Trade, investment with Laos tops agenda

HA NOI — Fostering trade and investment co-operation between businesses from Viet Nam and Laos topped the agenda of a meeting of officials and business leaders in the capital yesterday.

Speaking at the event, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Thanh Bien said businesses from the two countries had co-operated in areas like hydropower, mining, rubber plantation and processing in past years.

By the end of last year, Vietnamese investment in Laos topped US$812 million with 157 projects. Laos leads the list of countries attracting investment from Viet Nam. Last year, Viet Nam invested in 35 projects worth a total $180 million.

Two-way trade also marked significant growth of 35 per cent, reaching $423 million in 2008.
However, Bien said, Laos had poorer infrastructure compared to other countries in the region, as well as a shortages of skilled workers. A lack of co-operation among Vietnamese firms was also problematic.

Nguyen Minh Tu, vice chairman of the Viet Nam-Laos-Cambodia Association for Economic Co-operation and Development, said Vietnamese firms should study laws and trade policies, and research the market to draw up business strategies to tap the market better.

The official said Vietnamese firms should well prepare financial capacities and labour resources before doing business in Laos and co-operate more closely with others.

He also petitioned the States to revise legal documents to facilitate deeper trade and investment co-operation among the two countries’ business communities.

Meanwhile, a representative from the Viet Nam National Coal and Minerals Industries Group (Vinacomin) suggested the two Governments write up good strategies to develop transport and power infrastructure facilities in Laos areas with rich potential for mineral mining and processing.

In the past few years, the two countries have adopted various measures to facilitate bilateral trade and investment activities by implementing transparent incentives policies, offering tax cuts and building bordergate economic zones in hope of increasing two-way trade to $1 billion next year and $2 billion in 2015.

Potential for co-operation between enterprises on hydropower, mining, cash crops and agro-fishery-forestry processing continue despite global and regional economic difficulties and investment co-operation between the countries is still encouraging. — VNS