The sound of artillery shook the Indochina Peninsula and attracted the attention of the whole world. Myanmar is once again mired in chaos, from local conflicts to national concerns, and chaos seems to have become synonymous with the land.
The scuffle was so fierce that even Yunnan, China, was affected. However, some people have pointed out that chaos is only the last straw that breaks the camel's back.
From Myanmar**'s point of view, October this year is undoubtedly an eventful one. A conflict in the north has not only shattered a fragile peace, but also laid bare Myanmar's predicament.
At the end of October, the "Three Brothers Alliance" was quietly established, and the Kokang Alliance Army launched a fierce attack, quickly challenging a number of military strongholds controlled by the ** army, and quickly gained an advantage.
The situation in Myanmar has deteriorated rapidly, causing strong discontent among the population.
The anger of the Burmese does not seem to solve the problem, and the civil unrest has not only not stopped, but has worsened for a month. In mid-to-late November, fighting escalated in the strategically important area of Lao Cai, with constant artillery fire.
The Myanmar military issued a notice announcing the imminent launch of a full-scale counterattack and called on foreigners to evacuate as soon as possible to avoid accidental harm. According to the military, the enemy not only used a large number of drones to drop bombs, but also carried out a number of raids, attacking our Wehrmacht.
Both sides have entered a fighting state, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces, Min Aung Hlaing, has given clear instructions that the lost territory must be recaptured and the local forces be punished as they deserve! To this end, the Myanmar military has sent a large number of additional troops to the front line.
Not to be outdone, the local armed forces have become increasingly fierce on both sides, which seems to have added fuel to the fire. Before you know it, the fire of this war is getting bigger and bigger!
Every day that the war lasts, the suffering of the people of Myanmar increases. The anger in the hearts of the people has been suppressed for a long time and cannot be released. In addition, the state of chaos has been going on for years, with no control over the various forces, and there seems to be no end to the military confrontation with the localities.
This chaos has caused suffering to ordinary people. However, political chaos is only the tip of the iceberg of the miserable lives of the people of Myanmar. It has been pointed out that the anger of the people of Myanmar lies not only in chaos, but also in another word: poverty.
So, what is the state of Myanmar's economy?
Myanmar's economic situation can be described as "bad", with the country's GDP last year being only $60 billion, a significant gap compared to the rest of Southeast Asia. Taking Vietnam as an example, its GDP in 2022 is about $400 billion, and Myanmar's economy is only a fraction of Vietnam's.
Such an economic situation is impossible to ignore, and while the political chaos is terrible, economic poverty is even more devastating. Civil strife is the roar of artillery, and a weak economy is an invisible yoke that can silently take lives.
Although we live in an era of highly developed industrial civilization, Myanmar still adheres to its strategy of being an agrarian state. According to statistics, Myanmar's manufacturing industry accounts for only about 20% of GDP, and this economic structure directly reflects the low productivity of Myanmar.
In addition, although agriculture is the main economy of Myanmar**, the overall agricultural development situation is not optimistic. On the one hand, Myanmar's modern agriculture is still in its infancy, the future development prospects are uncertain, and the level of agricultural production is relatively low.
On the other hand, the incidence of poverty among the agricultural population is extremely high, and this figure is more terrifying than we can imagine. It is understood that about one-third of Myanmar's population lives below the poverty line.
Myanmar has serious problems in industrial production, electric power, urban and rural development, financial stability, export and foreign trade, etc. Its industrial products are dependent on foreign countries, and the electricity is insufficient, with an electrification rate of only 57%, and an urban electricity consumption rate of up to 89%, making it difficult for rural areas to use electricity.
In terms of finance, inflation is serious, reaching 30% at the end of the last century, affecting people's lives. In terms of export and foreign trade, the production capacity is limited, the long-term import of products is in a state of deficit, the competitiveness is weak, and the foreign exchange reserves are declining.
The tragedy and fragility of Myanmar's foreign trade economy stems from its deformed structure. The inability to generate profits through exports has led to difficulties in the domestic economy. It is impossible to expand the size of the pie, and it is difficult to find the impetus for economic development, both at home and abroad.
