The country's foreign direct investments (FDI) may come under threat with at least one major project already put on hold indefinitely due to the current political unrest.
Chief Marketing Officer from the Amata Group Viboon Kromadit told the media on February 2 that the $274 million Yangon Amata Smart and Eco City Project has been suspended indefinitely due to Myanmar’s current forced “transfer of power”.
Viboon Kromadit was quoted by other media to have described the situation as “the worst-case scenario” for the project which is backed by Thailand investors.
They also reported that the suspension will last until a new election has been called.
The project – jointly developed by the Myanmar Department of Urban and Housing Development and Thailand's Amata Corporation PCL – is expected to create more than 35,900 job opportunities for locals in the country.
The Yangon Region Government announced in December last year that they had already started work on the development.
It will be built in five phases over the span of five years on 2,000 acres of land in Dagon Myothit, Yangon Region. Myanmar holds a 20 percent stake in the project while the remaining 80pc is held by the Thai company.
Meanwhile, construction of the US$110 million Korea-Myanmar Industrial Complex (KMIC) in Hlegu township, Yangon has also commenced and more than 130 Korean businesses have already expressed interest to invest. Land plots are now on sale.
Mr Non Hun Seung, a General Manager at the KMIC, said work on the industrial zone is still ongoing. “We have to wait and see what happens in the future under the current political situation,” he said.
The Dala bridge project, meanwhile, is trudging on, said the Ministry of Construction.
Residents expressed fears that work on the South Korea-Myanmar Friendship Bridge would come to a halt but a senior government official said they are determined to keep the construction going.
“Operations cannot be suspended at all. We will continue the drilling work for the installation of the bored piles. We have completed 25pc of our operations,” said Kyaw Kaung Cho, deputy director-general of ministry.
Work on the bridge was temporarily suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting residents to fear the same when the country's political conflict unfolded on February 1.
"We have been waiting for the completion of this bridge for a long time and we are worried that it won't be finished. Only a small number of workers have been at the construction sites since February 1. The people are worried that operations would be suspended or delayed,” said U Aung Myint Naing, a resident of Tabin Shwe Htee ward.
A worker explained that there are three different work sites for the 1868-metre bridge, slated for completion in October 2022.
"The Myat Noe Thu construction site is on the Dala side while the Shwe Taung site is on the Yangon side. The China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), meanwhile, operates the drilling for the bored piles. The Myat Noe Thu and Shwe Taung sites have suspended operations but the drilling for the bored piles is still running. It will only be stopped if the situation becomes worse," said Ko Myint Zaw. - Translated
