Japan to renew granting development loans to Myanmar

Photo from AFP

The resumption on the granting of development loans to Myanmar by the help and assistance of Japan will be pronounced this weekend. This is to further and intensify the development related structures in this country.

Both countries are on its way on closing the deal just how Myanmar will take part in settling its unpaid debts even in small proportion which is a prerequisite for new loans to be released. As the resource person said, he’s hoping that they will come up with a solid decision and agreement just before the regional summit will start on Saturday in Tokyo. The exact amount which Myanmar owes Japan was not revealed. There was no further commentary and remarks made by the Myanmar authorities, said news report from Reuters.

The Western countries are about to meet, assess and to evaluate the sanctions imposed in Myanmar this month. Unexpectedly, President Thein Sein has surprised leaders of different countries who were his critics before when the country is under the rule of military junta. With the release of political prisoners, reaching for a peace dialogues with the ethnic rebels and more lenient approach in media censorship were just a few reforms which caught the pleasure and acceptance of EU to lift sanctions.

Japan has been a long friend country to Myanmar even before the bloody instances that occurred during the attacks made by the government to pro demonstrators in 1988. Japan has already promised to grant loans at ¥410 billion ($5.04 billion) with low interest rate, loans for a long term used to finance the construction and establishment of roads, ports, railways and other priority projects of the country.

Loans intended for infrastructure developments in developing countries and having the lowest interest rates will approximately be around tens of billions of yen. Though other parts of the country have no electricity to talk of, the road conditions are very poor and the railways cater only to selected routes, making investments might be difficult to some because of this present scenario in this country, according to Reuters report.

It can be recalled that last February ,Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba said that there were plans for Japan to reconsider the granting of development funds but no specific dates were set on the issuance of loans and did not specify the amounts involve for these loans. This is purposely to assist the government to finally draw a complete democracy in the country.

Thein Sein is bound to visit Japan on Friday where he will be spending five days and at the same time to confer with Yoshihiko Noda, Japan’s Prime Minister and other influential leader coming from Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar. No sanctions were imposed by Japan compared to the Western Union. They have preference based on a guiding principle by making their lines of communication open, Reuters report said.