Myanmar, [a] offificially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar pronounced [pjìdàʊɴzṵ θàɴməda̰mjəmà nàɪɴŋàɴdɔ]̀), formerly known as Burma, is a country in Southeast Asia. It is the largestcountry in Mainland Southeast Asia, and has a population of about 54 million as of 2017.[7] Myanmar is bordered by Bangladesh

and India to its northwest, China to its northeast, Laos and Thailand to its east and southeast, and the Andaman Sea and the Bay ofBengal to its south and southwest. The country's capital city is Naypyidaw, and its largest city is Yangon (Rangoon).[3]Early civilisations in the area included the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu city-states in Upper Myanmar and the Mon kingdoms inLower Myanmar. [11] In the 9th century, the Bamar people entered the upper Irrawaddy valley, and following the establishment of the

Pagan Kingdom in the 1050s, the Burmese language, culture, and Theravada Buddhism slowly became dominant in the country.The Pagan Kingdom fell to Mongol invasions, and several warring states emerged. In the 16th century, reunifified by the Taungoodynasty, the country became the largestempire in the history of Southeast Asia for a short period.[12]The early 19th-century Konbaung dynasty ruled over an area that included modern Myanmar and brieflfly controlled Manipur andAssam as well. The British East India Company seized control of the administration of Myanmar after three Anglo-Burmese Wars inthe 19th century, and the country became a British colony. After a brief Japanese occupation, Myanmar was reconquered by theAllies and gained independence in 1948. Following a coup d'état in 1962, it became a militry dictatorship under the Burma

Socialist Programme Party.

For most of its independent years, the country has been engrossed in rampant ethnic strife and its myriad ethnic groups have beeninvolved in one of the world's longest-running ongoing civil wars. During this time, the United Nations and several otherorganisations have reported consistent andsystemic human rights violations in the country.[13] In 2011, the military junta wasoffificially dissolved following a 2010 general election, and a nominally civilian government was installed. This, along with the releaseof Aung San Suu Kyi and political prisoners and successful elections in 2015, improved the country's human rights record andforeign relations and led to the easing of trade and other economicsanctions, [14] although the country's treatment of its ethnicminorities, particularly in connection with the Rohingya conflflict, continued to be condemned by international organizations and many nations.[15]

Following the 2020 Myanmar general election, in which Aung San Suu Kyi's party won a clear majority in both houses, the Burmesemilitary (Tatmadaw) again seized power in a coup d'état. [16] The coup, which was widely condemned, led to continuous ongoingwidespread protests in Myanmar and has been marked by violent political repression by the military.[17] The military also arrestedAung San Suu Kyi and charged her with crimes ranging from corruption to the violation of COVID-19 protocols, all of which havebeen labeled as "politically motivated" by independent observers, in order to remove her from public life.[18]Myanmar is a member of the East Asia Summit, Non-Aligned Movement, ASEAN, and BIMSTEC, but it is not a member of theCommonwealth of Nations despite once being part of the British Empire. The country is very rich at natural resources, such as jade,

gems, oil, natural gas, teak and other minerals, as well as also endowed with renewable energy, having the highest solar powerpotential compared to other countries of the Great Mekong Subregion. However, Myanmar has long suffered from instability,factional violence, corruption, poor infrastructure, as well as long history of colonial exploitation with little regard to humandevelopment.[19] In 2013, its GDP (nominal) stood at US$56.7 billion and its GDP(PPP)atUS$221.5 billion.[20] The income gap inMyanmar is among the widest in the world, as a large proportion of the economy is controlled by cronies of the military junta.[21] Asof 2020, according to the Human Development Index, Myanmar ranks 147 out of 189 countries in terms of human development.[10]Since 2021, more than 600,000 people were displaced across Myanmar due to the surge in violence post-coup, with more than 3million people in dire need of humanitarian assistance.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Myanmar

