“Two things have been on my agenda lately whenever I speak to key ministers and government officials: responding to the virus, and cementing the collaboration between China and Myanmar, especially the agreements signed during Chinese President’s Xi Jinping’s state visit in January,” he said.

As the largest trading partner and source of accumulative FDI in Myanmar, China has a vital role to play in Myanmar’s economy.  

Just last week, the foreign ministry announced that China would provide US$6.78 million to Myanmar for 22 projects under the Beijing-led initiative Mekong-Lancang Cooperation.

More recently, China has reached out to help Myanmar respond to COVID-19, underscoring Myanmar’s reliance on its neighbour.

For example,  customs clearances in Yunnan province and other border trading posts have been eased so that goods from Myanmar are able to pass into China more efficiently, ambassador Chen said.

The Ministry of Commerce confirmed recently that goods are again flowing across the border at the Muse trade gate, with trade volumes reaching US$8 to $10 million a day. Earlier in the year, border trade disruptions had resulted in over $50 million worth of losses in Myanmar watermelon exports alone.

On March 17, after weeks of supply chain disruptions, China Enterprises Chamber of Commerce arranged to send 15 tonnes of textile and garment raw materials to Yangon by chartered flight. 

“We also seek to coordinate negotiations between workers, companies and the government with an aim to promote mutual understanding so that all three parties can overcome the difficulties at this time,” ambassador Chen said. Many garment factories in Myanmar are operated by the Chinese. 

In a recent interview, the envoy spoke with The Myanmar Times about China’s planned investments this year amid the global coronavirus outbreak, bilateral relations between the two countries as well as individual projects such as Kyaukphyu port and Myitsone dam:

Do you expect Chinese investment to slow down in Myanmar due to the economic impact of COVID-19? 

Following President Xi’s January visit, we hope projects that are part of the economic corridor can move on to the implementation phase from planning. But projects requiring exchanges between technical staff may be impacted. On the whole, Chinese investments in Myanmar will continue.

Myanmar has also been clear about fulfilling the agreements reached with China and implementing the economic corridor. For China, all the agreed-upon investments and projects would carry on, despite the impact of coronavirus. 

People have raised concerns about Myanmar’s over-reliance on China to jumpstart its economy. What is your view on this? 

 I disagree with such a view completely. A country’s development is closely linked to its relations with neighbouring countries. However, each of them is independent and autonomous. 

Myanmar’s foreign policy has seen it develop multilateral cooperation with countries around the world, including China and ASEAN countries. Of course, the size of China’s economy is huge and China-Myanmar cooperation is wide and deep, broadening economic exchange between the two. Thus, this is a natural result. 

During Chinese President Xi’s state visit in January, the two country heads reached consensus to carry on the development of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor. China has advantages in market size, technology, and capital, while Myanmar boasts abundant resources and a huge labour force. 

These advantages are complementary. If we can combine them through the economic corridor and bring about more cooperation, Myanmar’s development could be greatly advanced. All the 33 agreements signed in January are beneficial to Myanmar’s development and people’s livelihood. 

Two out of seven agreements regarding Kyaukphyu have been signed. Does China have a timeline for the inking of the rest of the agreements? 

Frankly speaking, Kyaukphyu’s natural condition for development is not the best. However, Chinese enterprises formed a committee with the Myanmar government to develop this area. If projects here could be implemented well and quickly and linked with the economic corridor, the relatively underdeveloped western part of Myanmar could see better development, and more employment opportunities could be seen. 

The issues surrounding the Rakhine state are greatly related to lack of development. In the long run, more development could pose a significant impact on resolving the Rakhine issue. 

The inking of the specific agreements will be decided by the Chinese enterprises and the committee formed with the Myanmar government. The Chinese government does not interfere with such business decisions.

Criticisms around Chinese investments in Myanmar often revolve around the lack of transparency and that local communities do not benefit from such investments. What’s your view on this? 

The positive effects of Chinese investments in Myanmar from economic development, improvement in people’s livelihood, to the creation of jobs and increase of income are obvious. 

We have also been guiding companies in implementing their Corporate Social Responsibility, including environmental protection, promoting employment, and relations between the firm and local residents. 

In the past two years, the companies have done a lot in Kyaukphyu’s Maday [Made] Island. Now all residents have access to clean water from a Chinese-built water reservoir. Therefore, the view that Chinese enterprises disregard local people’s opinions or benefits is not based on facts but biased. 

We have been advising companies to increase the level of transparency and local residents’ participation in the process. Only through letting the local people understand the projects and the benefits that come with it and addressing their concerns can we make them support the projects.

However, we will continue to pay close attention to these opinions that concern particular groups of people in Myanmar. 

What are the major challenges faced by Chinese companies in investing in Myanmar?

Myanmar’s infrastructure remains underdeveloped. If every company has to build its power station and secure water supply by itself, it increases huge costs for individual companies. The Myanmar government has to invest more in infrastructure, which is a major element that helps the country’s development in the long run. 

Secondly, the government needs to increase its efficiency so that projects’ approval processes and procedures can be less time-consuming. The government has made great efforts in improving administrative efficiency and investment environment. We are also willing to provide assistance to facilitate cooperation between Chinese investors and central and local governments. 

Some people have viewed the lack of mention of the Myitsone dam in public between the two country leaders as a positive step during the Chinese state visit, and wonder if China has moved on from the construction of Myitsone dam. What is the current situation regarding the dam? 

Myitsone dam was meant to help solve the problem of electricity shortage in Myanmar. As a country with abundant natural resources in the 21st century, Myanmar’s problem in power shortage has to be resolved with no delay. 

As a neighbouring country with technology and capital in electricity generation, China is willing to help address the power shortage.  

As for the Myitsone dam, we hope the issue can be resolved properly through amicable consultations. 

The interview has been edited for length and clarity.