Myanmar Rapid eTrade Readiness Assessment

The Myanmar Rapid eTrade Readiness Assessment is the fifth such assessment conducted by UNCTAD and the second for an ASEAN LDC after Cambodia (December 2016). Myanmar is currently best described as a country in the midst of a triple transition – from a military government to democratic governance, from a centrally directed economy to a market-oriented economy, and from 60 years of conflict towards peace in the region. Myanmar has been focusing on the many new opportunities opened by its reintegration in the global trade system and the introduction of the ASEAN Economic Community. At the same time, Myanmar is also undergoing a connectivity transition. All of this presents enormous economic opportunities as well as significant challenges. After liberalizing its telecommunications market in 2014, the country jumped straight to smartphones and data. The mobile penetration rate is closed to 100 per cent with smartphone penetration above 80 per cent. There is an unprecedented opportunity for Myanmar to do digital, as well as financial, leapfrogging: to use technology to accelerate change and development, and to use e-commerce to move from a cash-only to a cashless society.