Myanmar to establish Livestock Research Centre
Myanmar is striving to set up a livestock research and development centre to achieve sustainable growth of the country’s livestock sector, according to Dr Aung Thu, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation.
The plan comes with a five-year project from 2018 to 2023, and is aimed at developing research programmes nationwide. Myanmar’s livestock sector achieved up to 67.32 percent of its farming target during the ongoing financial year of 2017-18, according to the statistics released by the ministry.
The ministry has distributed 16.64 million vaccinations across the country as part of its plan to protect farm animals against infectious diseases. Meanwhile, a total of 14 projects on development of the sector have currently been implemented by the ministry with foreign assistance. According to the scheme to increase the number of working animals, a total of 27,954 cattle were artificially inseminated, while another 118,836 became pregnant naturally.
Myanmar to Host Gar-Tex Expo
Myanmar is set to host the 2018 Myanmar Gar-Tex Expo from March 28 to 30. The expo, which will become the second international exhibition and conference on textile and garment industry for Myanmar, will be held at Rose Garden hotel in Yangon to facilitate new business cooperation, networking, and potential market entry. The exhibition will be organised by Minh Vi Exhibition and Advertisement Services with the cooperative support of Myanmar Ministry of Industry, Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association, Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association, Myanmar Textile Manufacturers Association, Textile Engineer Association and Smart Myanmar.
The garment and textile expo expects to draw more than 80 international exhibitors and about 3,500 trade visitors, coming from a range of countries that include Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Korea, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Japan, Pakistan and Myanmar.
Rice Export Hits Record High
Myanmar’s rice export volume hit more than two million tonnes in the first nine months of the ongoing financial year to achieve a 50-yeard record, said Dr Aung Thu, Minister for Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation on December 15. African countries purchased 60 per cent of Myanmar’s rice exports in the period from April to December, collectively becoming the biggest buyer of Myanmar rice, according to the Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF).
An additional 500,000 tonnes of rice is expected to be exported in the remaining months of the current financial year. Meanwhile, Bangladesh has offered to purchase another 200,000 tonnes of rice through a Government-to-Government channel in mid-December, according to Lu Maw Myint Maung, Associate Secretary of the Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF). The South Asia country has already bought 100,000 tonnes of Myanmar rice this year under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to import 300,000 tonnes of rice from the neighbouring country. The MRF forecasts to export about three million tonnes of rice by 2020.
