Not Open for Business: Despite Elections, Investor Risk Remains High in Burma

The April 1 Burmese by-elections are being heralded as a great success both for the people of Burma and for the international community after more than a decade of sanctions. While there is cause to celebrate in the wake of initial reforms by President Thein Sein and the electoral victory of Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, high levels of risk for investors – and the people of Burma – remain [...]

Burma in the Balance: The Role of Foreign Assistance in Supporting Burma’s Democratic Transition

The historic constraints on donor interventions in Burma—whether self-imposed sanctions or regime-imposed barriers—are increasingly giving way to a sense of heightened optimism about the possibilities of working on issues across the development spectrum. But while the terrain appears to be improving, there remain substantial barriers to effective programming beyond the overall pace and scope of political reform [...]

Burma’s Economy: Mismanagement as Usual

Contrary to the regime’s rhetoric of substantial economic reform, the Burmese economy remains hostage to the same oppressive and misguided economic policies that have stunted its development for decades.

The military continues to control the bulk of the budget, with no improvement in transparency. The regime also maintains a dual exchange rate system in order to siphon off funds into private accounts, starving the national budget of official revenue and inflating the fiscal deficit [...]

Report on Tourism in Burma

[...] The Association Info-Birmanie has decided to publish this report in order to bring clarifications to those who consider going to Burma on the ins and outs of the issue of tourism. We consider that the information furnished by the travel agencies only; insisting on Burma’s beauty, the Country “of a thousand and one temples” are insufficient and that it is necessary to have the most amount of information possible in order to decide whether to travel to Burma or not [...]

The ADB in Burma: Behind the Scenes

This paper recommends that until the people of Burma can meaningfully participate in development decisions, preconditions for responsible investment are in place, and adverse impacts can be mitigated, then the ADB should refrain from any form of new engagement with Burma. If they do engage (i.e., fund, facilitate, administer) in Burma, the ADB must follow the International Financial Corporation’s “Sustainability Framework” and adhere to their own safeguard policies, including safeguards on Involuntary Resettlement, Environment and Indigenous People, as well as the ADB’s Accountability Mechanism and Public Communications Policy [...]

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi Delivers Speech at World Economic Forum

On Thursday, 28 January 2011, Aung San Suu Kyi delivered a special message to political and business leaders attending the Annual Meeting in Davos. “We need investments in technology and infrastructure,” she pleaded, as Burma strives for national reconciliation, political stability and economic growth.

Watch the video here.

Burma’s Economy 2010: A Fresh Look at Some Elemental Issues

The serial underperformer of the Asia-­Pacific, Burma’s economy is unbalanced, volatile, and largely without the institutions and qualities necessary to achieve sustainable economic growth and development. Using new and hitherto largely unobtainable data, this paper explores the fundamentals of Burma’s economy, examining concerns over economic growth, public finances, monetary and financial policies, international trade and investment, privatisation actions, and post-­Cyclone Nargis aid. The paper concludes pessimistically as to the likelihood of meaningful change in Burma in the foreseeable future [...]

Dissecting the Data: Burma’s Macroeconomy at the Cusp of the 2010 ‘Elections’

Burma’s macroeconomy is unbalanced, unstable and largely without the institutions and attributes necessary to achieve transformational growth. Employing new data and techniques selected to gaze through the characteristic informational fog, this paper aims to examine the fundamentals of Burma’s macroeconomy as it stands at the cusp of the 2010 elections. These elections, already without political credibility, promise little in the way of the reforms Burma needs to achieve economic stability and growth [...]

The Economy of Burma/Myanmar on the Eve of the 2010 Elections

This report examines the economy of Burma at a crucial moment in Southeast Asia’s most troubled country. A lowintensity
conflict based on ethnic and religious differences has simmered since independence in 1948. The country’s military rulers have been waging an existential struggle with a democratic movement led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi since they repudiated her party’s election victory in 1990. Before the end of 2010, an election will be held that is more about transferring power to a new generation of military officers than making a transition to civilian rule [...]

The Efficacy of Economic Sanctions on Burma

Dr. Turnell argues for economic sanctions against Burma’s military regime by examining some of the commonly-held misconceptions of sanctions. He believes that sanctions imposed upon Burma’s military regime by the [...]