ILO Asia-Pacific Garment and Footwear Sector Research Note Issue 6

Employment and wages in Myanmar's nascent garment sector

This research note examines the garment, textile and footwear sector in Myanmar, a sector that appears poised for strong growth.

Given recent political reforms, global clothing retailers are reportedly viewing Myanmar as the next potential production base in the low-end GTF supply chain in developing Asia. This note presents estimates of employment, wages and working time in the GTF sector in Myanmar, based on data from the official labour force survey conducted in 2015.[1] The findings provide a robust, empirical basis for assessing current industry dynamics in the country relative to other regional competitors.