, which costs time, if
not money. Similarly, there
are likely very few foreign
professionals willing to
work for wages that Myan-
mur empIoyees mIgIL hnd
more acceptable.
Ultimately, until the
education system of My-
anmar reaches a level
where it can compete with
the neighbouring ASEAN
states, let alone on a glob-
al level, the main source
of skilled labor in the ser-
vice sector will come from
a number of sources.
First, as has been seen
so vibrantly in the current
Yangon business commu-
nity, the number of My-
anmar citizens who have
returned from abroad.
From Singapore to the
United States, the Myan-
mar diaspora has proven
to be willing and able to
take what theyve learned
abroad to aid the country
of their birth.
Similarly, there are siza-
ble expatriate groups that
have sought to provide
international skills to the
Myanmar business and
economic communities.
As an example, the inter-
national student business
AIESEC provides compa-
nies access to young pro-
fessionals from over 125
counLrIes; muny oI wIom
have the ability to not
only meet the needs of the
Myanmar business world,
but also to impart these
skills upon local employ-
ees.
Gregory Arnold is a re-
cent graduate of George
Washington University.
He is currently serving
as the Sales Director for
AIESEC Myanmar.
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Students attend an Android OS course in the Myanmar ICT Park in Yangon.
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Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
5
Commercial Tax Cut Necessary to Protect
Local Businesses: IRD
T
he Internal Rev-
enue Department
(IRD) said a com-
mercial tax cut is essential
despite criticism from for-
eign tax analysts that the
initiative is overprotective
of local businesses.
Commercial tax is a
monetary levy, paid to the
government indirectly by
consumers, on the sale
of locally manufactured
goods and services.
The government low-
ered the commercial tax
ruLe Lo z percenL LIIs hscuI
year cutting it from the
percenL LurI Imposed
in previous years.
Since President U Thein
Sein came to power in
2011 his government has
introduced sweeping eco-
nomic and political re-
forms, opening the coun-
try up to foreign trade and
investment.
May Soe San IRD Director U Tin Tun
Naing said the countrys
commercial tax reforms
have been critical to help-
ing local businesses com-
peLe uguInsL LIe Inux oI
foreign businesses enter-
ing the country.
Cutting commercial
tax for domestic prod-
ucts, while imposing 5
percent commercial tax
on imported goods, helps
maintain the demand for
locally produced goods
and services, he said.
U Tin Tun Naing said
wILI LIe excepLIon oI 16
items, the tax is imposed
on all locally manufac-
tured products through-
out Myanmar.
It doesnt matter where
these products are pro-
duced, whether in an in-
dusLrIuI zone or ouLsIde;
if the manufacturing
business is registered as
a state-owned or a public
business the tax applies,
he told Myanmar Busi-
ness Today.
Emergent Services CEO
and economist U Myint
Thaung said the countrys
commercial tax cut ben-
ehLs IocuI IndusLry und
means consumers have to
pay less for products.
By decreasing the price
of local goods and servic-
es consumers are encour-
aged to choose locally
manufactured products
over more expensive for-
eign imports, he said.
Currently, tax revenue
in Myanmar comes from
commercial tax, income
tax, stamp tax and lottery
tax.
U Myat Thin Aung,
chairman of Hlaing Thar
Yar Industrial Zone, said
despite the loss of income
from commercial tax cuts,
state revenue is being
supported by other sourc-
es of revenue.
According to the IRD,
LIe 16 specIuI ILems ex-
cluded in the commercial
tax cut include tobacco,
betel, beer, teak, logs,
gem, car, fuel and natural
gas, among others.
Myanmar Summary
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Myanmar Summary
Chin Industrial Zones to Go Live
by FY14; Set to Boost SMEs
May Soe San
I
ndustrial zone devel-
opment projects in
Chin states Hakha
and Tedim are expected
to be completed by the
currenL hscuI yeur LIuL
started in April, a minis-
ter said.
The projects are aimed
at supporting the devel-
opment of small and me-
dium enterprises (SME)
in Myanmars impover-
ished Chin state, U Ram
Mann, Chin state minister
for planning and econo-
my, told Myanmar Busi-
ness Today.
The projects will priori-
tise businesses relating to
automobile, and the elec-
tricity for these industrial
zones will be supplied
through the national grid
in Hakha, the minister
said.
Land negotiations are
currently under way for
the industrial zone pro-
ject in Hakha, which will
have an area of at least
25 acres, U Kyin Hlyan
Paung, Chin state minis-
ter for electricity and in-
. ._._ ,e q e:..|.. ~.~ ,
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dustry, said.
The projects will be ini-
tiated with small enter-
prises and required fa-
cilities will be developed
In zo1q-1 hscuI yeur, Ie
added.
A 20-acre industrial
zone project is also be-
ing developed in Tedim,
which will become the
hrsL IndusLrIuI zone In
Chin state and is expected
to create employment op-
portunities for the states
citizens.
U Salai Kyam, secretary
of Chin National Demo-
cruLIc PurLy, suId: ProhL
sharing is an important
element when a special
economic or industrial
zone is being developed.
The zones should be
developed according to
international standards
while socio-economic
standards should also be
considered.
Contd. P 11...
July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
6
Myanmar Summary
Purliument Pusses Bill to Tuckle Inutionury Concerns
C
entral Bank Deputy
Governor Daw Khin
Saw Oo said the
governments newly pro-
posed bill on monetary
policy will help curb ris-
Ing InuLIon LIrougIouL
the country.
On June 20, Upper
House representative My-
int Kyi made the propo-
sition to introduce more
government policies to
tackle Myanmars grow-
Ing hscuI probIems.
Since President U Thein
Sein came to power, the
countrys sweeping eco-
nomic and political re-
forms have helped My-
anmars economy rapidly
expand.
However, the increase
In cupILuI ows Irom Ior-
eign investments coming
into the country have also
undercut the value of My-
anmars currency.
In June, the IMF re-
leased a report estimat-
Ing LIe counLry`s InuLIon
ruLe wIII remuIn uL 6.
percenL over LIIs hscuI
year, ending March 2015.
The IMFs Myanmar
mission chief, Matt
Davies, said without re-
forms to the countrys
monetary policy, the high
InuLIon ruLes couId un-
dermine Myanmars fu-
ture economic growth.
Fiscal and external
buers remuIn LIIn und
Tom Stayner demand-side pressures
on InuLIon und Iurge cup-
ILuI Inows wIII sLruIn LIe
stillinfant macroeconom-
ic management tools,
Matt Davies said.
New government poli-
cies targeting this con-
cern include work with
the World Bank to man-
age Myanmars budget
and engagement with pri-
vate banks to protect the
countrys monetary re-
serves, Khin Saw Oo told
reporters.
Khin Saw Oo said al-
LIougI hscuI meusures ure
already in place to man-
uge LIe counLry`s InuLIon
problem, the majority of
parliament members voted
that more monetary policy
is needed.
TIe InuLIon ruLe Ius
rIsen Lo .;6 percenL In
April 2014, from 5.53
percent and 1.48 per-
cent respectively in the
same months in 2013 and
2012, Khin Saw Oo said.
Over 90 government
members supported the
bill, while only 10 parlia-
ment members vetoed the
proposal.
The Myanmar Kyats
value has stabilised in
recent months but the
increase of foreign banks
into Myanmar could see
international capital drive
down consumer interest
in the currency.
Davies said Myanmars
macroeconomic manage-
menL LooIs ure InsumcIenL
to address the countrys
InuLIonury pressures.
Parliaments agreement
on the monetary policy
bill shows authorities are
taking action to manage
LIe counLry`s InuLIon
concerns.
However, the IMF
warned continual im-
provements to macroeco-
nomic policy are needed
to protect Myanmar from
hscuI pressures.
Ensuring this growth
is sustainable and in-
clusive requires deci-
sive implementation of
a broad range of policies
and structural reforms,
Davies said.
The current exchange
rate of Kyat and the US
dollar is approximately $1
to K975.
The Central Bank of
Myanmar adopted a man-
uged ouL Ior ILs currency,
scruppIng u -yeur hxed
exchange rate in April
2012, setting a daily rate
of K818 per dollar, near
the black-market level at
that time.
TIe prevIous omcIuI ruLe,
pegged to the International
Monetary Funds special
druwIng rIgILs, wus K6.q,
125 times stronger than the
black market and available
only to state-owned com-
panies.
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2014 Tourist Receipts Expected to Top $1 Billion
M
yanmars tour-
ism industry is
expected to earn
more than $1 billion this
year, said U Thet Naign
Toe, vice chairman of the
Union of Myanmar Travel
Association (UMTA).
In 2012 and 2013, in-
come from tourism re-
ceipts were $534 million
und $qz6 mIIIIon respec-
tively, according to sta-
tistics published by the
Ministry of Hotel and
Tourism.
Between January and
May of this year, Myan-
mars tourism industry
brought in more than
$552 million with more
than 1.05 million tourists
visiting the country last
year.
This year, Myanmar ex-
Kyaw Min pects more than 3 million
tourist arrivals, U Tin Tun
Aung, secretary of UMTA
said.
Arrivals from China
and Japan make up the
majority of tourists from
Asia, while arrivals from
France, Spain and Brit-
ain make up the largest
number of tourists from
Europe. Tourist arriv-
als from Thailand have
slowed this year.
Myanmars tourism in-
dustry is going to contin-
ue Lo deveIop; Iowever,
the hotel and service sec-
tor for tourists needs to be
upgraded. Only then will
more tourists visit Myan-
mar, he continued.
According to UMTA,
tourist arrivals have in-
creused sIgnIhcunLIy sInce
2012.
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Myanmar Summary
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A cashier carries piles of kyat banknotes in a private bank in Yan-
gon.
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A tourist looks at lacquer-ware, a famous handicraft in Myanmar, at a workshop at Bagan in Mandalay
region.
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Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
7
LOCAL BIZ
K7.3 Billion Worth of
Illegal Goods Seized over
Eight Months
Htun Htun Minn
A
cargo inspec-
tion team seized
K7.3 billion ($7.3
million) worth of ille-
gal goods at the Yangon
Port over the last eight
months, said the Ministry
of Commerce.
This operation is car-
ried out to control smug-
gling and to protect con-
sumers in the Yangon
regIon, suId un omcIuI
from the Department of
commerce and Consumer
AuIrs.
Liquor, beer and food
products were the most
commonly seized items.
The mobile team made
arrests in 12 cases, which
included four customs of-
fenses, six police cases.
The mobile teams ob-
jective in examining cargo
for illegal goods will pre-
vent the loss of state in-
come, said Dr Thein Na-
ing, an exporter.
Mobile teams examin-
ing cargoes at Myanmars
ports are relatively new.
Previously, mobile
teams only inspected
goods being transported
across Myanmars bor-
ders via vehicle transport.
Myanmar for The First Time Allows Registration
of Secured Loan on A Local Asset
Htun Htun Minn
M
yanmar reached
unoLIer hnun-
cial milestone in
its path to economic re-
forms as local authorities
upgraded their existing
administrative practice
to accommodate the reg-
istration of international
secured lending.
In a landmark test case,
a wholly foreign owned
Myanmar company which
ruIsed hnunce LIrougI u
cross-border loan, was al-
lowed to register security
for that loan on its assets
in Myanmar.
Previously, lenders were
essentially only able to
take security on any as-
seLs LIe borrower Iud o-
shore.
Myanmar law and tax
udvIsory hrm VDB oI us-
sisted on the completion
oI LIe hrsL regIsLruLIon oI
a secured interest on My-
anmar assets for a foreign
loan in modern times.
The names of the parties
have not been disclosed.
Myanmar has improved
its regulatory framework
oI InLernuLIonuI hnunc-
ing as part of the Foreign
Investment Law and the
Foreign Exchange Man-
agement Act, which were
enacted in 2012.
Nevertheless, the ad-
ministrative practice for
registering security un-
Myanmar Summary
der Myanmar law in gen-
eral remained untested in
modern times as regards
international loans.
VDB Lois Managing
Partner Jean Loi said:
This was a genuine test
case, with a lot riding on
it.
It really was a col-
IuboruLIve eorL wILI LIe
Myanmar authorities to
revamp administrative
practices and processes.
Senior partner Edwin
Vanderbruggen, who led
the team which handled
the matter, said: We are
very pleased with the re-
suIL. TIe hrsL LIme Is uI-
wuys u bIL dImcuIL. L`s
tough, but also very inter-
esting. Anyway, the door
is open now, so it should
be eusIer Ior LIe nexL h-
nancing deals.
Until now, lenders
would have to take securi-
Ly on osIore usseLs, sucI
as shares of the parent
of a Myanmar company.
Now LIuL LIe hrsL Iorse
has left the barn, the gates
are open to do so much
more, such as a mort-
gage on land lease rights,
a pledge on shares or a
hxed und ouLIng cIurge
on movable assets, cash
and contractual rights in
Myanmar.
The re-vitalising of the
countrys administra-
tion of secured interests
comes at a very timely
moment when the Cen-
tral Bank of Myanmar is
pondering the issuance
of a number of corporate
banking licenses to for-
eign banks.
A process is underway
for the selection of the
banks that will receive the
hrsL bunkIng IIcences.
A strengthening of the
countrys practice with re-
spect to creating and en-
forcing security on loans
is a welcome develop-
ment from that perspec-
tive as well, Edwin said.
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
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Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
8
Myanmar Summary
GE to Assist Govt with Energy Infrastructure
Phyo Thu
D
eputy Minister for
Electric Power U
Maw Thar Htwe
said that US-based power
solutions giant General
Electric (GE) is helping
Myanmar develop its en-
ergy infrastructure and
improve the countrys
electricity woes.
Experts have expressed
concern Myanmars pow-
er infrastructure is strug-
gling to keep pace with
the countrys fast-paced
economic development.
Currently, Myanmars
electricity sector is unable
to generate enough power
to meet national demand,
with about 70 percent of
the country getting no
electricity, according to
ADB estimates.
On June 17, we received
GEs assessment and we
are preparing to work
with the company to sup-
port the countrys current
electrical improvement
plans, the minister said.
The companys evalua-
tion provided a roadmap
on procedures to help
Myanmar overcome their
power infrastructure and
supply shortcomings.
Stuart Dean, GEs ASE-
AN regional CEO, said his
companys assessment is
designed to assist the gov-
ernment in implementing
proposed generation, dis-
tribution and rural elec-
LrIhcuLIon reIorms.
GE has held discussions
with Myanmar engineers
regarding the facilities
und hnunces needed Lo
meeL LIe power em cIen-
cy and storage targets
throughout the country.
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Rare Crane Species Found in Northern Myanmar
Htun Htun Minn
O
rnithologists from
British nature con-
servation group
Fauna & Flora Interna-
tional (FFI) found a large
sarus crane population in
the wetlands surrounding
Indawgyi Lake in Kachin
state while undertaking a
recent water bird census.
First we just saw their
charismatic red heads
sticking out of the tall
green grass, but through
our telescopes we soon
spotted the amazing num-
ber of nine individuals,
said Ngwe Lwin, who was
counting wetland birds
together with his team of
FFI ornithologists, and
Win Zaw Lun, a ranger of
Indawgyi Wildlife Sanctu-
ary.
This species, which at a
height of up to 1.8 metres
Is LIe LuIIesL oI LIe yIng
birds, has been frequently
recorded in Rakhine state
and the Irrawaddy delta,
but is very rare in north-
ern Myanmar.
Previously only very
small groups of 2-3 indi-
viduals have been spotted
in Indawgyi, but never
before has such a large
group been seen.
Ngwe Lwin, Fauna &
Flora Internationals
Terrestrial Conservation
Programme Coordinator
said, Finding this large
group of sarus crane in
Indawgyi area has shown
us that this species, which
Is cIussIhed us VuInerubIe
on the IUCN Red List of
Threatened Species, is
still safe in the Indawgyi
area. We hope to see more
in the future.
Sarus cranes are large
non-migratory birds
found in parts of the In-
dian Subcontinent, Indo-
china and Australia.
Sarus cranes in Myan-
mar belong to the sub-
species of the eastern
sarus crane Grus antigone
sharpii that formerly oc-
curred throughout Indo-
china.
Over LIe IusL hILy yeurs
it has been decimated
throughout this range,
but still occurs in smaller
numbers in Myanmar, Vi-
etnam, and Cambodia.
Eastern sarus cranes in
Yunnan Province (China)
and Laos are either rare
or recently extirpated,
while the eastern sarus in
Thailand was thought ex-
Myanmar Summary
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Telenor, Samsung Sign
Partnership Deal
N
orways Telenor,
one of the winners
of Myanmars
coveted telecommunica-
tions licences, has signed
a deal will mobile device
manufacturer Samsung to
work together in the mar-
ket of Myanmar.
Both companies will
work together in the de-
velopment of joint market
oerIngs, uordubIe de-
vice bundles and promo-
tional activities, Telenor
said.
Petter Furberg, CEO of
Telenor Myanmar, said
the deal marks the begin-
ning of more alliances and
teaming opportunities in
telecommunications be-
tween Telenor and Sam-
sung.
Sharad Mehrotra, chief
murkeLIng om cer oI TeI-
enor Myanmar, said, Our
interest is to have inno-
vative value propositions
for the mass market and
we consider Samsung as a
good partner to work with
in achieving both compa-
nies strategic ambitions.
Through this deal,
the two parties agree to
Aye Myat
strengthen the coopera-
tion framework in the
Southeast Asian market.
Nam Sik Ahn, manag-
ing director of Samsung
Myanmar, said, We see
Telenor and Samsung will
complement each other in
LIe murkeL oerIngs und LIe
partnership will strengthen
footprint of both companies
in Myanmar.
Myanmar Summary
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Petter Furberg ~ e.~.
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tirpated in the mid-20th
Century.
FFI is now planning
u specIhc surus crune
survey, to gain greater
knowledge and help de-
termine the threats to the
species.
We have alerted lo-
cal communities not to
destroy their nests or
to attempt to catch the
cranes, said Ngwe Lwin,
who is educating local
communities.
