Tokyo pledges help on many fronts to lift GDP in Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Saturday May 31, 2008
By Somporn Thapanachai in Tokyo
Bangkok Post
Japan has promised to continue investing effort and support to help three countries in the Mekong region - Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia - achieve US$1,000 per-capita GDP within the next decade, according to Masahiko Koumura, the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Under the Japan-Mekong Region Partnership Programme, Tokyo said it would support the fundamental values of people in the region such as democracy and the rule of law, the integration of the regional economy, and fostering of collaboration, as well as the expansion of trade and investment between Japan and the Mekong region.
On the fundamental values front, Mr Koumura elaborated that Japan would like to help find ways to overcome poverty and address issues of infectious diseases and environmental problems.
He urged the private sector to work actively to promote trade and investment in these countries while the Japanese government would enhance the safety of investment activity through bilateral investment agreements with Cambodia and Laos. Japan aims to convey its own experience in areas such as cross-border transit and customs procedures.
Based on a regional fact sheet of world development indicators 2008 compiled by the World Bank, the gross national income per capita of Vietnam is estimated at $700, $500 in Laos and $490 in Cambodia.
"Stimulating growth in the Mekong region, a late starter within Asean, will be of direct benefit to Asean as a whole, and in turn will benefit Japan itself, given its strong ties with Asean in the political, economic and cultural spheres," Mr Koumura told the audience at the recent Future of Asia conference organised by Nikkei.
Greater inflows of goods, people and capital from Thailand in the south and from China in the north are possible to Laos and Cambodia as wages in the two countries are around one-fifth of the level in Thailand.
Flows are also being helped by the substantial scope of improvement in transport networks and know-how in cross-border transit.
"In my view, the day on which these countries attain the $1,000 level, led by Vietnam and followed by Laos and Cambodia, will come within 10 years through their own efforts and support from Japan and other countries outside the region, especially the support of Asean as a whole," Mr Koumura said.
Japan has already taken steps to strengthen its relationship with the region by hosting the first Japan-Mekong Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Tokyo in January, attended by ministers from Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Vietnam and Thailand.
However, China already has a greater role in the region through its joint co-operation with Asian Development Bank and the Thai government for the investment to construct the road from Yunnan province to Vietnam, Laos and Thailand. The Chinese government has also expressed its intention to support the north-south railway network from Kunming to Singapore.
Mr Koumura said these projects offered tremendous potential for infrastructure in the region to be transformed over the next 10 years. The Chinese investment is an example of a win-win situation as it would benefit people of the region and also everybody else.
Japan has also declared the goal of making the Mekong region a "region of hope and development" through its Official Development Assistance (ODA) for the completion of the second Mekong Friendship Bridge linking Thailand and Laos. The Japanese government plans to provide $20 million to facilitate goods distribution across this east-west corridor and another $20 million for a "development triangle" on the borders of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.
In respect to the development of the Mekong region, Japanese and Chinese foreign-policy officials have opened a dialogue on the countries' policies for the Mekong to co-ordinate policies and share information on a regular basis.
Saturday May 31, 2008
By Somporn Thapanachai in Tokyo
Bangkok Post
Japan has promised to continue investing effort and support to help three countries in the Mekong region - Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia - achieve US$1,000 per-capita GDP within the next decade, according to Masahiko Koumura, the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Under the Japan-Mekong Region Partnership Programme, Tokyo said it would support the fundamental values of people in the region such as democracy and the rule of law, the integration of the regional economy, and fostering of collaboration, as well as the expansion of trade and investment between Japan and the Mekong region.
On the fundamental values front, Mr Koumura elaborated that Japan would like to help find ways to overcome poverty and address issues of infectious diseases and environmental problems.
He urged the private sector to work actively to promote trade and investment in these countries while the Japanese government would enhance the safety of investment activity through bilateral investment agreements with Cambodia and Laos. Japan aims to convey its own experience in areas such as cross-border transit and customs procedures.
Based on a regional fact sheet of world development indicators 2008 compiled by the World Bank, the gross national income per capita of Vietnam is estimated at $700, $500 in Laos and $490 in Cambodia.
"Stimulating growth in the Mekong region, a late starter within Asean, will be of direct benefit to Asean as a whole, and in turn will benefit Japan itself, given its strong ties with Asean in the political, economic and cultural spheres," Mr Koumura told the audience at the recent Future of Asia conference organised by Nikkei.
Greater inflows of goods, people and capital from Thailand in the south and from China in the north are possible to Laos and Cambodia as wages in the two countries are around one-fifth of the level in Thailand.
Flows are also being helped by the substantial scope of improvement in transport networks and know-how in cross-border transit.
