Arakan entrepreneurs want ‘practical assistance’ from state government

By DMG 05 Nov 2022

DMG Newsroom
5 November 2022, Sittwe

Local business owners have urged the Arakan State Administration Council (ASAC) under Myanmar’s military regime to do more than provide lip service to its stated aim of facilitating the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Arakan State.

Despite the ASAC’s coordination meetings on MSME development, junta officials barely listen to the voices and concerns of MSME business owners, according to Ko Nyi Toe Min, chairman of the MSME Association Rakhine.

“They are only talking about policies, but they know nothing about how MSME business owners are struggling on the ground. We have requested that our voices be heard, but it has fallen on deaf ears,” he said.

In a letter, the MSME Association Rakhine requested a meeting with ASAC chairman Dr. Aung Kyaw Min to present the difficulties facing MSMEs in Arakan State, but there has been no response so far.

The association was formed in March of this year with a view to exchanging technologies among MSME businesspeople, networking with local and foreign businesses, and creating markets for products manufactured by local MSMEs.

MSMEs in Arakan State primarily need financial and technical support for development, according to the chairman of the Arakan State Chamber of Commerce and Industry, U Tin Aung Oo.

“MSMEs need funds to buy land and construct buildings. They also need technical assistance,” he said. “They should have easy access to low-interest loans, either from the government or nongovernmental organisations. Only then, MSMEs will develop over time.”

Arakan State needs to reduce its reliance on other regions and states to supply the local population, and MSMEs play a key role in doing this, said prominent Arakan State businessman U Khin Maung Gyi.

“MSMEs need funds for capital investment and operations. And it is not easy to get bank loans. Authorities should ease restrictions. And authorities must provide practical assistance rather than talking about policies,” he said.

Previous governments only adopted policies, and failed to implement practical plans for MSME development in Arakan State, U Khin Maung Gyi added.

DMG was unable to contact the ASAC economy minister, U San Shwe Maung, and ASAC spokesman U Hla Thein, for comment.

At a coordination meeting on Friday to prepare for an exhibition on MSME development, Dr. Aung Kyaw Min said the ASAC would assist as much as it can for MSME development in Arakan State.

“Department officials must join efforts to develop MSMEs, and address the challenges facing business owners in line with the law and procedures. We, the ASAC, will help as much as we possibly can,” the ASAC chairman wrote on his Facebook page.

MSME development will contribute significantly to the development of Arakan State, and the manufacturing of goods that are necessary for domestic consumption will address commodity price hikes, he added.