Regional economic strategy 'hinges on transport'
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Transport linkages play a leading role in the successful implementation of the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS), a Laotian transport official has said.
The director-general of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport’s Planning and Cooperation Department, Math Sounmala, made the comment when chairing the ACMECS Working Group on Transport in Vientiane on Wednesday.
“The development of transport linkages, inclusive of road, rail and air, is progressing satisfactorily. This is a promising sign of the ongoing ACMECS cooperation because such linkages play a catalytic and leading role in the successful implementation of the economic cooperation strategy,” he said.
“The demand for the smooth and seamless movement of goods and people across our borders is crucial for the promotion of trade, investment and tourism, as well as for the advancement of our economic integration.”
The working group meeting was attended by delegations from Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar and Thailand to discuss and review the progress made in ACMECS cooperation related to transport linkage projects.
They also discussed plans for future cooperation and identified possible transport cooperation projects that should be included in the draft Vientiane Declaration of the ACMECS Summit and action programme for 2013-2015. The 5th ACMECS Summit will take place in Vientiane on March 13.
In regards to transport linkages, member countries have proposed several bilateral and multilateral projects over the short, medium and long term. However, the implementation process of these multilateral projects has been very slow due to a lack of funding, observers said.
Common and bilateral projects include five common projects, two projects between Laos and Cambodia, two projects between Laos and Myanmar, eleven projects between Laos and Thailand, and another four projects between Laos and neighbouring Vietnam.
