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Tufoyfof Lyfoyfoyf Ohcogcoycgo. Og
Tufoyfof Lyfoyfoyf Ohcogcoycgo. Og
Women and children are likely to feel the brunt of a steep increase in poverty caused by COVID-19
and February's military coup, according to the United Nations Development Programme [File: Ann
Wang/Reuters]
30 Apr 2021
Replay
“The ongoing political crisis will, doubtless, further compound the so-
cioeconomic impact of the pandemic, reducing incomes,” the UNDP
said in a report (PDF) published on Friday.
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“This is related to the fact that urban areas, where most of the income-
generating activities of the near poor are, have been ground zero for
the pandemic and the focus of the most severe crackdowns,” the re-
port’s authors wrote.
:
Mass protests in Myanmar’s main cities
against the coup have been met with a
tough military crackdown resulting in
hundreds of deaths [File: AFP]
Myanmar was plunged into crisis on February 1 when the military ar-
rested elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and members of the ruling Na-
tional League for Democracy and took power for themselves. The coup
triggered a civil disobedience movement and mass protests around the
country to which security forces have responded with increasing
:
violence.
Food concerns
Myanmar has reported 142,800 cases of COVID-19 with 3,209 deaths
since the start of the pandemic, according to the Johns Hopkins Uni-
versity. New daily cases have fallen sharply since the start of the year.
The UN’s food agency said last month that rising food and fuel prices
in Myanmar since the coup risk undermining the ability of poor fami-
lies to feed themselves.
The World Food Programme (WFP) said food prices were rising, with
palm oil 20 percent higher in some places around the main city of
Yangon since the beginning of February and rice prices up 4 percent in
the Yangon and Mandalay areas since the end of February.
:
Myanmar’s military, or Tatmadaw, controls large parts of the country’s
economy, with interests in Myanmar’s mobile phone system, tourism,
food and beverage sector and its lucrative precious stone mining in-
dustry. Foreign investors, including global clothing brands which have
used Myanmar as a source of cheap labour, have also been reassessing
their involvement in the country, likely putting further pressure on the
economy and its workers.
SOURCE: AL JAZEERA
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