This situation has led to a backlog of national debt, an acute shortage of funds, and an uncertain future outlook. To make matters worse, Myanmar lacks a well-established legal system and even breeds corruption, making it difficult to attract foreign investment, and it can only watch the economic data decline.
Myanmar's economic development is in dire straits, and the long-term quagmire has left the people without basic livelihood and anger overflowing. One has to wonder why Myanmar ranks at the bottom of the list of Southeast Asian countries.
* Myanmar's economic woes: In fact, from the perspective of its own conditions, it is entirely possible for Myanmar to develop better. Myanmar is blessed with abundant natural resources and social conditions and should play an important role in the economic field.
For example, in terms of natural resources, Myanmar is very rich in various resources, not only has oil and natural gas, but also has natural gas reserves that rank among the top 10 in the world, and also has mineral resources such as gold, silver, lead, and zinc.
In addition, Myanmar has a mountainous terrain with high forest coverage and more than 2,000 species of trees, including rosewood, sandalwood, teak and other precious timbers. However, Myanmar's economic situation does not take full advantage of these advantages, and needs to be further explored and developed.
Myanmar is blessed with abundant water and fishery resources, and its gemstones are also a world-renowned specialty. In terms of social conditions, Myanmar is well represented by men and women and is a young and dynamic country.
According to 2019 data, the majority of Myanmar's population is in the stage of young and middle-aged labor, which is an important force in the labor market. However, despite this advantage, Myanmar faces many challenges in the global economy.
The reasons for this dilemma are varied.
This is a historical conundrum, and Myanmar has gone through several stages of development since its independence in 1948. During the initial U Nu period, Myanmar's economy made a certain breakthrough, the once colonial economic structure was improved, and the country was moving in a better direction.
However, starting in 1962, the situation changed dramatically. The military clique, led by Ne Win, staged a coup d'état to overthrow U Nu** and establish a new regime.
Ne Win's reign lasted until 1988, during which time he implemented a series of strict economic policies that severely constrained the development of the private economy, resulting in the loss of economic vitality and the gradual collapse of the country.
In the early 80s, there were 680 large enterprises in Myanmar, but less than 50 of them were privately owned. In addition, due to the political instability and sharpening, coupled with the continuous religious conflicts, Myanmar's economic development is facing great challenges.
If we want to develop the economy, the most basic requirement is national peace and social stability, and only in this way can we have enough mental strength to devote ourselves to production. However, Myanmar is not even able to do this.
Myanmar: The Cycle of Time, Economic Troubles Myanmar, a country with a narrow terrain, has a unique geographical environment that has nurtured diverse cultures and divided different economic belts.
The situation in each economic belt is very different, and the living habits of the people in different places are completely different. However, the Burmese army** has adopted a high-pressure ethnic policy, but it has failed to solve the problem, but has exacerbated the contradictions, leading to a protracted civil war.
In the intertwined gap between history and reality, Myanmar seems to be caught in a cycle of time, with constant regime changes, but it has never been able to get out of the cycle and end the turbulent fate of the country.
In this case, domestic production is stagnant, and foreign investors are also paying less attention to the Myanmar market for safety reasons. In addition, Myanmar's economy is tangled in a number of specific and detailed issues.
For example, transportation has always been a pain point in Myanmar. The number of highways in the country is only a handful, and the level of road perfection is not even forty percent. Driving on Myanmar's roads not only involves putting up with narrow roads and poor road conditions, but it is also difficult to find several safety warnings.
These circumstances undoubtedly increase the risk of transportation and make it impossible for the economy to circulate effectively. Moreover, Myanmar's railway network is quite underdeveloped, and the railway transport capacity is extremely weak.
As for ports and airplanes, they cannot be compared with water and air transport.
Clearly, Myanmar's economic woes are a complex knot that will not be easily unraveled. Myanmar is faced with problems left over from the past, and it still has to catch up with the pace of the future and deal with complex ethnic and religious contradictions.
They have exhausted almost all their forces just to maintain superficial stability, and naturally there are no extra hands to put the economy in order. The future direction of Myanmar may require us to wait and see.