Government representatives from Korea and five countries along the banks of the Mekong River gathered to discuss measures to bolster cooperation on trade and investment.
The fourth Mekong-ROK Business Forum was attended by First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Lim Sung-nam and government officials from Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. Forum attendees also included about 100 representatives from 45 small- and medium-sized firms from the participating nations.
In the opening ceremony, Vice Minister Lim emphasized the importance of investment in the private sector in order to pursue sustainable development across the Mekong region, an area with abundant resources, a vast consumer market and a labor force of some 240 million people.
“The Korean government actively supports not only infrastructure construction, where the private sector sometimes finds it hard to make active investments, but also the establishment of systematic infrastructure such as health care and educational facilities,” said the minister.
Lim said, “Korea provides USD 3.4 billion worth of overseas development aid to ASEAN, and 72 percent of this has been injected into just four Mekong countries: Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.”
He spoke about various programs that could narrow the development gap and boost connectivity across the region by using Korea-ASEAN cooperation and the Korea-Mekong cooperation fund, while reaffirming the Korean government’s decision to contribute to strengthening cooperation with all Mekong River nations.
Myanmar's Minister of Planning and Finance Kyaw Win, the chair of the forum, praised Korea’s contributions to the development of countries along the Mekong River. He said that he hopes that participating countries could find fruitful outcomes by implementing the Korea-Mekong Plan of Action, where countries agreed to cooperate on infrastructure, water resources, IT, environmentally friendly economic growth, the development of agricultural, and the development of human resources.
The Korea-Mekong Plan of Action was adopted at the fourth Mekong-ROK Foreign Ministers’ Meeting that took place in Seoul in July 2014. It is designed to systematize cooperation among countries and to propose a future vision and direction for cooperation.
At this year’s business forum, attendees held discussions under the theme “Realizing Investment Opportunities in the Mekong Sub-region,“ building on the successful outcomes of past forums over the past three years. Finally, the business leaders also shared concrete information and sought ways to penetrate new markets.
By Yoon Sojung
Korea.net Staff Writer
Photos: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
arete@korea.kr
The fourth Mekong-ROK Business Forum was attended by First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Lim Sung-nam and government officials from Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. Forum attendees also included about 100 representatives from 45 small- and medium-sized firms from the participating nations.
The fourth Mekong-ROK Business Forum is held in Yangon, Myanmar, on June 30. The forum was attended by government officials and business people from Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. Forum participants discussed measures to enhance cooperation on trade and investment between Korea and the participating Southeast Asian nations.
First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Lim Sung-nam delivers an opening speech at the fourth Mekong-ROK Business Forum.
In the opening ceremony, Vice Minister Lim emphasized the importance of investment in the private sector in order to pursue sustainable development across the Mekong region, an area with abundant resources, a vast consumer market and a labor force of some 240 million people.
“The Korean government actively supports not only infrastructure construction, where the private sector sometimes finds it hard to make active investments, but also the establishment of systematic infrastructure such as health care and educational facilities,” said the minister.
Lim said, “Korea provides USD 3.4 billion worth of overseas development aid to ASEAN, and 72 percent of this has been injected into just four Mekong countries: Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.”
He spoke about various programs that could narrow the development gap and boost connectivity across the region by using Korea-ASEAN cooperation and the Korea-Mekong cooperation fund, while reaffirming the Korean government’s decision to contribute to strengthening cooperation with all Mekong River nations.
Myanmar's Minister of Planning and Finance Kyaw Win, the chair of the forum, praised Korea’s contributions to the development of countries along the Mekong River. He said that he hopes that participating countries could find fruitful outcomes by implementing the Korea-Mekong Plan of Action, where countries agreed to cooperate on infrastructure, water resources, IT, environmentally friendly economic growth, the development of agricultural, and the development of human resources.
The Korea-Mekong Plan of Action was adopted at the fourth Mekong-ROK Foreign Ministers’ Meeting that took place in Seoul in July 2014. It is designed to systematize cooperation among countries and to propose a future vision and direction for cooperation.
At this year’s business forum, attendees held discussions under the theme “Realizing Investment Opportunities in the Mekong Sub-region,“ building on the successful outcomes of past forums over the past three years. Finally, the business leaders also shared concrete information and sought ways to penetrate new markets.
By Yoon Sojung
Korea.net Staff Writer
Photos: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
arete@korea.kr
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