Thai Cabinet nods for financial contribution to first ACMECS fund

BANGKOK, June 18 (TNA) - The Cabinet has endorsed a Thai initiative on establishing the first 500 million-US dollar- fund for the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS) by approving the country's contribution of 200 million US dollars to the regional fund over the next five years. Nattaporn Jatusripitak, an advisor to the Thai Minister Attached to the Prime Minister's Office, told journalists on Tuesday that the decision was made at the Cabinet's weekly meeting at Bangkok's Government House earlier in the day. Nattaporn stated that the Thai government will first contribute 40 million US dollars to the ACMECS Fund in this 2019 fiscal year (October 1, 2018-September 30, 2019) and will then contribute the same amount annually in the country's 2020-2023 fiscal years. Nattaporn acknowledged while playing the chairmanship role of the ACMECS bloc in 2018, Thailand proposed the ACMECS Master Plan, comprising three major strategies (3s) on promoting the borderless connectivity among member countries, enhancing regional economic cooperation and supporting sustainable development in the region through the adoption of innovations, together with the establishment of such the first ACMECS Fund to finance regional operations under the ACMECS Master Plan during the same five year-period and to become a symbol of collaboration among member countries. Nattaporn said other four member countries, including Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam have agreed to contribute a total of 100 million US dollars to the first ACMECS fund over the next five years, while the remaining 200 million US dollars will be contributed by participating trading partners of the five-nation ACMECS group, including Australia, Japan, South Korea and the United States. According to the advisor, an administrative panel, comprising of representatives of the five member countries and the participating trading partners, will become the management mechanism of the first ACMECS Fund, aimed mainly to finance study projects under the five-year master plan, namely those on the environmental impact assessment (EIA) of relevant programs, prior to the establishment of two more funds in the future, including the ACMECS Infrastructure Financing Facility Fund and the ACMECS Project-based Financing Facility Fund. (TNA)