Gasoline And Food Prices In Myanmar Will Increase Due To The Military Coup

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - There are concerns that food and fuel prices will increase in Myanmar. It is a series of 'disasters' in the country following the political crisis caused by the military coup in early February.

The World Food Program (WFP) quoted by Reuters as saying that the military coup which began on February 1 risks damaging the ability of poor families to support themselves.

It said that palm oil prices have soared up to 20 percent higher in several places around the capital Yangon since early February. Meanwhile, the price of rice has risen 4 percent in the Yangon and Mandalay areas since the end of February.

WFP also noted that there was an increase in rice prices of up to 35 percent in Kachin State in the north. Meanwhile, prices for cooking oil and beans have risen sharply in parts of western Rakhine State.

Since the military coup took place, a series of demonstrations broke out all over Myanmar, even in several other countries. There have also been strikes in several vital sectors, such as government agencies to hospitals.

Fuel prices in Myanmar have surged by 15 percent since February 1. Of course, this cannot be considered a joke, because there is an increasing concern that it will continue to increase in the future.

"The increase in food and fuel prices was exacerbated by a nearly paralyzed banking sector, a slowdown in remittances, and broad restrictions on the availability of cash", said WFP.

WFP Director Stephen Anderson said the signs of the crisis were deeply disturbing to Myanmar as a whole. The reason is, the COVID-19 problem alone has not been resolved.

According to him, if this negative trend continues after the COVID-19 pandemic is over, it will be increasingly difficult for the poor to provide adequate food at the family table.

WFP has been present in Myanmar for a long time, at least for the last 10 years. The UN agency reports that it has supported more than 360.000 people in Myanmar, most of them displaced by a series of conflicts that have occurred.

"At WFP, we know very well how famine can quickly occur when peace and dialogue are sidelined", explained Anderson.

Myanmar, which once Asia's main rice granary is now among the region's poorest countries since the military seized power in a coup in 1962.