Dear all,

Please find below the latest stories in South China Morning Post, about the
GMS Ministerial Meeting in Dali, Yunnan Province. These articles outline
the whole idea of the GMS, as well as its key projects, including the
newly-approved rail and road networks.

Actually the GMS Inter-governmental Power Trade Agreement was also
highlighted in the meeting, in which Thailand is the major power receipient,
with Laos, Burma and China be the major suppliers. But it was not covered
in the following articles.

Best,
Kevin

South China Morning Post. September 20, 2003.

China reassures neighbours about sharing wealth
ALLEN T. CHENG in Dali, Yunnan province

Rather than feeling threatened by China's growing prosperity, its neighbours
should rest assured that a rich and powerful China will share its benefits,
an official told Southeast Asian ministers yesterday.

State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan told the ministers: China's development will
have a positive impact on the co-operation of this whole region.

Developing good relations with our neighbours is the foundation of China's
foreign policy.

We will do everything in the interests of our neighbours' prosperity instead
of anything to the contrary. Our goal is common development and prosperity.

Mr Tang was speaking at a three-day gathering of the Greater Mekong
Subregion Economic Co-operation Programme, which consists of countries that
lie along the Mekong river.

China's economic rise in recent years and its rapid absorption of foreign
investment have caused unease among its Asian neighbours.

Though many remain nervous, the Greater Mekong Subregion meeting of
ministers ended yesterday with the completion of a cross-border agreement
that will promote freer trade between China, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia,
Vietnam and Myanmar.

Myanmar became the last signatory by committing to an agreement that would
reduce non-physical barriers to the movement of goods and people across
borders.

Since 1992 the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has been fostering economic
integration in the Mekong region by lending money for the building of
bridges, roads, ports and other major infrastructure. Close to US$1 billion
went to upgrade Yunnan's highways and connections to Southeast Asia alone,
about one-third of the US$3 billion lent to the entire region.

The cross-border agreement will lay the groundwork for one-stop customs
clearance and a single, unified visa for foreign visitors to the region.
One-stop clearance means goods that pass any one country's customs
inspection can move freely to any other country in the Mekong region.

Senior ADB official Rajat Nag said: We hope that this region will be very
well connected.

The agreement laid the groundwork for a future Asian economic common market
similar to that in the European Union, he said. It complemented China's
free-trade deal signed last year with member states of the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations.

I certainly hope there is some sort of a common market some time in the
future, said Mr Nag, who is director-general of ADB's Mekong programme and
the co-ordinator for the Greater Mekong Subregion conference.

Jin Liqun, the new vice-president of the bank and a former vice-minister of
finance, said: The Greater Mekong Subregion should be prepared to eventually
form a fully integrated market as it emerges in Asia and integrates itself
into the global development process.

South China Morning Post. September 20, 2003.

Editorial
Tide is turning for Mekong nations

The mighty Mekong river flows for 4,800km and is the lifeblood of the
diverse regions it nourishes along the way. But while this vast stretch of
water provides a vital link between the six countries benefiting from the
natural resources it provides, co-operation between them on trade and
development has not always been easy to achieve. It is therefore encouraging
to see progress being made at the conference that ended yesterday in scenic
Dali, in Yunnan province, attended by trade and finance ministers from
China, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia.

The scope covered by the Mekong Sub-region Economic Co-operation Programme
is broad, taking in the building of railways and roads, the relaxing of
impediments to trade, as well as sustainable development projects and
attempts to crack down on drug trafficking.

But it is in the area of trade that the most significant advances have been
made. A cross-border agreement that will pave the way for the swifter and
easier movement of goods around the region has now been entered into by all
six nations, with Myanmar the last to sign. The pact will simplify customs
checks and further road and telecommunications links. Work is also
continuing on a key expressway project that will run all the way from
Kunming to Singapore. And plans are also afoot to put in place a single visa
arrangement for visitors from outside the region, to help boost tourism and
investment. The projects are being aided by huge loans from the Asian
Development Bank, which has pumped around US$3 billion into the region over
the past decade in a bid to further economic ties.

The six countries concerned are linked not only by the river, but also by
strong cultural and historical ties. But suspicion and rivalry has long
stood in the way of co-operation among the nations, which all face
challenges tackling poverty. In recent times, fears that greater integration
will lead to China - which has the biggest economy - dominating the region
have been paramount. But there were signs at this week's conference that
those concerns are gradually being overcome. Both Chinese leaders and Asian
Development Bank officials have gone out of their way to convey the message
that China's economic strength can, through closer co-operation, benefit the
region as a whole.

