ASEAN countries, China, Japan and South Korea may use the crisis funds facility after the endorsement of the withdrawal procedures in February, the group Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said in Jakarta on Monday.

The central banks of the ASEAN + 3 countries recently agreed to raise 80 billion US dollars funds under the Chiang Mai Initiative which can be used by the ASEAN + 3 countries should a crisis on their balance payment occur.

The secretary general said that currently the finance ministers of the countries were on the final stages of determining the procedures on withdrawal, then it was expected to be endorsed at the 14th ASEAN summit, which is scheduled to be held in Thailand in the third week of February.

"So the countries can use the facility after the summit, I hope, " said Pitsuwan.

Eighty percent of the 80 billion US dollars funds will be donated by China, Japan and South Korea, and the rest by the ASEAN member countries, including Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The global financial routs has led the emerging countries become casualty of the global flight from risky assets, drying up US dollars liquidity. Besides, the crisis has sapped demand which eased exports of the countries.

The crisis is predicted to tilt into a recession next year, which will impact on the economic growth of the countries.

Most of central bank in the region has cut rates to boost growth.

Regarding a plan to exclude the International Monetary Funds from supervising the withdrawal of the crisis funds, the secretary general said that the IMF would still be there.

"It is important the region as a group could come up with some kind of mechanism and other kind of mechanism, so we have our own alternative, full of resources, and we can withdraw without having to be tied to any particular one," he told reporters after the formalization of the ASEAN charter at the ASEAN secretariat.

(Xinhua News Agency December 15, 2008)