ADB & GREATER MEKONG SUBREGION

[moe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

ADB & GREATER MEKONG SUBREGION
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ADB To Hold 32nd Annual Meeting in Manila From 30 April to 2 May 
SOURCE:ADB
The Asian Development Bank will hold the 32nd Annual Meeting of its Board of
Governors in Manila from 30 April to 2 May 1999. More than 2,000
participants, composed of Government and official delegates from the Bank's
57 members, observers from international organizations, leaders of the
international banking, financial and development community, non-governmental
organizations, and media are expected to attend. 

The Opening Session will take place at 10 a.m. on 30 April at the Isla
Ballroom of the EDSA Plaza Hotel. and will include addresses by Philippine
President Joseph Ejercito Estrada, ADB President Tadao Chino and Philippine
Finance Secretary Edgardo B. Espiritu, who is Chairman of the ADB's Board of
Governors. Business sessions of the meeting will be held at the ADB
headquarters in Mandaluyong City on 1 May and 2 May. 

Seminars and presentations on development issues will be held from 29 April
to 2 May. The seminars are "Can the Next Crisis be Averted? The Role of
Regional Economic Monitoring"; "Is this the End of the Asian Model?";
"Beyond the Asian Turmoil: Capital Account Crisis and Family-Based Corporate
Governance"; "Poverty Reduction: What's New and What's Different?";
"Strategies and Policies for the Development of Rural Asia"; "The Euro: A
New Capital Raising Opportunities for Asian Issuers"; "Country Presentation:
Indonesia "Financial Sector Restructuring in Asia"; "Seminar on Commercial
Cofinancing and Guarantees"; "Public Financial Management and
Accountability"; "Open Forum on Cooperation between the ADB and NGOs"; and
"ADB-Institute of International Finance Forum on Regional Monetary and
Financial Cooperation".

The GMS
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The GMS 

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The GMS  
Facts and Figures

Country Profiles  
Covering a land area of approximately 2.3 million square kilometers, the
subregion has a population of about 237 million. 
GMS countries share the Mekong River, which defines the subregion. Natural
resources abound, including a rich agricultural base, extensive timber and
fisheries resources, considerable mineral potential, and vast energy
resources in the form of hydropower and large coal and petroleum reserves.
Proper management practices will be critical to ensure sustainable

development of these natural resources.

There is a large labor pool in the subregion, much of which is underemployed
and hence available for light industry and other opportunities. The labor
force is low wage, young, and industrious. There is a strong willingness to
learn and investment in education and training has high returns. Foreign
investors have recognized the great potential of the subregion; joint
ventures with domestic enterprise and other investment forms have led to
major export gains.

The GMS countries are in transition from centrally-planned, inward-looking
economies to more market-based, open economies. The gross domestic product
of the subregion is estimated to have been around US$ 238 billion in 1996.
GDP per capita ranges from US$ 280 to US$ 3,100 or an average of about US$
800. Thailand has the highest per capita income due to its high period of
economic growth. Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Viet Nam, and Yunnan Province
are now also experiencing growth rates of 6-10 percent (1996). If these
economies continue to perform well, the total GDP of the region would reach
US$ 863 billion by year 2010. This means that if population growth in the
region is held at 2 percent, the subregion would have 314 million people by
the year 2010 and have an average per capita income of over US$ 2,700 --
more than triple the 1996 level.

Combined with rural/urban shifts, the population momentum in the GMS
countries will add more than 100 million to the subregion's major cities and
towns. The consumer market will grow exponentially, as poverty declines and
people seek to gain the benefits of modernization. Per capita incomes could
triple or quadruple over the period to the year 2020. Major structural
changes will also sweep the subregion. Agriculture will decline in
importance, as industrial output is expected to continue to grow at 2-3
times the rate of agricultural output.

Deservedly, the GMS is increasingly recognized as the new frontier of the
East Asian miracle. Environmental, income distribution, infrastructure,
human resource and other concerns pose serious challenges for the subregion,
but domestic and foreign resources - including external assistance - are
combining effectively to build the basis for sustained rapid growth.