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Regional cooperation forum kicks off in Myanmar

Xinhua, February 10, 2015 Adjust font size:

A four-country forum on regional cooperation involving Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar (BCIM) kicked off in Myanmar's Yangon Tuesday.

Under the theme of "Cooperation for the Development of BCIM Countries", the two-day 12th BCIM forum, hosted by Myanmar, will discuss enhancing link for economic corridor, poverty alleviation through development programs and people-to-people cooperation in the BCIM region.

Delegations of the four countries will present a total of 12 research papers on regional cooperation.

Speaking at the opening of the forum, Myanmar Deputy Foreign Minister U Thant Kyaw reaffirmed Myanmar's renewed commitment to cooperating with BCIM member countries in enhancing the forum, believing that the forum will become an effective regional mechanism to bring about the major objectives of peace, security and prosperity to the peoples of the region.

U Thant Kyaw highlighted the role of energy cooperation, calling for stronger cooperation among the members in the sector.

At the event, China's Yunnan Province Vice-Governor Gao Shuxun raised a six-point proposal of strengthening the BCIM cooperation which include mutual connectivity and infrastructural construction.

In an interview with Xinhua, Indian delegation leader Eric Gonsalves, who was former ambassador, stressed the development of regional cooperation in all areas, and expressed the wish to produce a workable route on the ground in infrastructure for providing good services.

He also called for raising the level of technology and putting more resources and capacity to develop less-developed countries, citing Bangladesh and Myanmar.

Vice-President of Myanmar's Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry Dr. Maung Maung Lay highlighted the need for pushing more cooperation in weak sectors of respective countries, calling for boundaryless resource flow within the four countries.

Bangladesh delegation leader Abdul Motaleb, who is a foreign ministry official, warned of some challenges, citing a lot of people who are living in poverty. He expressed confidence that if the governments and the peoples of the four countries work together with mutual trust and understanding, the challenges can be overcome.

Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM) Forum for Regional Cooperation is a sub-regional organization aimed at greater integration of trade and investment between the four countries.

The four countries possess a market of 2.8 billion people and an estimated gross domestic product of 9.3 trillion U.S. dollars.

With vast human and natural resources as well as extensive maritime access, the four countries have strong trade potential and opportunities for growth.

This is the third time Myanmar has hosted the event since the inception of the first BCIM forum in China in 1999. The previous two times were in Yangon in 2003 and in Nay Pyi Taw in 2009. Endi