Parliament : Agriculture, Industry Priorities For Nat'l Dev't

Parliament continued its sessions in the capital Nay Pyi Taw, Wednesday. At the Pyihtaungsu Hluttaw, Union Parliament, the joint bill committee discussed the National Project Bill for the next fiscal year. There are 284 national projects targeted to be implemented by 8 ministries, with over 5.3 trillion kyat estimated budget. According to the bill, about 18 trillion kyat is targeted to be earned from exports in the next fiscal year.  As for the telecommunication sector, mobile phone users are targeted to be increased to 338 out of 1,000 people in the next fiscal year comparing with the current 328.  In addition, agriculture sector and industrial sector are targeted to be improved to 4.6% and 11.3% respectively through national projects. Despite higher targets, the bill committee said increasing inflation and foreign currency rates would be a major challenge for the country’s economic development in the next fiscal year. The Ministry of National Planning and Economic Development then followed and reported their activities on the National Comprehensive Development Plan (NCDP), a 20-year master plan (2010-2030) for the country’s economic development. The project is running with 5 phases, with the first phase able to boost the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) from 6% in 2011-2012 to about 9% in 2013-2014 Fiscal year. The ministry eyes on agriculture and industrial sectors as priorities in the coming phases, given their higher potential in creating jobs. Annual GDP for a person is estimated to reach between 2,000 from 4,000 in 2030, depending on economic opportunities with other countries.