Construction businesses in Yangon have been forced to halt operations following military council leader Min Aung Hlaing’s directive requiring all buildings across Myanmar to withstand earthquakes up to magnitude 8.0. According to construction business owners in Yangon, this has created opportunities for exploitation by the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC). The directive was issued after a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck the Sagaing region on March 28. Since early May, most construction projects in Yangon have been suspended, leading to various forms of extortion from construction businesses by YCDC and township development committees.
Industry experts note that the requirement for buildings to withstand magnitude 8.0 earthquakes is impractical, especially given the lack of quality control for imported steel and cement materials. The actual ability to withstand such seismic forces depends not only on construction techniques but also significantly on the quality of steel bars, cement, and bricks used. Some buildings in Yangon are being constructed with pending YCDC permits, with contractors paying hundreds of millions of kyats in bribes to township development committees and YCDC for expedited construction approval. The military leader’s directive has effectively created a lucrative opportunity for municipal authorities to extract payments from construction businesses.
Using the military leader’s order as justification, the Yangon City Development Committee has significantly tightened building permit requirements and increased construction regulations. This has resulted in longer waiting periods and more complicated approval processes, forcing businesses to pay whatever is demanded. The suspension of construction projects has created economic hardships for basic laborers and the entire construction industry community who depend on these projects for their livelihoods. The situation has particularly affected smaller contractors working on mini-condominiums and residential projects, while major urban development projects remain completely suspended.
