Family businesses account for the vast majority of Myanmar’s enterprises, according to the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
New numbers from the organisation, which is a member of the World Bank Group, showed that there are more than 620,000 enterprises in this country with approximately 83 percent being family businesses.
However, the IFC also found that only 127,000 of the 620,000 were actually registered – 99pc of which were small and medium enterprises.
“Myanmar needs to work very hard in [further] developing family businesses,” said deputy chair of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI) Maung Maung Lay.
Maung Maung Lay added that these family businesses should be “protected” from “being overwhelmed by large foreign investment”.
IFC material said that many local companies are still struggling with transparency issues, undeveloped boards of directors and other business framework issues.
In response, the IFC and the UMFCCI have issued a Family Business Management Handbook, which includes information on addressing these situations.
The IFC has also provided loans to several family businesses around the country.
Source: Myanmar Times
