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Myanmar Country Guide

Explore Myanmar in Asia

Myanmar with the capital city Nay Pyi Taw is located in Asia (Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal). It covers some 678,500 square kilometres (slightly smaller than Texas) with 47,758,000 citizens.

Interactive map of Myanmar

The landscape offers central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands. The average density of population is approximately 70 per km². The notable climate conditions in Myanmar can be described as tropical monsoon with cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest monsoon, June to September) and less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December to April). Potential threats by nature are destructive earthquakes and cyclones or flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September) or periodic droughts.

To reach someone in Myanmar dial +95 prior to a number. There are 812,000 installed telephones. And there are 502,000 registered mobile phones. The cellular networks commonly support frequencies of MHz. Websites registered in this country end with the top level domain ".mm". If you want to bring electric equipment on your trip (e.g. laptop power supply), note the local power outlet of .

About the flag and history of Myanmar

Myanmar Flag Icon

Design consists of three equal horizontal stripes of yellow (top), green, and red; centered on the green band is a large white five-pointed star that partially overlaps onto the adjacent colored stripes; the design revives the triband colors used by Burma from 1943-45, during the Japanese occupation.


Various ethnic Burmese and ethnic minority city-states or kingdoms occupied the present borders through the 19th century. Over a period of 62 years (1824-1886), Britain conquered Burma and incorporated the country into its Indian Empire. Burma was administered as a province of India until 1937 when it became a separate, self-governing colony; in 1948, Burma attained independence from the Commonwealth. Gen. NE WIN dominated the government from 1962 to 1988, first as military ruler, then as self-appointed president, and later as political kingpin. In response to widespread civil unrest, NE WIN resigned in 1988, but within months the military crushed student-led protests and took power. Multiparty legislative elections in 1990 resulted in the main opposition party - the National League for Democracy (NLD) - winning a landslide victory. Instead of handing over power, the junta placed NLD leader (and Nobel Peace Prize recipient) AUNG SAN SUU KYI (ASSK) under house arrest from 1989 to 1995, 2000 to 2002, and from May 2003 to November 2010. In late September 2007, the ruling junta brutally suppressed protests over increased fuel prices led by prodemocracy activists and Buddhist monks, killing at least 13 people and arresting thousands for participating in the demonstrations. In early May 2008, Burma was struck by Cyclone Nargis, which left over 138,000 dead and tens of thousands injured and homeless. Despite this tragedy, the junta proceeded with its May constitutional referendum, the first vote in Burma since 1990. Parliamentary elections held in November 2010, considered flawed by many in the international community, saw the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party garner over 75% of the seats. Parliament convened in January 2011 and selected former Prime Minister THEIN SEIN as president. Although the vast majority of national-level appointees named by THEIN SEIN are former or current military officers, the government has initiated a series of political and economic reforms leading to a substantial opening of the long-isolated country. These reforms have included allowing ASSK to contest parliamentary by-elections on 1 April 2012, releasing hundreds of political prisoners, reaching preliminary peace agreements with 10 of the 11 major armed ethnic groups, enacting laws that provide better protections for basic human rights, and gradually reducing restrictions on freedom of the press, association, and civil society. At least due in part to these reforms, ASSK now serves as an elected Member of Parliament and chair of the Committee for Rule of Law and Tranquility. Most political parties have begun building their institutions in preparation for the next round of general elections in 2015. The country is preparing to chair the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2014.



Geography Quick-Facts

SummaryContinent: Asia
Neighbours: China, Laos, Thailand, Bangladesh, India
Capital: Nay Pyi Taw
Size678,500 square kilometers (km² or sqkm) or 261,970 square miles (mi² or sqmi)
slightly smaller than Texas
Population47,758,000
CurrencyName Kyat, Currency Code:MMK
Country Top Level Domain (cTLD).mm
Telephone Country Prefix+95
Mobile Phone Connections502,000
Landline Phone Connections812,000

Country Position in World Rankings

Information about single country attributes and how these compare against the rest of the world. The information below is compiled with data from 2013. As such, it may differ a bit to the Information above in the text (which is from 2010).

Geography

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Area676,578 (sq km)40

People and Society

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Population55,167,330 24
Population growth rate1.05 (%)109
Birth rate18.89 (births/1,000 population)96
Death rate8.05 (deaths/1,000 population)95
Net migration rate-0.30 (migrant(s)/1,000 population)123
Maternal mortality rate200.00 (deaths/100,000 live births)52
Infant mortality rate46.31 (deaths/1,000 live births)46
Life expectancy at birth65.60 (years)170
Total fertility rate2.21 (children born/woman)102
Health expenditures2.00 (% of GDP)190
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate0.60 (%)62
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS240,000 24
HIV/AIDS - deaths18,000 17
Obesity - adult prevalence rate4.00 (%)172
Children under the age of 5 years underweight22.60 (%)26
Education expenditures0.80 (% of GDP)172

Economy

Value nameValueWorld Rank
GDP (purchasing power parity)90,930,000,000 77
GDP - real growth rate6.30 (%)41
GDP - per capita (PPP)1,400 204
Labor force33,410,000 19
Unemployment rate5.40 (%)50
Investment (gross fixed)16.30 (% of GDP)130
Taxes and other revenues4.20 (% of GDP)215
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)-4.10 (% of GDP)140
Inflation rate (consumer prices)3.10 (%)81
Central bank discount rate12.00 (%)18
Commercial bank prime lending rate16.33 (%)31
Stock of narrow money9,965,000,000 77
Stock of domestic credit15,660,000,000 89
Industrial production growth rate4.30 (%)69
Current account balance-891,200,000 108
Exports8,529,000,000 98
Imports7,137,000,000 111
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold4,107,000,000 98
Debt - external5,448,000,000 111

Energy

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Electricity - production5,708,000,000 (kWh)114
Electricity - consumption3,794,000,000 (kWh)124
Electricity - installed generating capacity1,860,000 (kW)104
Electricity - from fossil fuels67.70 (% of total installed capacity)114
Electricity - from hydroelectric plants32.30 (% of total installed capacity)70
Crude oil - production20,200 (bbl/day)71
Crude oil - exports880 (bbl/day)66
Crude oil - proved reserves50,000,000 (bbl)80
Refined petroleum products - production16,700 (bbl/day)100
Refined petroleum products - consumption40,620 (bbl/day)108
Refined petroleum products - imports12,730 (bbl/day)127
Natural gas - production12,100,000,000 (cu m)39
Natural gas - consumption3,290,000,000 (cu m)71
Natural gas - exports8,810,000,000 (cu m)24
Natural gas - proved reserves283,200,000,000 (cu m)41
Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy12,800,000 (Mt)95

Communications

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Telephones - main lines in use521,100 96
Telephones - mobile cellular1,244,000 151
Internet hosts1,055 172
Internet users110,000 158

Transportation

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Airports74 73
Railways5,031 (km)36
Roadways34,377 (km)94
Waterways12,800 (km)10
Merchant marine29 86

Military

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Military expenditures4.80 (% of GDP)17

Data based on CIA facts book 2010 & 2013, wikipedia, national statistical offices and their census releases

List of current world heritage sites

NameSince
Pyu Ancient Cities
Pyu Ancient Cities includes the remains of three brick, walled and moated cities of Halin, Beikthano and Sri Ksetra located in vast irrigated landscapes in the dry zone of the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) River basin. They reflect the Pyu Kingdoms that flo ...
2014