Mekong Cooperation Framework
Mekong Cooperation: Mekong-Ganga Cooperation, Mekong-Japan Cooperation, Mekong Republic of Korea Cooperation
The Mekong-Ganga Cooperation Initiative
By Dr. Rajaram Panda (eurasiareview)
The 11th Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC) Ministerial meeting took place on 21 July. Cambodia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn co-chaired with his Indian counterpart S. Jaishankar. Held via video conference, it was attended by other foreign ministers from Mekong countries including Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
The foreign ministers reviewed the progress on cooperative efforts since their 10th meeting in Bangkok on 1 August 2019, and chart out its future direction with the aim of strengthening and expanding efforts against COVID-29. The ministers also exchanged views on regional and international issues of common interest and concern.
Despite the importance of this initiative from the perspective of India’s Act East Policy, surprisingly the Indian media virtually blacked out this news of the ministerial meeting. This fact itself makes this commentary important to highlight what transpired in the 11th ministerial meeting of the GMC member countries.
Background
First, what is this MGC? It is a sub-regional organisation established on 10 November 2000 at Vientiane, Laos’ capital, at the First MGC Ministerial meeting. It comprises six member countries: India (Look East connectivity projects), Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.
The MGC aims at facilitating closer contacts among the people inhabiting these major river basins and enhancing cooperation in tourism, culture, education, transportation and communications.
The organisation takes its name from the Ganga and Mekong, two civilizational rivers in Southeast Asia. The MGC initiative aims to facilitate closer contacts among the people inhabiting these two major river basins. The MGC is also indicative of the cultural and commercial linkages among the member countries of the MGC down the centuries.
The 1st MGC Ministerial Meeting was held in Vientiane from 9-13 November 2000. It issued the Vientiane Declaration on MGC covering cooperation in the 4 traditional areas. The 2nd MGC Ministerial Meeting was held in Hanoi on 28 July 2001, and adopted the Hanoi Programme of Action (HPA), a detailed Work Programme for six years (July 2001 to July 2007), providing specific actions for cooperation, in the 4 traditional areas.
The 3rd MGC Ministerial Meeting was held in Phnom Penh on 20 June 2003 and provided additional political impetus to the MGC initiative. It adopted the Phnom Penh Roadmap. After the 5th meeting chaired by India took place at Manila, the Philippines, on 1 August 2007, the Ministerial Meetings remained suspended for the next five years from 2007 to 2012 for unknown reasons.
The meetings resumed when India hosted the 6th MGC Ministerial Meeting on 4 September 2012, in New Delhi chaired by the then EAM, S.M. Krishna, and saw active participation from all the MGC partner countries in which beyond the four existing traditional areas of cooperation, viz. tourism, culture, education, and transport & communications, the ministers agreed to widen collaboration into newer areas, such as SME cooperation, conservation of Rice Germplasm, setting up a Working Group on Health, establishment of a Common Archival Resource Centre (CARC) at the Nalanda University, and finally, India–Cambodia Laos Myanmar Vietnam Quick Impact Projects.
From India’s point of view, the 6th meeting was extremely important as it defined and fine-tuned its Look East policy to reach out to the ASEAN through the Myanmar corridor its connectivity projects.
The larger aim of India-ASEAN connectivity was aimed to be realised by developing India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway project. With a view to reap larger benefits, the MGC countries agreed to take forward matters related to the extension of the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway to Cambodia and Laos PDR. The proposal for the development of an India-Myanmar-Laos PDR-Vietnam-Cambodia highway was also discussed.
The 7th MGC Ministerial meeting held in Vientiane and attended by Minister of State of External Affairs, Gen V.K. Singh (Retd) reinforced the cultural connect through history between the six countries. This was demonstrated through the screening of a short film “The Power of Six” and the decision on a MGC Traditional Asian Textiles Museum to be built at Siam Reap, Cambodia, testifying to the historical cultural connect with the modern times.
