COVID-19 and the mitigation policies imposed to control the spread of the disease have resulted in a range of new challenges for economic growth and social well-being in Myanmar. In this virtual policy seminar, hosted by the Myanmar Agriculture Policy Support Activity (MAPSA) on June 11th, 2020, experts from the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) presented the findings of an analysis assessing the economic impacts of COVID-19 on Myanmar's economy and the impact of falling remittances on poverty.
In her presentation, Dr. Xinshen Diao (IFPRI) discussed her research, which showed that Myanmar’s GDP fell by an estimated 41 percent during the two-week lockdown with the agri-food system adversely impacted due to falling consumer and export demand, and non-farm employment fell by an estimated 5.3 million. Additionally, an estimated 700,000 remittance-receiving rural households may fall into poverty or become more impoverished.
Through the COVID-19 Economic Relief Plan (CERP), Dr. Diao also provided key recommendations on how the Government of Myanmar could act to stimulate a quick and robust economic recovery.
- Reopening the manufacturing sector is crucial for both Myanmar's overall economy and agri-food system recovery.
- Continued policy support to the agri-food system is critical.
- Expanding the coverage of social protection programs is important.
- The country may need to increase the size of its stimulus package.
Moderator
Matt Curtis, Feed the Future Coordinator, USAID Burma
Speaker
Xinshen Diao, Deputy Division Director and Senior Research Fellow, Development Strategy and Governance Division, IFPRI
Panelist
Duncan Boughton, Professor, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics, Michigan State University, and Chief of Party, MAPSA