Myanmar Entrepreneurs Encouraged to

[Rangoonp@xxxxxxx]

Subject: Myanmar Entrepreneurs Encouraged to Invest in Agriculture

Myanmar Entrepreneurs Encouraged to Invest in Agriculture

            Xinhua
            04-JAN-99

            YANGON (Jan. 5) XINHUA - The Myanmar government is
            encouraging domestic private entrepreneurs to turn part of
            their investment in agriculture, which is the mainstay of
the
            country's economy. 

   >>>>>>> In response to the government's call, many are already
            engaged in reclamation of vacant, fallow and virgin lands as
            well as wetlands which are abundant in Myanmar. <<<<<<<<

            In the first phase, investors have reclaimed tens of
            thousands of hectares of such lands in Ayeyawaddy,
            Yangon and Magway divisions and started large-scale
            farming there. 

            A total of 19 enterprises had cultivated summer paddy beans
            and pulses on 85,318 hectares of vacant and fallow lands in
            Ayeyawaddy and Yangon divisions, while 12 other
            enterprises have taken 6,156 hectares of similar lands in
            Magway division and make efforts to grow cotton and beans
            and pulses there. 

            The number of enterprises engaged in the new scheme is
            growing and reclaimed farmlands are stretching. 

            Meanwhile, Myanmar has formed a special group under the
            Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation to assist the private
            entrepreneurs to undertake the large-scale farming,
            disseminating to them technology for the transformation
            efforts. 

            According to official statistics, in the 1997-98 fiscal
year,
            fallow land in Myanmar came to 1.1 million hectares and
            cultivable wasteland 7.89 million hectares. 

            The country expanded cultivated land under crops to 12.51
            million hectares in the year, 185,540 hectares more than the
            previous year. 

            Myanmar's paddy production in 1997-98 was registered at
            17.3 million tons, of which 28,300 tons of rice were
exported.
            The rice export figures for the first eight months of 1998
            were 53,000 tons. 

            Myanmar's agriculture, accounting for 36 percent of the
            gross domestic product and 35 percent of the export in
            value, grew by 2.9 percent in output value in the fiscal

year