India’s pro-active stance
Backed by historical experiences, modern India realised the importance of engaging with the ASEAN economically backed by its historical cultural connect. The civilizational links with most of the ASEAN member countries are extremely strong. Even in the modern times, the Indian diaspora has played a crucial role in bridging ties between India and the ASEAN. With a view to give this connect a stronger spine, India announced 50 new ITEC scholarships for MGC countries in areas of culture, tourism, engineering, management, teachers training, film directing, sound, light and stage management in addition to 900 scholarships already on offer every year. Taking its pro-activism further, India announced new centres of excellence in software development and training, besides augmenting existing capacity building programs in law enforcement, financial markets, ICT and space, to supplement the requirements of MGC partners. There are also 3 Quick Impact Projects in Laos PDR and 2 in Myanmar under consideration in addition to 9 in Cambodia and 5 in Vietnam already under implementation.
Outcome of the 11th Meeting
What transpired at the 11th Ministerial meeting was that Cambodia sought support from member countries to help rehabilitate the MGC Asian Traditional Textile Museum (MGCATTM) in Siem Peap province, where operations suffered due to COVID-19. The MGCATTM was established in 2014, reflecting the importance and sustainability of the MGC. In view of the COVID-19, tourism has fallen, thereby affecting the museum’s daily operations. Indeed cultural cooperation is one of the key areas of the MGC, and the MGCATTM is a landmark in that cooperation.
For India, its engagement with the MGC needs to be understood from the perspective of being as another route to execute its Act East Policy by connectivity projects where the historical cultural connect plays a significant role. It is indeed an important diplomatic gateway for strengthening bilateral relations with the MGC member countries. India’s strength in the IT and pharmaceutical sectors can unfold huge vista for cooperation with the MGC member countries. Indeed, in an age of multilateral diplomacy, the role of GMC deserves recognition in fostering cooperation and mutual understanding among the member countries.
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Mekong-Japan cooperation for inclusive growth and mutual benefits
By Han Phoumin (Asia Pathways)
Introduction
Rapid economic development in recent decades has transformed Southeast Asia and prepared the region to join international production networks, which allow greater exports of manufacturing products, textiles, and other primary high-quality valued added products to the international market. This economic development has been achieved thanks to investments from around the globe into the region as a result of a favorable labor force, connectivity and innovation growth, and regional political stability as driven by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) vision.
Faster connectivity along with human resource development in the Southeast Asia region, especially the Mekong subregion, has provided many opportunities for the region for growth and increased the social well-being of the people through income generation and employment.
Connectivity through roads, railways, sea, and air has compressed time and space, allowing goods and services to flow internationally in a much faster manner and more efficiently in terms of cost reductions in logistics and, thus, has created a favorable functioning market for supplying goods and services linking production from the Mekong subregion into regional and global supply value chains. Besides hard infrastructure connectivity, the Mekong subregion has also progressed steadily in soft infrastructure as terms, regulations, and standards have developed to facilitate trade and investment in the region as well as outside the region.
Connectivity, innovation, and economic growth
The coordinated development of soft and hard infrastructure is essential for maintaining growth in the region. The new international division of labor calls for a novel approach to infrastructure development, in which the Mekong subregion has been prepared to participate actively for the promotion of economic corridors, including the Southern Economic Corridor (SSEC), East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC), and North-South Economic Corridor (NSEC).
These economic corridors, together with the fast acceleration of domestic infrastructure development with special economic zones, urban amenities and other economic activities, have promoted the region to some extent to participate in production networks, reducing the cost of service links that connect remote places of production to urban agglomeration.
Mekong subregional connectivity is just one part of the puzzle of larger connectivity in ASEAN and, further, ASEAN connectivity to the rest of the world. Another initiative is the One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative, led by the People’s Republic of China (PRC), which is a large connectivity development strategy linking the PRC to Eurasian countries and the rest of Asia.
The Mekong subregion has embarked on fast progress toward infrastructure development in recent decades. Thus, quality infrastructure, connectivity, and innovation are keys for ensuring prosperity and sustainable development in the region. The development of connectivity and innovation promotes agglomeration forces and dispersion forces generated by production–consumption interactions in both internal and external economies in which people and ideas can move more easily (Kimura 2018).