Myanmar has a total area of 678,500 square kilometres (262,000 sq mi). It lies between latitudes 9° and 29°N, andlongitudes 92° and 102°E. Myanmar is bordered in the northwest by the Chittagong Division ofBangladeshandtheMizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh states of India. Its north and northeast border is with the TibetAutonomous Region and Yunnan for a Sino-Myanmar border total of 2,185 km (1,358 mi). It is bounded by Laos andThailand to the southeast. Myanmar has 1,930 km (1,200 mi) of contiguous coastline along the Bay of Bengal and AndamanSea to the southwest and the south, which forms one quarter of its total perimeter.[3]In the north, the Hengduan Mountains form the border with China. Hkakabo Razi, located in Kachin State, at an elevation of5,881 metres (19,295 ft), is the highest point in Myanmar.[157] Many mountain ranges, such as the Rakhine Yoma, the BagoYoma, the Shan Hills and the Tenasserim Hills exist within Myanmar, all of which run north-to-south from the Himalayas. [158]The mountain chains divide Myanmar's three river systems, which are the Irrawaddy, Salween (Thanlwin), and the Sittaungrivers.[159] The Irrawaddy River, Myanmar's longest river at nearly 2,170 kilometres (1,348 mi), flflows into the Gulf ofMartaban. Fertile plains exist in the valleys between the mountain chains. [158] The majority ofMyanmar'spopulationlivesintheIrrawaddy valley, which is situated between the Rakhine Yoma and the

Administrative divisions

Main article: Administrative divisions of Myanmar

Myanmar is divided into seven states and seven regions, formerly called divisions.[160] Regions arepredominantly Bamar (that is, mainly inhabited by Myanmar's dominant ethnic group). States, in essence, are regions that arehome to particular ethnic minorities. The administrative divisions are further subdivided into districts, which are furthersubdivided into townships, wards, and villages.Below are the number of districts, townships, cities/towns, wards, village groups and villages in each division and state ofMyanmar as of 31 December 2001:

Climate

Main article: Climate of MyanmarMuch of the country lies between the Tropic of Cancer and the Equator. It lies in the monsoon region of Asia, with its coastal regions receiving over 5,000 mm (196.9 in) of rainannually. Annual rainfall in the delta region is approximately 2,500 mm (98.4 in), while average annual rainfall in the dry zone in central Myanmar is less than 1,000 mm (39.4 in).

The northern regions of Myanmar are the coolest, with average temperatures of 21 °C (70 °F). Coastal and delta regions have an average maximum temperature of 32 °C

(89.6 °F).[159]

Biodiversity

Main article: Wildlife of MyanmarFurther information: Deforestation in Myanmar and List of protected areas of MyanmarMyanmar is a biodiverse country with more than 16,000 plant, 314 mammal, 1131 bird, 293 reptile, and 139 amphibian species, and 64terrestrial ecosystems including tropical and subtropical vegetation, seasonally inundated wetlands, shoreline and tidal systems, andalpine ecosystems. Myanmar houses some of the largest intact natural ecosystems in Southeast Asia, but the remaining ecosystems areunder threat from land use intensifification and over-exploitation. According to the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems categories and criteria

more than a third of Myanmar's land area has been converted to anthropogenic ecosystems over the last 2–3 centuries, and nearly halfof its ecosystems are threatened. Despite large gaps in information for some ecosystems, there is a large potential to develop acomprehensive protected area network that protects its terrestrial biodiversity.[162]

Myanmar continues to perform badly in the global Environmental Performance Index (EPI) with an overall ranking of 153 out of 180countries in 2016; among the worst in the South Asian region, only ahead of Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The EPI was established in2001 by the World Economic Forum as a global gauge to measure how well individual countries perform in implementing the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.

The environmental areas where Myanmar performs worst (i.e. highest ranking) are air quality (174), health impacts of environmental issues (143) and biodiversity and habitat

(142). Myanmar performs best (i.e. lowest ranking) in environmental impacts of fifisheries (21) but with declining fifish stocks. Despite several issues, Myanmar also ranks 64 andscores very good (i.e. a high percentage of 93.73%) in environmental effects of the agricultural industry because of an excellent management of the nitrogen cycle. [163][164]Myanmar is one of the most highly vulnerable countries to climate change; this poses a number of social, political, economic and foreign policy challenges to the country.[165] Thecountry had a 2019 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 7.18/10, ranking it 49th globally out of 172 countries.[166]

Myanmar's slow economic growth has contributed to the preservation of much of its environment and ecosystems. Forests, including dense tropical growth and valuable teak inlower Myanmar, cover over 49% of the country, including areas of acacia, bamboo, ironwood and Magnolia champaca. Coconut and betel palm and rubber have been introduced.

In the highlands of the north, oak, pine and various rhododendrons cover much of the land.[167]

Heavy logging since the new 1995 forestry law went into effect has seriously reduced forest area and wildlife habitat.[168] The lands along the coast support all varieties of tropicalfruits and once had large areas of mangroves although much of the protective mangroves have disappeared. In much of central Myanmar (the dry zone), vegetation is sparseand stunted.