Once survey results
have been reviewed, FFI
will follow up with con-
servation actions in col-
laboration with the wild-
life sanctuary and local
communities to ensure
the survival of this charis-
matic species in wetlands
of Indawgyi Lake, the
group said.
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Myanmar Business Today
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LOCAL BIZ
9
Myanmar Summary
Microsoft Tapped to Assist Myanmar Develop
Cyber Security Measures
Htun Htun Minn
M
icrosoft will
work with the
Ministry of
Communications and In-
formation Technology to
increase Myanmars cyber
security, said U Kyaw Aye
Naing, executive direc-
tor of local IT company
Knowledge Centricity,
which is the American
IT giants market devel-
opment partner in the
Southeast Asian nation.
The companys support
aims to increase the min-
istrys awareness about
cyber crime in the country
and help Myanmar devel-
op a legislation to prevent
LIe spreud cyber oences
in the future.
U Kyaw Aye Naing said
Microsoft has submitted
a framework on how My-
anmar should conduct the
countrys cyber security
infrastructure to the min-
istry.
Microsoft will use their
expertise to show Myan-
mar what to do when cy-
ber security threats arise.
There are also plans for
the company to support
the implementation of
cyber legislation through-
out Myanmar, U Kyaw
Aye Naing told Myanmar
Business Today.
Attacks on government,
company and other im-
portant websites through-
out the country have
prompted Myanmar to
become more aware of the
need for cyber safeguard-
ing measures.
In their report, Micro-
soft stated, while no cyber
crimes have been identi-
hed In LIe counLry, In-
troducing cyber security
legislation will help deter
IuLure oences.
Executive member of the
Myanmar Computer As-
sociation, U Zaw Win, said
the countrys increased
mobile internet usage has
made cyber security legis-
lation a necessity through-
out the country.
Although there arent
many cyber crimes, as the
internet becomes faster
the need to educate users
and protect their personal
information will become
more sIgnIhcunL, Ie suId.
Enterprises in Asia Pa-
cIhc (APAC) ure expecLed
to spend nearly $230 bil-
lion in 2014 to deal with
issues caused by malware
deliberately loaded onto
pirated software $59
billion dealing with secu-
rity issues and $170 billion
dealing with data breaches
according to a new joint
study conducted by IDC
and the National Univer-
sity of Singapore (NUS).
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From page ...(Myeik)
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Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
10
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 12...(Bottlenecks)
Contd. P 12...(Bottlenecks)
Removing the Bottlenecks on the Road to
Middle Income and Making Impact Investible
Maximilian Martin
A
t the shores of Lake
Constance in Swit-
zerland, the fourth
edition of the three-day
Impact Economy Sympo-
sium & Retreat drew to
a close on June 15. The
event annually convenes
key Inuencers, LIougIL
leaders, and practitioners
from the worlds of invest-
ment, business, govern-
ment, and philanthropy
in order to showcase the
mosL eecLIve soIuLIons,
innovations, and opportu-
nities that have surfaced
in the promotion of im-
pact. Myanmar was one
of the four focus countries
featured this year.
Given the magnitude of
challenges and opportu-
nity the country faces, Im-
pact Economy included
Myanmar in the EMICs,
a new set of key countries
that present exceptional
opportunities to achieve
both impact and value.
The EMICs (Ethiopia,
Myanmar, Iran, and Co-
lombia) are high-stakes,
high-opportunity coun-
tries whose characteristics
allow impact investors to
muke u key dIerence In
enabling them to prosper.
Even so, the EMICs face
important infrastructural
und InsLILuLIonuI dehcILs,
which raise the ques-
tion of how a responsi-
ble and forward-looking
approach to investment
and business innovation
can serve to drive large-
scale positive impact. In
this exclusive Myanmar
Business Today series, Ill
share key content covered
at the conference.
Overcoming isolation
after almost three dec-
ades, Myanmar is now
emerging as a high growth
economy. Given the coun-
trys strategic geographic
location, its abundant
natural resources, po-
tential for tourism, more
than 50 million popula-
tion with a young labour
force and competitive
wages, Myanmar has the
potential to soon leave its
current status as Asias
last frontier behind. Ac-
cording to Deutsche Bank
research, Myanmar could
well become a $100-bil-
lion economy by 2018.
In terms of fundamen-
LuIs, LIe counLry oers
exciting opportunities
for investors. It is pursu-
ing an ambitious develop-
ment strategy that aims
to achieve both high and
inclusive growth, and has
started laying the corre-
sponding building blocks
physical, legal and in-
stitutional infrastructure.
All of which is needed: 70
percent of the population
lacks access to electricity,
80 percent of SMEs oper-
ate in the informal econo-
my and over 30 percent of
cIIIdren suer Irom muI-
nutrition.
FDI i s gr aduati ng
beyond extr acti ve
i ndustr i es
Capital is needed to
deliver on the countrys
middle-income ambi-
tions. The landmark pas-
sage of the 2012 Foreign
Investment Law (FIL),
the recent termination of
international sanctions
and the passage of nearly
20 additional pieces of
legislation that govern
private investment have
all helped to almost dou-
ble foreign direct invest-
ment (FDI) since 2008.
Historically, over 80
percent of FDI volume has
been in deals within the
oil and gas, hydroelectric
and mining industries.
The most active areas of
recent investment have
been in the manufactur-
ing, hotel and tourism
industries. At present,
most foreign investment-
comes from Myanmars
neighboring countries
in East Asia: China and
Hong Kong, Thailand,
Korea and out-of-re-
gIon - LIe UK ure LIe hve
topinvestors. As per the
recent OECD Investment
Policy Review, approved
Chinese investment has
however decreased rap-
idly over the past year,
declining from $8 billion
In hscuI yeur zo1o Lo $qo;
million in 2012, though
LIe hgures muy under-
state investments as they
do not aggregate invest-
menLs mude LIrougI o-
shore locations such as
the British Virgin Islands
or the Cayman Islands.
Bottlenecks need to
be over come
Opening the economy
is showing results, but a
number of bottlenecks
limiting foreign invest-
menL persIsL; LIe gen-
eral business climate
has room for further im-
provement. In 2014, the
European Commissions
Report to the EU on My-
anmar/Burma Invest-
ment Relations expressed
concern about Myanmars
legal environment as well
as changing requirements
placed on foreigners for
licensing. Work lies ahead
on investment protection
standards, restrictions
on investment in several
sectors, local partner re-
quirements and capac-
ity levels at the Myanmar
Investment Commission
(MIC), which reviews all
foreign proposals to grant
licenses to operate.
The OECD ranks Myan-
mar as the 2nd most re-
strictive country globally
in its FDI Restrictiveness
Index. Next to the quality
of regulation, corruption
remains a chief concern
in Myanmar. The World
Bank ranks Myanmar the
2nd most corrupt country
globally, particularly in
relation to the procedure
of receiving licenses to
operuLe, pIucIng Lux hI-
ings and opening land
leases. Transparency In-
ternational ranks Myan-
mar 157/177 in their cor-
ruption perception index,
more favourable than the
World Bank rating. With
the recent passing of laws
governing investment,
the OECD has cautioned
that government capacity
levels might prove insuf-
hcIenL Lo cope wILI IIgIer
levels of investment, par-
ticularly given the cen-
tral role of the Myanmar
Investment Commission.
In order to operate suc-
cessfully in Myanmar,
stakeholders must have
competent and well-
connected legal advice in
order to manage the com-
plex legal environment.
There are several
pathways to dr i vi ng
i mpact
In consideration of the
tremendous catch-up po-
tential to investment, the
question that emerges
concern show to drive
investments that have a
wider positive impact on
the country. For those in-
vesting for impact rather
LIun pursuIng IurgeIy h-
nancial bottom line driv-
en deals in sectors such as
infrastructure or mineral
extraction, it is key to be
aware of the realities of
the small and medium en-
terprise and social busi-
ness landscape in Myan-
mar. There are still only
a few examples of impact
investing and very limited
data and track record.
The relatively undevel-
oped banking sector and
a general lack of funding
options for enterprises
seeking between $50,000
and $250,000, paired
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e _ .q . .~_ ..: . .~. .
~ .~:..,..:.~.q:~.
._ . e, ~ ..... ._ . . ._
.... , . ~ ..'.:._ ._ .:.
~ .~:~.|~.~~.~.:.
~ ....._~._.
. . . ..e .~: _~:~.~,
q. ~_ .:. ,, ..:..:
_.,.:.~ ~.~....:.
. :q .,_. . q_ . , ..~ _~ ..:.
..: e_e..q..e:-e:.:.~
.e: ..: .~ q ~:. ~. ..:
~._.. ~ ~ _.. .:._e. ..:, . . .
.... .,. . .~ ~._.. .:.
.e:..:.:.~q._..
. ..q-~ q:. . , .. :.. ..
. ..qq ... ~....:.~.~
.:.. . , . ~ q:. . , .. : ~q:.
.~...:..q.~ ..q:..~
q~: ..~~,..:..:.-~.
.~ .:.~ .e: ..: . q, q .. .
.~_ . . ~. . ~ q ._ .
...~ ~~ ._.:.q...
_. . . . ..._._:, ._. .. ~_.:.
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Work lies ahead on invest-

ment protection standards,
restrictions on investment in
several sectors, local partner
requirements and capacity levels at
the Myanmar Investment Commis-
sion (MIC), which reviews all for-
eign proposals to grant licenses to
operate.
For those investing for impact rather than pursuing IargeIy nanciaI bottom Iine driven deaIs in sectors such as infrastructure or mineraI
extraction, it is key to be aware of the realities of the small and medium enterprise and social business landscape in Myanmar. There are still
only a few examples of impact investing and very limited data and track record.
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Myanmar Business Today
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LOCAL BIZ
11
Myanmar Summary
Damco Launches First Container
Freight Station in Myanmar
Zwe Wai
T
hird-party logistics
provider Damco
has started operat-
Ing LIe hrsL InLernuLIonuI
warehouse and Container
Freight Station (CFS) fa-
cility in Myanmar, the
Netherlands-based com-
pany said.
This brand-new 4,000
square metre facility is
C-TPAT compliant and
located within 15 kilome-
tres from Yangon Port
and major industrial loca-
tions, Damco said.
The facility is suitable for
import and export activi-
ties for Fast Moving Con-
sumer Goods (FMCG),
consumer electronics, ap-
parels, components, ma-
chinery and project cargo,
LIe hrm, wIIcI Is subsIdI-
ary of Danish conglomer-
ate Maersk, said.
This state-of-the-art,
international standard
CFS facility enables us to
provide superior service
to our customers through
direct control and man-
agement of the entire
operation and service de-
livery process, Kiattichai
Pitpreecha, managing
director of the Thailand,
Malaysia and Myanmar
cluster.
Since international
sanctions were lifted in
2012, Myanmar has es-
tablished itself as a new
frontier market, with po-
tential to become a ma-
jor sourcing country and
consumer market.
The countrys strategic
location between three
drivers of global eco-
nomic growth China,
India and Southeast Asia
makes it one of the most
unique emerging markets
in Asia.
Emerging markets
have always been one of
Damcos focus areas and
core strengths, with many
of our key customers
sourcing their products
from or operating in these
markets.
TIey wIII benehL Irom
the same service quality
for cargo shipped out of
Myanmar as any other
country in which we oper-
ate, Kiattichai added.
Damco has 11,400 em-
ployees in more than 300
omces In ubouL 1oo coun-
tries around the world. In
2013, it had a net turnover
of $3.2 billion, managed
2.8 million Twenty-foot
equivalent unit (TEU) of
ocean freight and sup-
ply chain management
volumes and air freight-
ed more than 225,000
tonnes.
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Myanmar Business Today
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LOCAL BIZ
12
Myanmar Summary
From page o...(Bottleneck)
From page o...(Bottleneck)
with a high unmet de-
mund Ior mIcrohnunce
lending in rural agricul-
tural regions is part of
the explanation. In addi-
LIon Lo IImILed hnuncIuI
options, businesses who
seek to target social and
environmental perfor-
munce uIongsIde hnuncIuI
returns part of their DNA
need to acknowledge in-
stitutional limitations,
which include that fact
that Myanmar currently
enforces health and safety
laws in an unsystematic
manner. Moreover, im-
pact investors also need to
deal with the perception
that social enterprises en-
LuII u Lrude-o beLween
ImpucL und hnuncIuI sus-
tainability. There is some
indication that conscious
eorLs need Lo be under-
Luken Lo hrsL muke ImpucL
investible in the country
on a wider scale.
At the current develop-
ment stage, a focus on im-
plementing corporate so-
cial responsibility practices
that align with internation-
al standards could be an
interim step and a lower
hanging fruit. Beyond ag-
riculture with rice as
the key crop accounting
for over 90 percent of the
food grain production in
the country and covering
ubouL 6o percenL oI LIe
countrys cultivated land
area improving social
and environmental perfor-
mance in the extractive in-
dustries is another key the-
atrefor achieving progress,
which will be examined in
the next article in this se-
ries. In 2012, the value of
the global metals and min-
ing industry approached $1
trillion, while accounting
Ior sIgnIhcunL revenues In
53 mining countries, three
quarters of whom were low
or middle income.
In Myanmar, jade is
often assumed to lead
the countrys mineral ex-
porLs In Lerms oI vuIue;
uILIougI reIIubIe hgures
for the industry are hard
to identify. The Harvard
Kennedy School assumes
exports of the stone
runged beLween $6-q bII-
lion in 2011, but this is
just an estimate.
Raising the industrys
social and environmental
performance is possible,
and Myanmars many ef-
forts also includes plans
to join the Extractives In-
dustries Transparency In-
itiative (EITI), which pro-
vides a methodology used
by 44 countries around
the world to improve the
transparency of their ex-
tractive industries. Those
looking to invest for im-
pact in Myanmar to help
remove the bottlenecks
on the road to middle in-
comeare well advised to
assess how impact inves-
Lors hL In LIe overuII In-
Electricity Master Plan Hopes to Solve
Myanmars Electricity Woes
vestment picture as more
foreign capital is deployed
in the MICs priority sec-
tors, where their compar-
ative advantage as long-
term, smaller ticket size,
holistic investors truly
lies, and how the ventures
they fund can have a wid-
er demonsLruLIon eecL
helping to make impact
investible in the country.
Maximilian Martin is
the founder and global
managing director of Im-
pact Economy, an impact
investment and strategy
jrm bcsed in Lcuscnne,
Switzerland.
D
eputy Union Min-
ister for Electric
Power U Maw Tar
Htwe said Myanmar plans
to increase the countrys
electricity reserves by 30
percent to combat nation-
wide power shortages.
Myanmars annual elec-
tricity consumption rate
is expected to increase 13
percent per year, current-
Iy LoLuIIng q,6z megu-
watts (MW).
The governments
Electricity Master Plan
(EMP) aims to produce
z,qqMW by LIe hscuI
year of 2030-31 to meet
the countrys rising power
demands.
Currently, Myanmars
electricity sector is un-
able to generate enough
power with 70 percent of
the countrys population
deprived of electricity.
Hydroelectricity will
produce over 37 percent
of the plans power out-
put, with 20 percent com-
ing from natural gas, 33
percent from coal and
more than 9 percent from
other renewable energy
sources.
Myanmars Electric-
ity Master Plan includes
over 40 projects spread
throughout the country,
according to the Ministry
Htun Htun Minn of Electric Power.
The World Bank will
provide loans for the
project in phases and es-
timates the cost of Yan-
gons power infrastruc-
ture upgrade at around
$214 million, according to
U Maung Maung Thein,
union minister for electric
power.
Asian Development
Bank (ADB) and Word
Bank started assessing
the governments EMP in
2012 and have provided
technical support to the
project ever since.
Union Minister U
Maung Maung Soe said
based on the banks eval-
uations, the governments
EMP will be unviable
without investment from
foreign companies.
We Iuve InsumcIenL
technology, funds or state
budget to complete the
EMP on our own, thats
why we invite invest-
ments, U Maung Maung
Soe said.
Myanmar will imple-
ment electricity projects
throughout the country in
three ways construction
by state, local business
und IoreIgn hrms.
U Maung Maung Soe-
said more than 90 per-
cent of international com-
panies showing interest in
the countrys Electricity
Master Plan have come
from China
Many Chinese compa-
nys have business inter-
ests in the country so we
wIII work wILI LIese hrms
to implement the Elec-
tricity Master Plan, U
Maung Maung Soe said.
The government has
taken out $200 million
in loans from the World
Bank and Asian Devel-
opment Bank to address
the countrys 15 percent
decrease in nationwide
electrical output this year.
RegIons uecLed by LIe
power shortages include
Yangon, Mandalay, Saga-
ing and Magway.
U Maw Tar Htwe said
Myanmars cheapest form
of power, hydroelectric-
ity, cant always be relied
on to meet the countrys
power shortages.
Hydropower supply
increases in the rainy sea-
son but decreases in sum-
mer. We need to build up
our coal and natural gas
supplies to be able to deal
with these changes inour
water-based economy,
the minister said.
A 6,oooMW dum pro-
ject in Myitsone, Kachin
state has been suspended
for months due to public
opposition, according to
the Ministry of Electric
Power.
However, authorities
pIun Lo sIgn o on Iour
more projects, generat-
ing an extra 390MW,
in hopes of securing the
countrys Electricity Mas-
ter Plans future.
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At the current develop-

ment stage, a focus on
implementing corporate
social responsibility prac-
tices that align with internation-
al standards could be an interim
step and a lower hanging fruit.
A
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REGIONAL BIZ
13
Myanmar Summary
China Urges Peaceful Development of Seas,
Suys Conict Leuds to "isuster"
Adam Jourdan
C
hina, involved in
a growing dispute
with its neighbours
over the energy-rich
South China Sea, wants
to promote peaceful de-
velopment of the oceans,
Premier Li Keqiang said,
wurnIng conIcLs In LIe
past had only brought
disaster for humanity.
China claims almost the
entire ocean, rejecting ri-
val claims to parts of it
from Vietnam, the Philip-
pines, Taiwan, Malaysia
and Brunei in one of Asias
most intractable disputes
und u possIbIe usIpoInL.
