Weekly Eleven 2007

Weekly Eleven Vol. 2, No. 20 (February 21)

• Commodity prices are quite stable in early 2007 while prices of some export commodities and basic food products fall slightly.  

• Burmese consumes more than 500 metric tonnes of palm oil annually and about 300 metric tonnes are exported from Malaysia as palm oil is locally produced only about 300 tonnes a year.

• Air pollution testing equipment purchased with the assistance of the World Health Organisation will arrive here soon.

• A Malaysian trader is collecting saltwater black tiger shrimp by offering the highest price. A Japanese company also shows its interest in purchasing such shrimp and will come here in mid February to make a business deal with the Myanmar Shrimp Association.

• The Ministry of Commerce said some onion smugglers from a neighbouring country even visited Bayintnaung wholesale complex to purchase onion for smuggling to their country and such illegal trading would be prevented strongly. 

• As a long-term project rubber is targeted to be planted in more than 0.6million hectares by 2030.

• Traffic polices' assistance is still required at the junctions in addition to the functioning traffic lights in order to reduce road accidents because there still are high-speed and unruly driving through the crossroads where there is no traffic police control, experts suggested.

• The China Southern Airlines announces its plan to air-link 10 international destinations including Rangoon during this year. So far two Chinese airlines - China Eastern and Air China - are operating direct air-link to Burma and China.

• The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism is arranging to operate a special train to provide train-touring service to tourists.

• As a first test to provide health care service to workers in the industrial zones 4,000 workers in the Hlaingthaya Industrial Zone will receive tuberculosis check-up and treatment. 

Weekly Eleven Vol. 2, No. 19 (February 14)

• A Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department official said bird flu virus tests had been carried out in poultry farms and there still was no trace of virus resurfacing. The tests are to be done throughout the country and only poultry farms in Rakhine and Chin states and Magway Division are left for the tests. 

• Seven political groups including 88 Generation Students (Union of Myanmar), Wonthanu NLD, ex-NLD members, Modern Scientific Political Economy Study Group, Political Economy Study Group of new generation students and members of parliament (individual) held national political forces meeting and press conference on February 9 in Rangoon. Ko Aye Lwin from the 88 Generation Students (Union of Myanmar) said they had no connection with protests done late January and early February in front of British and American embassies in Rangoon. When asked they were prepared for running future elections he said the political groups had yet to disclose such matter. U Kyi Win, MP (Mingaladon constituency - 1) and national convention representative said they perceived the National Convention as a step to move forward the country's stalemate political process. He said it was better to be ruled by law than by man and he joined the convention to help draft the constitution.

• Thirty-six private companies are assigned to grow crops in more than 1.4million acres wasteland in Tanintharyi Division during 2005-06 plantation season. Meanwhile more than 0.19million acres wasteland are also allocated to 28 private companies in Ayeyarwaddy Division in the corresponding year.

• More than 4,000 Burmese have been working in South Korea while about 1,000 Korean are staying in Burma. Mr Choi Kwnag-Jin, first secretary of the Korean Embassy in Rangoon said most of the Korea's investment here, which accounted about US$190million, went to energy and garment industries. He said that last year's bilateral trade had also reached about US$190million.

• A concert was held at Aungpyaybontha Shan monastery in Rangoon on February 7 to mark the 60^th Shan National Day.

• A range of laws are either regulated or amended for the development of ICT sector and the draft of the Telecommunication Law has been amended tenth time, the Minister for Communications, Posts and Telegraphs Brig-Gen Thein Zaw said.

• Since 1952 to date about 800 Burmese students achieved scholarships granted by the Japanese government to pursue further education in Japanese universities.

• As part of its collaboration in the development of human resources in Burma this year the Korea International Cooperation Agency will begin establishing a training centre and will send 53 government staff to Korea for further training.

• In a transactional period to new administration public's complaints for bribery and misconduct by judicial personnel are invited while at the same time the judicial system should also be shaped as reliable one that can be trusted, said Prime Minister General Soe Win on February 5.

Weekly Eleven Vol. 2, No. 18 (February 7)

• The US sanction-hit garment factories enable to operate about 40 per cent of their full capacity thanks to orders mostly from South Africa. Major orders also come from EU and Japan.  

• More than 10,900 vehicles have been converted to be operated on CNG in Rangoon. Twenty CNG refill stations will be opened in this fiscal year in addition to the existing 20 stations. Required equipment adequate for establishing five new stations has already been imported.

