President Office spokesman Zaw Htay has said that Myanmar has enough food despite the fears over the coronavirus.

Myanmar is one of the few countries in the world that has yet to register a case of the coronavirus that originated in China back in November 2019. Some travelers have been tested but no case has been registered yet.

Zaw Htay offered assurance as the passage of goods across the China-Myanmar border had stopped and reports the India-Myanmar border had also been closed due to fears over the virus.

Myanmar, a largely agricultural economy, is reliant to a significant extent on trade in crops and value-added agricultural products. However, its crop production is also subject to the vagaries of flooding and drought.

This month the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) issued a funding appeal for $900 million to reach 43 million vulnerable, agriculture-dependent people at risk of increased acute food insecurity in 22 countries. While those at highest risk are in Africa and the Middle East, the list includes Myanmar.

Myanmar women wearing hats and headscarfs line up as they plant paddy seedlings to grow rice crop at a farm in Ma-ubin township of Ayeyarwaddy region, Myanmar. Photo: Lynn Bo Bo/EPA