It also has a long-running
dispute with Japan in the
East China Sea.
China will unswerv-
ingly follow the path of
peaceful development
und hrmIy oppose uny ucL
of hegemony in maritime
uuIrs, I suId uL u murI-
time summit in Greece on
Friday in comments car-
ried by Chinas Foreign
Ministry website on Sat-
urday.
Developing the oceans
through cooperation has
helped many nations
ourIsI, wIIIe resorLIng
Lo conIcL Lo hgIL over LIe
sea has only brought dis-
aster for humanity.
Concern over Chinas
motives has risen in the re-
gion after China sent four
more oil rigs into the South
China Sea, less than two
months after it positioned
a giant drilling platform in
waters claimed by Vietnam
around the Paracel Islands.
The lack of any break-
through in the dispute
suggests China and Vi-
etnam are far from re-
solving one of the worst
breakdowns in relations
since they fought a brief
war in 1979.
Among the obstacles
is Beijings demand for
compensation for anti-
Chinese riots that erupt-
ed in Vietnam after the
drilling platform was de-
ployed at the beginning of
May.
Speaking at a forum in
Beijing on Saturday, Chi-
nas top diplomat, State
Councillor Yang Jiechi,
who visited Vietnam this
week to discuss the rig
dispute, said China had
both the patience and sin-
cerity to push for talks to
resolve such spats.
But China would not
sucrIhce ILs sovereIgnLy,
he added.
China will not trade its
core interests and will not
swallow the bitter pill of
harming Chinas sover-
eignty, security and de-
velopment interests, said
Yang, who outranks the
foreign minister.
Chinas state news agen-
cy Xinhua, in a report
late on Friday, accused
Vietnam of encouraging
LruwIers Lo hsI In dIs-
puted waters around the
Paracel Islands by using
hnuncIuI IncenLIves, suy-
ing the problem was ram-
pant.
Vietnamese seized by
Chinese law enforcement
uuLIorILIes Ior IIIeguI hsI-
ing confessed that they
were given large subsidies
by the Vietnamese gov-
ernmenL Lo hsI In 'dIspuL-
ed waters, Xinhua said
in the English-language
report.
In addition, armed Vi-
eLnumese hsIIng vesseIs
have repeatedly looted
CIInese hsIIng bouLs,
posing a serious threat to
LIe suIeLy oI CIInese hsI-
ermens lives and prop-
erty, it added.
The Philippines said
this week it will ask an
international arbitration
tribunal in the Hague to
make a speedy ruling on
its dispute with China
over exploiting waters in
the South China Sea af-
ter Beijing refused to take
part in the proceedings.
Reuters
Philippines May Loosen Rice-
Import Curbs as Prices Soar
Adam Jourdan
T
he Philippines is
considering easing
rice-import curbs
as Asias second-biggest
buyer battles record-high
domestic prices and seeks
to limit losses at a state
agency, Economic Plan-
ning Secretary Arsenio
Balisacan said.
Policy makers will con-
sider a proposal next
month to adopt a free
market and allow pri-
vate traders to import as
much rice as they want,
BuIIsucun, 6, suId In un
InLervIew In IIs omce In-
Manila yesterday. The
government would in-
sLeud coIIecL LurIs on LIe
imports, he said.
We need to get our
trade policy right to ad-
dress rising rice prices,
Balisacan said. Our ap-
proach in restricting rice
imports without an ade-
quate assurance that local
rice production would be
sumcIenL Lo meeL demund
was the main factor that
led to higher prices, he
said.
President Benigno
Aquino is seeking to
curb InuLIon runnIng
at the fastest pace since
November 2011, boosted
by the higher cost of rice,
a staple in the Southeast
Asian nation. Debt at the
National Food Authority,
which subsidizes farm-
ers by buying their rice at
higher prices, will prob-
ably climb to 180 billion
pesos ($4.1 billion) by
end-zo16 wILIouL uny
changes to the program,
Aquino said, or twice the
nations defense budget
this year, according to
Bloomberg calculations.
Moving to a free market
allows the government to
plug its cash leaks stem-
ming from rice subsidies,
said Jonathan Ravelas,
chief market strategist
at BDO Unibank Inc. in
Manila. It also provides
more market access for
people to buy rice.
Recor d Pr i ces
The government had
planned to import 1 mil-
lion metric tons of rice
this year, including
200,000 tons secured last
year after Super Typhoon
Haiyan struck in Novem-
ber. Separately, it allowed
private traders in Febru-
ury Lo buy 16,ooo Lons oI
rice from overseas.
Consumer prices
climbed 4.5 percent in
May from a year ear-
lier. Retail prices of well-
milled ricerose 20 percent
from a year earlier to a
record as of the second
week of June, according
to the Philippine Statis-
tics Authority.
Thats in contrast
to prices of Thai 5-per-
cent broken white rice, an
Asian benchmark, which
Iuve LumbIed z6 percenL
in the past year as the
Thai government acceler-
ated sales of stockpiles to
make payments to farm-
ers. Thai reserves have
more than doubled to al-
most 14 million tons from
.6 mIIIIon Lons In LIe
2010-2011 crop year prior
to the start of the govern-
ments rice purchase pro-
gram, according to data
from the U.S. Department
of Agriculture. Reuters
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e .. . . ~ _._ ~ .~ ,
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q,~.~ .~|...~..:.~
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Protesters display placards during a protest in front of the Chinese consulate in Makati city, metro
Manila.
R
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. .. ._ ~_., . .. , ._e . ~ .|
_.~~.:..:~,....,.~
, .. . q, .. ~~~ . ~
..:q~.~q._.
.....|..:~...,.:.
._~: . ~ . ..: .e ..:.
.:.~~~ ~..q._ .q..
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National Food Authority (NFA) workers walk atop sacks of rice as they make an inventory of rice stocks
at a government rice warehouse in Taguig, Metro Manila.
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REGIONAL BIZ
14
A Flying Beetle in India Threatens
to Push up Latte Prices
I
ts 10 oclock in the
morning and a dozen
workers are uprooting
coee pIunLs, pIIIng LIem
In LIe corner oI u heId uL
M.G. Bopannas planta-
tion in southern India
where they lie ready to be
burned.
The plants are bursting
with green cherries but
inside their hard bark lurk
destructive white stem
borer beetles. The bushes
have to be destroyed to
prevent the tiny winged
creature from threatening
Bopannas entire crop of
urubIcu coee.
The beetle, which bores
through plants bark and
feeds on their stems, is
thriving this year due to
unusually warm weather
and scant rains in arabica
growing areas in India,
the worlds sixth biggest
coee producer.
If the hot spell continues
and the pest continues to
spreud, ndIu`s coee crop
could fall to its lowest in
17 years when the harvest
starts in October, push-
ing up global prices that
are already rallying due
to drought in top exporter
Brazil.
The damage caused by
the beetles is so severe
that Bopanna has hired
an excavator to uproot
uecLed busIes on IIs 6
acre plantation at the hill
station in the tropical for-
est of the Western Ghats,
west of high-tech hub
Bangalore.
Rajendra Jadhav Every time we think we
have uprooted all the in-
fected plants, then after a
Iew weeks we hnd more,
suys Bopunnu, 6q, wIo
has tended the plantation
bought by his father for
nearly four decades.
Earlier whenever there
was an outbreak, we used
Lo uprooL hve Lo 1o pIunLs
per acre. This year I have
uprooted more than 200
plants per acre, he said.
TIere Is no eecLIve
pesticide to control white
stem borers, so the state-
run Coee Bourd udvIses
farmers to uproot and
burn infested plants to
limit their spread.
You may take all precau-
tions, but if your neighbour
is lethargic then white stem
borers wIII y Irom your
neighbours plantation,
said N. Bose Mandanna, a
grower from Madikeri who
Ius removed uII uecLed
plants from his 34 acre
pIunLuLIon, hve kIIomeLres
wesL oI Bopunnu`s heId.
SCANT RAI N
In most years heavy
rainfalls and low temper-
atures restrict the spread
of the white stem borer.
But this year southern
Karnataka states Kodagu
and Chikmagalur dis-
tricts, which account for
two-third of Indias total
coee producLIon, Iuve
received half the usual
rainfall since the start of
monsoon season on June
1.
The state run weather
department said earlier
this month that rainfall
in July and August is ex-
pected to remain below
average.
The pest infestation
will rise quickly if rain-
fall remains subdued in
the next few weeks, says
Mandanna, a fourth-
generuLIon urubIcu coee
planter.
ndIu`s urubIcu coee
production could drop
as much as 20 percent
in the 2014/15 season to
6o,ooo-;o,ooo Lonnes,
said a spokesman at Ruchi
Soyu, u coee exporLer.
That would pull down
ndIu`s LoLuI coee ouLpuL,
three quarters of which
Is exporLed, Lo z6o,ooo
tonnes, the lowest level
since 1997/98, estimates
Ruchi Soya.
Italy, Germany and Bel-
gium are the main buyers
oI ndIun coee und usu-
ally pay a premium for it
over global prices. Star-
bucks, J.M. Smucker Co
and Kraft Foods Group are
leading buyers of arabica.
Bopanna and other
farmers are replacing af-
fected plants with new
seedlings, cultivating
instead a robusta vari-
ety that is cheaper than
arabica but resistant to
white-stem borer.
I would love to have an
enLIre coee pIunLuLIon
with arabica, but I have to
consider earnings as well.
How I would pay workers
if the pest damages my
entire arabica crop? asks
Bopanna, who is planning
Lo converL 16 ucres Lo ro-
busta this year.
ArubIcu coee Is LypI-
cally roasted and ground
for brewing and can range
widely in quality, with
some reaching the high-
est levels. Robusta, on the
other hand, is more bitter
and either processed into
InsLunL coee or udded Lo
a roasted blend to reduce
the cost. Reuters
China Charges Former Head of
Planning Ministry With Bribery
C
IInu hIed gruIL
charges against the
former deputy di-
rector of the economic
planning ministry, saying
he illegally received mon-
ey and goods in bribes.
Liu Tienan, 59, former
deputy head of the Na-
tional Development and
Reform Commission, was
accused of seeking gain
for others, a statement
on the Supreme Peoples
Procuratorate saidye-
sterday. The case was
Henry Sanderson hIed wILI LIe PeopIe`s
Intermediate Court in
Langfang city in central
Chinas Hebei province,
it said. The procuratorate
described the bribes as
extremely large.
The prosecution of Liu,
which will almost cer-
tainly result in conviction,
could vindicate public
claims made against him
by a journalist months
before his downfall from a
ministry with control over
a vast swathe of the econ-
omy. Liu was stripped in
May 2013 of his position
at the NDRC, which ap-
proves infrastructure pro-
jects and controls energy
prices, after Luo Chang-
ping, deputy managing
editor of Caijing Maga-
zine, posted allegations
on his microblog in De-
cember 2012.
Luo, an investigative
journalist who has writ-
ten a book about corrup-
tion, said in his posts that
LIe omcIuI exuggeruLed
his academic credentials
and that his son received
payments in U.S. and Ca-
nadian dollars into bank
accounts from a business
executive. The Commu-
nist Partys disciplinary
body announced via Xin-
hua on May 12, 2013 that
Liu was the subject of an
omcIuI probe.
Whistle-blower Crack-
down
Since Luos case, how-
ever, the party has taken a
harder line against those
using Sina Corp. (SINA)s
Weibo service to act as
whistle-blowers or ex-
press views it considers
subversive, even as the
partys discipline body
has continued with its an-
ti-corruption campaign.
Charles Xue, a venture
capitalist who talked
about sensitive topics to
his millions of followers
on Weibo, was detained
in August on charges of
visiting prostitutes. Re-
leased for medical rea-
sons In AprII, Ie wus hrsL
seen publicly on June 21,
the China Youth Daily re-
ported a day later.
The government last
week released new rules
barring domestic journal-
ists from writing stories
without the approval of
their employer or in dif-
ferent areas than they
normally cover, accord-
ing to Xinhua. The regula-
tions prevent journalists
from setting up their own
websites or advertising
and public relations com-
panies, it said.
Bloomberg
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
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A coffee planter shows white stem borer beetles that have affected his arabica coffee plantation at
Madikeri in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. If the hot spell continues and the pest continues to
spread, India`s coffee crop couId faII to its Iowest in 17 years when the harvest starts in Uctober, push-
ing up global prices that are already rallying due to drought in top exporter Brazil.
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
REGIONAL BIZ
15
Myanmar Summary
Inspection Tensions Add to Bangladesh
Garment Industry's Woes
I
t took Western safety
inspectors only about
an hour to tour a fac-
tory the size of three foot-
buII heIds beIore order-
ing a partial shutdown
of Sonia & Sweaters Ltd,
a Bangladesh clothing
supplier to Wal-Mart
Stores Inc (WMT.N) and
Debenhams (DEB.L).
Two weeks later, the
group that the inspec-
tors represented changed
its mind and allowed the
factory to stay open, even
though none of the re-
pairs they suggested had
been carried out.
Such erratic decision-
making poses a new set
of problems for Bangla-
deshs $22 billion gar-
ments industry, whose
safety record has been un-
der the microscope since
the collapse of a factory
near Dhaka that killed
more than 1,100 workers
last year.
More than a year af-
ter the public outcry that
spurred Western retail-
ers into demanding bet-
ter standards from the
factories that make their
clothes, it also highlights
the practical complexities
of improving the condi-
tions of millions of poor
workers whilst also safe-
guarding their jobs.
Export growth in the
sector has slowed as buy-
ers turn to India, Myan-
mar, Vietnam and Cam-
bodia because of concerns
over workshop safety,
Nandita Bose higher wages and political
instability.
Now factory owners say
they are concerned about
arbitrary shutdowns and
meeting the cost of de-
mands for remedial work,
while workers worry
about who will pay their
wages if their workplace
is temporarily closed.
We went through inex-
plicable harassment dur-
ing this whole process,
and I am sure they dont
care about that, said So-
nia & Sweaters Director
Mahabubur Rahman, of
his experience of the in-
spection.
But with their trigger-
happy attitude, I am left
wondering if they at least
care about the workers,
who they are meant to
protect, because nobody
has to explain to them
what the implication of
one factory shutdown is.
The garment industry
accounts for 80 percent
of Bangladeshs exports,
and turmoil in the sector
has put at risk the liveli-
hoods of nearly 4 million
garment workers, mostly
women.
FACTORY I NSPEC-
TI ONS
The collapse of the
eight-storey Rana Plaza
building in April 2013
brutally exposed the in-
adequacy of the safety
regime in Bangladesh,
wIere ,6oo gurmenL
factories are inspected by
dIerenL IocuI ugencIes
LIuL oILen Iuck sumcIenL
technical equipment and
the required expertise.
The disaster led to the
creation of the Accord on
Fire and Building Safety,
an inspection group led
by European retailers,
and the North Ameri-
can brands-led Alliance
for Bangladesh Worker
Safety, which together are
scrutinizing around 2,100
factories.
The groups, which have
a mandate to recommend
the closure of dangerous
factories and demand re-
pairs, are now embroiled
in a debate over the in-
spection process and the
question of who pays
for upgrades and wages
while factories stand idle.
Making the situation
worse, almost all global
retail brands have opted
to stay out of the argu-
ments between inspection
agencies and suppliers,
according to industry of-
hcIuIs.
When the inspection
groups were set up, retail-
ers did not commit to pay
for improvements they
demanded - some Bang-
ladesh factory owners are
very wealthy and political-
ly connected - but agreed
to discuss assistance with
wages and improvements
II owners couId noL uord
them.
Wal-Mart spokesman
Kevin Gardner said, as a
founding member of the
Alliance, the companys
contributions have made
funds available to help
factory owners make nec-
essary repairs and to sup-
port workers who may be
temporarily displaced.
This includes an ini-
tial worker safety fund of
nearly $50 million and
growing, and more than
$100 million in access to
low-cost capital funding
Lo Improve hre und sLruc-
tural safety. Debenhams
declined to comment.
Reuters
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BangIadesh`s $22 biIIion garments industry`s safety record has been under the microscope since the coI-
lapse of a factory near Dhaka that killed more than 1,100 workers last year.
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INTERNATIONAL BIZ
16
Climate Policies Could Lift Global GDP by
$2.6tn/yr: World Bank
G
lobal economic
output could rise
by as much as an
uddILIonuI $z.6 LrIIIIon
a year, or 2.2 percent,
by 2030 if government
policies improve energy
emcIency, wusLe mun-
agement and public trans-
port, according to a World
Bank report released on
Tuesday.
The report, produced
with philanthropic group
ClimateWorks Founda-
LIon, unuIysed LIe benehLs
of ambitious policies to
cut emissions from trans-
port, industrial and build-
ing sectors as well as from
waste and cooking fuels in
Brazil, China, India, Mex-
ico, the United States and
the European Union.
It found a shift to low-
carbon transport and im-
proved energy emcIency
in factories, buildings and
appliances could increase
global growth in gross
domestic product (GDP)
by an extra $1.8 trillion,
or 1.5 percent, a year by
2030.
I hnuncIng und LecInoI-
ogy investment increased,
Nina Chestney global GDP could grow by
un uddILIonuI $z.6 LrII-
lion, or 2.2 percent, a year
by 2030, the World Bank
said.
Climate policies could
also avert at least 94,000
premature deaths a year
from pollution-related
diseases by 2030, im-
prove crop productiv-
ity and prevent around
8.5 billion metric tons of
greenhouse gases being
emitted - the same as tak-
ing around 2 billion cars
o LIe roud.
For example, if China de-
ployed 70 million low-car-
bon cook stoves, it could
avoid around 1 million pre-
mature deaths from pollu-
tion and reap almost $11
billion in economic ben-
ehLs, LIe reporL sIowed.
These interventions
should seem like no-brain-
ers to governments around
the world, World Bank
Group President Jim Yong
Kim told reporters on a
conference call.
The report removes
another false barrier, an-
other false argument not
to take action against cli-
mate change, he added.
