Sponsors have welcomed ASEAN member nations’ collaboration in transport, and pledged to maintain their support to the development of the region’s transport infrastructure.

The commitment was heard at a meeting between ASEAN transport ministers and sponsors in Pakse, Champassak province, Laos on December 20.

Attending the event were representatives from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the Export-Import Bank of China (China Eximbank), and the Korea International Cooperation (KOICA).

Lao Minister of Public Works and Transport Sommad Pholsena presented the Brunei action programme and transport projects that ASEAN members have worked on together in order to boost the grouping’s transport connectivity, heading towards the ASEAN Economic Community by 2015.

He also updated delegates on the difficulties the region is facing in the field, and called on the sponsors to further their assistance in infrastructure building so as to better link ASEAN with its partners, namely the Republic of Korea, China and Japan.

At the meeting, ASEAN’s sponsors also shared their coordination experience in helping the regional countries improve their transport systems.

Over the past two decades, the sponsors have actively aided ASEAN nations. Particularly, ADB has provided them with 66 billion USD.-VNA