Published in Cebu Daily News, December 11, 1998

CEBU – Asian countries are now swiftly moving towards privatization of government-owned and operated facilities. Such trends have been noted in countries such as the Philippines, Thailand, and South Korea.

Privatization is an initiative that is now being taken on the strong belief that the private sector can best handle services and other facilities in a country.

Ms. Lisa Kircher Lumbao, technical support and communications specialist of the United States-Asia Environmental Partnership (US-AEP) based in Manila, said that the three mentioned countries are so keen in their privatization programs that they sought the help of US-AEP based in Washington, DC, to extend technical assistance.

The Philippines wanted help in privatizing its water supply, Thailand its wastewater, and Korea wanted a comprehensive overview of the privatization process.

Ms. Lumbao said US-AEP’s Environmental Exchange Program (EEP) had responded by implementing an environmental infrastructure course in the Philippines, Korea and Thailand last October and November.

The three-day seminar provided an overview of public-private partnerships, legal, institutional, and financial issues and relevant case histories from modernizing and advanced economies.

In every country, she said, the participants included senior-level municipal officials, policy-makers and private sector financial representatives, as well as a large number of representatives from U.S. engineering firms.

In the Philippines and Thailand, Asia Regional Director Ben Martin represented the American Consulting Engineers Council (ACEC) -- US-AEP’s partner for environmental infrastructure.

The Philippine course, co-sponsored by Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA), attracted more than 50 participants, she revealed. Deputy LWUA Chairman M. Landingan gave a keynote speech.

In Thailand, where the Kenan Institute acted as the local co-sponsor, she said 92 participants attended the seminar, including one from Sri Lanka. Thai Deputy Prime Minister Suwit Khunkitti, demonstrating his strong support of privatization, delivered the keynote address. U.S. Ambassador William H. Itoh presided over the opening ceremony while Jeremy Hagger of the US-AEP Secretariat delivered a keynote speech.

The Korea seminar attracted the largest number of participants -- more than 200 – including one from Mongolia. Organized by US-AEP’s Office of Technology Cooperation in Korea, the workshop was co-sponsored by the Korean Ministry of Environment and featured site visits to two environmental plants privatized in 1997, the Kuri City sewage sludge incineration plant and Yangpyung City’s Kangha/Sujong wastewater treatment plant. In addition, participants visited a research facility, the Han River Water Quality Analysis Center.

The site tours, Ms. Lumbao said, provided an excellent opportunity for attendees to learn about the current status and capabilities of Korean environmental companies involved in privatization, and to initiate relationships with companies that have undertaken public-private projects.