Rural Myanmar faces labour shortages
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Hsu/ Thant Zin (NP News) - May 27
According to information gathered by The NP News through interviews with local residents, daily wage rates in rural areas have more than doubled due to a shortage of farm laborers.
In some townships across the country, farmers are currently preparing for monsoon crop cultivation, including monsoon paddy. During this critical period, however, they face a severe labor shortage, with the few available laborers demanding roughly double the wages compared to previous years.
“For example, when we harvested groundnuts in the past, we used to pay about 6,000 kyats for harvesting and removing the pods. This year, that cost has risen to over 10,000 kyats. Daily wages are now around 15,000 kyats, just for a single day’s work. Those with more labor-intensive jobs have to spend even more on wages. On top of that, fertilizer prices have also increased. Unless we get good prices for crops like paddy, groundnuts, sesame, and beans, we’ll end up facing losses. To make matters worse, laborers are becoming scarce—so much so that in some areas, even elderly people are still working in the fields,” said a farmer from Bago Region.
Farmers also believe the labor shortage could be tied to several issues, including the fear of local conflicts, inflation, limited job opportunities, and a decrease in income.
“There are hardly any young people left. Working on farms isn’t all that difficult, but when it comes to crops like beans and sesame, the labor shortage really becomes a problem. In villages, people are worried about when the next armed clash might happen. Others are trying to avoid military conscription. Many have also gone to work in China. Since most people rely solely on income from seasonal crops, rising prices of goods and basic living costs have driven some families to leave together,” another farmer explained.