Regarding economic cooperation, he said that the total trade volume between the two countries exceeded US$1.6 billion last year. He noted that Malaysia ranked fourth among Myanmar’s trading partners and ninth among the 48 countries and regions investing in Myanmar. He said that the two countries wished to cooperate in organizing economic forums, B2B networking events, and knowledge-sharing programmes on business and trade, as well as conducting joint research and sharing experiences on helping micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) access international markets. He added that Myanmar also wished to participate in trade fairs held in Malaysia. He further expressed a desire to enhance cooperation in e-commerce and digital promotion platforms between the two countries. He said that Myanmar was prioritizing investment opportunities and inviting foreign investment to meet the requirements of national development and nation-building efforts, and invited Malaysian businesses to make greater investments in Myanmar.
 
At the economic discussion held yesterday, the President continued that the two sides discussed promoting trade and investment, cooperation in agriculture and value-added production, and investment opportunities in special economic zones (SEZs), micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), and the financial sector. He said that, given Malaysia’s extensive experience in research, Myanmar wished to enhance cooperation in agricultural and livestock research.
 
He noted that Myanmar’s West Yangon Technological University and University of Information Technology had each signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with Malaysia’s Multimedia University and were carrying out cooperation in education and research.
 
He said that Myanmar and Malaysia could enhance economic cooperation in areas such as hospital and clinic services, pharmaceutical manufacturing, medical equipment, healthcare technology and skills development.
 
He explained that Myanmar had enacted the Anti-Online Scam Law on 31 July, enabling more effective prosecution, punishment, prevention and suppression of online fraud. He added that Myanmar was cooperating with neighbouring countries to prevent the operation of online scam and gambling businesses in the country by conducting clearance operations, systematically destroying confiscated items and dismantling illegal buildings in an orderly manner.
 
He said that Myanmar was also cooperating in efforts to combat human trafficking in the ASEAN region. Regarding the drug issue, he noted that Myanmar’s Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control (CCDAC) was exchanging information with Malaysia’s National Anti-Drugs Agency (NADA) and the Royal Malaysia Police (RMP). He said that online scams, drug production and trafficking were mainly occurring in border areas where ethnic armed organizations were dominant and which were beyond the effective reach of the Myanmar government’s administration. As these are transnational crimes that have adverse impacts not only within Myanmar but also on countries across the region, he stressed that they could not be addressed by any single country alone. He said that the problems could only be resolved through information sharing among regional countries and enhanced cooperation and coordination among their law enforcement agencies.