The 2019 descriptive report of the Myanmar Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise Survey is the second quantitative report of the Myanmar Enterprises Monitoring System (MEMS) project. MEMS is a four-year project, and is implemented by the Central Statistical Organisation under the Ministry of Planning, Finance and Industry (MOPFI).

The first report (released in 2018) was based on a large quantitative enterprise survey undertaken in 2017 - the first of its kind in Myanmar’s history. This edition reports on a matched employer-employee dataset and balanced panel of some 2,268 enterprises, which participated in both phases of the study. Whilst some outcomes are similar across both phases, there have been broad and important changes over the relatively short period between surveys.

Until recently, research into Myanmar’s manufacturing sector has been limited. This report offers a unique and thorough insight into how well the sector is performing and evolving during a period of broader economic change. It explores issues about the business practices, production and technology characteristics, networks, access to finance, employment and economic constraints and potentials.

The present report supports the conclusion that the manufacturing sector remains instrumental for Myanmar’s economic growth. However, the changing picture in issues pertaining to productivity, sectoral linkages, investment and finance, employment, and business constraints leads to a need for considerations of renewed policies that support economic growth.