FrontierMyanmar
RCEP trade deal: Will Myanmar really benefit?
Existing free trade agreements and longstanding non-trade barriers could limit the RCEP’s impact on Myanmar, but the country may benefit from increased investment due to improved access to global value chains. The signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership on November 15 made headlines across the ...
MYAT MYAT MON and BERNARD MINN
‘I often thought about hurting myself’: factory workers suffer through shutdown
Ko Thant Zaw Win, 26, lies sprawled out on the floor, the dim overhead light illuminating the sweat glistening on his forehead. An unpleasant smell dominates the tiny space: too many people, too little ventilation. The room is just nine feet on each side; there’s only ...
PYAE SONE AUNG | FRONTIER
Testing times: Myanmar struggles to keep pace as COVID-19 takes off
On September 30, Myanmar announced a record 946 COVID-19 cases in a single day. Less noticed was that it also performed a record number of lab tests – 6,262, to be exact. As cases have increased, particularly in Yangon, numbers like this have quickly become the ...
AUNG PHAY KYI SOE
Land reform: A vote-winner for the NLD
With the general election only weeks away – notwithstanding the potential impact of the second wave of COVID-19 – political parties are flooding social media with pledges and promises to woo voters. For the National League for Democracy, the November 8 election poses a new challenge: ...
CALLUM FURNESS
Op-ed: Election candidates must pledge to amend the Peaceful Assembly Law
On November 8, the people of Myanmar will go to the polls to select their representatives in both houses of the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw, Myanmar’s national legislature, as well as in state and region assemblies. With over 7,000 candidate applications from more than 90 political parties, ...
NICKEY DIAMOND and JACOB BOGART | FRONTIER
‘The second wave has started’: COVID-19 cases skyrocket in Rakhine
Ten days ago, Myanmar seemed to have COVID-19 under control. Just a handful of local transmission cases had been confirmed in the past three months. The Ministry of Health and Sports has now reported more than 100 new cases within 24 hours, including 99 in Rakhine ...
AUNG PHAY KYI SOE and KAUNG HSET NAING
Myanmar needs to reimagine its economic future
Development should be Myanmar’s number one priority. In the lifetime of today’s children, it has the potential to become a developed country. Combined with measures to fight inequality, finding the right path to development is critical for a successful transition to democracy. It’s also critical ...
THANT MYINT-U
Desperate times for independent media as COVID-19 savages a fragile industry
The COVID-19 pandemic has created enormous challenges for news media organisations, ranging from lost advertising revenue as businesses close or suspend services, to trying to arrange interviews or gather information while complying with social distancing and travel restrictions. The pandemic has only exacerbated the financial pressures ...
NAW BETTY HAN
Melons rot, factories shutter: Myanmar’s COVID-19 fallout
Although Myanmar remained one of the rare countries without confirmed cases of COVID-19 on March 13, the national economy has not been immune to the impact of the coronavirus since it emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year. In Myanmar, thousands of workers ...
KYAW LIN HTOON
The cost of the coronavirus to Myanmar’s economy
THE IMPACT on Myanmar of the coronavirus outbreak that began in neighbouring China late last year has hit border trade and tourism hard, and there were reports last week that the garment sector was also being affected by supply-chain disruptions. As of February 17, Myanmar was monitoring ...
Ye Mon