THE MYANMAR’S LABOR MIGRATION RELATIONSHIP AND ECONOMIC GROWTH ON THE THAI ECONOMY

Abstract

This article is a part of the research study titled “The Study of Economic Development Impacts of Myanmar on Thai Economy”, during 1998-2008 that funded by Office of the National Research Council of Thailand in 2008. A researcher is a co-researcher and needs to report the Myanmar’s labor migration relationship and economic growth on the Thai economy. The study of these is to prepare to face with both benefits and problems arising from Myanmar’s future economic expansion.

Some parts of the research objectives were (1) to study a relationship between Myanmar’s labor migration and Thai economy and (2) to forecast the impacts of the Myanmar’s economic development on the Thai economy.

The researchers employed both primary and secondary data collected through the in-dept interviews with the key informants in the border areas of Thailand-Myanmar and business center cities in Myanmar. The interview data was synthesized and reported descriptively. Further, the multiple regressions were employed to estimate the effects of the Myanmar’s economic development on the Thai economy.

The results showed there was a remarkable increase in the number of industry in Thailand-Myanmar’s border areas. The number of Burmese labor has risen dramatically. The difference in wages or income between the two countries has caused intense labor migration followed by social problems. The economic growth in Myanmar was the result of Myanmar’s trade expansion especially in export and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). This has provided a positive effect on Thailand’s border trade and export. The positive effect also arose from the increase in income of Myanmar people, the quality assurance and popularity of Thai products, and the cooperative investment in various industries such as oil and natural gas drilling industry.

Thailand needs to prepare to cope with theses effects from Myanmar’s migrant labors and economic growth. The policies and strategies which will benefit Thailand are (1) the development of logistic system connecting transportation of the two countries and (2) the development of the cooperative connection under the agreement on economic corridors. Moreover, the problems concerning the Myanmar migrant labors should be organized and regulated jointly by the concerned public agencies in both countries in order to create the systemic labor migration and employment screening process between Thailand and Myanmar.