Yangon, Myanmar, 2 February 2019 – Impact Hub Yangon, in partnership with Yangon Heritage Trust, Eden Centre for Disabled Children, Grab and other civil society organizations and partners, today, hosted the ‘Moving Yangon Forward: The Urban Mobility Forum’. Held from 12pm to 5pm at Grand Ballroom of Chatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon, more than 100  attendees listened to speeches, presentations and lively panel discussions led by representatives of the government, civil society as well as the private sector about how mobility and transportation in Yangon can be improved to make the city a more inclusive place for all.

This forum was the first of its type to be held in Myanmar and was organised in partnership with Yangon Heritage Trust, Waterbus Yangon, Capital Automotive Ltd, Kargo and Doh Eain. Key topics that were addressed at the forum included:

• Yangon’s mobility challenges including travel duration, comfort, safety, transport service reliability and disabled accessibility
• The future of mobility in Yangon such as usage of smart technology and tools, seamless transition between transport modes and integrated payment
• Access to shared mobility services

Kicking off the forum was Alvin Loh, Head of Expansion Region, Grab Myanmar & Cambodia who shared the opening remarks, “Since launching in Myanmar in 2017, Grab has seen both the challenges, and opportunities in providing mobility to the citizenry. Our engagements have seen us become the largest ride-hailing app operating in Myanmar. By working with the local authorities and engaging with dynamic groups such as Impact Hub and Yangon Heritage Trust, we hope to play a role in helping define how Yangon continues to be a dynamic city responsive to the changing mobility needs of the millions that call it home.”

The keynote message was delivered by Dr. Maung Aung, Secretary, Yangon Region Transport Authority (YRTA), who said, “I truly appreciate those who have organized and supported this forum to raise awareness about urban mobility for people in Yangon. My special thanks to Impact Hub Yangon for working closely with Grab, Water Bus and Yangon Heritage Trust to make this event happen. As a matter of fact, Yangon is home to over six million people and stands out as the largest city with a high degree of political, economic and social status. It is also the commercial hub of the country. Around 2.8 million of the Yangon population rely on buses, taxis, private vehicles, trains, water buses, and sampans. Among them, 2.3 million people are using buses and that number reflects 85 percent of the daily commuters.”

Alvin Loh, Head of Expansion Region, Myanmar and Cambonia, Daw Moe Moe Lwin, Director, Yangon Heritage Trust, U Tha Uke, Managing Director, Eden Centre and Rita O’Sullivan, Impact Hub Yangon at the fireside panel on Urban Mobility Planning

The forum included two panel sessions:

1) Urban Mobility Planning – Facilitated by Rita O’Sullivan, Impact Hub Yangon

• Daw Moe Moe Lwin, Director, Yangon Heritage Trust,
• U Tha Uke, Managing Director, Eden Centre
• Alvin Loh, Head of Expansion Region, Grab Myanmar & Cambodia
• Rita O’Sullivan, Impact Hub Yangon

During this panel session, the speakers discussed the development of a sustainable Urban Mobility Plan to integrate all modes and forms of transport in Yangon and surrounding areas.

2) Mobility Innovation – Facilitated by Klaus Oberbauer, Impact Hub Yangon

• Dr. Maung Aung, Secretary, Yangon Region Transport Authority
• Daw Tint Tint Lwin, CEO, Yangon Water Bus
• Alex Wicks, Founder, Kargo
• Beverley Salmon, Deputy Director, Doh Eain
• Mike Pease, General Manager, Capital Automotive Ltd
• Klaus Oberbauer, Impact Hub Yangon

This panel session saw speakers discuss how mobility in Yangon can be made more inclusive through new initiatives driven by cross-sector collaboration, international good case practices and powerful trends in technology such as electric vehicles, intelligent traffic systems and intermodal booking platforms.

On the sidelines of the forum, speakers and attendees were able to network, learn and share from each other and discuss collaboration opportunities.

“We are delighted to host the first ‘Moving Yangon Forward: The Urban Mobility Forum’ in partnership with government, private sector and civil society organizations. This is the first event held to discuss urban mobility in Yangon and we believe this will provide the momentum for future improvements in the way people move in Yangon. Success will depend on close collaboration among all partners to tap technology expertise and solutions to solve actual problems”, said Klaus Oberbauer, Co-Founder of Impact Hub Yangon.

The hosting of the ‘Moving Yangon Forward: The Urban Mobility Forum’ was timely as the Myanmar Traffic Police Force recently announced that there was 17,451 traffic accidents nationwide in 2018, resulting in 5,184 deaths and 26,741 injuries. Yangon reported the most casualties with 599 deaths and 3,164 injuries from 2,684 accidents.^[1]

^[1] Source: 23 January 2019, Eleven Media: 5,184 traffic-related deaths, 26,741 injuries reported last year