It is understandable that the Mekong countries - particularly those in the
lower reaches of the river who depend more heavily upon it - will want to
guard the valuable natural resources the river provides. But a co-ordinated,
consensus-driven approach will better serve the interests of all. Easing
trade restrictions and developing closer links can provide the foundations
of a common market for the region. Through trade, it is hoped, differences
can be settled and the benefits seen by the people of these countries.

South China Morning Post. September 19, 2003.

Yunnan is loaned US$400m to build railway line and roads
ALLEN T. CHENG in Dali, Yunnan

The Asian Development Bank is to loan US$400 million to Yunnan to build a
rail line and roads to help foster southwest China's ties with its
neighbours in the Mekong river basin.

It will provide US$250million to build the Western Yunnan Expressway to
Myanmar and $150 million for a railway linking the resort towns of Dali and
Lijiang. With the decision, announced yesterday, the ADB has now loaned more
than $1 billion to Yunnan.

Though we've provided the bulk of the funding, we also hope the private
sector will get involved as well. We welcome international competitive
bidding, said Rajat Nag, the director-general of the ADB's Mekong
department.

The bank is co-ordinating a meeting in Dali this week of trade and finance
ministers of member states of the Greater Mekong Sub-region Economic
Co-operation Programme - China, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos and
Cambodia.

The conference, which ends today, will conclude with the completion of a
cross-border trade agreement. The last of the six member states to sign on,
Myanmar, is expected to add its name today to the agreement, which will
further open up borders, simplify customs checks and promote road and
telecommunications links.

The ADB has been fostering economic ties among the six for more than a
decade, lending US$3 billion for infrastructure projects such as roads and
bridges. The core project that ties the Mekong region together is an
expressway from Kunming to Singapore. The road could open as early as the
end of next year, once Laos completes a US$90 million, 230km stretch.

Ministers are discussing the idea of a single customs clearance for all
products moving along the expressway, said Arkhom Termpittayapaisith, senior
adviser to Thailand's National Economic & Social Development Board.

Single customs clearance will foster trade among all of us, Mr Arkhom said.
Of course, we are talking about preventing smuggling, especially of drugs.
That is an issue we will deal with.

Ministers also are talking about creating a single visa for foreign tourists
visiting the Mekong region. With one visa, you could enter any of the six
member states and travel freely, Mr Nag said.

The visa would not be available to citizens of the six nations; most of the
region's people are poor, and large labour migration from one country to
another might cause political and social instability.

The rise of China is one topic ministers could not avoid at this week's
meeting; the opening of the Kunming to Singapore expressway will accelerate
integration of the region's economies, of which China is the largest.

Sok Chenda Sophea, the secretary-general of the Council for the Development
of Cambodia, said he was not afraid that closer economic integration with
China would hurt smaller nations such as Cambodia. If I'm a small player,
I'm not afraid. I just try to sell to China what China needs. I can benefit
from China.

China Daily. September 19, 2003.

Nations meet on Mekong
XU BINGLAN, China Daily staff

DALI, Yunnan: China can play a multifaceted role in the Greater Mekong
Subregion Economic Co-operation Programme (GMS) by sharing experiences in
economic reform and development over the past two decades with other GMS
nations, the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) top official said yesterday.

Jin Liqun, new vice-president of the ADB, said GMS, a programme initiated in
1992 and co-ordinated by the bank, is to hold its 12th Ministerial
Conference today in this picturesque and quaint town in Southwest China's
Yunnan Province.

GMS covers the countries through which the Lancang River (called Mekong
outside of China) flows. They include Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar,
Thailand and Viet Nam.

The programme is designed to build closer economic ties among the six
countries, including social projects like cross-border epidemic disease
control.

GMS is gaining increasing stature for its achievements, Chinese officials
said. They intend to make it a model programme for forming a free trade area
between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"A major mission of GMS is to alleviate poverty in the region. China has
been very active in poverty reduction and we can contribute in that regard,"
said Jin in an interview.

"China also has rich experiences and lessons in infrastructure development,
environmental protection and foreign investment administration, which we can
all share in GMS."

Jin, 54, took his new office in August. Before that, he was China's vice
finance minister.

"I should have a new perspective as the vice-president of the ADB. But I
will try my best to contribute on the basis of my experiences in the
Ministry of Finance and the World Bank in the past 23 years," he said. Jin
joined the ministry in 1980. During 1988-92, he served as China's alternate
executive director in the World Bank.

In addition to economic benefits, Jin said GMS programme has helped enhance
mutual trust and better relations among participating nations.

Since GMS' inception last year in Cambodia, 11 key programmes 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. But ADB
officials said that public funds are not sufficient to support the next
stage of programme.

Infrastructure projects alone will need US$15-20 billion in the next 10
years.

So the GMS countries have decided to invite the private sector to play a
much more active part in the programme, with this becoming one of the major
themes of the ministerial conference.

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