[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 139 (Friday, November 14, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1585-E1586]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   HONORING AMBASSADOR U KYAW MYO HTUT AND THE GOVERNMENT OF MYANMAR

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA

                           of american samoa

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, November 14, 2014

  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend Myanmar for 
its positive developments in political transition and economic affairs.
  After decades of isolation, Myanmar started a series of drastic 
political and economic reforms under President U Thein Sein in 2011 
that present a promising opportunity for sustainable development toward 
democratization, freedom, rule of law and peace--crucial factors for a 
life of dignity.
  President U Thein Sein was welcomed to the White House in May 2013, 
the first Myanmar leader to visit the United States in 47 years. He 
updated President Obama on key developments since Obama's visit to 
Yangon half a year earlier and both leaders praised Myanmar's political 
and economic progress. A year after U Thein Sein's visit to the U.S. 49 
companies were registered in Myanmar, among them GE, Chevron, Coca-Cola 
and Colgate-Palmolive. In November 2014, President Obama joined 
regional leaders for the 25th ASEAN summit in Myanmar and met both 
President U Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
  The Myanmar government is represented in the U.S. by His Excellency U 
Kyaw Myo Htut, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the 
Union of the Republic of Myanmar to the United States. Ambassador U 
Kyaw Myo Htut has been the Myanmar Ambassador to the United States 
since September 2013. Prior to that he served as Ambassador of Myanmar 
to the United Kingdom (2011 to 2013) and in this role played a crucial 
part in the lifting of the European Union's sanctions on Myanmar.
  Ambassador U Kyaw Myo Htut aims to promote trade and strengthen 
bilateral ties with the United States. An essential part of his job is 
to push for more U.S. investment in Myanmar while addressing human 
rights issues. In that regard, he works towards re-allowing the 
Generalized System of Preference (GSP) for trade with Myanmar, which 
Congress stopped extending in July 2013.
  In his role as Ambassador, U Kyaw Myo Htut also serves as an economic 
facilitator and regularly advises U.S. investors and companies wishing 
to enter the Myanmar market. U Kyaw Myo Htut takes a strong stand 
toward the improvement of human rights in Myanmar and shows continuous 
efforts to encourage the United States to acknowledge ongoing reforms.
  Since 2011, the Myanmar government has strongly welcomed private and 
foreign investment. The Myanmar government revised several outdated 
laws, granted licenses for airport construction and telecommunication 
projects and began to rebuild its infrastructure in a bid to attract 
foreign capital. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) estimates that the 
current growth rate of 6.5% could triple per capita income by 2030 on 
the grounds that Myanmar will overcome the challenges ahead. These 
figures are supported by the McKinsey Global Institute, which estimates 
that Myanmar's economy will quadruple by 2030 to over USD 200 billion.
  Being a resource-rich country with a single market of 60 million 
people and a developed private sector and middle class, Myanmar's 
economy suffers from an outdated financial system and banking sector. 
In 1990 the Central Bank Law reestablished the country's own Central 
Bank. Although new commercial banks were established, Myanmar was 
affected by Western sanctions. Due to these sanctions, the banking 
system could not be connected to the rest of the world at that time.
  In 2013, President U Thein Sein signed a new Central Bank Act giving 
the Central Bank more independence while local banks expanded their 
branches and services rapidly. The opening up of the financial sector 
was further strengthened by the country's decision in September to 
grant a provisional banking license to nine institutions, providing 
them with the authorization to deal with foreign companies, local banks 
and--in cooperation with a local institution--with Burmese companies. 
Among the nine banks that have been selected from a total of 25 
applications are the three major Japanese houses: Bank of Tokyo-
Mitsubishi, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking and Mizuho Bank. Singapore is also 
well represented with the OCBC and UOB. Further banks taken into 
account are Australia and New Zealand Banking (ANZ), Malaysia's 
Maybank, the Bangkok Bank and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of 
China (ICBC). American banks did not participate in the application 
process.
  The Myanmar government hopes that the admission of international 
financial institutions will provide an important impetus to the 
expansion of direct investment, as the nine selected institutions 
represent the major investor countries. This is important considering 
the many challenges faced by the banking sector. The country is still 
struggling to recover from the 2003 banking crisis, which had a lasting 
impact on the now mainly cash-based economy. It will require a strong 
regulatory framework, updated information technology infrastructure and 
skilled personnel to be ready for the challenges ahead.
  Much more could be said about the work of Nobel Peace winner Aung San 
Suu Kyi, about President U Thein Sein's policy of openness, and about 
the country's positive developments in regard to religious freedom, 
healthcare and education. However, the policy of openness is not 
irreversible and the international community must do all it can to 
ensure that Myanmar's course is set right for sustainable development. 
It is essential that stability is achieved through economic and social 
prospects for all people, and I commend all who are working towards 
this goal.

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