In March, a report by a
U.N. panel of scientists
projecLed LIuL LIe eecLs
of global warming could
cut global economic out-
put by between 0.2 and
2.0 percent a year by
damaging human health,
disrupting water supplies
and raising sea levels.
However, many coun-
tries believe this is an
underestimate because
it excludes risks of cata-
strophic changes, such as
a Greenland ice melt of
the collapse of coral reefs
which could cause mas-
sive economic losses.
To speed up action on
climate change, United
Nations Secretary Gen-
eral Ban Ki-moon has in-
vited heads of state, gov-
ernments, businesses and
civil society to a climate
summit on September 23
in New York.
The summit is aiming
to spur progress towards
getting a deal by the end
of 2015 which binds all
nations to cut greenhouse
gas emissions.
Talks on deal are mak-
ing slow progress. An
interim U.N. meeting in
Bonn, Germany, earlier
this month only managed
to take tentative steps to-
wards an agreement.
Reuters
BHP Plans to Cut more Jobs at Australian Iron Ore Unit
B
HP Billiton is plan-
ning to cut more
jobs uL ILs ugsIIp
Australian iron ore divi-
sion as it seeks to reduce
costs, following a slump
in iron prices.
A BHP spokeswoman
said it was not possible
to put a number on how
many jobs would be tar-
geted, and declined to
conhrm un AusLruIIun
Broadcasting Corp radio
report that the number
could reach 3,000.
The worlds biggest
miner, which employs
ubouL 16,ooo peopIe In
its iron ore division, an-
nounced earlier this year
that 170 jobs would go at
its Whaleback mine in the
Pilbara iron ore belt. A
further 100 people have
been let go at the divi-
sions Perth headquarters.
Iron ore prices have
fallen more 31 percent
this year due to slowing
JAMES REGAN
demand growth in China,
the main market for Aus-
tralian ore.
This is about continu-
ing to safely improve our
business and ensuring we
are a competitive, world-
class operation, BHPs
spokeswoman said, add-
ing that reducing the pay-
roll was part of a wider
focus to contain costs.
BHP is currently ex-
panding its iron ore oper-
ations after late last year
commissioning its Jim-
blebar mine in the Pilbara
iron ore belt.
However, Chinese buy-
ers ure beIng oered
discounts by Australian
miners to maintain sales
as increased supply from
major miners has over-
whelmed demand growth.
The sharp drop in iron
ore prices could force
China to close up to a
hILI oI ILs domesLIc mIne
production, which could
evenLuuIIy benehL BHP
and other Australian pro-
ducers, which can mine
higher-grade ore and ship
it to Chinese steel mills
for less cost, according to
an analysis by consultan-
cy Wood Mackenzie.
ProhL Irom Iron ore,
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
BHPs biggest business,
rose 6o percenL In LIe
hrsL-IuII oI hscuI zo1q,
while petroleum earnings
IeII 16 percenL und copper
rose just 0.4 percent.
Reuters
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Rail cars laden with iron ore arrive at a receiving facility at Herb Elliott Port in Port Hedland in the Pil-
bara region, Western Australia.
S
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If nancing and technoIogy investment increased, gIobaI CBP couId grow by an additionaI $2. triIIion,
or 2.2 percent, a year by 2U3U, the WorId Bank said.
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INTERNATIONAL BIZ
17
Myanmar Summary
Monsanto Said to Have Weighed
$40 Billion Syngenta Deal
T
he desire to avoid
U.S. corporate tax-
es has now spread
to agricultural giants -- as
a dead deal shows.
Monsanto Co. (MON),
the worlds largest seed
compuny worLI $6q bII-
lion, recently explored a
takeover of $34 billion
Swiss rival Syngenta AG
(SYNN) in a transaction
that would have allowed
LIe U.S. hrm Lo move ILs
tax location to Switzer-
land.
The deal, which is now
defunct according to peo-
ple familiar with the mat-
ter, is another sign of how
U.S. hrms In muny secLors
are trying to avoid corpo-
rate taxes by moving their
headquarters overseas.
U.S. drugmuker Phzer nc.
pursued U.K.- based As-
LruZenecu PIc, oerIng us
much as $117 billion before
abandoning the deal, while
North Chicago, Illinois-
based AbbVie Inc. is chas-
ing Dublin-based Shire Plc
Ior $q6. bIIIIon.
Monsanto and Syngenta
held preliminary talks
with advisers in the past
few months about a com-
bination before Syngen-
tas management decided
against negotiations, said
the people, who asked not
Lo be IdenLIhed becuuse LIe
talks were private. Com-
puny omcIuIs uIso spoke
informally with each other
about a potential deal, two
of the people said.
There were concerns
ubouL LIe sLruLegIc hL,
Aaron Kirchfeld,
Andrew Noel and
Patrick Winters
antitrust issues and re-
locating the company to
Switzerland for tax rea-
sons, they said. The talks,
which valued Syngenta
at more than $40 billion,
hzzIed ouL In IuLe Muy,
one of the people said.
An additional concern
was that U.S. politicians
would close the inversion
loophole, thereby remov-
Ing LIuL benehL, unoLIer
person said.
Cor n, Soybeans
Combining the two com-
panies would have cre-
ated the largest player in
the world for both seeds
and crop chemicals and
a formidable competitor
to German rivals Bayer
AG (BAYN) and BASF SE
(BAS) and Dow Chemi-
cal Co. (DOW) in the U.S.
Syngenta is the worlds
largest maker of crop
chemicals and strongest
in Europe, whereas Mon-
santo is the largest maker
of seeds and dominates
the U.S. market for genet-
IcuIIy modIhed crops IIke
corn and soybeans.
Investors would love it,
it would create by far the
biggest agricultural tech-
nology company in the
world, said Patrick Ra-
faisz, an analyst at Bank
Vontobel AG, adding that
it would be a surprise
II LIey puIIed o sucI u
transaction.
We are not in discus-
sions on this particular
matter, Lee Quarles, a
spokesman for Monsanto,
said in an e-mail without
elaborating. Paul Barrett,
a spokesman for Syngen-
ta, declined to comment.
Tolks Resurfoce
Market speculation
about further consolida-
tion in the agrochemi-
cal market has always
surrounded the leading
players in the industry,
including Bayers Crop-
Science, Dow Chemical
and DuPont Co. (DD)s
Pioneer. Informal talks
have been held on numer-
ous occasions and Syn-
genta explored its stra-
tegic options prior to the
hnuncIuI crIsIs, uccordIng
to two people.
While talks between
Monsanto and Syngenta
are currently on hold,
there is a chance the deal
could be revived, two of
the people said. Cross-
border deals, especially
those facing antitrust
and political resistance,
are regularly abandoned
before being revived. La-
farge SA (LG) and Holcim
Ltd. (HOLN) agreed in
April to merge to create
the worlds largest cement
company, the second time
in 18 months that execu-
tives tried to put together
a transaction, people fa-
miliar with the matter
have said.
A Monsanto-Syngen-
ta deal wouldve given
a recent tax inversion
deal a run for its money.
Medtronic Inc. (MDT), a
Minneapolis-based med-
ical-device maker, is the
latest and largest company
to say it will renounce its
American address as part
of its planned $42.9 billion
takeover of Dublin-based
Covidien Plc. The tax-in-
version strategy may free
up almost $14 billion in
cash that Medtronic now
holds outside of the U.S.,
allowing it better use of
those funds.
Change
For Syngenta, change
and adaptation is part
of its DNA. The com-
puny wus spun o Irom
Novartis AG (NOVN) in
2000 in order to merge
with Zeneca Agrochemi-
cals, weakening its links
to Switzerland and open-
ing up its shareholder
base. Moreover, Chief
ExecuLIve Omcer MIke
Mack, an American, takes
a pragmatic approach
to shareholder value, with
an open view to transac-
tions, according to one of
the people.
Syngenta stock has un-
derperformed peers in
the past two years, down
about 8 percent in 2014.
The companys U.S.
American depositary re-
ceipts jumped 7 percent
yesterday in New York.
Monsanto was almost
unchanged at $122.10,
for an advance this year
of 4.8 percent. BASF and
DuPont have increased 12
percenL und q.6 percenL
this year, respectively.
Monsanto is scheduled to
release its third-quarter
results tomorrow.
As well as adding the
latest technology in agro-
chemicals, buying Syn-
genta would also allow
Monsanto to remove a
competitor that was put-
ting time and money
into building a rival seed
business. The Swiss com-
pany has made a string
of acquisitions, includ-
ing the purchase of Sun-
heId Seeds, Lo buIId ouL
ILs oerIngs, yeL IL Iuced
a dominant Monsanto in
the U.S. market.
Par tner shi ps
Combining the seed
and chemical companies
would throw up compli-
cations for the increasing
number of research and
development agreements
between the players. Ear-
lier this year, Monsanto
established an alliance
with Novozymes A/S
(NZYMB) for biological
solutions, including using
benehcIuI InsecLs, Lo Luck-
le pests and disease. The
U.S. companys partner-
ships also include some
with BASF.
BASF might object to it
as they have a long-term
R&D collaboration with
Monsanto, and it seems
like this is getting tight-
er, said Bank Vontobels
Rafaisz.
Antitrust would be a
problem, mainly in the
seeds business where the
two companies would
become extremely domi-
nant in certain areas like
U.S. corn. Bloomberg
..,.~,e. $ ', .eq
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.:.._.
A Syngenta AC sign stands in front of a eId of soybeans with geneticaIIy modied strains outside of
Campo Nueve, Paraguay.
N
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g
Syngenta AC Chief Executive Ufcer Mike Mack speaks during a
news conference in Basel, Switzerland.
R
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e
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s
July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
18
Myanmar Summary
Thai AirAsia X Launches Long Haul
Service; Eyes Growth in Myanmar
T
hai AirAsia X, Thai-
Iund`s hrsL Iow-cosL
long haul carrier,
has launched its inaugu-
ruI IgIL Irom Bungkok`s
Don Mueang Airport to
Incheon, South Korea,
which will now operate
duIIy IgILs.
To complement AirA-
sias rapid regional ex-
pansion, Thai AirAsia X
also plans to include long
haul service to Tokyo and
Osaka in 2014.
Thai AirAsia X operates
u eeL oI AIrbus o-oo
uIrcruIL LIuL oers 6
economy class and 12
business class seats.
Thai AirAsia X CEO Na-
dda Buranasiri told My-
anmar Business Today
LIuL LIe hrsL desLInuLIons
for long haul service were
chosen based on custom-
ers preference for visit-
ing other Asian countries
because of familiar cul-
tural foundations and no
visa requirements.
The service is targeted
at the C generation, or
the connected genera-
tion, which book travel
online and without the as-
sistance of an agent, he
said.
While this year long
haul service will only in-
clude Seoul, Tokyo and
Osaka, he said the car-
Aundrea Montao riers medium-term strat-
egy includes expanding
long haul service to areas
outside Asia, including
Australia, India, North-
east Asia and Eastern Eu-
rope.
Despite Thailands re-
cent political turmoil,
Nadda believes that Thai-
land is now stable and
the new long haul service
wIII be unuecLed.
The new long haul ser-
vice will increase compe-
tition among Asias low-
cost carriers, especially in
SouLI Koreu wIere ILs hve
budget carriers continue
to lose market share to
foreign competitors.
In addition to increased
competition, low cost car-
riers are also facing rising
fuel prices, which will in-
discriminately increase
fairs for all carriers.
Mgonmor focus
The carrier also bol-
stered its operations with
Fly Thru service from
Yangon and Mandalay,
with connections at Don
Mueang Airport, to a
variety of destinations,
all with single baggage
checks and immigration
passes.
Thai AirAsia provides,
ex-Yangon, Fly Thru at
Don Mueang to eight in-
ternational destinations
Siem Reap, Chongqing,
Jakarta, Wuhan, Macau,
Singapore, Hong Kong and
Ho Chi Minh, as well as to
hve TIuI desLInuLIons; CII-
ang Mai, Chiang Rai, Hat
Yai, Krabi and Phuket.
Fly Thru also takes
travellers from Manda-
lay via Don Mueang Air-
port to Phuket and Kuala
Lumpur.
Fly Thru service is the
answer for customers, es-
pecially those wishing to
travel to Myanmar, as it
allows them to check-in
their baggage just once
and receive it at the end
destination. They also
pass through immigra-
tion just once and trans-
fer through the airlines
DMK hub with no need
for a transit visa, San-
tisuk Klongchaiya, direc-
tor of commercial for Thai
AirAsia, said.
Nadda expected it to
boost the number of tour-
ists travelling between
Myanmar and South Ko-
rea even though Seoul is
noL on LIe IIsL oI y LIru
destinations.
Over the past year,
6,q;o Myunmur LruveI-
lers made their way to
South Korea. Thai AirAsia
X hopes to provide these
travellers with another
choice to get to South Ko-
rea via a quick connection
in Don Mueang.
Santisuk said over the
past two years trade and
travel between Thailand
and Myanmar has ex-
panded rapidly.
AIrAsIu Ies dIrecL Irom
Yangon to Bangkok twice
daily, Yangon to Kuala
Lumpur daily and Man-
dalay to Bangkok daily.
In the near future the
ASEAN Economic Com-
munity, or AEC, will be
formed and spur even
faster growth in Myan-
mar. We believe that by
creating a strong founda-
Thai AirAsia X CEO Nadda Buranasiri poses for a photo following an interview with Myanmar Business
Today.
W
a
i
L
in
n

K
y
a
w
LIon oI IgIL desLInuLIons,
AirAsia will be able to
omaintain its leadership
in the low fare segment in
Myanmar.
n LIe hrsL hve monLIs
of 2014, the Bangkok-
Yangon route saw a pas-
senger increase of 15
percent while Bangkok-
Mandalay saw 30 percent
increase year-on-year, he
said.
We expect that through
our stimulation activities
and marketing plan these
hgures wIII conLInue Lo
rise.
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Thai Air Asia X ._ ,.-
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Nadda Buranasiri ~ e.
.q..._ .e:~._.:.-
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
19
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
David Mayes
I
have been writing for
a while about how
dangerous the bond
market is. The price a
bond trades for in the
secondary market is in-
versely related to interest
rates and we are already
starting to see market
rates edge higher. There
Is u Iuge dIerence In rIsk
between individual issues
of high grade corporate
bonds and investing in a
bond fund, and it is slight-
ly counterintuitive.
Normally we go into a
fund to take advantage
oI LIe exLru dIversIhcu-
tion that can be had by
combining the assets of
the combined investors.
However, when a large
number of redemptions
can force a fund to sell
assets at a loss that could
be recouped if only given
LIme, LIe dIversIhcuLIon
benehL cun be Iur oseL by
this added downside risk.
This is especially the case
Ior hxed Income wIere
market prices can trade at
a discount to face value,
whereas holding any bond
issue to maturity will re-
sult in the price reverting
back to the face value at
maturity. This is because
a bond always pays face
value at maturity, regard-
less of what interest rates
are doing.
Finding Safe Yield in Corporate Bonds
With a spread of single
issues, however, the com-
puny specIhc rIsk Is mucI
IIgIer us Is LIe eec-
tive potential lock in, but
this is the cost to pay for
fact that if a bond is held
to maturity then inter-
esL ruLe rIsk Is eecLIveIy
eliminated. This is where
getting the highest yield
with the shortest amount
of time to maturity is the
name of the game. As you
assemble a portfolio of
bonds, you want to pay
attention to average ma-
turity, but also try to stag-
ger maturities. This way
you Iuve cusI ows Ireed
up from time to time so
that if rates rise you can
re-invest a portion of the
portfolio at the new high-
er rate.
Pick triple A bonds if
you want to be on the
safe side, and diversify as
much as possible. Even
with a top rated company
the whole thing can go
belly up due to one of any
of a number of reasons,
so you have to consider
the overall portfolio if
any one holding, or also
sector went into serious
trouble (with bonds it is
usually no trouble at all
or serious, big trouble).
You want to make sure
the companies issuing
the various bonds are in
diverse industries as well
so a slowdown or new
disruptive technology
doesnt take a big part out
of your retirement fund.
While investing safely
in a spread of corpo-
rate bonds is possible
now, my own opinion is
that you would be bet-
ter in the long run to sit
in cash until rates really
break free rather than
lock in to bonds now. This
might be years, dont get
me wrong. The length of
time governments have
IeId ruLes urLIhcIuIIy Iow
means there is bound to
be a serious overreaction
at some point. Obvious-
ly a balanced approach
somewhere in the middle
is what you might want to
follow, with a large cash
reserve and a portion of
funds invested in a di-
verse spread of high qual-
ity corporate bonds.
David Mayes MBA lives
in Phuket and provides
wealth management
services to expatriates
throughout Southeast
Asia, focusing on UK pen-
sion transfers. He can be
reached at 085-335-8573
or david.m@faramond.
com. Faramond UK is
regulated by the FCA and
provides advice on taxa-
tion and pensions.
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._.. _~:.,_..~~ _e,
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._e ...~~....,..:.~
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.:._.~~. _.,._q...
_.....__e.._.
.~: . q ~ . . , .. ....:..
.:.~ _e, ~~ _ ~ _. ._e
..~..: q..._......:
._ . . .. ..:. . . :. .
~.._...~._~
. .:.~ :._ . , .:..:.
_.~~.:. ,~ ..:_..~
.qq_~~~ ..~:.._e
~, .~: e .._ . e .,_ .
.. ..: ...._.~: _~:.
._. ~..q.:.~ .,.:..:.
,..,..q, .~e~..:q~
:.._ ~. , ~:.~ .:~
_ ~..,.,~ _..,..:
~, _ ., .~ .q:~ . q .:.
._~:.. . ._ .~.e ~.~
. .,_e, .~ _ _ _e. :...:
,_..: .~,:q,~.~:...
,_._e._.. ~q,.~.:.~_.:.
.,:._.. ~..~~...~
~e_.,..: ~._. .~:.
q ~ . . , .. ....:.. .:.~
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Bond traders look at computer screens at their desks.
