Vietnam
Vietnam put forth initiatives to foster Mekong-Ganga River cooperation
After discussing measures of cooperation, the ministers agreed to adopt the MGC action plan for the 2019 – 2022 period.
Extending the East – West corridor to India and expanding the highway India – Myanmar – Thailand to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam are among the initiatives proposed by Vietnam at the 10th Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC) Ministerial Meeting in Bangkok, Thailand on August 1.
At the meeting, Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh suggested expanding the East-West and the Southern economic corridors to India as well as actively studying some projects of multi-modal transportation networks linking India with Mekong subregions.
These ideas are said to strengthen the connectivity and lift the cooperation among MGC’s members to a higher level.
The Vietnamese deputy prime minister also proposed measures to enhance trade facilitation and boost investment activities including eliminating trade barriers, intensifying trade promotion, customs clearance and the development of regional supply and demand chains.
Besides, MGC should promote sustainable water resources management especially through projects regarding collecting and examining water resource data, underground water management, climate change adaptation, flooding and drought control.
The meeting, which was co-chaired by Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh and India Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, saw the attendance of the foreign ministers of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand.
After discussing measures of cooperation, the ministers agreed to adopt the MGC action plan for the 2019 – 2022 period, with three additional cooperation areas including water resources management, science-technology, capacity improvement and skills development. These measures are said to better meet the development demands and respond to the common challenges among Mekong countries and India.
The ministers also agreed the 11th meeting will be organized in Vietnam in 2020, which marks the 20th anniversary of MGC.
Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh at the MGC meeting. Photo by VNA.
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These ideas are said to strengthen the connectivity and lift the cooperation among MGC’s members to a higher level.
The Vietnamese deputy prime minister also proposed measures to enhance trade facilitation and boost investment activities including eliminating trade barriers, intensifying trade promotion, customs clearance and the development of regional supply and demand chains.
Besides, MGC should promote sustainable water resources management especially through projects regarding collecting and examining water resource data, underground water management, climate change adaptation, flooding and drought control.
The meeting, which was co-chaired by Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh and India Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, saw the attendance of the foreign ministers of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand.
After discussing measures of cooperation, the ministers agreed to adopt the MGC action plan for the 2019 – 2022 period, with three additional cooperation areas including water resources management, science-technology, capacity improvement and skills development. These measures are said to better meet the development demands and respond to the common challenges among Mekong countries and India.
The ministers also agreed the 11th meeting will be organized in Vietnam in 2020, which marks the 20th anniversary of MGC.
