Coffee plantation in Myanmar. (Photo/CRI Online)
In little over a year, coffee farmers in Myanmar have seen an increase in production with more advanced technologies thanks to the mechanism of Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC), CRI Online reported.
Myanmar is predominantly located in a tropical area with a warm and humid climate perfect for growing coffee beans. The 35,000 acres of coffee plantations, mainly in Chin State, Shan State and Mandalay Region, previously yielded around 12,000 tons of coffee beans per year owing to the underdeveloped processing technology, power shortages and basic storage methods. However, the output is expected to double within two years.
In 2017, China and Myanmar signed a cooperative agreement on increasing the coffee bean production in Myanmar. The LMC Special Fund provided financial assistance in upgrading Myanmar’s coffee planting technology and providing personnel training.
Officials and experts from China and Myanmar communicate in a coffee plantation in Myanmar. (Photo/CRI Online)
The coffee farmers required technology most, and the LMC brought technology and various training, said an official from Myanmar’s Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation (MOALI), who believed that LMC is one of the most efficient cooperation mechanisms.
Fruitful results have been procured in the three years since the LMC mechanism was launched, in both high-level exchanges and the livelihoods of people on the ground, a diplomat from Myanmar told CRI.
Regarding China-Myanmar cooperation, he added that both countries have carried out pragmatic cooperation in various fields of culture and agriculture.
Myanmar and China are neighbors with a close and friendly relationship. The diplomat believed that the bilateral relations would be further promoted to a higher level under the LMC mechanism.