City hatches plan for seaside park
The Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC) is planning to convert a public park into an artificial seaside resort and water park complete with water slides. Kanthayar Park in North Oakkala Township is currently a large green space earning income from en
“YCDC’s plan to turn it into a theme park this fiscal year has been proposed to the government. Once completed, the theme park will become the very first of its kind in Myanmar,” said a YCDC official.
He said that the construction of an artificial seaside resort would not affect the green space of the park. Yangon city has a total of 58 parks, but only a few of them provide recreational facilities.
Bago River dams to feed Economic Zones
Authorities are making a feasibility study of the Bago River’s capacity to supply fresh water for the Thilawa Special Economic Zone (SEZ), according to the Water and Rivers Development Department.
The department is also carrying out surveys to assess the availability of fresh water in Kyaukphyu and Dawei.
The Bago River Basin covers about 5,000 square kilometres. The freshwater to Thilawa SEZ will be supplied from a dam to be constructed upstream from the river’s No 2 Thanlyin Bridge.
Authorities will utilise freshwater from dams and artesian wells while building the industrial zones.
The Irrigation Department is building Zarmani and KoLuWe dams which will ensure a supply of freshwater for Thilawa SEZ.
Housing bank to help low-income buyers
The Ministry of Construction plans to establish a housing bank for loans to help low-income earners and government workers buy houses. Ten per cent of the population currently lives in the former capital Yangon, where the government is planning a series of low-cost housing projects to deal with the rising urban population.
“As we are constructing low-price housing, we will open a housing bank to offer loans for people who need money to buy homes. Pensioners, government staff and people who have a regular income can open an account at the housing bank and then borrow money to buy homes,” said Yu Khine, director of the Department of Human Settlement and Housing Development.
“If we establish the appropriate housing-finance mechanism, we can construct and sell houses at prices affordable to most people. Those on low incomes can then buy the housing when construction is completed,” an official said.
