Active Development AidData Chinese Aid

Lancang-Mekong Fund provides USD 3.8 million to Myanmar in 2023

$3.8M USD

Funder	Unspecified Chinese Government Institution
Recipient Organization	Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) Special Fund
Country	Myanmar
Start Date	Jun 08, 2023
End Date	Aug 30, 2031
Duration	3,005 days
Number of Grantees	1
Roles	Recipient
Data Source	AidData Chinese Aid
Grant ID	`108680`

Grant Description

On June 8, 2023, China and Myanmar signed the Agreement on the Transfer of Funds for projects to be implemented under the 2023 Lancang-Mekong Special Fund, allocating USD 3.8 million for 14 projects: - 1 project by the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations (captured by Record ID# 108679) - 1 project by the Myanmar National Library (captured by Record ID# 108578) - 1 project by the Ministry of Industry (captured by Record ID# 108702) - 1 project by the Ministry for Cooperatives (captured by Record ID# 108704) - 1 project by the Ministry of Science and Technology (captured by Record ID# 108717) - 4 projects by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation - An unspecified number of projects by Myanmar Ministry for Hotels and Tourism - An unspecified number of projects by Myanmar Minstry of Health

📋 Staff Comments

1. The Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) mechanism was originally established at the 17th China-ASEAN Summit on November 13, 2014. Then, on March 23, 2016, the Chinese Government announced the establishment of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Special Fund which would provide USD 300 million in concessional loans over 5-years (2016-2021) for small- and medium-sized cooperation projects in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. Since 2021, each country has signed individual MoU's with the Chinese government to continue financing for projects under the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Special Fund. It is unclear if the new MoU's are financed through concessional loans as well. Most projects funded through the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Special Fund (LMCSF) do not contain repayment terms or appear on government agency or company financial statements as borrowings, thus AidData has decided to code post-2021 LMCSF projects as grants.

📚 Sources & References

Overview of Recent Agreements
Launching ceremony of 6th LMC special fund projects held in Myanmar's Nay Pyi Taw
Signing ceremony held in Nay Pyi Taw commemorating the 73rd Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and the People’s Republic of China (8-6-2023) Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.