"In my view, the day on which these countries attain the $1,000 level, led by Vietnam and followed by Laos and Cambodia, will come within 10 years through their own efforts and support from Japan and other countries outside the region, especially the support of Asean as a whole," Mr Koumura said.
Japan has already taken steps to strengthen its relationship with the region by hosting the first Japan-Mekong Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Tokyo in January, attended by ministers from Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Vietnam and Thailand.
However, China already has a greater role in the region through its joint co-operation with Asian Development Bank and the Thai government for the investment to construct the road from Yunnan province to Vietnam, Laos and Thailand. The Chinese government has also expressed its intention to support the north-south railway network from Kunming to Singapore.
Mr Koumura said these projects offered tremendous potential for infrastructure in the region to be transformed over the next 10 years. The Chinese investment is an example of a win-win situation as it would benefit people of the region and also everybody else.
Japan has also declared the goal of making the Mekong region a "region of hope and development" through its Official Development Assistance (ODA) for the completion of the second Mekong Friendship Bridge linking Thailand and Laos. The Japanese government plans to provide $20 million to facilitate goods distribution across this east-west corridor and another $20 million for a "development triangle" on the borders of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.
In respect to the development of the Mekong region, Japanese and Chinese foreign-policy officials have opened a dialogue on the countries' policies for the Mekong to co-ordinate policies and share information on a regular basis.
Thank you Japan for being so generous with Indochinese people since day1.
ReplyDeleteMay God helps Japan and Japanese people to achieve all their goal.
There is no such thing as Indochinese people! But there are three distinct groups of people with three different languages and they are Cambodia, Laos, and Vietname!
ReplyDeleteGet over it bonehead! The Japanese are pro-Thiacong and pro-Vietcong when dealing with Cambodia diplomatically and their aim is to counter China influence in the region!
Of course there are Indochinese, stupid. Otherwise, there won't be such word in dictionary.
ReplyDeleteWhat bonehead? Old words die out and a new one is born! Don't you know by now that some words are outdated and no longer use!
ReplyDeleteTo use the word "Indochinese people" is to imply that Indochinese people have one country, one race of people, and one language!
Fuck your dictionary and it is outdated too!
Japan is chasing to many rabbits at the same time.
ReplyDeleteIndochinese is mostly one blood, you idiot (4:09). You don't have to imply anything.
ReplyDeleteTo 2:21AM
ReplyDeleteYou are the fucken idiot when come to understand your own writing! If you reread what you have written 10,000 times and you will understand what I mean!
Hey idiot, if you want to divide your own family, that is fine by us, but noway, we're going to allow you to divide all of us up and to keep us weak forever. It's time for a change, no more killing, robbing, ..., or deceiving our own blood.
ReplyDeleteThe truth is the Chinese got here first, then the Indian, and then one thing leading to another, and voila: Indochinese. Get the picture? And if you still can't hack the truth, just scram, alright?
What? Is this the best theory that you can think of? Well! Think again fool! It is the Vietcong who are deceiving the Khmer Leu, the Khmer Kandal, and the Khmer Krom!
ReplyDeleteIt is not enough for the Vietcong to oppress 14 million Khmer Krom people but now they want to oppress 14 million more Khmer people in Cambodia under AH HUN SEN Vietcong slave mother fucker government!
So much for your Vietcong logic and theory! Kick your sorry arse again!
Who gave you right to speak for us CPP you son of bitch 1:30PM/2:21AM?
ReplyDeleteThere is no Indochinese blood ah Chumkourt.
You are not one of our CPP members so don't speak for us.
Your stupid fucken arshole need to stop elaborate and represent us make us look like Youn gangsters.
If I caught you in Cambodia, I sure make you crawl and eat your own shit.
You try to make our PM Hun Sen look likes Youn ganster. F*kk off ah runteass banh. If you born in Srok Khmer you are Khmer. Get it?
All you fucking Viet/Yuon-born parasite that pretend to be Khmer thinking that Yuon/Viet is Khmer master and Khmer is Viet/Yuon slave must be castrated and have your dick fed to the Viet cancerous black dog!
ReplyDeleteViet/Yuon go home!
You viet must learn by heart the universal language by now:
"The world sees and knows you Viet true color already"!
Good, tell it to Ah Khmer-Yuon, mate (9:52). We are tired of them pretending to be Khmer. LOL, they don't even have Khmer's passport. They always travel with Yuon's passport.
ReplyDeleteTo 1:46AM
ReplyDeleteWhy don't you tell that to the Vietcong government for issuing Khmer Krom a Youn's passport? This is one way the Vietcong government can divide Khmer people by issuing conflicting identity! The fact is the fucken Vietcong government do it all the time!
You are playing into the hand of the Vietcong trick again! But then again you are just another Vietcong who pretended to be Khmer people! I say fuck you Vietcong bitch!