Typical jungle animals, particularly tigers, occur sparsely in Myanmar. In upper Myanmar, there are rhinoceros, wild water buffalo, clouded leopard, wild boars, deer, antelope,and elephants, which are also tamed or bred in captivity for use as work animals, particularly in the lumber industry. Smaller mammals are also numerous, ranging from gibbonsand monkeys to flflying foxes. The abundance of birds is notable with over 800 species, including parrots, myna, peafowl, red junglefowl, weaverbirds, crows, herons, and barnowl. Among reptile species there are crocodiles, geckos, cobras, Burmese pythons, and turtles. Hundreds of species of freshwater fifish are wide-ranging, plentiful and are veryimportant food sources.

Agriculture

Further information: Agriculture in MyanmarThe major agricultural product is rice, which covers about 60% of the country's total cultivated land area. Rice accounts for 97% of totalfood grain production by weight. Through collaboration with the International Rice Research Institute 52 modern rice varieties werereleased in the country between 1966 and 1997, helping increase national rice production to 14 million tons in 1987 and to 19 million tonsin 1996. By 1988, modern varieties were planted on half of the country's ricelands, including 98 per cent of the irrigated areas.[289] In2008 rice production was estimated at 50 million tons.[290]

Extractive industries

Myanmar produces precious stones such as rubies, sapphires, pearls, and jade. Rubies are the biggest earner; 90% of the world's rubiescome from the country, whose red stones are prized for their purity and hue. Thailand buys the majority of the country's gems. Myanmar's"Valley of Rubies", the mountainous Mogok area, 200 km (120 mi) north of Mandalay, is noted for its rare pigeon's blood rubies and bluesapphires.[291]

Many U.S. and European jewellery companies, including Bulgari, Tiffany and Cartier, refuse to import these stones based on reports of deplorable working conditions in themines. Human Rights Watch has encouraged a complete ban on the purchase of Burmese gems based on these reports and because nearly all profifits go to the ruling junta, asthe majority of mining activity in the country is government-run.[292] The government of Myanmar controls the gem trade by direct ownership or by joint ventures with privateowners of mines.[293]

Rare-earth elements are also a signifificant export, as Myanmar supplies around 10% of the world's rare earths.[294] Conflflict in Kachin State has threatened the operations of itsmines as of February 2021.[295][296]

Other industries include agricultural goods, textiles, wood products, construction materials, gems, metals, oil and natural gas. Myanmar Engineering Society has identifified at least39 locations capable of geothermal power production and some of these hydrothermal reservoirs lie quite close to Yangon which is a signifificant underutilised resource forelectrical production.[297]

Tourism

Main article: Tourism in Myanmar

The government receives a signifificant percentage of the income of private-sector tourism services.[298] The most popular available touristdestinations in Myanmar include big cities such as Yangon and Mandalay; religious sites in Mon State, Pindaya, Bago and Hpa-An;nature trails in Inle Lake, Kengtung, Putao, Pyin Oo Lwin; ancient cities such as Bagan and Mrauk-U; as well as beaches in Nabule, [299]Ngapali, Ngwe-Saung, Mergui. [300] Nevertheless, much of the country is off-limits to tourists, and interactions between foreigners and thepeople of Myanmar, particularly in the border regions, are subject to police scrutiny. They are not to discuss politics with foreigners, underpenalty of imprisonment and, in 2001, the Myanmar Tourism Promotion Board issued an order for local offificials to protect tourists andlimit "unnecessary contact" between foreigners and ordinary Burmese people.[301]

The most common way for travellers to enter the country is by air.[302] According to the website Lonely Planet, getting into Myanmar isproblematic: "No bus or train service connects Myanmar with another country, nor can you travel by car or motorcycle across theborder – you must walk across." They further state that "It is not possible for foreigners to go to/from Myanmar by sea or river."[302] Thereare a few border crossings that allow the passage of private vehicles, such as the border between Ruili (China) to Mu-se, the borderbetween Htee Kee (Myanmar) and Phu Nam Ron (Thailand)—the most direct border between Dawei and Kanchanaburi, and the borderbetween Myawaddy and Mae Sot,Thailand. At least one tourist company has successfully run commercial overland routes through theseborders since 2013.[303]Flights are available from most countries, though direct flflights are limited to mainly Thai and other ASEAN airlines. According to Elevenmagazine, "In the past, there were only 15 international airlines and increasing numbers of airlines have begun launching direct flflights

from Japan, Qatar, Taiwan, South Korea, Germany and Singapore."[304] Expansions were expected in September 2013 but are mainlyThai and other Asian-based airlines.