Myanmar Times
Farmers urge region government to restart Southwest New City project
A farmers group is pressing local authorities to resurrect the controversial Southwest New City project. Though the three companies selected to build the new city were ready to proceed on the basis of approval from the outgoing Yangon Region government, the incoming National League for ...
ILO to research migrant workers’ challenges, assets
The International Labour Organization will conduct research into the experiences that Myanmar migrant workers have faced abroad and how the country benefits after they return home, according to the UN agency. The research will start next month in locations that send the most labourers abroad – ...
Thai officials, Myanmar migrant workers fired after Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s state visit
The Thai government has sacked six officials in the town that State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi visited last week. On the day Daw Aung San Suu Kyi visited Mahachai’s seafood market, Myanmar migrant workers accused local authorities of manipulating the arrangement so that only ...
Sagaing authorities start gold mine clampdown
Sagaing Region authorities in Myanmar are launching a crackdown on small-scale gold mines that, they say, contribute to environmental degradation. But concern is growing that larger companies, which are licensed at the level of the Union government, may be allowed to continue operating. Sagaing Region was ...
Dengue infections down but govt ‘remains alert’
After a record dengue fever outbreak nationally and regionally last year, health officials say the number of cases so far this year have dipped. Yangon Region admitted the most patients, at 390, while Tanintharyi Region came in second, with 227 cases. Rounding out the top three ...
DCA preps new air transport policies
Myanmar will sign air service agreements with the Netherlands and Mongolia this year, and is drawing up new policies that include tackling the profusion of domestic airlines, the Department of Civil Aviation’s director for transport has said. Myanmar boasts 11 airlines and a 12th – a ...
Exporters ask for exchange solution
Yangon business leaders have joined a call for the new government to address exchange rate regulations, which they say are causing difficulties for exporters trying to convert their earnings back into Myanmar kyat. The problem is that the Central Bank only allows lenders to conduct foreign ...
Ministry promotes more water efficient crops
Taking precautions against drought, the Ministry of Agriculture is encouraging farmers to stop growing summer paddy in areas where water is scarce, according to deputy minister U Tun Win. Though the previous government wanted farmers to prioritise growing paddy, with water reservoirs near empty in several ...
Rangoon division parliament demands crackdown on drugs
On 14 June, more than a dozen National League for Democracy lawmakers in the Rangoon Division parliament demanded that authorities crack down on big-time drug dealers and smugglers in the city, who keep evading arrest, citing the worsening effect of drugs on Rangoon’s youth. “One of ...
Ministry promotes LPG industry
The government will issue free licences to small liquefied petroleum gas retailers in a bid to promote safety in the under-regulated industry, while moving forward with plans to allow larger companies to distribute the fuel. Licences for small and medium enterprises to sell LPG will be ...