Safe Mekong Coordination Centre opens in Myanmar’s Shan State

The opening ceremony of the Safe Mekong Coordination Centre was launched in Taunggyi Township of Shan State on 29 November.
During the ceremony, Police Brig-Gen Win Naing, Joint Secretary of the Central Committee on Drug Abuse Control and Commander of the Drug Enforcement Division, Dr Zheng Zhihong, Minister Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy to Myanmar and U Win Zeyar Oo, Deputy Director-General and Vice-Chair of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) Body from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs delivered opening speeches respectively.
The centre established under LMC was developed using a total of K852.77 million ($499,400) from the LMC Special Fund and from the Myanmar Police Force under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
It was inaugurated to fight drug trafficking along the Mekong River, share information about drug smugglers among China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Viet Nam, boost technologies exchange and capacity building of anti-drug task forces and ensure rule of law along the River.
LMC aims at bolstering the economic and social development of the Sub-regional countries, enhancing the well-being of their people, narrowing the development gap among regional countries and supporting ASEAN Community building as well as promoting the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals and advancing South-South cooperation.
The Chairmanship of LMC countries changes once every three months and so Myanmar can establish representative offices of member countries to hold meetings and conduct effective measures in tackling the narcotics trade as it launches the Safe Mekong Coordination Centre in the country. — MNA