Myanmar news and archive

Myanmar: female garment workers attacked while on strike

Dozens of female garment workers in Myanmar’s biggest city Yangon were attacked by assailants wielding iron bars on Monday. Hundreds of garment workers at Fu Yuen Garment Co. Ltd., which produced ready-made garments for German discounter Lidl and up until April this year for British fashion brand Joules, have been on strike since August, news...

ManagementFeatured

Will Myanmar become the new Bangladesh?

Tueday marked five years since thousands of workers were killed by the collapse of the Rana Plaza textile factory in Bangladesh. Due to the extremely low wages and tax advantages Bangladesh is the center for fast and cheap production of fast fashion. However, more and more Western fashion companies nowadays are moving further south-east, to...

Fashion Featured

Made in Myanmar: designers put ethical twist on local fashion

With Myanmar emerging as a manufacturing hub for mass-produced clothes, a crop of young designers are using home-grown fashion to preserve the country's sartorial heritage and reshape the sweatshop model. Inside her boutique in downtown Yangon, Pyone Thet Thet Kyaw crafts her own designs using traditional patterns and fabrics, many from ethnic...

Business

Myanmar: garment exports to reach 1.855 billion US dollars

For the fiscal year 2016-17, which ends in March, Myanmar's garment exports are expected to reach 1.855 billion US dollars according to the country's ministry of commerce. This is an increase by more than 85 percent compared to last year (FY 2015-16) when apparel exports jumped to 1 billion US dollars, achieving an impressive increase of 145...

Fashion Featured

Child Labour & Low Wages: The Real Cost of Producing Fashion in Myanmar

London - As Myanmar continues to invest in becoming one of the leading garment-producing and exporting countries, a new report shines a light on the growing number of issues emerging in its fashion sector - which includes children as young as 14 working for as little as 13 pence an hour to produce apparel for high street retailers. Fast-fashion...

Business

Myanmar: apparel exports jump to 1 billion US dollars

Myanmar is boosting its efforts as a garment-producing and exporting nation, with its apparel export volume already reaching more than 1 billion US dollars this financial year (until November 11). This was confirmed by the country's ministry of commerce. This indicates a year-on-year increase by 690 million US dollars or a jump of 145 percent....

Culture

Myanmar's tribal fashions: Quills, coins and dragons

From porcupine quills and fruit, to silver coins and beads, the ethnic costumes on parade in Myanmar's capital this week showed off the country's diversity and added sartorial splendour to the cold detail of talks to end decades of rebellion. Bedecked in an elaborate headdress of feathers, quills and shell-studded tassels, Aye Aye Mu said her...

BusinessFeatured

Factories in Myanmar employ 14-year olds to make clothes for H&M

London - In spite of the pledge made by leading retailers to introduce substantial change in the working conditions of its millions of garment workers around the world following the Rana Plaza collapse in April, 2013, conditions have yet to improve overall, even in other production countries. H&M has been called out for working with apparel...

Business

China keeps eyeing Myanmar as low-cost garment hub

In view of soaring wages and difficulties in recruiting workers, China’s manufacturing industry in the Pearl River Delta (and elsewhere) is looking for alternatives to minimise their production costs, including the relocation of their production facilities to relatively accessible markets in Southeast Asia. Myanmar tops the list for many of...

Business

Myanmar: apparel exports could reach 4 billion US dollars by 2020

Industry insiders expect that Myanmar's apparel exports could more than double to 4 billion US dollars by 2020 due to government policies furthering foreign direct investment (FDI), easing or elimination of economic sanctions by other countries and low labour costs. Already, the country is seeing business from buyers who look for alternatives to...