Myanmar's World Economic Forum meeting tests its woeful tourism infrastructure
Skift Take
Among the biggest travel and tourism infrastructure landgrab is happening in Myanmar, and world business leaders will see the reasons for the rush first hand.
Myanmar’s efforts to catch up with the world around it after half a century of military rule is being put to the test this week as a summit of government and business leaders fills hotels and stretches phone networks.
Myanmar hosts the three-day World Economic Forum on East Asia starting today, with heads of state and executives from companies including General Electric Co., Coca-Cola Co. and WPP Plc attending. Delegates and their entourages have filled the few available hotel rooms, may struggle to communicate over phone networks that have yet to be expanded and will find it difficult to find businesses that accept credit cards.
President Thein Sein has allowed more political freedom and loosened economic controls since coming to power two years ago, prompting nations including the U.S. to ease sanctions and attracting companies such as Ford Motor Co., MasterCard Inc. and Unilever NV. The country needs to spend $320 billion by 2030 to achieve economic growth of 8 percent a year, according to a report by McKinsey Global Institute released last week.
“There is a gold rush” into Myanmar, said Maung Zarni, a visiting fellow at the Department of
