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Why residents are moving to this Myanmar township


Why residents are moving to this Myanmar township

Prosperity is spreading even to the country’s rice-growing communities

Photo of ye le paya
Travelers have to cross the muddy river to get to the Ye Le Paya pagoda, a tourist spot in Kyauktan township. Benjaporn / Shutterstock.com

It turns out downtown Yangon is not the only location benefiting from Myanmar’s return to the world stage. More than 20 kilometres away, the township of Kyauktan is stirring from decades of inertia.

Kyauktan, home to the Ye Le Pagoda, is drawing residents to its housing market, Myanmar Times reported. The construction of a new bridge as well as upcoming funding from the World Bank appear to be instrumental to such renewed interest.

Luxury housing can now be found around the Thilawa SEZ, a 2,500-hectare special economic zone that straddles the townships of Kyauktan and Thanlyin, real estate agent U Aung Thein told the Times.

“After some industries opened up in Thilawa, job opportunities increased there and people employed in those industries came to live in Kyauktan township,” he said. “The township is becoming more prosperous as more people come to live here.”

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But while uptown Kyauktan is reportedly popular for good public transportation, travel time to downtown Yangon from the township has only diminished recently with the construction of a 250-metre bridge over the Yangon River.

A prominent part of Myanmar’s rice-growing region, Kyauktan township is set to receive World Bank funding, via the National Community-driven Development Project, for infrastructure development and repair. The project will launch in October.

The Asian Development Bank has expected Myanmar’s economy to grow by 8.4 percent this year, outpacing other countries in Asia and the Pacific.

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Source: Property Report