Power to the People
Insight Myanmar23 Sep 2022

Power to the People

Episode #124: Today’s guest, Guillaume de Langre, worked for several years in Naypyidaw as an adviser to the Myanmar Ministry of Electricity and Energy (MOEE), and explains the history of electrification in Myanmar.

From the post-independence period through the 2000s, he describes how much of the country was dark. One reason is that Tatmadaw was never really interested in developing access to electricity to much of the country. It may seem strange that the military regime did not seek a more prosperous economy, which would have required a more efficient and widespread electricity grid. But de Langre explains how the generals followed a Soviet style plan of state-owned industries where actual productivity was never the goal.


Then in 2000, providing access to electricity suddenly became a priority, and brought about a rapid transformation that greatly benefited the Burmese people and economy. However, usage rates went way up, straining the system in a new way. De Langre notes that the government ended up spending more on energy subsidies than even on education, which ultimately led to sharp price hikes in 2019. This led to exploring plans for alternative energy sources, like solar or imported power plants, several of which were in place on the eve of the coup. However, everything fell apart after the coup, as investors balked at what had become high-risk projects overnight.


Sadly, de Langre also believes that even if the military is defeated, “it would still take years to fix the damage done to the energy sector by the coup… It will take years for companies to trust again and to lower their perception of risk.”


Avsnitt(540)

On the Threshold

On the Threshold

Episode #510: “I'm not an activist,” says Bart Was Not Here, a Burmese artist whose politically oriented work reflects a life shaped by dictatorship and displacement. He argues that art creates a spac...

30 Mars 2h 9min

Reality Bites

Reality Bites

Episode #509: “I don’t have hope. But I think that this is something that I should accept. It is reality.” Chalida Tajaroensuk, a longtime advocate of democratic reform and human rights across the Sou...

27 Mars 1h 48min

The Justice League

The Justice League

Episode #508: Damian Lilly, a veteran humanitarian and human-rights specialist, who has worked in conflict zones across the world, believes assistance must be joined with protection and accountability...

26 Mars 1h 40min

Terra Incognita

Terra Incognita

Episode #507: “It’s a process of learning and unlearning, and understanding that knowledge exists in many places and is everywhere, not just in the academy,” says Davina Quinlivan, an Anglo-Burmese wr...

24 Mars 1h 19min

Never Again

Never Again

Episode #506: “I think the toll of doing dedicated work even as we grow older is so small compared to that of so many brave Myanmar activists. I can support the cause, but I can also choose not to con...

23 Mars 2h 6min

Conflict Takes Root

Conflict Takes Root

Episode #505: In February, Timor-Leste opened judicial proceedings against Myanmar’s military regime, marking the first time one ASEAN member has initiated legal action against another. Supporting the...

20 Mars 2h 2min

Holding the Line

Holding the Line

Episode #504: Michael Sladnick, an American activist who has lived and worked near the Thai–Myanmar border since the 2021 military coup, joins the podcast a second time to argue that the most conseque...

19 Mars 2h 36min

In the Name of the Sāsana

In the Name of the Sāsana

Episode #503: Alicia Turner shows that Burmese Buddhists were not passive subjects of British colonialism, but active agents who reimagined Buddhist responsibility, authority, and identity through the...

17 Mars 2h 39min

Populärt inom Politik & nyheter

svenska-fall
aftonbladet-krim
p3-krim
rss-krimstad
flashback-forever
politiken
blenda-2
rss-sanning-konsekvens
aftonbladet-daily
spar
rss-vad-fan-hande
motiv
rss-krimreportrarna
dagens-eko
svd-ledarredaktionen
rss-frandfors-horna
olyckan-inifran
spotlight
rss-flodet
grans