Thai PM proposes 10-year development plan at 5th GMS Summit

BANGKOK, December 20 (TNA) - Thai Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-ocha has proposed a 10-year development plan, with seven strategies, for countries lying along the Mekong River basin. Prime Minister General Prayut raised the proposal on Saturday, during the 5th Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) Summit, held in Bangkok from December 19-20. When inaugurating the two-day GMS Summit, the Thai prime minister suggested that countries lying along the Mekong River basin also build connectivity and strengthen competitiveness and communities situated in the region under the 10-year joint cooperation, set from 2012-2022, with combined investment targeted at 30 billion US dollars and supported by its seven strategies. The Thai premier pointed out the seven strategies include an optimum utilisation of goods transportation connectivity along the regional economic corridor, further development of land and marine goods transportation, relieved rules on border crossing, development of energy resources, fund mobilisation to support investment plans of countries in the region, increase in business incentives and benefits and promotion of private investment, along with joint cooperation on protecting the environment and on the management of natural disaster. More than 500 senior officials and government leaders of all six GMS member countries, including Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, China and Thailand participate in the 5th GMS Summit, including Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang, Lao Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and Myanmar President Thein Sein, as well as President of the Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) Takehiko Nakao. Hun Sen urged GMS member countries to provide more support to the regional economic corridor programme, as it would create benefits to them, while inviting the private sector to also become a partner in the programme to help create a niche market and new jobs and reduce social disparity in the region. Hun Sen also called for ADB to provide financial support to GMS members to help create regional innovations and to assist them, most of which are also member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), on a sustainable basis. Stressing that China is prepared to cooperate and promote development of other GMS member countries, the Chinese premier said Beijing would provide one billion yuan on the subregional connectivity programme and another 3 billion yuan to each member country to spend on transportation development. The Lao prime minister called on GMS members to help poorer countries and ADB to assist in developing the regional transportation sector, airports and public health to meet international standards. Vietnamese Prime Minister Dung insisted that his country is willing to extend cooperation and promote economic development and human development and environment, as they could create changes in the region, urging all members to prepare a joint GMS operational plan and to be responsible for water from the Mekong River. The Myanmar president stressed that progress of GMS member countries are to be derived from connectivity, while there is still a transportation gap at present, noting that Myanmar has opened the country wider in order to connect with ASEAN and hopes for more cooperation from other GMS members to help solve other problems prevailing in the region such as natural disaster, human and drug trafficking, and transnational crime. The ADB president announced that his bank is prepared to extend 30 billion US dollars for 80 projects and in the academic field to further develop GMS countries, acknowledging that GMS members are heading toward the right path in strengthening the connectivity programme in the region. (TNA)