Myanmar visit boosts cooperation in SEZ development

Myanmar Vice President U Nyan Tun's visit to Thailand, which concluded on Tuesday, has boost cooperation with Thailand in development of Myanmar's Dawei Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in southern Tanintharyi region, observers here said Wednesday. During his attendance of the Second Myanmar-Thai Joint High Level Committee Meeting in Bangkok on Dawei SEZ and comprehensive development of the related project areas, U Nyan Tun called for effective implementation of the Dawei SEZ project in line with the international standard. He urged seeking mutually beneficial ways for Myanmar people and investors and choosing those who would use cutting edge technology and machines for avoiding environmental impact. The meeting involving the Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong agreed on a framework of the five- year development plan between 2014 and 2018. The development plan focuses on infrastructure development including roads connecting the Dawei project to border province of Kanchanaburi, small-size sea port, natural gas-fuelled power generating plant, reservoirs and land development for industrial estates. The Thai side said the whole infrastructure development plan alone is expected to cost 300-400 billion U.S. dollars. However, the first five-year infrastructure development plan will cost only 976 million dollars. The meeting also agreed that on the initial capital of Dawei SEZ Development, the company set up to give consultations, and invite and select investors to develop the project, outlining that both countries will hold equal shares in the company through Myanmar's Foreign Economic Relations Department (FERD) and Thailand's Neighboring Countries Economic Development (NEDA) with 12 million baht or about 390,000 dollars initial capital. The joint committee officially invited Japan to join the development of the project as a strategic partner. The follow-up tripartite meeting of Myanmar, Thailand and Japan sought ways of prompt practical implementation steps of the Dawei SEZ project to enable local people to bear the fruit of the project. The tripartite meeting also focused on setting up of special purpose vehicles, shareholders' agreements and framework agreement, project proposal, resettlement and Japan's participation in the project. Initially, Myanmar and Thailand agreed on an infrastructural development plan of the Dawei SEZ which includes roads connecting the Dawei project to the border province of Kanchanaburi, small- size sea port, natural gas-fuelled power generating plant, reservoirs and land development for industrial estates. Myanmar and Thailand set up a joint committee on comprehensive development of the Dawei SEZ and its related projects during U Nyan Tun's last visit to Bangkok in November 2012. The project was first agreed during a visit to Thailand by President U Thein Sein earlier in July of the year. Myanmar and Thailand signed a framework agreement in November 2010 covering the projects of industrial zone, road and rail link to Thailand in the Tanintharyi region. The Dawei project represents the first ever special economic zone in Myanmar. The project includes construction of Dawei deep sea-port, buildings for shipyard and maintenance work, establishment of zone, petrochemical industries, oil refinery, steel plant, power stations and Dawei-Bangkok motor road and railroad and laying of oil pipeline along the motorway and railroad. To boost implementation of the project, Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra had visited the Dawei region in December 2012 for the first time, pledging to cooperate closely with Myanmar to implement the project more effectively.