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| Singapore and Myanmar sign MOU on technical programme By Dylan Loh | Posted: 30 January 2012 1346 hrs
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<TBODY> </TBODY> SINGAPORE : Singapore is set to play a bigger role in assisting Myanmar's progress, now that a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the Singapore-Myanmar Technical Cooperation Programme has been signed. The agreement will see Singapore give technical help to the country in three priority areas - public administration, economic development and human resource development. The agreement was signed during Myanmar President Thein Sein's three-day visit to Singapore. The Myanmar leader met his Singapore counterpart, President Tony Tan Keng Yam, and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Both witnessed the signing of the MOU, in which the Republic will offer training to help the country with urban planning, tourism development and central banking. The agreement was signed by Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs and Law, K Shanmugam, and Myanmar's Union Minister for Foreign Affairs, Wunna Maung Lwin. In the area of human resource, Singapore will also support Myanmar's efforts to build a base of skilled workers. These include protocol and conference work to help Myanmar prepare for its role as Chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2014. In addition, customised study visits will be organised for Myanmar officials. As housing is a key priority for the developing country, Mr Thein Sein got an insight into Singapore's approach to public housing. This included a visit to a Toa Payoh flat - the household of Tow Milan and his wife Soh Seow Pheng. They said: "It was a good visit, although very short...he basically, I think, has quite a lot of emphasis on the family that lives in a house. So that was our impression, he is very much a family-oriented person." To prepare for the visit, Madam Soh had plenty to do. She said: "To welcome the President, I had to clean up the whole house, like the window, the floor, everything. Then I got the kids to tidy their tables." Amidst the warm handshakes and exchange of words, a picture has emerged of two countries at different stages of progress, yet, with similar interests. The pursuit of an effective housing model is one example. Attracting foreign businesses is another. The International Monetary Fund has cited the potential for Myanmar to become Asia's next economic frontier. And the country is keen to exploit this potential, by tapping on Singapore's know-how in pulling in investment dollars. Mr Thein Sein's visit will end on February 1. - CNA/cc/ms <!-- Zone Tag : Channel News Asia In Text <script type="text/javascript"> innity_pub = "66368270ffd51418ec58bd793f2d9b1b"; innity_zone = "12251"; innity_width = "**"; innity_height = "**"; innity_country = "SG"; </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://cdn.innity.com/network.js"></script>--> |
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