Conference promotes Vietnam-Laos border trade

The seventh conference on Vietnam-Laos border trade development and cooperation was held in Thanh Hoa on September 9, with Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Cam Tu and his Lao counterpart Khemmani Pholsena co-chairing.

Attending the conference were representatives from various ministries and sectors and government and business leaders from 10 Vietnam and Laos’ border provinces.

Participants reviewed border trade activities in recent months and proposed ideas to manage and boost economic and trade relations between Vietnam and Laos. They discussed mechanisms, policies, and administrative procedures as well as local experiences in developing border trade.

The conference agreed to recommend bilateral incentive policies aimed at speeding up economic development in border areas and revamping administrative procedures at border gates in line with previous agreements signed by the two countries in order to facilitate travel and the transport of goods between countries in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS).

The Ministries of Industry and Trade proposed establishing a number of border trade areas and making zoning plans for developing Vietnam-Laos border markets and trade until 2020.

Participants underlined the need for businesses to promote joint venture cooperation and investment in goods production for export to the other countries and services for countries transiting goods through Vietnam and Laos.

Vietnam and Laos share a land border of 2,067 km running through 140 communes of 32 districts in 10 Vietnamese provinces.

In 2009, two-way export and import turnover between the two countries reached US$417.8 million. In the first half of this year, the figure hit US$211 million, up 8 percent over the same period last year, and is expected to reach US$470 million for the whole year, 12 percent higher than last year’s total.

The two countries have set a target of reaching over US$2 billion in export-import turnover by 2015 in which Laos’ export turnover to Vietnam will be US$1,339 million and Vietnam’s share will be US$1,086 million.

The representatives from the Ministries of Industry and Trade signed a memorandum of understanding and presented Certificates of Merit to collectives and individuals in recognition of their contributions to boosting Vietnam-Laos border trade development in 2009-2010.

Tags: Vietnam Laos border trade

Posted by VBN on Sep 9 2010. Filed under Import-Export. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry