Myanmar water transport to reform service with commercial ways

The Myanmar inland water transport authorities have called for carrying out reform of its business services by running under joint venture with the private sector, according to the Ministry of Transport Thursday.

Complaining that it has been operating its transportation services at loss, the Myanmar Inland Water Transport (IWT) under the ministry is facing challenges for transforming its services from public services to commercial ones with its decades-old ships and to be able to stand on its own budget after the new government adopted a new policy, officials said.

The officials stressed the urgent need to replace its decades- old ships running along the navigable water ways with modern and fast ones to recover from loss, citing that the number of navigable transportation service routes operated by IWT has been spirally decreased as the state-owned decades-old ships have caused delay and higher cost thus unable to compete with modern ones run by private entrepreneurs.

The IWT added that it had been operating the services at loss and at affordable prices for the people for decades, thanks to the budget allocation from successive governments.

IWT has been operating passenger cum freight services along the navigable water ways in Myanmar with a fleet of over 400 passenger and cargo ships.