Vice Chairman of State Administration Council Deputy Prime Minister Vice-Senior General Soe Win addresses plenary meeting (1/2023) of Peasant’s Rights Protection and Interests Promotion Leading Committee
NAY PYI TAW March 14
Meeting (1/2023) of the Pea-sant’s Rights Protection and Interests Promotion Leading Committee was held at the meeting hall of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation in Nay Pyi Taw at 1.30 pm today with an address by Head of the Peasant’s Rights Protection and Interests Promotion Leading Committee Vice Chairman of the State Administration Council Deputy Prime Minister Vice-Senior General Soe Win.
Also present at the meeting were members of the leading committee union ministers, the chairman of the Nay Pyi Taw Council, the chairman of the Central Bank of Myanmar, deputy ministers, chairman of organization and officials while chief ministers and officials from the states and regions partici-pated in the meeting through video conference.
First, the Vice-Senior General delivered a speech, saying that the purpose of the meeting is to implement the objectives of the Law for Protection of Peasants’ Rights and Promotion of Peasants’ Interests and provisions of its rules.
The agriculture sector makes up 23.7 percent of the gross domestic product and products of the agriculture and livestock breeding sector are important export items.
To enable farmers to enjoy the appropriate rights and interests of peasants, the Law for Protection of Farmers’ Rights and Promotion of Interests has been enacted. Under section 4 of the law, the 39-member leading committee led by the Vice-Senior General has been reconstituted and tasks are being carried out precisely. Relevant working committees are required to carry out the tasks for protection of peasant’s rights and promotion of peasants’ interests.The relevant work committees and teams are required to implement the tasks for protection of farmers rights and enhancement of interests of them. In accordance with the law, the reference price of paddy has been announced in November, 2022. Measures are being taken to form a committee to set the reference prices of crops.
Moreover, loans are being offered under the MEB two step loan program. Measures are being taken in cooperation with relevant departments to offer loans to those who have been permitted to use fallow, vacant and virgin land.
The Ministry of Electric Energy are required to offer technical assistance for solar projects and areas in need of water. Similarly, to help overcome the difficulties of farmers in real time, the Agriculture Department has opened call centres and issued prices for input prices of inputs twice a week in cooperation with the Ministry of Cooperative and Rural Development. Moreover, with the aim of securing self-sufficiency of edible oil and developing the oil crop sector, 1.5 million expansion of oil crop cultivation has been carried out. The government has offered Ks-100.248 billion loans to farmers to grow monsoon and winter sunflower.
In addition, for the welfare of the people and reduction of cotton imports, the four year special project to expand cultivation of 700,000 acres of cotton is being implemented and 458,388 acres of cotton have been grown until 28 February, 2023. It is planned to spend the State economic development fund on 500,000 acres of Mung bean and 850,000 acres of summer paddy.
On the other hand, it is necessary for regions and states to make plans to respond to natural disasters. It is to provide appropriate cash aid when crop plantations are damaged due to the natural disaster. Educational tasks for farmers and livestock entrepreneurs are to be continued for boosting production of agriculture and livestock products to meet the eating quality in the export market.
Plans are to be made systematically to ensure cultivation water and drinking water as well as to avoid damage of crop plantations due to the flooding. In the irrigated water system, 8,855 WUGs (water use group) have been formed with 226,930 farmers as of December 31, 2022. With these groups, 10 WUAs (water use association) has been formed. It is necessary to form more associations for farmers who enjoy irrigated water systems on a nation-wide basis.
To be able to transform the agriculture from manual farming into mechanized farming, farm machineries are sold in cash down payment and by installment as well as hired on payment. It is necessary to organize and form private groups rendering merchandised farming services as an associa-tion of farming services.
It is to carry out tasks to ensure land ownership for livestock farmings and transport animal and animal products locally and import and export them. For fishery development in rural regions, the fishery project of Emerald Green is being implemented in 394 villages with Ks-3 million each.
To ensure recovery of socioeconomic life the people and economy of the nation that was down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ks-10 billion each was provided for Kayah, Chin and Rakhine states, Ks-8 billion each for Kachin, Kayin, Mon and Shan states and Taninthayi Region, and Ks-5 billion each for six self-administered regions, Ks-100 billion in total.
Protecting farmers’ rights and enhancing their benefits are part of implementing the State Administration Council’s objectives and policies as well as protecting the State’s interests and ensuring its economic development. At this meeting, it is to openly discuss means to protect farmers’ rights and enhance their benefits.
Then, Union Minister for Ag-riculture, Livestock and Irrigation U Min Naung, Secretary of Peasant’s Rights Protec-tion and Interests Promotion Leading Committee, briefed on measures being taken by the body. Afterwards, Members of the Body Union Ministers U Win Shein, Admiral Tin Aung San, Dr Thida Oo, U Maung Maung Ohn, U Hla Moe, U Khin Maung Yi, U Myo Myint Oo and U Aung Naing Oo, Nay Pyi Taw Council Chairman U Tin Oo Lwin, Governor of Central Bank of Myanmar Daw Than Than Swe, chief ministers of regions and states and chairmen of associations briefed on sector-wise tasks being carried out for protection of farmers’ rights and enhancement for their rights and tasks to be done. Then, the Vice-Senior General gave concluding remarks on the reports and made coordination on them.
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