S
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s
a
n
a

V
e
r
a
/
R
e
u
t
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r
s
Pou Chen to Invest $100m in New Manufacturing Base in Myanmar
T
aiwan-based Pou
Chen Group,
worlds largest
contract manufacturer
of footwear by shipment,
has decided to invest
$100 million to set up its
hrsL munuIucLurIng buse
in Myanmar.
The new plant occupies
some 16 IecLures In My-
anmars capital, Yangon,
and is scheduled to be
operational at the end of
2015, with monthly out-
put of 300,000 pairs of
shoes initially and raised
to 800,000 pairs in 2019,
Aye Myat according to Pou Chens
CEO, Patty Tsai.
With gradually higher
wages in China, and the
recent violent anti-China
protests in Vietnam, Tsai
pointed out that Pou Chen
is eagerly trying to set up
production in other coun-
tries, besides China, Vi-
etnam and Indonesia, as
part of its strategy to ex-
pand overseas output and
hedge risks of concentrat-
ing production in a single
place, hence leading to its
new plant in Myanmar.
Meanwhile, Tsai noted,
Pou Chen is also enhanc-
Ing producLIon emcIency
at its existing plants by
increasing use of autoro-
tation equipment.
The CEO indicated that
Pou Chen aims to raise
the proportion of output
from automation equip-
ment by 5-10 percent in
each of the next three to
hve yeurs, Lo resuIL In 1o
percent increase in over-
all output a year.
Based on the estimates,
institutional investors
forecast the groups an-
nual capacity to exceed
400 million pairs in three
years from the current
320 million pairs.
Fueled by strong ship-
ment of athletic shoes by
its subsidiary, Yue Yuen
Industrial (Holdings) Ltd
and banner sales by the
umIIuLe reLuII sLore op-
erator, Pou Cheng Inter-
national (Holdings) Ltd,
Pou Chen Group reported
$734.5 million in consoli-
dated revenue for May, up
6.8; percenL yeur-on-yeur
and a new single-month
IIgI sInce zoo6.
or LIe hrsL hve monLIs,
the groups cumulative
consolidated revenue to-
talled $3.278 billion for
a 8.37 percent increase
over the same period of
last year.
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
20
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Drug Seizure Decrease Could
Foreshadow Illicit Trade Spike
Tom Stayner
D
ecreased drug sei-
zures in Myanmar
have prompted
concerns the plunge could
point to a spike in inter-
national illicit substance
trade.
In June, a report from
the Transnational Insti-
tute (TNI) found South-
east Asias illicit drug
production is increasing
throughout Myanmar,
Laos, Thailand, China and
India.
Drug seizures of meth-
amphetamine tab-
lets from countries in
the Golden Triangle
reached 240 million last
year, according to the Fi-
nancial Times.
Myanmar, Southeast
Asias dominant illicit
drug supplier, is fuelling a
resurgence of illegal sub-
stance trade in the region.
The country contributes
18 percent to the worlds
total opium production
despite the areas drug
output curbing at the start
of the decade.
Myanmars opium pro-
duction has grown for
six consecutive years and
harvest areas reached
over 58,000 hectares in
2013, according to the
UN Omce on Drugs und
Crime (UNODC).
However, UNODC repre-
sentative Jeremy Douglas
wurned uwed drug-con-
trol policies throughout
Southeast Asia could be
masking the true illicit sub-
sLunce ouLpuL oI rehnerIes
in the area.
Economic integration
means there will be a lot
more couriers and even
more LrumckIng opporLu-
nities they are going to
mix their goods with le-
gitimate trade, Douglas
was quoted as saying in
Financial Times.
OmcIuI cupLure ruLes oI
methamphetamine pills
and heroin in Myanmar
dropped more than 80
percenL In LIe hrsL hve
months of 2014.
The countrys drug sei-
zure hgure goes uguInsL
the Transnational In-
sLILuLes' recenL hndIng,
showing an increas-
ing trend in drug trade,
throughout Southeast
Seafood Slavery: Asian Slave Labour
Producing Prawns for EU, US Retailers
David Ross
S
ome of the worlds
largest food retailers
have been shown to
be unwittingly involved
In TIuIIund`s IIIeguI hsI-
ing industry, which relies
on large numbers of traf-
hcked und sIuve Iubour.
Businesses such as
Walmart, Carrefour,
Costco, Tesco, Morrisons
and Aldi have been impli-
cated in an investigation
as published in British
newspaper The Guardian
us deuIIng wILI TIuI hsI-
ing businesses reliant on
Lrumcked Iubour.
Project Issara has re-
leased a report detailing
reports of barbarity, rape,
murder and widespread
exploitation perpetrated
against migrant workers
in many of Thailands ex-
port industries.
Workers are reportedly
brought to Thailand on
the promise of well-pay-
ing work in factories be-
fore they are forced onto
TIuI hsIIng vesseIs by
brokers claiming they owe
fees for transport, recruit-
ment and documentation
or other services, which
often leads to debt bond-
uge oI muny hsIermun.
Human Rights Watch,
in a 2011 report into the
LrumckIng oI hsIermen
to Thailand, found that
use oI Lrumcked work-
ers In TIuIIund`s hsIIng
industry was widespread
and had increased, on
trend, since Typhoon Gay
in 1989 which saw a mass
exodus of Thai nationals
Irom LIe domesLIc hsIIng
industry.
Into their place came
foreign nationals, largely
Lrumcked Irom Myunmur,
Cambodia and Laos, who
work noL onIy In LIe hsI-
ing industry but also in
the processing, handling
and canning industries.
Workers are often paid
either nothing or very lit-
tle (THB5,000 or $155)
with many attempting to
escape facing hostile re-
ceptions from local police
who will deport them.
Charoen Pokphand
Foods (CP Foods), named
in The Guardians re-
port, accounts for almost
10 percent of Thailands
500,000 tonnes-a-year
export of shrimp, feed-
Ing LIem wILI hsImeuI
sourced in part from busi-
nesses known to be active
In TIuIIund`s IIIeguI hsI-
ing industry.
CP Foods, in a statement
published in The Guard-
ian, said it believed the
right thing was to use its
commercial weight to try
Lo Inuence LIe TIuI gov-
ernment to act rather than
walk away from the Thai
hsIIng IndusLry, uILIougI
it is putting in place plans
to use alternative proteins
in its feed so that it can
eIImInuLe TIuI hsImeuI by
2021 if necessary.
While it recognises that
workers on boats are ex-
ploited, it added that the
Thai Department of Fish-
eries continues to deny
that unregistered boats
are a problem.
Asias Golden Triangle.
Amsterdam-Based TNI
found the regions opium
production doubled in the
last decade and said links
beLween drugs, conIcL
and corruption in these
countries remains promi-
nent.
A Myanmar law enforce-
menL omcIuI noLed drug-
seizure totals show illegal
Lrumckers In LIe counLry`s
lawless border states are
hiding illicit production
under the cloud of the
ureu`s ruruI conIcLs.
The plunge in Myan-
mur`s drug conhscuLIons
show the governments
lack of control of the bor-
der states, making it hard
for authorities to seize
elicit substance entering
the market.
Methamphetamine cap-
tures in the country fell
to just 204,000 pills and
heroin captures dropped
Lo onIy 16 kIIogrums (KG)
In LIe hrsL hve monLIs oI
the year.
In 2013, before meth-
amphetamine captures
were recorded at 11.9 mil-
lion pills, while heroin re-
movals made up 239KG.
TNI called for drug
control policy reforms
throughout Myanmar to
improve the countrys
management of illicit
substance use and pro-
duction.
The danger is that low-
er conhscuLIon hgures
in Myanmar could lead
to a wave of illicit drugs
entering the market and
the proliferation of in-
ternational smuggling
throughout the world.
The Association of
SoutheastAsian Nations
(ASEAN) wants to be drug
free by 2015, planning to
unify economic develop-
ments in the area, to help
countries deal with na-
tional drug problems.
However, without the
resolution of rural con-
IcLs LIuL prohL Irom My-
anmars black-market of
illicit productions, this
goal seems unattainable
in the near future.
Myanmar Summary
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Smoke rises from the burning of seized drugs at an event to mark International Day against Drug Abuse
and IIIicit Trafcking outside Yangon. The government destroyed $9.7 miIIion worth of drugs in the
event.
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Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
21
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
2015 Report to Chart Myanmars
Legislative Overhaul: OBG
Group signs deal with Kelvin Chia Yangon Ltd
T
he wealth of new
laws, reforms and
incentives, which
are being introduced in
Myanmar to support the
countrys rapid economic
development, will be ex-
plored in Oxford Business
Groups (OBG) upcoming
report, the British pub-
lishing, research and con-
suILuncy hrm suId.
The Report: Myanmar
2015, will chart the ex-
ponential rise in foreign
direct investment (FDI)
witnessed since the coun-
Lry hrsL begun openIng up
just over two years ago,
OBG said in a statement.
The publication, which
marks OBGs second re-
port on the country, will
also depict Myanmars
emergence on the region-
al stage, which was rein-
forced this year when it
Aung Phyo assumed the role of ASE-
AN Chair for 2014.
OBG has signed a mem-
orandum of understand-
ing (MoU) on research
facilities for the second
LIme wILI LIe Iuw hrm,
Kelvin Chia Yangon Ltd.
Under the deal, Kelvin
Chia will use their re-
sources and local knowl-
edge to prepare the Law
chapter of the report.
OBGs Country Director,
Stephanie Harl, said the
Iuw hrm`s conLrIbuLIon
would give the groups
coverage of Myanmars
legislative changes an
edge.
The government has
had to legislate exten-
sively in recent months as
it attempts to keep pace
with the countrys trans-
formation. Kelvin Chias
team is known to have a
thorough understanding
of the intricacies of Myan-
mars legal framework,
she said.
Cheah Swee Gim, direc-
tor, Kelvin Chia Yangon
Ltd, said: The invest-
ment climate within My-
anmar is on the rise, and
it is vital that investors
have a good grasp of the
legal framework. Our
partnership with OBG
is focused on informing
global readers about the
legislative framework in
Myanmar as there are
many changes in, for in-
stance, banking, telecom
regulations and mining
laws.
She said this will help
potential investors in
making well informed in-
vestment decisions.
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UNESCO Listing to Ramp Up Tourism Investments
U
NESCOs recent
listing of three an-
cient Pyu walled
cities, in Myanmars dry
upper Irrawaddy regions,
are widely hoped to in-
crease sustainable invest-
ment in the regions, with
the possibility of future
tourism to the World Her-
itage sites boosted.
The cities, Sri Kse-
tra, Halin and Beikthano,
represent a large stretch
of area occupied by the
bronze-age Pyu people,
before the decline and
collapse of their society in
the 9th century.
However, the UNESCO
listing does not include
several other well-known
walled city sites known to
have been part of Ancient
Pyu states.
The Pyu sites, only 1 of
the 15 sites on the register
of historical and natural
sites, were granted listing
June 22, which makes the
sILes eIIgIbIe Ior hnuncIuI
and technical assistance
from the UNs body for
the preservation of cul-
tural works.
Deputy Minister for
Culture Sandar Khin wel-
comed the listing of the
sites, signaling that the
Ministry will draw up le-
David Ross
gal frameworks governing
farming and settlement in
the new World Heritage
areas, currently inhabited
by 10,000 people.
However, she pledged
the new regulations would
noL see peopIe Iorced o
their land.
The Bagan archeologi-
cal area, Inle Lake and
several other ancient cit-
ies in areas of Myanmar
featured on the tentative
list, however, no such
decision has been made
by UNESCO regarding
their listing.
The archeological area
of Bagan, with its 3,000
stupas and monuments,
has been subject to some
controversy regarding
listing due to historically
inaccurate refurbish-
ments or additions made
to several temples in the
area.
Bagan is also one of My-
anmars premier tourism
attractions, bringing in
almost 200,000 visitors
last year.
Its hoped if Bagan were
listed as a UNESCO site, it
might attract investment
to safeguard its archeo-
logical and architectural
heritage and cope with in-
creasing tourist numbers.
However, growing num-
bers of foreign visitors
risk placing further stress
on the internal infrastruc-
ture of Myanmar, already
struggling to cope with
additional power, water
and transportation needs
after decades of neglect.
Myanmar received 2
million tourists last year,
double that of the year
before, and is expected
Lo ecIIpse LIuL hgure once
again this year with num-
bers rising to almost 3
million.
The Myanmar tourism
industry is currently ex-
pected to earn more than
$1 billion this year, up
Irom LIe $qz6 mIIIIon In
2013 and $534 million
in 2012, according to the
Ministry of Hotels and
Tourism.
U Thet Naing, vice cha-
riman of the Myanmar
Travel Association, says
that while, Myanmars
tourism industry is going
to continue to develop,
the hotel and service sec-
tor needs to be upgraded.
Only then will more
tourists visit Myanmar,
he said.
Jumps of almost 1 mil-
lion visitors a year come
on the back of the minis-
trys release of their My-
anmar: Tourism Master
Plan in which they fore-
cast numbers of almost
7.5 million tourists by
2020.
To ensure this number
is met the Master Plan
calls for investment of
$q86.6 mIIIIon over 8
projects, 21 of which it
calls critical to success.
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Thayekhittaya, Pyu city ruins 5th to 9th century.
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
22
Myanmar Summary
Schindler Eyes Building Local HR
Competencies for Sustainable Growth
Maximilian Martin
S
wiss lift and escala-
tor maker Schindler
is focusing on train-
ing and developing its lo-
cal human resources in
Myanmar in a bid to en-
sure its long term growth
in the Southeast Asian
country where recent
economic opening has
handed explosive growth
opportunities to foreign
hrms.
The regions top lift
and escalator manufac-
turer began in Myanmar
in 1999 as the only fully
foreign-invested lift com-
pany and has operated a
long-standing joint ven-
ture with British conglom-
erate Jardine Matheson
for numerous territories
In LIe AsIu PucIhc regIon.
Jardine Matheson is a
dIversIhed busIness group
that has operated in Asia
since 1832. In Myanmar,
their other businesses are
Jardine Cycle and Car-
riage, which distributes
Mercedes Benz, Mazda
and Fuso trucks, Acleda
MIcrohnunce und JurdIne
Engineering Company.
Most lift companies op-
erate in Myanmar through
agents or distributorship to
reduce risks or exposure.
For us, we believe in the
potential of this country.
When you are 100 percent
invested, then you will
make the necessary human
capital investment for the
long term success of the
company, Willis Phua,
general manager of Myan-
mar Jardine Schindler Ltd,
told Myanmar Business
Today.
Since 1999, we have
been present here during
good times and bad, re-
ecLIng boLI our commIL-
ment to the country and
our belief in its future.
Prior to the reforms and
opening up of the country
in 2011, Schindler did not
regIsLer sIgnIhcunL prohLs
in its books. Its primary
motivation for continu-
ing to operate then was to
support its customers in
maintaining the lifts they
had bought from Schin-
dler and to continue to
provide jobs for its local
employees.
Since the quasi-civilian
government took power
in Myanmar and opened
the country for business
in 2011, demand for in-
frastructure development
shot up, new apartments,
malls, housing sprouted
all over the commercial
capital Yangon so up
went the demand for lifts
and escalators.
In October 2013, Schin-
dler relocated to a new of-
hce uL PurumI roud, wILI
a total of more than 100
employees.
Sales went up because
of the opening up of the
country. We increased our
sales two to three folds last
year. We had the majority
of the market share as the
property and construction
sector increased rapidly,
said Willis, who came to
Myanmar from Schindler
Singapore last year.
Willis said Schindler
built its reputation in
Myanmar on being a pre-
mium supplier with good
customer service. He said
his main challenge now is
Lo IuIhII LIe burgeonIng
orders timely and contin-
ue to maintain the qual-
ity and standards that its
brand represents.
We know we have to
build up our competen-
cies very, very fast that
means investment in a
new omce, In peopIe und
in training. The objective
is to recruit the right peo-
ple, invest heavily in up-
grading our skills so that
we can upkeep premium
IeveIs oI projecL IuIhImenL
and maintenance stand-
urds. TIIs wIII dIerenLI-
ate us from the rest of the
competition.
Willis said Schindler has
a strong local network, so
the majority of its cus-
tomers are local. If they
[Burmese] know that you
are good, then your name
will spread through word
of mouth. Thats how we
built our business over
the last 15 years to a mar-
ket leader position.
He said being a 100-per-
cent foreign company
helped Schindler do that.
Being fully owned and
not operating through
agents or distributors, we
are fully accountable to
our customers. That puts
a responsibility on every
employee to make sure
that our actions live up to
the brand.
Tr ai ni ng
Willis said in the last 12
months that he has been
in the country, more than
20 Schindler Myanmar
personnel have gone for
dIerenL Lypes oI overseus
training. The trainings
range from product, sales,
marketing and logistics to
technical, installation and
maintenance trainings.
He said that as Myan-
mars construction in-
dustry moves towards
LuIIer buIIdIngs, dIerenL
products will need to be
introduced to cater for
such needs. The company
also sends its sales people
Ior IIIL Lrumc sImuIuLIon
trainings, which allow
Schindler to help build-
ing owners in designing
LIe specIhcuLIon oI LIe IIIL
system in a building dur-
ing planning stage.
We are very mindful
about developing long
term local competencies,
he said emphasising the
importance of building a
skilled local workforce.
When you start a com-
pany you may choose to
bring in expatriates to ob-
tain the required exper-
tise and to transfer their
skills to the local work-
force. However, we focus
on the skills transfer very
early on.
We commit to train and
develop our local work-
force from the early stage
of the establishment of
Schindler Myanmar. This
is to ensure the future of
this company lies in the
hands of driven and com-
mILLed Burmese sLu, Ie
said.
Willis said most of
Schindlers key appoint-
ment holders are Bur-
mese and many of them
have had work experience
in Singapore prior to re-
turning to their country.
The lift company also has
an apprenticeship scheme
and the applications are
piling up, he said.
During the apprentice-
ship scheme, Schindler
gets the apprentices to in-
stall 3-4 units of lifts un-
der the supervision of its
experienced technicians.
