News
Affordable housing projects affected as funds dry up
In a serious blow to thousands of would-be home-owners, the construction of affordable homes in Yangon’s Ayeyarwon and Yadanar housing projects has been suspended because the money has run out, government officials say. Urban and Housing Development department director general U Min Htein told The Myanmar ...
Reduction in underweight, stunted children falls short of targets
Reducing the numbers of underweight and stunted children has fallen short of the targets set, despite the efforts undertaken to pursue the targeted plan, a recent government report has showed. The number of underweight children less than five years of age has fallen to 25.5 ...
Foreign diplomats wish Laos continued success in development
The heads of diplomatic missions in Laos have expressed confidence that the current National Socio-Economic Development Plan will lead to tangible progress in achieving continuous, inclusive and sustainable growth. This was the main message delivered by foreign diplomats to the country’s leaders, government and citizens ...
13.5 million Vietnamese suffer from common mental disorders

Around 15 per cent of Việt Nam’s population – approximately 13.5 million people – suffer from 10 of the more common mental disorders, reveal statistics released on November 29. Around 2.8 per cent of Vietnamese live with depression, 2.6 per cent suffer from anxiety disorder, ...
Govt, development partners pursue accelerated development

The government and development partners have agreed on the coordination mechanisms and framework they believe can help accelerate development through the participation of all sectors. This was the outcome of the Round Table Implementation Meeting held in Vientiane province’s capital last week. After the meeting ...
Govt, development partners to agree on next ten years cooperation
Localisation of Sustainable Development Goals, effective development partnerships, food and nutrition security, green growth, climate change and disaster response preparedness are cross-sectoral topics of discussion between the government and development partners this year. Experts from the government and development partners’ representative agencies began discussion on ...
Human trafficking needs urgent action: Mekong nations
Human trafficking continues to flourish within the region, requiring a joint effort by the Mekong countries to actively stamp out the trade and penalise those responsible. Human trafficking is harmful to socio-economic development and social order in the region and could worsen when the ASEAN Economic ...
Officials look to formulate national policy on ageing
The Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement hosted an event this week in Yangon aimed at drafting a national policy for a growing contingent of those over 60 years old. One in every 11 Myanmar citizens is elderly, the ministry’s deputy director general Daw ...
State spending trusted to boost GDP

Despite muted sentiment in the fourth quarter, the government is highly confident the economy could end this year with an estimated growth of 3.2-3.3%. Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak said accelerated state spending on infrastructure projects and growing tourism will shore up economic growth in ...
Yangon govt to offer low-cost housing to ‘real’ squatters

The Yangon Region government is in the process of arranging low-cost housing for “real squatters” in the commercial capital, Yangon’s security and border affairs minister told the regional legislature on November 16. He was responding to a question from lawmaker U Kyaw Zeya (NLD; Dagon ...