Japan to provide 700,000 dollars for aid to ASEAN island areas: report

Japan to provide 700,000 dollars for aid to ASEAN island areas: report

Agence France-Presse
Tokyo

Japan plans to provide US$700,000 in technical assistance to
help develop island areas in four Southeast Asian countries, a
press report said on Saturday.

The plan will be announced at a summit meeting here between
Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on
Dec. 11-12 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the group's
ties with Tokyo, the Jiji Press news agency said.

Jiji, quoting government sources, said the aid will be
provided to Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines
through a Japanese-financed special fund established at the Asian
Development Bank for three years from late January.

The summit is expected to confirm commitments by Japan and
ASEAN member states to beefing up the comprehensive economic
partnership between the two sides.

The Japanese aid will help prop up the economies of the island
areas which have abundant natural resources but are fraught with
slower economic development hampered by poverty and piracy, among
other things, the report said.

The assistance will be used to nurture industries and
technical support for the smooth flow of goods and investment
funds in the region, the report said.

At the upcoming summit, the Japanese government will also
express readiness to enhance its support for the development in
the Mekong basin, which extends over Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and
Cambodia, Jiji added.