Our objective is that we
teach the apprentice in
a manner that he under-
stands the importance in
installing the lift right the
hrsL LIme. OnIy wIen LIe
apprentice is able to in-
stall the lift in a quality
manner, will the person
be oered u conLrucL. TIIs
provides a strong motiva-
tion for the apprentices to
do well.
On top of its in-house
apprenticeship program,
Schindler also part-
ners with Yangon-based
Swiss-run Center for Vo-
cational Training (CVT)
for some of its training
programs.
Schindler also plays
its part in corporate so-
cial responsibility, hav-
ing contributed to the
rebuilding of the school
in Aye Yar Gyi village in
the delta region which
wus budIy uecLed by
Cyclone Nargis in 2008.
Willis, who visited the
school earlier this year,
said, It is very hearten-
ing, and humbling, to see
the teachers doing every-
thing they can to give the
students a better educa-
tion despite their circum-
stances.
Gr owth
Willis said Schindler
will continue to achieve
sIgnIhcunL growLI In LIe
coming years if the gov-
ernment continues its re-
forms.
However, competition
Is growIng hercer - wILI
many regional and inter-
national brands entering
into the market.
. . ~:., .:~ .. ~:..
.~ .. ~:. ~ . . . Schindler
._ _., .:. ~ . .:.~q .
~_..e_e.~.~~.q..~,.
.:. .....q, ...,._~:.
.q._.
~. : .:~ .. ~:. ~ . . .
.:.~ ,.|~...,q:~q.,
._ Schindler ._ _.,.:
.~ ~ .... .~_
. . , .~ _- ~ , ~ . ~ ~. . _e.
._ JardineMatheson ~ . ~
.....|._ q..._.....:.
.~ . _. . .:~ .. ~:._e, . .q.
. . , ..:.~ .~ ..: q ~ .
._.Jardine Schindler ~ . ~
. . ~~ - _., .:. . q:
~. . ., .,:_e. . Willis
Phua ~ ~.~~.:..e:
_e,_e..q:...~.,~:.,
._ . . . .,_ ~~e . .|...
~, .~: ~ ~.,, .|e:._.. . .
.~: .~. q. . . e _~_ ~e .
~~~ q:..,. q..._....e
.q ...~~, _._..
~..'. :._ . . . q .. ._. . . .
.:.|''e ._.:.._.
_. ~ ...~~_.~
~. ~.:~ .. ~:.~ . ~ .:.
~ . :. :...: ._ . Schindler
~ . ~ ._ _., .:. _ .~ q
.,.._. Schindler ~.~
._ e. ~ ~. . . . .:~
..~:. ,~ . ,~ e,.~
.q:......:._. ~..q
~._.: .~. _e. ..'. _. ..,:~
.. e_e..:..:...:..q....
~ ~ ~q . , . ._ . . ~ .:~
..~:.e ,. ,~~ ~ .q:..
.._.. ...|. ~~~ .~:~:.
~..~~.:.q:.e.....
._. _. Schindler ._
~ . . q:. . ., . . . ~, .
. :.~ ._ . ....~ q ._ .
e. ~ _., .:. ~ ~ . .
.....q._ ~..._..:.~
.~:..~ .:..q:~q
._e e. ~ . . ~,..:.. .
...q_.._e.._e Wilis ~
._.:.._.
Willis said building
competencies to deliver
commitments to custom-
ers would be the key to
survive in this market.
At the end of the day,
wIuL dIerenLIuLes you
from the rest of the com-
petition is the standard of
customer service in pro-
jecL IuIhImenL und muIn-
tenance. Our guiding vi-
sion is being the leader in
delivering above par cus-
tomer service.

Sales went up because of

the opening up of the coun-
try. We increased our sales
two to three folds last year.
We had the majority of the market
share as the property and construc-
tion sector increased rapidly,
Willis Phua, general manager of Myanmar Jardine Schindler Ltd.
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
23
Its All About The Follow Through
Mindy Walker
T
here are days in My-
anmar when youre
not really sure how
progress will ever prevail.
But there are just as many
days when you think that
the rapid change that you
are witnessing can never
be reversed and histori-
cal events are taking place
right under your feet. It is
this dichotomy that grabs
not only the people who
live here but also those
that spend a week here
falling in love with the
country and contemplat-
ing whether the time is
right to invest and bring
their business to Myan-
mar.
I have to admit I was
apprehensive when I was
approached about organ-
ising a delegation to My-
anmar this spring. Ive
seen many delegations
come and go with no real,
concrete outcomes for an-
yone living here. The top
LIer governmenL omcIuIs,
business leaders and civ-
il society members are
overtaxed with meetings
of people doing assess-
ments. But once theyve
gone, nothing transpires
on the ground here. The
follow through is not en-
tirely up to the business
tourists, of course, and is
shared with the local busi-
nesses and NGOs, but the
whole transaction feels
the same: information
was obtained by the for-
eigners, lunch was eaten,
and never do we hear
from any of them again.
It seems like a take, take,
take game when there is
very little left to give.
It is with that trepida-
tion that I promised to
IeIp orgunIse u dIerenL
kind of delegation. The
delegation was to be co-
led by the Richardson
Center for Global Engage-
ment, Aspen Institute
and the US Department
of State. Twenty-two del-
egates from around the
world would be coming to
Myanmar on what we call
our Partnership Opportu-
nity Delegation. Our goal
was simple: create part-
nerships between Myan-
mar and foreign entrepre-
neurs Lo benehL peopIe In
Myanmar.
Luckily, my colleagues
were able to pull togeth-
er a really unique group
of people dedicated to
change who have had suc-
cess in just as challenging
of countries. Our delega-
tion was made up of State
DepurLmenL omcIuIs, Im-
pact investors and social
entrepreneurs. They have
worked in places such as
India, Mali, Haiti, Kenya
and China and under-
stand a thing or two about
lack of infrastructure, rule
of law and human capital.
They understand when
Facebook isnt accessible
24 hours a day and elec-
tricity isnt guaranteed no
matter how nice the hotel.
Theyve seen it all before
so we could dive right into
talking about the solu-
tions, instead of the prob-
lems.
For example, one of our
delegates, Toni Mara-
viglia with Eneza Educa-
tion, who created a vir-
tual tutor and teachers
assistant application for
mobile phones, works
in Kenya where a lot of
the same problems ex-
ist, but she is excited by
the unique opportunity
caused by previous lack of
development, to leapfrog
a lot of what didnt work
in development and apply
what does work here.
We prepped the dele-
gates before they arrived,
introducing them to
some of the players in the
area of their interest and
sending them informa-
tion about the business
climate here. It was im-
portant that they hit the
ground running and hit
the ground running is ex-
actly what they did. They
astutely picked the brains
of the US Ambassador,
President U Thein Seins
economic advisor, mem-
bers of the business asso-
ciations and the Ooredoo
Myunmur CEO LIe hrsL
day they landed.
They knew it wasnt
all rainbows and moon-
beams here in Myanmar
but they also didnt have
a dire outlook of start-
ing people-friendly busi-
nesses in one of the least
developed countries. And
thats the best under-
standing you could take
away. Investment and
busIness Is dImcuIL Iere,
buL IL`s dImcuIL In every
economy where youre the
hrsL mover und LIe rIsks
sometimes produce great
rewards. Our delegates
know that because theyve
seen success and theyve
seen failure in their vari-
ous business ventures but
all of them share a pas-
sion for trying to bring
prosperity to people at the
bottom and middle rungs
of the ladder.
Our focus was on real
outcomes and we are
still trying to make those
partnerships happen long
after everyone has gone
home. Thankfully, we
were successful in spark-
ing quite a few partner-
ships and that will lead
to economic development
led by small businesses,
which will be the real
catalyst to change in My-
anmar.
Maraviglia and her
partners now see huge
potential in Myanmar to
expand after visiting in
April. Myanmar was not
even on our map in terms
of expansion before this
trip. But the delegation
mude us LIInk dIerenLIy
about our strategy and
where we wanted Eneza
Lo reucI. We ure dehnILeIy
looking at Myanmar as a
place of expansion, she
said.
Most exciting was the
reaction by entrepreneurs
and community leaders
who were quick to rec-
ommend points of entry,
oer up Ideus Lo munu-
facture and distribute the
products and grow the
Myanmar economy from
the inside. Our delegates
took these ideas and ran
with them and now have
exciting opportunities on
the ground in cooperation
with those who know the
local economy the best.
Mouhsine Serrar with
Prakti, a developer, man-
ufacturer and distributor
of cookstoves, was able to
meet with potential part-
ners while he was here
on the delegation and al-
ready has several pilots in
the works.
In addition to meeting
with business and com-
munity leaders, we also
went to Nay Pyi Taw to
meet with various min-
isters. Surprisingly, the
government did not just
pay lip service to our del-
egates ideas during our
meeLIngs; LIey embruced
their models for energy ef-
hcIenL cooksLoves, LooIs Lo
emcIenLIy LrunsporL wuLer
Ior IumIIIes, IorLIhed rIce
and cooperative milling.
They warmly welcomed
the entrepreneurs to start
working on the ground
Iere und oered Lo be oI
assistance if we encoun-
tered any problems. And
we will hold them to those
promises because we are
bound to run into some
bumps in the road.
It wont be easy. It never
is. Import issues, manu-
facturing products with
a touchy electrical grid,
unclear rules and regu-
lations and a need for
increased government
transparency, give people
little faith in the market.
One of our investors on
the trip, Mark Quinn-
Newall, was concerned
mostly about the laws
backing up the signed
contracts and agree-
ments in order to protect
ownership and give some
clear picture of everyones
rights in potential future
situations. This is obvi-
ously a concern for most
investors here and while
the government has tried
to pass laws clarifying
those issues, the major
test is what will happen in
reality. Luckily for these
small entrepreneurs that
are entering the market
here, the risk is minimal
and the reward is not just
hnuncIuI buL benehcIuI Lo
the manufacturers, dis-
tributors and end users.
In a meeting with our
delegates, Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi cautioned us
about being overexcited
about the near future.
While we encourage cau-
tion, this is also a time to
embrace the new opening
of the market, especially
for small-scale entre-
preneurs. Our delegates
main goal is to help peo-
ple through economic
development. Creating
innovative products and
hndIng u wuy Lo deveIop
and market them in the
local economy by provid-
ing jobs is the best way to
pull people out of pover-
ty. Thats true in America
and that is true in Myan-
mar.
We wanted to focus on
bringing and developing
small businesses in My-
anmar, instead of the ma-
jor multinationals since
small businesses account
for the majority of jobs
around the world. The
needs of small businesses
ure very dIerenL LIun
those of multinationals,
and by bringing those to
the attention of the minis-
ters while we were there,
we hope to have them
catered to more, said
Mickey Bergman, coordi-
nator of the delegation for
the Aspen Institute and
the Richardson Center for
Global Engagement.
Instead of letting all
the usual suspects create
new businesses and reap
all the rewards, we must
aid the entrepreneurs in
jumpstarting their busi-
nesses here through part-
nerships like these. Our
delegates will be back to
Myanmar with their in-
novation that is vital to
the growth of this country
and Im excited to help
them on this adventure.
My worry about just
another delegation was
quickly put to rest when I
saw Cynthia Koenig from
Wello Water remove her
small model of the wa-
ter wheel from her bag
to show the minister for
agriculture and he imme-
diately asked how quickly
we could start producing
them in Myanmar. Hope-
fully she and the other
social entrepreneurs from
the delegation will soon
be on the ground in My-
anmar. Its important that
people come to Myanmar
to understand the barri-
ers und benehLs oI doIng
business here, butmost
important is the follow
through and now its all
about the follow through.
Mindy Walker is a con-
sultant for the Richardson
Center for Global Engage-
ment and is based in My-
anmar full-time. The Rich-
ardson Centers focus in
Myanmar is on trainings,
international exchanges
and encouraging people
friendly business.
Myanmar Summary
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The American delegation co-led by the Richardson Center for Global Engagement, the Aspen Institute
and the US Department of State.
M
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Myanmar Business Today
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24
PROPERTY & REAL ESTATE
Myanmar Summary
Cement Shortage Could Delay
Infrastructure Projects
Phyo Thu
C
ountrywide cement
shortages could
undermine Myan-
mars rapid infrastruc-
ture development, with
projects throughout the
nation in danger of being
delayed, industry insiders
say.
Myanmars rapid eco-
nomic expansion has seen
year-on-year increases in
the demand for cement,
with national demand ex-
pected to reach 10 million
tonnes by 2015.
However, without for-
eign investment in My-
anmars cement indus-
try, domestic producers
wont be able to meet the
required national targets,
U Soe Naing, advisor to
KBZ Construction Co Ltd,
told Myanmar Business
Today.
In previous years,
around 8 million tonnes
of cement were need-
ed, of which 4 million
tonnes were imported.
Domestic producers lack
capital resources to pro-
duce enough [cement] by
themselves, he added.
AccordIng Lo omcIuI
data, domestic produc-
tion only accounts for 32
percent of the countrys
cement stocks, with im-
ports totalling 3 million
tonnes, mostly from Thai-
land and India, making
up the remaining supply.
However, Ko Ko Htwe
of Taw Win Construction
said most Southeast Asian
manufacturers use cheap
machinery incapable of
meeting rapidly increas-
ing demands of Myanmar
and the ASEAN region.
The implementation
of the ASEAN Economic
Community (AEC) in
2015 could also see in-
creased regulations that
terminate the operation
of plants using unsafe
production methods.
Myat Company and
Thailands SCG Cement
plan to construct new
plants capable of produc-
ing 5,000 tonnes per day
in Kyaukse in Mandalay
region and Mawlamyine
in Mon state by next year.
Electricity shortages
have also undermined the
capacity of Myanmars
domestic cement plants
to produce the raw mate-
rials needed for the coun-
trys infrastructure.
Myanmars electric-
ity problems are well
documented with power
outages, brownouts and
supply shortages com-
monplace throughout the
country.
U Soe Naing said a ce-
ment business associa-
tion is being founded in
order to tackle the power
and resources issues hin-
dering Myanmars ce-
ment dearth.
After the association is
created, we will negotiate
with the government to
purchase electricity at a
discounted rate and seek
to share technology with
international businesses
Lo become more eec-
tive, he said.
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Singapores KHG Development
Opens Sales Gallery
Wai Linn Kyaw
K
HG Development
has opened its sales
guIIery und omces
in Yangon in a bid to tap
the Southeast Asian coun-
trys burgeoning property
market, the Singapore-
based conglomerate said.
Real estate develop-
ment of the highest stand-
ards is an exciting new
chapter in our companys
history, said Kyi Soe,
chairman of KHG Hold-
ings.
TIe hrm`s new suIes
guIIery, IocuLed o New
University Avenue road,
exhibits the new develop-
ment arm of KHG Hold-
ings which is branching
out into luxury real estate
development.
As a fresh entrant to the
real estate scene, the com-
pany is capitalising on the
24-year long reputation of
its parent company.
Mary Thein, KHG De-
velopments executive
director of sales and mar-
keting, said, Creating
and communicating value
to all our stakeholders
through our quality prod-
ucts, services and brand
ambassadors is vital to
building long-term cus-
tomer relationships. KHG
is investing heavily in
this.
At the opening cer-
emony, LIe hrm guve u
preview of KHG Develop-
ments inaugural luxury
condominium project,
INFINITY.
High-rise and high-end,
INFINITY, which is situ-
ated on Kabaaye Pagoda
road, Bahan township in
Yangon, is expected to be
launched this month.
The 28-storey, purely
residential development
Is LouLed Lo redehne
luxury sky living boast-
ing views of Shwedagon
Pagoda, Kandawgyi and
Inya Lake.
It engaged architect
hrm ONG&ONG Lo Ieud
the project and has a pro-
ject team of Singapore
consultants.
KHG said it aims to pro-
vide real estate opportu-
nities on a par with Singa-
pores standards.
TIe hrm suId LIIs Is LIe
hrsL In u serIes oI reuI
esLuLe oerIngs LIuL IL
is rolling out, as later in
the year there will be the
launch of a low-rise, lux-
ury boutique-style, devel-
opment in Yangon.
KHGs other commer-
cial ventures in Myan-
mar include fast-moving
consumer goods, a retail
chain and packing and
distribution of LPG gas
for both domestic and in-
dusLrIuI use. TIe hrm wus
also appointed dealer of
Samsung smartphones
recently.
KHG Holding-~ . ~ . ~. .
_e.._ KHG Development
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Development- _.,.:.~
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Singtech .~ ~ e , . Laptop
. tablet .:. _e,_e..q:..
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Smart Phone - Master
Dealer ~_e.._. ..:
q~.~q._~:. .q._.
Myanmar Summary
K
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
PROPERTY & REAL ESTATE
25
Myanmar Summary
Marga Landmark to Invest $300 Million in Yangon Project
Phyo Thu
M
arga Landmark,
a joint-venture
of companies
from Hong Kong, South
Korea and the UK, will
develop a $300-million
mixed-use development
project on 22 acres of land
owned by the defence
ministry in downtown
Yangon.
Margas maiden project
in Myanmar, Dagon City
1, will include branded
retail zones, internation-
al standard A-grade of-
hces, u hve-sLur IoLeI und
upurLmenLs, LIe hrm suId.
The 22-acre complex,
the product of a joint
venture between Marga
Group und IocuI hrm TIu
Kha Yadanar, will be lo-
cated at U Htaung Bo
Circle, close to Shwed-
agon Pagoda, the Yangon
Zoological Gardens and
Kandawgyi Lake.
I am sure that Yangon
has all the right ingredi-
ents to become one of the
top cities in Asia. Myanmar
is transparent, progressive,
and foreign investment-
friendly. Marga is proud to
participate in Yangons ex-
citing journey to become a
true cosmopolitan metrop-
olis, said Edgar Kwan,
Marga Senior Executive
Director and Chief Devel-
opmenL Om cer.
