THE business chamber in Mandalay, Myanmar’s northern economic hub, is undertaking modernisation through a partnership programme with a regional chamber of commerce in Germany. The German IHK Reutlingen (Industrie und Handelskammer Reutlingen) is currently undertaking a three-year agreement with the Mandalay Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MRCCI) to restructure the latter and modernise its […]
Zayar Thaw: from Rapper to Myanmar lawmaker
February 16, 2017 by
YANGON Myanmar’s parliament building, constructed by the former military junta in capital city Naypyitaw, is so gorgeous it could be mistaken for a palace. The lawmakers attending sessions there have become more diverse along with progress in democratization in the country. They include former physicians, as well as lawyers and business executives. But none of […]
A New Era for China-Myanmar Relations?
December 15, 2015 by
With the National League for Democracy’s (NLD) landslide victory in the general elections in November, China expects a new page in Myanmar’s domestic politics and foreign policy under the new government to be inaugurated at the end of March 2016. The NLD’s yet-to-be-clarified policy direction has led to a major sense of uncertainty in the […]
Thai spirits sagging while Myanmar rises
December 1, 2015 by
BANGKOK — Do not be fooled by the throngs of Chinese tourists clogging the entrance to the gilded Grand Palace, the roads buzzing with traffic or the plastic smiles of hostesses greeting the business lunch crowd at luxury hotels. Thailand is in a rut. The economy is moribund and Thai households are among the most […]
Slow revival for oldest university
November 4, 2015 by
Unruly, overgrown grass lines the fences. A stray dog is taking a nap on the main road that stretches across the length of the campus. Save for the rustling of leaves from trees along the pathway, all is quiet. Only a handful of students are making their way to class. Most of them are dressed […]
Smartphones Bring Happiness And Headaches To Myanmar
September 17, 2015 by
The number of mobile subscribers in Myanmar has quickly grown in a short five years from a mere 500,000 to more than 22 million — giving Burmese a crash course in all the benefits and challenges new technology can bring. Myanmar’s low electrification rates, recurring power outages and poor Internet infrastructure mean that this growth […]
In Myanmar, Newly Free Media Struggle to Turn a Profit
November 28, 2013 by
YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar’s journalists celebrated this year when the government lifted a five-decade ban on private newspapers. But six months after a dozen dailies rushed into production, journalists who had withstood the wrath and cruelty of a military dictatorship are struggling against something much more mundane: market forces. Despite expectations of pent-up demand, publishers […]
