Entrepreneurs tout small business as key to economic development of Arakan State

By DMG 04 Jul 2022

DMG Newsroom
4 July 2022, Sittwe

Developing micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) is key to reducing brain drain and boosting the economy of Arakan State, entrepreneurs in the state say.

“There will be fewer migrant workers if MSME develops in Arakan State,” said Ko Kyaw Min Tun, chairman of the Rakhine Young Entrepreneurs Association.

“There will be more job opportunities for young people if there are factories and workshops. So, young people wouldn’t need to work in foreign countries; rather they could work in their hometowns with their families. Some 2,000 people are leaving Arakan State daily to find jobs,” he told DMG.

Local businesspeople and the junta-appointed Arakan State chief minister and commerce minister met at the office of the regime’s Arakan State Administration Council on June 29 to discuss the development of MSMEs in Arakan State.

“There are a lot of opportunities to promote MSME development in Arakan State. There are only a handful of factories and workshops, although the state is rich in raw materials,” Ko Kyaw Min Tun said.

Local MSME business owners in Arakan State receive little assistance from the government, said U Khin Maung Gyi, vice chairman of Rakhine Economic Initiative Co Ltd.

“The government must grant lands for MSME business owners to establish workshops and factories. It should consult with businessmen,” he said.

DMG was unable to contact Arakan State Commerce Minister U San Shwe Maung and the state government’s spokesman and advocate general, U Hla Thein, for comment.

Junta newspaper Myanma Alin reported that Arakan State Chief Minister Dr. Aung Kyaw Min called for input and cooperation for the development of MSMEs in the state.

More than 80% of Myanmar’s businesses are MSMEs, and the 2015 Small and Medium Enterprise Development Law defines most manufacturing-based operations, including the garment sector, wholesale and retail services, and a handful of other industries as SMEs.

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

MSMEs say they have difficulties in applying for approval certificates for their products from the Food and Drug Administration, and finding new markets, among other challenges.