Doing Business in Myanmar

When I was doing my market research for launching a product in Myanmar (also known as Burma), I found that information about Myanmar is very limited.   The U.S. government used to have restrictions of doing business in Myanmar for about 15 years.  However, On July 11^th, 2012 President Obama announced to ease sanctions to allow U.S companies to do business in Myanmar (Whitehouse.gov).  

In his statement, President Obama explains why the US decided to ease restrictions on doing business in Myanmar – to help Myanmar “to make important economic and political reforms.” And this will provide “significant benefits to the people of Myanmar (Whitehouse.gov).”  President Obama indicates that the US Government would remains concerned about the lack of transparency in Myanmar’s investment environment and the military’s role in the economy due to Myanmar’s political and economic reforms remain uncompleted. He emphasized that US companies need to do business in Myanmar responsibly and follow the US Government’s guidelines. Lastly, President Obama states that his Administration will continue to support Myanmar “in its efforts to work toward international standards for economic growth, responsible governance, and human rights (Whitehouse.gov).

Myanmar is a resource-rich country that has a big market potential. Since the U.S government is allowing U.S companies to do business in Myanmar, let’s check out some political and economic information of doing business over there.

According to globalEDGE, Myanmar, also known as Burma, is a country in Southeast Asia bordered by the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. Neighboring countries include Bangladesh, China, India, Laos, and Thailand. Myanmar has a strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes. The government system is a Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council and the head of government is the Prime Minister.

Opium in Myanmar

Myanmar has a complex economic system combing both traditional and command economic systems. Many citizens engage in subsistence agriculture; however, the central government has a strong influence. Myanmar is a member of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multisectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). Myanmar is an agricultural base country. It has vast hardwood timber, natural gas, and fishery reserves and is a leading source of gems and jade. Myanmar is also the world’s second largest producer of opium, and a major source of illegal drugs, including amphetamines. Opium bans implemented since 2002.

According to Central Intelligence Agency, the business climate in Myanmar is known as opaque, corrupt, and highly inefficient. However, since 2011, the Myanmar government opens up the economy by lowering export taxes, easing restrictions on its financial sector, and reaching out to international organizations for assistance.

Doing business in Myanmar is still not easy by it does have a lot of opportunities for U.S companies to expand their markets.  As the Myanmar government has “initiated a series of political and economic reforms landing to a substantial opening of the long-isolated country (Central Intelligence Agency).” Furthermore, the U.S. government also has guidelines and laws to guide and protect U.S. companies that want to do business in Myanmar.  There is no harm to take the risk and be the first to take over the market in Myanmar.

For more information, please check out these links that listed below:

http://export.gov/thailand/doingbusinessinthailand/doingbusinessinburma/index.asp

http://burma.usembassy.gov/doing-business-local.html

http://www.myanmar.ca/business/index.htm

http://www.myanmars.net/myanmar-business/