May 30, 2020
By Nyein Nyein
The government has reserved about 2,200 tonnes of rice within a month, according to the press statement of Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF) on 28 May.
The Ministry of Commerce, Myanmar Inspection and Testing Service (MITS), the authorized organization of the State and MRF have implemented the rice reserve scheme since 30 April. The state has purchased about 2,200 tonnes of rice from 80 companies as of 27 May, in line with the set rules and regulations.
The exporters have to sell 10 per cent of total export volume (25% broken, well-milled and sorted rice), stated in the export declaration as country’s reserved rice.
The reserved rice must be sent to the state’s warehouse. MITS, the authorized organization of the State, will inspect and verify the quality and quantity.
The Yangon Region government will receive the reserved rice proportioned by sea trade, while some per cent of the border export will be stored at the Consumer Affairs Department in Mandalay Region.
The country has the rice reserve scheme for emergency case beyond self-sufficiency in the domestic market. Myanmar’s rice export has returned to normal in May and it intends to ship over 2 million tonnes of rice in the current financial year, according to the MRF.
The Federation has been negotiating with the government concerning the export depending on the situations of the coronavirus pandemic and the local and foreign markets.
It is the harvest time of summer paddy and the federation is making efforts for the growers to get a decent price. Additionally, MRF, its subsidiary organizations and the rice traders are coordinating to have a much fairer price of rice for the consumers during the coronavirus pandemic.
Local market constitutes over 70 per cent of production, whereas some portion of the remaining is sent to the foreign market and some of them are left for rice reserve.
Ministry of Commerce and Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF) have planned to export 100,000 tonnes of rice through sea trade and 50,000 tonnes through border trade in May.
They are negotiating with ASEAN and the neighbouring countries to sell the rice through government (G to G) plan.(Translated by Ei Myat Mon)
