Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) will prioritize the following areas when the investors submit their proposals:
- Agriculture and its related services, value-added production of agricultural products
- Livestock production, breeding and production of fishery products
- Export promotion industries
- Import substitution industries
- Power sector
- Logistics industries
- Education services
- Health care industry
- Construction of affordable housing
- Establishment of industrial estate
Myanmar Investment Commission welcomes both foreign and local investors to invest in these investment areas and the MIC and government of respective States and Regions will provide necessary assistance to investors.
(1) Agriculture
Agriculture is the backbone of Myanmar’s economy, with approximately 50% of its population engaged in agricultural work. It accounts for approximately 20% of GDP. Agriculture plays an important role in the economic development of Myanmar. Myanmar actively supports the agriculture sector to enable inclusive growth, enhanced food security and the promotion of exports. Myanmar’s abundant natural resources and diverse agro-ecological conditions provide a wealth of opportunities for investment across the entire supply chain.
Investment Opportunities Input Industries
- Seed
- Fertilizer, crop protection (pesticides and fungicides)
- Agricultural-machinery industries
- Irrigation technology
- Pre and post harvest technology 11 Production and Processing Industries
- Production industries
- Processing industries
- Refinery plant
- Canning Competitive drivers in the supply chain
- Agriculture cooperative
- Credit and insurance services
- Quality food safety institution
- Research and development
- Consumer bodies
(2) Livestock and Fisheries
The livestock and fishery sector is significantly improved in recent years, with approximately 15% of the population engaged in livestock and fishery work. It accounts for approximately 8% of GDP. The livestock sector is one of the priority and promoted sectors for Myanmar’s economic development. The tremendous potential markets provide a wealth of opportunities for investment across the entire supply chain. Myanmar’s fisheries sector has been accorded priority status by the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC). Myanmar’s continental shelf covers 228,781 sq km and the country has a Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) of approximately 1.05 million metric tonnes annually. In addition to processing abundant reserves of marine produce, Myanmar’s inland waters are home to more than 300 different species of fish.
The fisheries sector is divided into the following three categories
- Inland fisheries: Open water and flooded water
- Marine fisheries: Coastal and offshore
- Aquaculture: Fin fish, crustaceans and seaweed Investment Opportunities
- Breeder and genetic upgrading
- Slaughter house and frozen meat processing plant
- Value added livestock and their related product
- Production of animal feed 12
- Production of bees and bees product
- Veterinary clinic
- Research and Development Fisheries
- Fishing jetty and fish auction market
- Culture of fresh , marine fish and shrimp
- Processing and manufacturing of fisheries products
- Cold storage, canning and packaging enterprise
- Research and development
(3) Infrastructure
The demand for new infrastructure projects in Myanmar is already high and will continue to rise in line with economic growth. The government’s stated investment priorities include the construction of transport, power and urban infrastructure.
(4) Transportation
While the transport sector has a key role in fostering the economic growth, advancing social development, infrastructure will be needed to take advantage on regional trade opportunities. Hence, the development of the country’s transport sector focus on infrastructure priority that will require investment in international airport, deep sea port, inland waterways, strategic rail and highway networks and improvements in cross-border infrastructure and regional connectivity. Investment opportunities
The Ministry of Construction seeks to encourage private investment in infrastructure development under public private partnership for the construction of roads, inland cargo depots, ports and airports.
- River port establishment
- Railway development project
- Establishment of multimodal logistics hubs at Yangon, Mandalay and Bago
- Development of container switching stations
- City truck terminals at Yangon, Magway, Pyay, Mawlamyaing, Dawei, Thandwe and Heho
(5) Power Sector
The power sector of Myanmar opens up abundant and immediate opportunities to foreign and local investors. The installation of considerable additional capacity to 13 the current 5389.97 megawatts (MW) (as of March 2017) and the rapid construction of transmission lines are national priorities. In order to reach the objective of full national electrification until 2030, the power sector of Myanmar must grow a multiple of its current size.
The abundance of locations suitable for hydropower generation, the available rich natural gas deposits and virtually unexplored potential in solar and wind power, along with the expansion of the transmission system, offer significant opportunities to invest in the electricity sector. In the medium run, Myanmar may even develop to the extent it becomes a net exporter of electricity to neighboring countries. Myanmar possesses vast water resources and therefore relies on hydropower as a major source of generating electricity. Foreign direct investment in hydropower plants is permitted as a joint venture or a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) scheme.
Local investors are also permitted to take part in Independent Power Producer (IPP) schemes. Beyond 54 identified larger-scale hydropower development opportunities, representing an additional 42.33 gigawatts (GW) along the Ayeyarwaddy, Sittaung, Salween and Chindwin River systems, there are also smaller-scale hydro power plants as well as other sources of energy (i.e. solar, wind, gas) which have high potential to play a significant role in Myanmar’s national power supply.
Key opportunities:
- Construction of medium to large-scale hydro and gas-fired power plants under the scheme of Public-Private-Partnerships
- Investments in transmission systems (e.g. high-voltage transmission lines between the North of Myanmar and Yangon)
- Realization of small-scale hydro-power projects e.g. to supply a village tract
- Establishment of small scale power generation as well as renewable energy solutions like wind, hydro, waste-to-energy solutions
- To supply off-grid power to villages in the country through national electrification projects to expand clean energy use, including through solar power.
- Upgrading of the current power infrastructure in urban centers and industrial zones