MYANMAR and Thailand have begun discussions on a project to establish industrial zones as part of an economic cooperation strategy agreed at a four-nation summit in Bagan last November

THE Minister of Health, Dr Kyaw Myint, was the recipient of a World No Tobacco Day Award announced at the 57th World Health Assembly in Geneva on May 20.The awards, the first of their kind given out by the World Health Organisation, were to honour the efforts of those who have worked to mitigate the damaging effects of tobacco use around the world. .

THE government has rejected accusations by the United States that it had failed to take enough action to allow all elements of Myanmar society to participate in the National Convention, which reconvened on May 17 to draft a new constitution

GOVERNMENTS and aid agencies the world over are clamoring to obtain a highly effective drug that has been used in Myanmar to fight malaria for nearly 10 years, fuelling speculation that a global shortage may be imminent.

WORLD No-Tobacco Day on May 31 will be observed in Myanmar by a series of special events and is also likely to be of special significance to patrons at two Yangon cafes which are believed to be the first in the capital to establish no-smoking areas. .

A K600 million upgrade aimed at attracting more visitors to Yangon Zoological Garden will be completed in June, said an official from the Ministry of Forestry.

RETAILERS of textbooks, exercise books and other student accessories have reported heavy demand in the past two months ahead of the start of the new school year on June 1.

THE Ministry of Health and the United Nations Children’s Fund are planning to launch a program at six big hospitals later this year aimed at preventing the mother to child transmission of the human immunodeficiency virus, which causes AIDS.

THE Department of Fisheries said last week that it will allocate K2 billion in loans to help five companies develop shrimp farms in Tanintharyi Division.U Min Thame, a deputy director of the department’s shrimp farming section, said the project will be initiated on 250 acres at Myeik.

A CEREMONY to commemorate World Environment Day 2004 will be held by the National Commission for Environmental Affairs under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at MICT Park on June 5.

A SENIOR official from the Traffic Rules Enforcement Supervisory Committee has called on motorists to display extra caution during the rainy season because of the increased risk of accidents.

A SURVEY of wild elephants in Myanmar will begin in September with the aim of drafting a long-term plan to protect the population, a scientist from the US-based Smithsonian Institution said last week.

HOTELS and travel agents say special promotions targeting the domestic market are helping to generate income as the number of foreign tourists declines during the rainy season

NEW accounting standards drafted by the Myanmar Accountancy Council were implemented April 1 in a bid to eliminate problems caused by the use of inconsistent systems.

MYANMAR’S first lens and optical factory will open in the first week of July. The owner of the factory, Myanmar Asia Optical International Company Ltd, claims it will be capable of providing lens and optical apparatus to the majority of the world market.

THE government last Friday awarded prizes to the nation’s biggest exporters and praised their contribution towards creating a foreign trade surplus in the fiscal year ending in March.

‘I can’t go without it’
I SIMPLY don’t go out without wearing jewellery. It would be like leaving the house without clothes on

‘Jewellery has become my hobby’ ’
JEWELLERY has attracted me since I was in third standard and had my ears pierced