• Border checkpoints in Wan Pong in Tachileik and Maung Mom in Laos side are upgraded and officially opened on January 29 to help attract more tourists and improve bilateral trade.

• The Myanmar Info-Tech introduces pilot project of rural development information system in three agricultural areas. The information system available online at www.mrdis.org.mm provides farmers up-to-date price information of crops as well enabling them trading their crops online.  

• Shan in Rangoon will organise a cultural concert in Aungmyaybonzan Shan monastery to mark the Shan National Day falls on February 7.

• The Department of Forestry plans to conduct a national elephant survey in April in collaboration with Smithsonian Institution National Zoological Park. The 2001 survey listed about 5,000 wild elephants in Burma.

• The Japanese government will provide a grant aid of more than US$179,000 for rehabilitation of flood-affected farms in Kyaukse and Myitthar townships in Mandalay. The grant will be used for procurement of backhoes and pressured sprayers for agricultural use.

• More than 5,000 households from 12 highland villages in Naypyidaw region move to a new town established near Tatkon. Each household receives a 3,600 squared-foot land with a house on it.

• The Funeral Services Association is receiving increased numbers of request for cremating deceased bodies. It has helped cremated more than 43,300 bodies between 2001 and 2006.  

Weekly Eleven Vol. 2, No. 17 (January 31)

• Unreasonable prices of high-end vehicles are expected to drop in February as about 200 high-end vehicles produced within 2002 and 2006 are likely to enter the Rangoon automobile market in corresponding month. Seven companies will import van, wagon and saloon types high-end vehicles. 

• Local gold price rises to K445,000 per tical on January 25 from K425,000 per tical on January 11. Meanwhile world gold price rebounded to US$646 per ounce on January 25 from $605 per ounce on January 2. 

• Farmers said yields of beans and pulses during this year are expected to be higher than that of last year due to the better climate. 

• Burma's rice production is likely to increase 30-fold in 2025 while world rice production is possible to decrease gradually within 25 years, rice experts from the International Rice Research Institute estimated.

• A private Air Bagan received a second Airbus A310-200 on January 22 in preparation for international services to Thailand, China, Cambodia, South Korea and Japan.

• Prices of to-be-exported fishery products are raised 10 per cent higher than the prices described in their licences. The attempt is to help achieve targeted export value of US$450million in this fiscal year.

• About 180,000 units of GSM mobile phones are estimated to be leased to the public by the end of 2006 and mobile phone connection becomes available in 23 cities throughout the country. So far total of 146,321 mobile telephones including CDMA and cellular phones and 303,228 landline phones are in use.

• Numbers of Burmese travelling to Russia increase annually and more than 800 Burmese went to Russia last year with education and business purposes. About 700 and 500 Burmese travelled in 2005 and 2004 respectively.

• China Earthquake Administration agreed to contribute two earthquake gauges to be installed in Myittkyina and either Mandalay or Naypyidaw by August this year.

• The Japanese government, under the grassroots grant assistance scheme, contributed US$ 85,248 and $ 84,682 to the specialist hospitals in Waibargi in Rangoon and Kandawnadi in Mandalay for upgrading of the facilities. It also provided a grant aid of $ 28,064 for installation of a water supply system in Ngathayouk Station Hospital in Nyaung-U. The school construction committee for fire victims in Hlaing Township also received $80,292 grant aid from the Japanese government for expansion of school building in Shwe Pyi Tha Township.

• Inflow of import commodities entering via Burma-Thailand borders is slow as Thailand traders are to take time sending their export product lists to a central computer centre in Bangkok that is recently strictly controlled by its authorities.

• Rangoonites suffered more power shortage as gas turbines in Thaketa and Hlawga were shut down temporarily for maintenance since early January.

• The Department of Human Settlement and Housing announced the cancellation public ownership of land plots in 60, 61, 77 and 78 wards in Dagon Seitkkan Township as those areas are included in a state project area. It will refund the owners from February 2 to April 30. The land plots were allocated to members of Myanmar Motion Picture Association, Myanmar Music Asiayon, Myanmar Theatrical Association and the Ministry of Construction personnel.   

• State schools in Rangoon increase security measure after a bomb blast in Bahan post office on January 15.

Weekly Eleven Vol. 2, No. 16 (January 24)

• The government will auction its seven rice mills and a bran oil grinding mill under its privatisation program. Bidding proposals are to be submitted on January 26 only.

• About 43.8 per cent of rural people still used indigenous medicine, most of which are unregistered, to cure malaria, according to a survey conducted in 21 villages in Bago Division by the Department of Medical Research (Lower Myanmar).

