"Taiwanese, Japanese firms in Myanmar staying put despite political unrest, but are laying low" 3 February 2023

Some Taiwanese and Japanese businesses that started in Myanmar before the 2021 coup have chosen to stay put, despite the ongoing political unrest. [...]

KEEPING A LOW PROFILE

Most Japanese and Taiwanese companies with operations in Myanmar declined media interviews, choosing not to draw attention to themselves.

After all, human rights groups have been targeting those involved in development projects in Myanmar, suspecting their investments have been a source of funding for the military regime.

The businesses also refused to comment on Myanmar’s political situation, fearing backlash on their operations.

The Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) said many Japanese financial institutions left the country after the coup.

For non-financial companies, one of the highest profile withdrawals was beverage giant Kirin, which sold its 51 per cent stake in a joint venture, Myanmar Brewery.

However, many others are staying despite the challenging environment.

As of June last year, there remains 413 Japanese companies registered with the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Myanmar.

Mr Yuichi Shibata, director of systems network company Brycen Myanmar, said: “Japanese firms had about 4,000 Japanese in Myanmar. At one point there were only 200 Japanese left.”

“Our customers were leaving or reducing operations. When Myanmar, Yangon was in lockdown, I proposed to my headquarters in Japan to reduce our operation. But the answer was to take advantage of the situation to hire talented engineers. I was surprised. Our staff did not have much work to do,” he said. [...]

Mr Andrew Yin, a Taiwanese garment manufacturing firm owner who has been in Yangon since 2003, said: “Myanmar has a lot of growth potential. It’s likely to follow in the footsteps of ASEAN countries Thailand and Vietnam. So it still has plenty of room for growth.”

He added, however, that Myanmar's unstable political situation is “a big problem”.

“Politically, the coup is an unforgivable act to democratic countries. Customers don’t want to buy your products because of political reasons. There’s nothing you can do,” he said. [...]