Myanmar: Myanmar Cracks Down on Dams

Jul 13, 2016 | Prashanth Parameswaran, The Diplomat
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No new irrigation dams will be built in Myanmar under the current government and spending on existing facilities will be halved given their questionable benefits for national development, a deputy minister reportedly said July 13. With Myanmar’s irrigation dams failing to boost agricultural production and farmer welfare, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation Tun Win said that the government would suspend the building of new dams. He added that it had decided to halve maintenance spending for existing dams for the 2016-2017 fiscal year from 24 billion kyats ($20.3 million).