• British Virgin Island-based MPRL E and P Pte Ltd signed a production-sharing contract with Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise on January 18 to explore and produce oil and natural gas in offshore.

• A research done by FAO and international experts ranked Burma the 20^th top forest-covered country with the forest coverage of about 32.222million hectors in 2005.

• The Shwedagon Pagoda attracted more than 0.15million tourists from January to December last year. Tourists are to pay five FEC/US$ per head for entrance fee.

• The environmentalists expressed their concerns on existence of gold mines in Hukaung Valley, world's largest tiger reserve in Kachin State, citing their existence would damage environmental situation and the wildlife conservation activities in the valley.

• The National AIDS Program held a meeting on January 12 in collaboration with UNAIDS and UNIC in an attempt to increase cooperation from media in fighting HIV/AIDS.

• Daily meat production in Rangoon falls as a result of higher animal feed price, increasing cost of farming and other overhead costs. Beef production is decreased to 10,000 from 15,000 visses per day while pork production to 40,000 from 50,000 visses per day.

• To-be publicly listed Golden Land East Asia Economic Development Co., Ltd will build its branch office in China's Nannin in cooperation with a Chinese company.

Weekly Eleven Vol. 2, No. 15 (January 17)

• A Ministry of Labour official said the ministry had helped settled almost all of 3,652 disputes between employers and employees occurred from 1988 and 2006. The settlements made 400,49 workers to achieve compensations of more than K731million, US$6,498, FEC104319 and Baht30,205.

• The European Commission contributed Euro15.5million to organisations that are providing social activities in Burma and its border areas.

• A public holding limited will be established in order to help manage paddy and rice market. The Myanmar Paddy and Rice Traders' Association, Diamond Star and Shwe Ngagarmin companies will be the major shareholders of the holding limited.

• Teak is planted in 1,000 acres annually in Pyinmana forest reserve since 1998-99 fiscal year.

• Fish supply to the central fish wholesale market in Kyitmyindaing is decreasing since later 2005 even though all fish producing regions supply theirs regularly.

• The Ministry of Commerce lifted ban on import of Thailand's oranges, which previously were smuggled via borders. The move will enable the country to collect taxes on importing such fruit.

• The involvement of Burmese embassies in the countries like Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore where many Burmese labours work officially was crucial for settling the workers' troubles, the labour agencies said, adding that a particular association should be attached in those embassies to help the Burmese workers abroad.

• Foreigners are prohibited entering unofficially into 22 areas including Myitkyina, Kengtong, Dawei, Sittwe and Kalay.

• Burma has opened 31 embassies, two offices and three consulates in other countries for dealing diplomatic matters. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the country also had plans to expand diplomatic ties with more countries.

• Two companies have already spent more than K1billion by January this year for construction works in Yadanabon Cyber City. The Minister for Communications, Posts and Telegraphs Brig-Gen Thein Zaw said at the construction site that all future ICT events were to be held in the city once it is completed. 

Weekly Eleven Vol. 2, No. 13 (January 3)

*       Plan is underway to remove all betel-quid shops from Rangoon Division since early 2007, an official from a medicine-related administration body in Yangon said. The betel-quid shops are to be shut down in a drive to become a clean city. The reason also includes stopping those shops from selling drugs without authorisation.
*       Teashops in downtown townships and in universities and hospitals will be liable to use disposable cups since this year (specific time not mentioned) for cleanliness and the better health of tea consumers, said an official from the Yangon Health Committee. Authorities stopped issuing new teashop operating licences since last year.
*       A land plot on which an industrial zone is to be established is chosen near Rangoon-Mandalay highway road in Naypyidaw.
*       About 70 per cent of Burma-China bilateral trade are dealt with normal trade system.
*       According to the Ministry of Commerce, more than US$570million has been generated from export of agricultural products within the first eight months of this fiscal year.
*       Two local automobile assemblers plan to provide passenger bus service in Naypyidaw. Up to locally-assembled 50 mini-light trucks are planned to be used for the service.
*       Rakhine State hosts more than 155,000 acres of saltwater prawn farms that is about 76 per cent of total saltwater prawn farms in the country.
*       A private Myanmar International Terminal Thilawa operates with US$101million foreign investment - 100 per cent investment of Hutchison Port Holdings Company.
*       Onion price later this year has increased to nearly tenfold compared to early year price. The price in December has reached to more than K2,000 per viss and sale is normal at the higher price. Onion is grown at 179,000 acres in 2005-06.