China funds 18 projects via MLCSF

MINISTRIES SEEK TO BOOST LIVELIHOODS

>> The Chinese government is funding 18 local projects worth US$4.1 million (about 151 million baht) under the Mekong-Lancang Cooperation Special Fund (MLCSF) this year, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).

Out of 106 projects proposed by government agencies and members of the education sector, 18 are receiving funding this year, said Busadee Santipitaks, the MFA’s acting permanent secretary.

All projects are aimed at improving the livelihoods of Thais, including those in the Mekong sub-region, promoting sustainable development, agriculture and food safety as well as accelerating economic recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic and enhancing environmental protection, she said.

The 18 projects comprise 13 initiatives from the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation and one each from the Public Health Ministry, the Industry Ministry, the Commerce Ministry, the Interior Ministry and the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry.

Examples of some of the titles of these projects i nclude: “Prospect Supply Chain for Small Battery Electric Vehicle in Lancang-Mekong Region”, “Strengthening the Cooperation of Traditional and Indigenous Medicine in Response to Covid-19 Pandemic in the Greater Mekong Basin” and “Reviving

Cultural Heritage Tourism Route from Yunnan to Highland Southeast Asia”.

Ms Busadee said that the selection process was carried out by the Chinese embassy in Thailand, the Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Chinese Finance Ministry.

The MLCSF this year is supporting 112 projects from six countries, including 53 projects from China, 18 projects from Thailand, 14 projects from Myanmar, 12 projects from Laos, nine projects from Cambodia and six projects from Vietnam, she said.

Ms Busadee said that from 2017– 2023, Thailand received a total of about 748 million baht from the MLCSF.

Han Zhiqiang, the Chinese Ambassador to Thailand, said more than 700 projects have been implemented in the Mekong River basin, producing good outcomes in many fields, such as economic development.

He said improvements in income protection, use of water resources, law enforcement, and cultural exchanges have also resulted. “Next year, China and Thailand will celebrate the 50th anniversary of their bilateral relations,” he said.

“We are willing to work with Thailand to implement the important consensus reached by the two countries’ leaders, and to celebrate building the China-Thailand community with a shared future for enhanced stability, prosperity, and sustainability,” he said.