South Korea will set up a technology, culture and business education center (TCBEC) in Myanmar, aimed at promoting the development of the fields in the country, according to business sources Monday.

The TCBEC will be jointly run by the Gwangju-Jeannam e-Learning Research Center and the Chonnam National University under a memorandum of understanding initiated here recently between the Union of Myanmar Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Korean university.

Myanmar and South Korea have maintained cooperative relations in various areas including economic, technical and cultural cooperation since decades ago.

As one of the most recent cooperation projects in the technology aspects, a South Korean consortium comprising the Daewoo International Corporation and the KCOMS has reached a 12- million-U.S.-dollar contract with the Myanmar communications authorities to help build an e(electronic)-government system for the country over the next few years, local reports said earlier.

Under the project, the Korean consortium is to provide information and communication technology infrastructure for the Myanmar government to link its 38 ministries to a high-speed internet network and computerize its personnel management system.

In the culture aspects, South Korean artists visited Myanmar in September last year for cultural exchange to help create better understanding between the peoples of the two countries and enhanced bilateral friendship.

In the business field, South Korea has been enhancing exploration in the field with several trade missions visiting the country since late last year. The missions, which include representatives from over a dozen small and medium enterprises, are to strengthen exploration of market potential for exporting products to Myanmar and importing raw materials from the country.

According to official statistics, South Korea's investment in Myanmar has reached over 190 million U.S. dollars since the country opened to foreign investment in late 1988. The investment involved about 100 Korean companies in 34 projects.

The statistics also show that their bilateral trade amounted to 127.14 million U.S. dollars in the fiscal year 2004-05 with Myanmar's exports to Korea amounting to 36.86 million U.S. dollars and its imports from Korea taking 90.28 million U.S. dollars.

Source: Xinhua