The economic reforms and policies ushered in by the civilian government over the last three years are beginning to show results. According to estimates by experts, Myanmar’s economy is expected to grow by 6.8 per cent in the 2018-2019 fiscal year. The National Plan for the 2019-2020FY projects that the nation’s GDP would rise to 7 per cent.

At a time when global economies and political establishments are facing instablility, Myanmar is doing surprisingly well in terms of economic development. Countries around the world are also monitoring this interesting phenomenon. In its report, the World Bank has estimated Myanmar’s economy will grow 6 to 7 per cent in the 2020-2021FY.

This is good news because Myanmar’s and World Bank’s estimates are close, so there is a greater likelihood that the projected growth will be achieved. We must use this opportunity to boost our economy and attract more investments and work together to realize the World Bank’s growth estimate.

A leading economist with the World Bank (Myanmar), Hans Anand Beck, said the new laws being passed and implemented are contributing to the rising market sentiment.

Myanmar’s economy has grown from the previous years because economic reforms were pushed forward with gusto. There were also increases in wholesale and retail activities, flow of investments into the insurance and banking sectors, and spending on basic infrastructure.

However, the World Bank report also stated that Myanmar needs to invest twice as much in its power sector and implement projects thrice as fast to meet growing demand.

The production and services sector are the main engines of economic development. The revival of the textile, automobiles, construction, and government wholesale and retail industries has increased the chances for GDP growth.

Myanmar’s economy was a bit unstable in 2018, but it is recovering gradually. We must follow the guidelines of the Myanmar Sustainable Development Program to maintain this pace of development, with increased cooperation from the private sector, in addition to the government’s endeavors.

Domestic forces are working hard to raise our production quality so that we can achieve the expected economic growth. We can see that there has been an annual increase in exports and a rise in domestic consumption. This will surely support us greatly to reach the GDP growth we are aiming for.

GNLM