Previously, Edgar was
involved in development
projects in Hong Kong,
the UK, China, the Middle
East, Southeast Asia and
Australia, oversaw the
development of the new
Four Seasons Hotel in
Shanghai and the Pavilion
in Kuala Lumpur.
Dagon City 1 is mod-
elled after mixed-use de-
velopments like the In-
ternational Commercial
Centre in Hong Kong and
Roppongi Hills of Tokyo,
Marga Landmark said.
The development com-
prises eight-storey resi-
dential towers with apart-
ments in various styles
rungIng In sIze Irom 6oo
square feet to 2,000
square feet, as well as a
selection of penthouses.
TIe hrsL pIuse oI resI-
dential towers 1-4 will be
launched in the fourth
quurLer oI zo1q, LIe hrm
said.
The luxury clubhouse
will be equipped with fa-
cilities for recreation and
entertainment, including
u hLness cenLre, ouLdoor
swimming pool, restau-
rant and indoor golf.
Marga said the complex
will feature heavy green
elements such as energy
saving features, sustain-
able building materials,
a large elevated sky gar-
den and a central green
area designed to promote
long-term, healthy neigh-
bourhood living for the
citys downtown area.
TIe hrm suId IL wIII
demonstrate its commit-
ment by investing in CSR
initiatives and contribut-
ing to Myanmars eco-
nomic acceleration.
Through Dagon City
1, we hope to create over
5,000 jobs for local My-
anmar citizens, promote
tourism, lift local con-
sumerism, attract foreign
businesses, and assist lo-
cal businesses, said John
Barnes, Marga Director.
WILI our ugsIIp pro-
ject, we can continue
to promote Myanmar
abroad and help attract
foreign capital, he added.
Dagon City 1 is jointly
designed by lead architect
Marga Landmark ._
q, ~ , _. -~.~ ~.:~~. .
..:.,q:~ Dagon City 1
~_ ..:~ . :. ._ _ e. _ . .
~. .| Mixed-usedevelopment
~ Branded..,..:. .
~~:~. A-grade ,..,.
.:. _ ~e |.. ~.e~e
. ~ ..~: .. , ..:~ ~
., .. :..|~ ._ _ e. ._ ~: .
. q ._.
-~~e_.,..: e.
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q _. ..q ~ ..~ q, ~ , ~ q. :,
e:~. .,...~.~ ~_
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~ , .~ .e: .~: ~ q .e:.
~ ., . ~. : ~. . ~. .~
..:.. q.._.....:..|~
..: Global SyndicateMarga
Group . _.,.:.. . .
q~,: ~ . ~ ~ -~~ . ~
. ..| ...: q ~ :...:. .
~,._e..|._.
~, .~: ~ ~e ~ .~ ~
.e: .~: ~ ., ~,~
. ~.q ~.e . .....~
, ~.q .~: ~:q ~.q~ ~.:
~.~...: ..:~...q...
,..~~ ....|..:..:~
.~: ~~~~....: . .|
~e. ~, .~: q . ~~:
~.~~_~.~~q q,~,_.
.~:e: ~:q~~q .~,.
_ . ~. _. _e. .:. . .e . .
~, .~: e_~_.|~e._.,.:
.e: ..._..:_.. .
~~:~q .. ._. . . . .~ ~~ ~
_~...~q.,.|~e. Marga
~.,, q, ~ , _. _~. . ~~:
_. .~: _e. .:e ..: q ~ q:. :
~. ~.,q:~. .,q:. : .|~ q
~ ~~ ~ .:.. : ~ e . .|~e ''
e Mr. Edgar Kwan . ._.:.
._ .
Wong Tung & Partners
and SPiNE, a local My-
anmar design house. The
project uses Meinhardt as
its engineering consultant
and Colliers as its property
management consultant.
Marga said its team plans
to share its international
experIence In hnunce, con-
struction, and real estate
development with local
proIessIonuIs In LIe heId.
Dagon City 1 will be
Yangons new symbol of
international progress,
said Alex Lau, deputy
managing director and
head of design of Wong
Tung & Partners.
He said: The develop-
ment epitomises interna-
tional cosmopolitan living
and modern mixed-use
design.
Dagon City 1 seeks to
promote harmonious
integration of modern
global architecture with
traditional local designs,
to initiate sustainable ur-
banisation.
Online Real Estate Market Booms
Kyaw Min
Y
angons online real
estate market is
experiencing an in-
crease in usage as a means
to do research in prepara-
tion for purchasing prop-
erty, realtors say.
There are currently 10
real estate agents provid-
ing services through the
internet and all are expe-
riencing an increase in the
use of their service.
In the past 10 days, we
have received 13 inquiries
about real estate. These
inquiries are about pur-
chasing, not renting.
As the companies com-
pete with each other to
provide online real estate
consultancy services, the
buyer can choose which
company is more suit-
able to their needs, said
U Win Maung, a spokes-
person from Zabu Thitsar
Real Estate agency.
The number of inquir-
ies made is at least three
times higher than the
number of listed proper-
ties, he added.
U Win Maung said buy-
ers get to compare listed
online prices to the pric-
es asked by traditional
agents, which is often
higher, and become well-
informed while buying or
renting properties.
However, some realtors
say the online real estate
market is yet to pose any
sIgnIhcunL compeLILIon
to traditional agents, but
things will change in the
future.
Even though the reach
is quite limited now, on-
line services will be more
successful in the future,
said U Kyaw Thun Naing
of Pyi Gyi Ta Gon Real Es-
tate agency.
Online real estate mar-
ket is likely to be trendier
in the future, said U Than
U form Man Tai Real Es-
tate agency.
Myanmar Summary
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A screenshot of an online real estate site house.com.mm.
M
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
26
AUTOMOBILE
Car Black Box Needs to Be
Familiar With Myanmar
Phyu Thit Lwin
I
ncreused Lrumc dIs-
putes on Myanmars
busy roads have
prompted calls for more
motorists to install black
boxes, in hopes of saving
drivers time and money
when accidents occur.
Black boxes record in-
formation relating to car
crashes, allowing acci-
dents to be reviewed in
order to determine how
vehicles act in a collision.
Few motorists have pur-
chased the devices since
black boxes were imported
into the country in April.
P-World Company Mar-
keting Manager Ko Phyoe
Maung Maung said in-
stalling more black boxes
would help solve disputes
when accidents occur on
Myanmars congested
roads.
When accidents hap-
pen, the problem is it
costs a lot of money and
when people go to the
poIIce omce LIere cun be
dIerences oI opInIon,
he said.
Around the world more
domestic drivers are in-
stalling black boxes to im-
prove vehicle safety.
These devices are in-
stalled in your car and re-
cords while your driving
and helps improve driver
safety more cars should
have them, U Tun Myint,
whose car has a black box,
said.
Black boxes are imported
from South Korea and have
a one-year warranty. The
cost of installment ranges
Irom K16o,ooo ($16o) Lo
K320,000 ($320).
Jaguar Land Rover Opens Yangon Showroom
Htun Htun Minn
B
ritish automaker
Jaguar Land Rover
and its local partner
Capital Automotive Ltd
have opened the luxury
sports car manufacturers
new dealership in Yan-
gon.
Capital Automotive Ltd
has completed the deal-
ership with an eight-car
showroom and 13-bay
workshop with factory
cerLIhed LecInIcIuns, LIe
company said.
The opening of the new
showroom, service and
parts facility means this
wIII be LIe hrsL LIme und
Rover and Jaguar prod-
ucLs wIII be omcIuIIy soId
in Myanmar, bringing the
products together under
one roof in a dedicated
Jaguar Land Rover deal-
ership.
U Khin Tun, manag-
ing director, Capital Au-
tomotive Ltd, said: We
are now open to serve our
elite group of customers
oerIng un excILIng runge
of Jaguar and Land Rover
vehicles in Myanmar.
He said many custom-
ers who have visited have
expressed interest in the
new Land Rover and Jag-
uar range, particularly
the All-New Range Rover,
Range Rover Evoque and
Jaguar XF.
I am sure we will soon
see many of these new
Land Rover and Jaguar
models on the road in
Myanmar. We are very
conhdenL LIuL we wIII uIso
be able to grow the Jag-
uar Land Rover business
here.
The dealership intro-
duced customers with
the all-new Range Rover
Sport and the Jaguar F-
Type at the showroom
opening ceremony.
Andrew Patrick, ambas-
sador of the UK to Myan-
mar, I am delighted that
Jaguar Land Rover has
decided to expand their
global operations to this
country. They are an ex-
ample of British engineer-
ing and manufacturing at
ILs very besL; LIey pro-
duce top quality products,
employ and train local
people to international
standards and deliver the
highest levels of customer
service.
I am looking forward to
seeing this famous British
brand in this country.
The price for Land
Rovers will range from
$100,000 to $330,000
and Jaguar models be-
tween $149,000 and
$250,000.
In April, the authorities
announced a new tax re-
lief program that would
enable traders and buyers
of high-end and luxury
curs Lo suve sIgnIhcunL
amount of money in reg-
istration fees. Buyers of
high-class cars will be
able to save up to K20
mIIIIon ($zo,6oo), uc-
cording to the new regu-
lations of Myanmar Road
Transport Administration
Department (RTAD).
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
India, Myanmar to Sign Bus Service Pact
Aung Phyo
I
ndia and Myanmar
may soon sign an
initial agreement for
starting a bus service con-
necting the two countries
through the north-eastern
state of Imphal, aimed at
improving people-to-peo-
ple contact and bilateral
relations.
The service is likely to
start from October and
would cover a distance of
579 kilometres between
Imphal and Mandalay in
about 14 hours, according
to Indian media reports.
Though the fare is yet to
be hnuIIsed, governmenL
omcIuIs suId IL wouId be
kept below INR2,000
($33). To facilitate trav-
ellers, visa-on-arrival
wouId be oered on boLI
sides.
It was agreed that both
sides will work towards
signing a MoU (Memoran-
dum of Understanding)
at the earliest on mutually
convenient date and venue
in order to facilitate early
starting of the Imphal-
Mandalay bus service,
Indias Ministry of Road
Transport and Highways
said in a statement.
A delegation led by Niraj
Verma, joint secretary,
Ministry of Road Trans-
port and Highways visited
Nay Pyi Taw recently, to
attend an Inter-Ministe-
rial Technical Level Meet-
Ing Lo negoLIuLe und hnuI-
ise the MoU and related
protocol agreements for
the proposed bus service.
The text of MoU, which
wus hnuIIsed In LIe bI-
lateral inter-ministerial
technical level meeting on
September 17, 2012, was
reviewed clause by clause
by the representatives of
the two delegations and
adopted during the meet-
ing, the statement said.
The weekly cross-bor-
der bus service is set
to boost Indias newly
elected Prime Minister
Narendra Modis vision
of increased connectivity
with neighbouring South
Asian countries.
Indias Road Ministry
had been in discussions
with the Transport Plan-
ning Department of the
Ministry of Rail Trans-
portation of Myanmar for
introducing the cross bor-
der bus service.
Currently, there is no di-
rect road link between In-
dia and Myanmar. From
DeIII, one Ius Lo hrsL y
to Bangkok and then to
either Yangon or Nay Pyi
Taw to reach Myanmar.
The project is expected
to boost economic activity
in the region, according to
omcIuIs.
Depending on the re-
sponse, the service would
be scaled up and at a later
stage will be extended to
allow freight movement
as well.
Modis predecessor
Manmohan Singh was
also keen to sign the
agreement for launching
the bus service during his
visit to Myanmar in 2012
but it did not fructify as
LIe deuI couId noL be h-
nalised on time.
The Indian government
is also assisting Myanmar
to upgrade a 70km stretch
of road between Indias
Kalewa and Yargyi in My-
anmar.
Unveiling the JAGUAR F-Type by Stephen Crisp, Director of Global government affairs, Jaguar Land Rov-
er and Dale Jones, country manager of RMA.
J
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
IT & TELECOM
27
Myanmar Summary
Telenor and Wikimedia Hold
Workshop to Tap Local Content
T
elenor, the Wiki-
media Foundation
and the Myanmar
Wikipedia community
Iuve IeId LIeIr hrsL joInL
workshop in Myanmar in
a bid to create local con-
tent for Wikipedia, the
worlds biggest free ency-
clopaedia.
The workshop was held
at Telenors headquarters
in Yangon and was con-
ducted by experienced
Wikipedia contributors.
The event gave new vol-
unteers an introduction
and training in how to
identify content for trans-
lation, how to edit articles
and also how to teach new
members of the Wikipe-
dia community, Telenor
said in a statement.
Wikipedia is an impor-
tant source of information
and have committed to
providing access to Wiki-
Zwe Wai pedia for free to Telenors
customers, Petter Furb-
erg, CEO, Telenor Myan-
mar.
Telenor is also support-
ing local initiatives to cre-
ate content in local lan-
guage on Wikipedia, he
said.
We are excited to help
bringing Wikipedia to the
people of Myanmar and to
start our partnership with
the Wikimedia Founda-
tion and the Myanmar
Wikipedia community.
Wikipedia contains
more than 30 million vol-
unteer-authored articles
in over 287 languages,
and is visited by more
than 490 million people
every month, making it
one of the most popular
sites in the world.
The Myanmar ver-
sion of Wikipedia
my.wikipedia.org cur-
rently only has around
30,000 articles in local
language.
Telenor said creation of
conLenL Is LIe hrsL sLep
towards launching Wiki-
pedia Zero, where Tel-
enor customers can use
Wikipedia for free, with
no internet charges, once
the company launches its
network in September.
We need more local con-
tent in Myanmar language
and our aim is to create a
collaborative, growing eco-
system of contributors in
the Myanmar community,
said Ngwe Tun, who is one
oI LIe hrsL WIkIpedIuns In
Myanmar and conducted
the workshop in partner-
ship with Telenor Myan-
mar.
More contributors
mean more articles,
which results in more us-
age of Wikipedia. This is
a true initiative for the
community, by the com-
munity. Knowledge is
power and Wikipedia can
oer u pIuLIorm wILI reII-
able, useful and unbiased
information, he said.
Telenor Group signed a
partnership with the Wiki-
media Foundation in 2012
Lo oer WIkIpedIu Iree oI
data charges on mobile
devices for Telenor cus-
tomers in Asia and south-
eastern Europe.
The partnership agree-
ment for Telenor Myan-
mar was signed in No-
vember last year.
The Wikimedia Foun-
dation imagines a world
in which every single
person has free access to
the sum of human knowl-
edge. Through Telenors
support, the Myanmar
people can now partici-
pate in multi-directional
knowledge sharing on
Wikipedia, said Caro-
lynne Schloeder, head of
Global Mobile Partner-
ships at the Wikimedia
Foundation.
Ooredoo and Samsung Team Up to
Provide Mobile Internet Services in Myanmar
O
oredoo Myanmar
signed a deal with
tech giant Sam-
sung to provide fast and
inexpensive mobile in-
ternet services when the
hrm`s SM curds become
uvuIIubIe, LIe QuLurI hrm
said.
Ooredoo wIII oer cus-
tomers a range of spe-
cial bundles designed to
make the most of Oore-
doos 3G network on data
driven Samsung devices,
it said.
Ooredoo said partnering
with Samsung will be key
to increasing the adoption
of mobile internet servic-
Phyo Thu
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
Tel enor Wi ki medi a
Foundation . _.,.:.e.
~..~e~._.~._ ,.~
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e Ooredoo Myanmar CEO
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._.:.._.
CTE Expands into
Myanmar, Palau
H
ong Kong-based
Celestial Tiger
Entertainment is
expanding its distribution
into Myanmar and the is-
land of Palau, the TV net-
work operator said.
The operator of the larg-
est group of pan-Asian
channels dedicated to
Asian entertainment, Ce-
lestial Tiger Entertainment
runs Celestial Movies, a 24-
hour Chinese movie chan-
neI; CeIesLIuI CIussIc Mov-
ies, a channel dedicated to
digitally-remastered Chi-
nese cIussIc movIes; KX
and KIX HD, the action
enLerLuInmenL cIunneI;
and Thrill, the channel for
the horror, thriller and sus-
pense movies.
Under the new deals, the
Forever Group-operated
4TV will launch Celestial
Classic Movies (CCM) in
Myanmar.
In Palau, Palau National
Communications Corp,
the Republic of Palaus
national carrier for local
and international tele-
communications services,
will launch Celestial Clas-
sic Movies on PNCC Digi-
tal TV.
Aye Myat The new deals also in-
clude the newly-estab-
lished Kompas Grame-
dia Group-owned pay TV
platform K-Vision carry-
ing Celestial Movies and
KX; und LIe PIIIIppInes`
premier DTH satellite
provider Cignal TV, a
subsidiary of MediaQuest
Holdings, distributing
KIX HD and Thrill in the
Philippines.
es which will unlock new
opportunities for end-us-
ers in Myanmar.
Ooredoo will launch its
services in major urban
areas around Yangon,
Mandalay and Nay Pyi
Taw in the third quarter
of 2014, reaching 30 per-
cent of the population,
Ross Cormack, chief ex-
ecuLIve omcer oI Oore-
doo, said in May.
Ooredoos products
and services will include
voice, SMS and data bun-
dles, SIMs, customer care
and device detection ca-
pabilities, which acceler-
ate growth in one of the
worlds most underserved
markets for mobile and
internet use.
Samsungs range of
Galaxy smartphones and
tablets, which have been
hugely successful in mar-
kets around the world,
will become available at
local retail outlets, the
hrm suId.
. e: . ~: ~. _ . . ~
Celestial Tiger .e:._e.q.
..,. (CTE) ._ ,.~-
_e,..~ _.,.:.. Palau
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.~~:~....:.~ _..._
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~~q.e:._e.q... KIX
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.:._...: THRILL .,,e
~~ ..~.~q ._.
..:~ _ . ~.. .:.~
._~:....~ ~_.:.~
..: Kompas Gramedia
~ . . . ~.... ~ - . .
K-Vision ~ Celestial
Movies . KIX_.._..
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~.~.~.~:~.~._.
DTH _.~...q:...
