NEWS - Myanmar Invites World Bank F

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Subject: NEWS - Myanmar Invites World Bank For Talk

Myanmar Invites World Bank For Talk

 .c The Associated Press

 YANGON, Myanmar (AP) - Myanmar's military government said today that
the World Bank was being invited for talks after it produced a scathing
report accusing the regime of economic mismanagement. The report, one of
the most comprehensive conducted on Myanmar since the current regime
took power in 1988, concludes that major political and human rights
reforms are needed along with economic measures to spur development, the
International Herald Tribune reported.

The confidential report, obtained by the newspaper, rejects the regime's
contention that easing a quarter-century of socialist policies will spur
the economy and allow the military to continue unchecked power.

The report attributes Myanmar's malaise to mismanagement rather than
Asia's economic crisis and says the leadership's policies will only
worsen poverty, stunt human development and devastate national social
cohesion, the IHT reported.

A government spokesman declined comment on the report's findings but
said in a faxed statement that representatives of the World Bank would
be invited to Myanmar for ``further discussions.''

The World Bank has stopped lending to Myanmar, which has failed to pay
past debts and suffers an embargo on most foreign aid, following the
bloody clampdown in 1988 when troops gunned down thousands for demanding
an end to rule by the military, which seized power in 1962.

Military spending accounted for 32 percent of last year's budget, nine
times the amount spent on health and twice the total for education.

The report exposes a weakening economy, with inflation running at 49
percent and foreign investment far below earlier levels. A dangerous
buildup of debt due to agricultural subsidies could trigger a banking
crisis, it said.

AP-NY-11-15-99 1149EST