One practical example of new economic geography creating a “location advantage” through connectivity and innovation is the Cambodian labor force migration. Currently, about 1 million out of 16 million Cambodians are in Thailand working as unskilled labour—in intensive sectors and the informal sector—rather than in Phnom Penh. The question is how Phnom Penh can attract labour from rural areas and, at the same time, invite production from Thailand. If the wage gap between Bangkok and Phnom Penh is too large, people will not come to Phnom Penh, but production blocks may be motivated to come. On the other hand, if the wage gap is too small, production blocks will not come, but people may flow into Phnom Penh. How can Phnom Penh attract both production blocks and people? The answer is the improvement of location advantages and liveability in Phnom Penh (Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia 2015).
An ADB study found that the road situation between Phnom Penh and Ho Chi Minh City was relatively poor in 1999. Before upgrading the roads, the travel time from Phnom Penh to Ho Chi Minh City was about 9–10 hours, and cross-border trade at Moc Bai (Viet Nam)–Bavet (Cambodia) was about $10 million per year.
However, the situation completely changed in 2014 after both hard and soft infrastructure development between Phnom Penh and Ho Chi Minh City. The travel time was reduced to 5–6 hours, and cross-border trade at Moc Bai–Bavet grew to $708 million per year. Further, the connectivity also promoted other economic development. For example, investment brought to Trang Bang Industrial Park (in Moc Bai) included 41 projects with $270 million in new investments and, as a result, created about 3,000 jobs.
Mekong-Japan Cooperation for inclusive growth
Mekong-Japan connectivity aims to promote quality infrastructure development in the Mekong region and enhance institutional connectivity through the improvement of systems, the development of special economic zones and other industrial bases, industrial promotion measures, improvements in customs procedures, and people-to-people connectivity so that the whole region can benefit from growth.
The key pillars of cooperation development for infrastructure are to fill in the missing links in the East-West and Southern Economic Corridors; connect the corridors more smoothly through the improvement of systems, such as customs procedures, to promote land development along the corridors (e.g., through the development of industrial parks and industrial promotion measures); improve access from neighboring areas to corridors so that the region can develop as a whole; and develop the industrial human resources for supporting growth in the region and strengthening people-to-people networks.
During the Mekong-Japan Cooperation (MJC) meeting in 2018, it was reported that in 2015, Japan pledged ¥50 billion of official development assistance (ODA) over 3 years in order to support quality growth, and it has already implemented two-thirds or more of that ODA.
In recent years, Japan has advanced cooperation relating to infrastructure development, such as Cambodia’s Sihanoukville Port, Myanmar’s Yangon-Mandalay railway, and Thailand’s high-speed railway. Japan is contributing to the development of “quality infrastructure,” but is simultaneously moving ahead with expediting yen loans. The Japanese government also expects that the Mekong countries’ governments will undertake initiatives to expedite this process. Strengthening soft connectivity is the key to reducing distribution costs and facilitating trade within the region.
The Mekong subregion has benefited largely from the infrastructure improvement brought by ODA support from Japan through high-quality roads, bridges, and other hard and soft infrastructure. This assistance includes: hard infrastructure development in the Mekong subregion, bringing improvements in transportation and the distribution of goods; maritime economic corridor development, allowing the Mekong subregion to connect to Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei Darussalam, and the Philippines; and soft infrastructure in the ASEAN framework for laying out terms, procedures, and regulation to facilitate trade.
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Mekong-Republic of Korea Cooperation
By the Ministry of foreign affairs and Mekong Institute
Established in 2011, The Mekong-Republic of Korea Cooperation represents a dynamic and mutually beneficial partnership between the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the countries of the Mekong region, namely Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam (CLMTV).
Strengthened by shared goals of economic development, sustainable growth, and cultural exchange, this collaboration aims to foster regional prosperity, enhance the well-being of the people, narrow the development gap among regional countries, support ASEAN Community building, and address challenges in the Mekong region.
