Transitional Economy of Myanmar: Present Status, Developmental Divide and Future Prospects

This paper assesses the present status of Myanmar's economy in the context of the ASEAN developmental divide, and considers its future prospects. Doing such an assessment is an unenviable task given the poor quality of data. According to official data, Myanmar has been consistently posting double-digit GDP growth rates since 1999–2000. Myanmar's growth is one of the highest in the world for the period and double that of most other countries in the region. However, a number of international organizations have reservations about these double-digit GDP growth rates. More importantly, they are difficult to reconcile with other indicators of development and the lack of any significant structural reforms. Also, the development divide between Myanmar and other ASEAN countries continue to be as wide as ever. The paper concludes by pointing out some of the urgently needed reforms for Myanmar to achieve sustained development: developing the financial sector and establishing "development fundamentals"