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THRILL ~~ e...~
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O
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M
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July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
28
INTERNATIONAL AND DOMESTIC FLIGHT SCHEDULE
Fliggh htss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Bangkok ((BKK) Fliggh htss 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 Airlines
DD4231 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 MAI
FD2752 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 AirAsia
8M335 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 Airways
TG304 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 Airways
PG702 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 AirAsia
Y5-237 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 Airways
TG302 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 Airlines
PG703 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 AirAsia
8M331 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 Airways
FD2754 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 Airways
PG704 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 Airlines
TG306 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
FFliggh htss ffroom m Yangoon (RGN)) to Chiaang Maii (CNX) FFliggh htss ffroom m 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 Airlines
MI509 1 6 RGN SIN 0:25 5;00 SilkAir SQ998 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SIN RGN 7:55 9:20 Singapore Airline
8M231 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 Asia
SQ997 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 SilkAir
8M233 5 6 7 RGN SIN 13:45 18:15 MAI 8M235 5 6 7 SIN RGN 19:15 20:45 MAI
TR2827 1 6 7 RGN SIN 15:10 19:35 TigerAir TR2826 1 6 7 SIN RGN 13:00 14:30 TigerAir
TR2827 2 3 4 5 RGN SIN 17:10 21:35 TigerAir TR2826 2 3 4 5 SIN RGN 15:00 16:30 TigerAir
MI517 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 frro om m 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 AirAsia
8M501 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 Airlines
MH741 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
Flliggh htss ffroom m Yangon (RGN) to Ho CChi Minhh (SGN) Flliggh htss ffroom m 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 Airline
BR288 2 5 6 RGN TPE 11:35 17:20 EVA Air BR287 2 5 6 TPE RGN 7:30 10:35 EVA Air
Flliggh htss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Kunming(KMG) Flliggh htss 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 Eastern
MU2012 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)
Fliggh htss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Naanning (NNG) Fliggh htss 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
FFliggh htss ffroom m Yangoon (RGN)) to Honng Kong (HKG) HHonng g 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
*PPleaasee noote thee dday change for the deparrture time too Hong Kongg.
Flliggh htss ffroom m Yangon (RGN) to Guanng Zhouu (CAN) Flliggh htss ffroom m 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 Airlines
CZ3056 3 6 RGN CAN 11:20 15:50 China Southern Airline 8M712 2 4 7 CAN RGN 14:15 15:45 MAI
CZ3056 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 India
AI234 1 5 RGN CCU 13:40 16:55 Air India (via GAY) AI233 5 CCU RGN 13:30 18:00 Air India (via GAY)
Fliggh htss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to GGaya (GAAY) Fliggh htss 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 MAI
AI234 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
FFliggh htss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to SSeoul (ICCN) FFliggh htss 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
Flliggh htss ffroom m Yangon (RGN) to Nay Pyi Taww (NYT) Flliggh htss ffroom m 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 Charter
FMI-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 Charter
FMI-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 Charter
FMI-A1 6 RGN NYT 8:00 9:00 FMI Air Charter FMI-A2 6 NYT RGN 10:00 11:00 FMI Air Charter
FMI-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 Airlines
YH 909 2 4 6 7 RGN MDY 6:30 8:10 Yangon Airways YH 910 1 3 MDY RGN 7:40 10:30 Yangon Airways
YH 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 Airways
YH 727 1 5 RGN MDY 11:15 13:25 Yangon Airways YH 728 1 5 MDY RGN 9:10 11:05 Yangon Airways
YH 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 Airways
W9 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 Bagan
K7 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 KBZ
YJ 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
July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
IT & TELECOM
29
Myanmar Summary
Ooredoo, Microsoft Ink Deal to Boost
Entrepreneurialism in Myanmar
M
yanmars next
generation of
entrepreneurs,
ICT professionals, devel-
opers and investors who
participate within Oore-
doos IdeaBox initiative
were given a boost with
the signing of a partner-
ship agreement with Mi-
crosoft lending them ac-
cess to the DreamSpark
and BizSpark programs.
The IdeaBox initiative
has gained momentum
in Myanmar in recent
months, driven by the
nuLIon`s hrsL ever Huck-
athon a contest to cre-
ate tech-based solutions
regular networking via
the introduction of the
global Mobile Mondays
forum and the launch of
its ICT incubator and ac-
celerator programme.
Now, through the part-
nership with Microsoft,
the IdeaBox community
will have access to a range
of tools and services of-
fered by the software gi-
ants DreamSpark and
BizSpark programs.
At the end of the day,
were a communications
Aye Myat
company. We understand
the value of coming to-
gether and sharing, to en-
able the people of Myan-
mar to take advantage of
the leapfrog in technology
that our network rollout
will deliver, Ross Cor-
mack, Ooredoo Myanmar
CEO said.
BIzSpurk oers u gIobuI
audience access to soft-
ware, developer tools,
support, training and
access to cloud technol-
ogy to enable developers
to innovate and execute
programs. Free access to
Windows stores and the
ability to access the global
BizSpark community ena-
bles new ventures to build
scale quickly.
Microsofts Dream-
Spark program targets the
next generation of entre-
preneurs by supporting
students, educators and
academic institutions. By
providing professional
developer tools, students
are enabled to innovate
and given the opportunity
to create breakthroughs
in technology.
Microsofts President of
AsIu PucIhc Csur Cern-
uda said: Myanmar has
tremendous potential to
become a key player in
the Asian economy. We
are proud to be able to
provide technology pro-
grams and help local
citizens develop the right
skills that will allow them
to maximise the opportu-
nities that will come up
from the region.
As well as provid-
ing memberships to the
DreamSpark and BizS-
park programmes, the
partnership between
Ooredoo and Microsoft
will see the companies
collaborate further in
a range of ICT focused
events.
Microsoft . Ooredoo
_., .:~ ..:~_ .~. ~
.q..~_..~ Microsoft -
DreamSpark . BizSpark
~. ~. .:.~ Ooredoo _., .:
- IdeaBox ~.~..:.~
.|~.~q..: . , .~ .
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DreamSpark . BizSpark
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._ ~..~_..: ,_....
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~. ._ ~. :~q. q. . ,_.
._: ,e.e.:..:.~:. .,
q. .:.~ ~ _ . .. :..
~.~: ~_ .e: _ . .. :.
~~~ cloud ,_.._:~
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.~.e.q.~.~.~._e..|
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~~ q:. :,_.._:~_~.~~e
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.:~ .~:.~ ..~ ~ _., .:
_ ._ . . . .:.. ..e . ~
~, e .~ ~~ ..~. .:._~. :_e.
.|~e''e ._.:_~:..._.
Action Camera-Maker Gopro Makes Picture-Perfect Debut
S
hares of GoPro Inc,
a maker of cameras
used by surfers, sky-
divers and other action
junkies to record and post
their exploits online, rose
as much as 38 percent in
their market debut.
The companys shares
rose to a high of $33 in
early Nasdaq trading on
last Thursday, valuing the
company that popularised
action cameras for con-
sumers at about $4 billion.
GoPro Is LIe hrsL US
consumer-el ectroni cs
company to go public
since headphones maker
Skullcandy Inc in 2011.
Videos taken using
the companys wearable
cameras have made a
big splash on the inter-
net. The company says
its videos attracted more
than 1 billion views in the
hrsL quurLer on YouTube,
where its channel has 2
million subscribers.
Tanya Agrawal GoPro was founded in
2004 by Nick Woodman,
who hit upon the idea
wIIIe on u surhng LrIp Lo
Australia. He raised his
hrsL Iunds Lo deveIop LIe
camera by selling seashell
necklaces along the Cali-
fornia coast.
There probably hasnt
been a consumer elec-
tronics brand as domi-
nant as GoPro has been in
its category since the ear-
ly days of the iPod or the
iPad, Dougherty & Co
analyst Charlie Anderson
wrote in a note to clients.
Anderson estimates that
GoPro has captured more
than 90 percent of the ac-
tion camera market.
Felix Baumgartners
record-setting 24-mile
(39-km) jump from a
stratospheric balloon was
captured using a GoPro
camera. That video has
uLLrucLed neurIy 16 mII-
lion views on YouTube.
Olympic gold medal
winning snow boarder
Shaun White and 11-time
world champion surfer
Kelly Slater are among
well-known athletes who
have endorsed the cam-
eras.
GoPro cameras have
also become popular
among bands such as The
Rolling Stones and Foo
Fighters. The company
received an Emmy award
in 2013 for its contribu-
tion to the television in-
dustry.
GoPro sold 8.9 million
shares, while the rest
were oered by seIIIng
stockholders, including
Woodman and investors
Riverwood Capital LP,
Taiwanese electronics
contract manufacturer
Hon Hai Precision Indus-
try Co Ltd and Sageview
Capital Master LP.
Woodman, the compa-
nys chief executive and
its largest shareholder
with a 48 percent stake,
soId ubouL .6 mIIIIon
shares. Reuters
A GoPro Hero 3+ camera is seen at the Nasdaq Market Site before before GoPro Incs IPO in New York
City.
M
ik
e

S
e
g
a
r
/
R
e
u
t
e
r
s
Go.q. .... .:..~: .~
_~..,..:.. .,.,.:..:.
....:..:. ,.~- ..
q:...:.~ .~~..~q,..
..: ~ .q:.:. ~ ._
GoPro ~.~._ ~.:..
~_e. .~.:q....~.,
Myanmar Summary
~q ee:....,..:. , q:
. . , .~ _. ~~ . :. ._ .
,:.~. . :. ~ . . . Skull
Candy ~ ~~~ ... ~
~.:..~_e..:q... _..
.,:~.. GoPro .: ~.:.
. ~_e. ._.: .. ..: ... .
~..q ~, .. .. .. _ . ~
~.~_e.._.
q e e:.. . . :. _ . ~~ .
._~: ~ . ~ -~, e .. : ..'.:
, . e q .:. ._ .
GoPro ~ Nick Woodman
..~ ~~, ...~ ~_
.: . _. . _..._~... ~._
~.~ ....~q. ~_~
qq._.._e.._e .q._.
O
o
r
e
d
o
o
July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
SOCIAL SCENES
30
Delegates pose for a photo at the event. Marga Group
Delegates at the event. Marga Group
Dan Davies from Colliers International giving a
speech. Marga Group
John Barnes gives his speech. Marga Group
Alex Lau, chief architect. Marga Group
Edgar Kwan gives his speech at the event.
Marga Group
Question and answer sesssion. Marga Group
Question and answer sesssion. Marga Group
Introduction Ceremony of Dagon City 1
Opening Ceremony of Yulchon Myanmar
Delegates cutting the ribbon at the event.
Htun Htun Minn
Delegates pose for a photo at the event.
Htun Htun Minn
Woo Chang Rok ,Chairman of Yulchon LLC, speaks
at the event. Htun Htun Minn
Lee Baek-soon, Korean Ambassador to Myanmar,
gives his speech at the event. Htun Htun Minn
Guests at the event. Htun Htun Min
Andrew Patrick, ambassador of the UK to Myanmar,
with Jaguar F-Type. Jaguar Delegates pose for a photo. Jaguar
Unveiling the JAGUAR F-Type by Stephen Crisp,
director of global government afairs, Jaguar Land
Rover and Dale Jones, country manager of RMA.
Jaguar
Unveiling the RANGE ROVER SPORT by Khin Tun
(L), MD of Capital Automotive Ltd and Andrew Pat-
rick. Jaguar
Dale Jones, country manager of RMA. Jaguar
Mike Pease, GM of Capital of Automotive Ltd.
Jaguar
Stephen Crisp, director of global government afairs,
Jaguar Land Rover. Jaguar
Ribbon cutting. Jaguar
Khin Tun, MD of Capital Automotive Ltd. Jaguar
Jaguar Land Rover Dealership Grand
Opening Ceremony
July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
CLASSIFIEDS
31
July 3-9, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
32
ENTERTAINMENT
Indawgyi Lake in Myanmar: A Bird Watchers Paradise
Fauna & Flora Internationals birding expert Ngwe Lwin invites to visit one of Southeast Asias best kept ecotourism
secrets northern Myanmars Indawgyi Lake
Ngwe Lwin
I
ndawgyi Lake, located in
northern Myanmar is one
of the biggest inland lakes
in Southeast Asia and the larg-
est in Myanmar. Every year
migratory birds from as far as
Siberia follow the East Asian-
AusLruIusIun ywuy und ock
to Indawgyi Lake to rest and
feed during the winter season.
They start arriving in No-
vember and stay until the end
of March. Bird surveys over
recent years regularly record
more than 20,000 wintering
water birds.
More than 97 bird species,
including several species of
global conservation concern
such as the slender-billed vul-
Lure, PuIIus`s hsI-eugIe, greuLer
spotted eagle, sarus crane,
spot-billed pelican, oriental
darter, and black-necked stork,
can be found here.
No wonder that the Indaw-
A black-necked stork takes fight over Indawgyi Lake.
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Brown-headed gulls at Shwemyintzu Pagoda.
Ruddy shellduck.
gyi Lake has been recognised
as an important bird area and
nominated for designation as
a globally important wetland
under the international Ramsar
convention.
At the Indawgyi wetland,
birds can be observed in a large
variety of habitats: the open
Iuke, ouLIng vegeLuLIon muLs
along the lakes edge, seasonally
ooded grussIunds und LIe sur-
roundIng puddy heIds.
At the lake, large aggregations
of ducks can be seen including
lesser whistling duck, ruddy
shelduck, cotton pygmy goose,
mallard, gadwall, falcated
duck, Eurasian wigeon, north-
ern shoveler, northern pintail,
red-crested pochard, common
pochard, ferruginous pochard,
tufted duck, feeding or resting
either on the open middle of
the lake or at the shallow edges
domInuLed by ouLIng muLs oI
water plants.
The ornate Shwemyintzu
Pagoda perched over the lake is
an ideal platform for watching
black and brown-headed gulls
following the pilgrim boats
while hundreds of tufted ducks
skim the lake surface for food.
Towurds LIe sIore ouLIng
vegetation mats provide the
ideal habitat for large numbers
of purple swamp hens, pheas-
ant-tailed or bronzed-winged
jacanas.
At the lakes shore, tall
swamp trees feature perched
greater and little cormorants,
oriental darters and Asian
openbill storks.The southern
lake edge features not only
large aggregations of ducks but
also grey-lagged and bar-head-
ed geese.
The western (between the
Pagoda and Nyaungbin village)
and the north-western lake edge
(between Nyaungbin and the
Indaw Chaung outlet river) is
very rewarding featuring large
ouLIng vegeLuLIon muLs wILI LIe
greatest diversity of water birds,
which can be explored by kayak
or motorised long boat.
The Indaw Chaung (the
only outlet river of the lake),
IeuLurIng seusonuIIy ooded
grasslands, is the best site for
watching black-winged stilts,
red-wattled and grey-headed
lapwings, purple and grey
herons, oriental darters, glossy
ibis, storks, cranes and vul-
tures.
Two crane species can be
seen the sarus crane which
is resident, and the common
crane, a winter visitor and
can be watched as they feed in
LIe grussIunds or puddy heIds,
und y Lo LIeIr roosLIng sILes.
Five species of storks, Asian
openbill, black stork, woolly-
necked stork, black-necked
stork and lesser adjutant are
commonly seen feeding in the
grasslands, roosting on the few
trees in the river plain or soar-
ing above.
During the winter, white-
rumped vulture and slender-
billed vulture soar above the
grassland looking for cattle car-
casses. If you are lucky enough,
you can encounter vultures
feeding on a cow or water buf-
IuIo. Even HImuIuyun grIm ns
might join the feeding frenzy.
Besides storks, cranes, ducks
and geese, you can also look
out for birds of prey (such as
osprey, eastern marsh har-
rier, pied harrier, Brahminy
kILe, PuIIus`s hsI-eugIe, greuLer
spotted eagle) along the Indaw
chaung as they soar above the
water and grasslands.
Moreover, the watershed
forests of the Indawgyi Lake
are home to 350 forest bird
specIes IncIudIng hve specIes
of hornbill: northern brown
hornbill, oriental pied hornbill,
great hornbill, rufous-necked
hornbill and wreathed hornbill.
Heud o Lo LIe surroundIng
forested hills to explore them.
Pr acti cali ti es
How to get ther e:
Option 1: Yangon to My-
ILkyInu by IgIL; MyILkyInu
Lo HopIn by LruIn; HopIn Lo
Lonton village(Indawgyi lake)
by car/ public bus.
Option 2: Yangon to Manda-
Iuy by IgILJcurJLruIn; Mundu-
Iy Lo HopIn by LruIn; HopIn Lo
Lonton village (Indawgyi lake)
by car or by public bus.
Where to stay:
Indawgyi Mahar Guesthouse
in Lonton Village: Basic accom-
modation (Bed, blanket and
shared bathroom).
Wher e to eat:
There are several local restau-
rants in Lonton village. Noodle
soup und coeeJLeu Ior breuk-
fast, and rice and Burmese
/ Shan curries for lunch and
dinner.
Ti me to vi si t:
For the migratory water
bird season the best time is
December to March, but bird
watching is good all year round
with plenty of resident birds.
Spott-billed Pelicans appear on
the lake between March and
May, and many birds can be
seen breeding.
Best to avoid the heavy mon-
soon rains from July to August.
Local tr anspor t:
Bird watching is best done
by kayak which can be rented
from the community-based
eco-tourism group in Lonton
village.
You can reach Shwemyintzu
Pagoda and Nyaungbin village
by rented motorbike or bicycle.
To head for Indaw Chaung
you need to rent a motorized
long boat, also available in
Lonton village.
Ngwe Lwin is Fauna & Flora
International (FFI) Myanmar
Programmes Terrestrial Con-
servation Coordinator. Before
this role, he worked as a nature
guIde und conservuLIon heId
coordinator until he was pro-
moted to Programme Manager
for FFIs Myanmar Conserva-
tion and Development Pro-
gramme. Ngwe Lwins interest
in birdwatching began in 2004
and has conducted several bird
surveys in Kachin state, Rakh-
ine state and Chin state.
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A pair of woolly necked storks.