The cooperation is guided by The Plan of Action (PoA) 2021-2025 under the Mekong-RoK Cooperation framework. It serves as a guideline for the Mekong countries and the ROK (the Partner countries) in setting specific goals and measures until 2025 to build a Partnership for People, Prosperity, and Peace, as proclaimed in the Mekong-Han River Declaration adopted at the first Mekong-RoK Summit on November 27, 2019, in Busan, ROK.
Korea - ASEAN Solidarity Initiative (KASI)
The Korea-ASEAN Solidarity Initiative (KASI) marks a significant regional policy introduced by the Republic of Korea to strengthen its partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Recognizing ASEAN as a pivotal ally for fostering peace and shared prosperity in the Indo-Pacific, South Korea has aligned KASI within the framework of the Indo-Pacific Strategy.
This initiative reflects a commitment to building on existing robust partnerships that span trade and socio-economic cooperation. Emphasizing a comprehensive and strategic partnership with ASEAN, KASI outlines strategic goals to enhance collaboration in various domains, including economic development, regional security, and cultural exchange. The initiative underscores South Korea's dedication to moving beyond traditional partnerships and working towards a more multifaceted and enduring relationship with ASEAN, signaling a commitment to contribute to the broader stability and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific region.
Mekong-Korea Cooperation-Program (MKCP)
To establish the Mekong-Korea Comprehensive Partnership for mutual prosperity, the Han River declaration was agreed during the 1st Mekong-Korea Foreign Minister Meeting (FMM) in 2011—the partnership aimed at promoting friendship and cooperation between the Mekong region countries and the ROK.
In addition, the partnership mechanism is also be supported by a Mekong-ROK Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM) which will be conducted prior to the Ministers' Meeting. The Mekong-Korea Cooperation has been elevated to the strategic partnership level in 2019 marking its 1st summit in Busan, Korea.
Mekong-Republic of Korea Cooperation Fund (MKCF)
After the initiation of the Mekong–Republic of Korea (ROK) partnership in 2011, the Mekong Republic of Korea Cooperation Fund (MKCF) was established in 2013 to foster and facilitate collaboration in six priority areas/sectors, as outlined in the Han River Declaration of 2011. These priority areas include: 1) Infrastructure; 2) Information Communication Technology (ICT); 3) Green Growth; 4) Water Resource Development; 5) Agriculture and Rural Development; and 6) Human Resource Development.
In 2019, the Mekong-ROK Foreign Minister Meeting addressed the evolving dynamics and needs of the Mekong countries. Following these discussions, priority areas and sectors for cooperation were identified, encompassing: 1) Culture and Tourism; 2) Information Communication Technology (ICT); 3) Environment; 4) Infrastructure; 5) Agriculture and Rural Development; 6) Human Resource Development; and 7) Non-traditional Security Challenges.
To fund the MKCF, an annual contribution from the ROK to the Mekong Institute (MI) was agreed upon by the five Mekong countries (Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Viet Nam, and Thailand) and the ROK. The MKCF is managed by Mekong Institute (MI) under the Terms of Reference adopted at the 3rd Mekong – ROK Foreign Ministers' Meeting in July 2013 in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam. Furthermore, at the 5th Mekong – ROK Foreign Ministers' Meeting in August 2015 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the Ministers recognized the necessity for more efficient management of the MKCF and designated Mekong Institute as the Coordinator for the MKCF.
Prime Project
In order to support the implementation of MCKF regional projects, the Mekong Institute is currently implementing a project titled 'Capacity Building on Regional Project Design, Implementation, Monitoring & Evaluation of MKCF projects.' The project, spanning three years from January 10, 2023, to January 9, 2026, is funded by the Mekong – ROK Cooperation Fund (MKCF). The initiative aims to enhance institutional capacities throughout the entire project cycle management, incorporating systematic monitoring and evaluation processes.
By doing so, it aspires to contribute to improved regional cooperation and integration among the Mekong countries and the Republic of Korea. The project's activities are strategically designed to yield both short-term and long-term outcomes, with a focus on enhancing the capabilities of project managers and personnel. The objective is to empower them to develop, implement, monitor, and evaluate projects using a results-based approach, ensuring they remain on-budget, on-schedule, on-target, and ultimately achieve the desired results.
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