Ministers of countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS)
Economic Cooperation Program at the 12th GMS Ministerial Conference
will call for intensifying joint efforts in key sectors that are
crucial for successful regional economic cooperation, said China's
Finance Minister Jin
Renqing.
These sectors include transportation, energy, human resources
development and trade facilitation, according to Jin, who is also
chairman of the ministerial meeting. The meeting will be held in
Dali in southwest China's Yunnan
Province from Wednesday to Friday.
GMS covers the countries through which the Lancang River (called
Mekong outside of China) flows, namely, China, Cambodia, Laos,
Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam.
The GMS Economic Cooperation Program was launched in 1992 and is
coordinated by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The six nations
have picked nine sectors in which to cooperate. The sectors are
transportation, energy, telecommunications, the environment, human
resources development, investment, trade, tourism and
agriculture.
"Since its inception, GMS Economic Cooperation has yielded many
substantial results," Jin said.
So far 11 key programs have been launched and about 100
investment and technology assistance projects have been
implemented.
About US$2 billion from various funding channels has been
mobilized for GMS projects. The funds include US$800 million in ADB
loans, US$250 million in co-financing and US$60 million in
technical assistance from ADB and other development agencies.
Participants in the 12th GMS Ministerial Conference will review
the progress of the work in key sectors of GMS cooperation and the
progress of the work proposed at the GMS Summit held last year in
Phnom Penh, Jin said.
They will also hold meetings with representatives from
development assistance agencies of some developed countries and
international organizations, according to Jin. The aim is to
introduce GMS projects to them and to seek their funding
support.
Jin said China, as the host, will table five proposals for
further GMS cooperation at the ministerial meeting. They are:
Accelerating the trade facilitation process
Strengthening cooperation in mineral resources exploration
Encouraging private sector's participation in GMS cooperation
and encouraging cross-border private investments
Stepping up cooperation in the health sector and building a
common epidemic disease monitoring and prevention system in GMS
countries
Improving efficiency in GMS cooperation
China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
consider their work within the GMS framework as a significant part
of the cooperation between the two sides.
"China attaches great importance to GMS cooperation and intends
to make GMS a model project for the China-ASEAN free trade zone,"
Jin said.
So far, China has been playing an active role in projects such
as the Kunming-Bangkok Road Project and GMS human resources
development. China provided 50 million yuan (US$6 million) in
assistance and 199 million yuan (US$24 million) in interest-free
loans to support the construction of the Laos section of the
Kunming-Bangkok Road.
China has also signed the Agreement on Facilitation of
Cross-Border Transport of Goods and People and the
Inter-Governmental Agreement on Power Trade.
(China Daily September 15, 2003)