The 10th Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Summit on Development Triangle Area (CLV-10) took place in Hanoi on March 31 to review the outcomes of trilateral cooperation programmes over the past time and map out development orientations in the next period.

At the 10th CLV Development Triangle Area Summit

The event saw the participation of Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Takehiko Nakao, Managing Director of the World Bank (WB) Joanquim Levy, and Secretary-General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Lim Jock Hoi.

Prime Minister Ngyen Xuan Phuc said the three countries have carried out special cooperation programmes, focusing on socio-economic development in the development triangle area covering 13 border provinces.

The trio has reaped positive cooperation outcomes from security and politics to economy, trade and education, thus narrowing development gaps among localities, he said.

Particularly, Vietnamese businesses have invested in 113 projects worth 3.59 billion USD in Lao and Cambodian provinces, the PM noted.

Five Vietnamese provinces in the development triangle area have attracted 233 projects from 20 countries and territories with a total registered capital of 2.3 billion USD, he said.

The outcomes were attributed to the endeavours of the three countries as well as the valuable support from ASEAN and development partners, especially ADB and WB.

The CLV-10 discussed new policies to boost regional cooperation in a more effective and pragmatic manner.

The success of the event will contribute significantly to the realisation of the ASEAN Community Vision through 2025, the PM said.

The CLV Development Triangle Area was established in 1999, covering Vietnam’s Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong provinces; Laos’ Sekong, Attapeu and Saravan provinces; and Cambodia’s Stung Treng, Rattanak Kiri, and Mondul Kiri.

In 2009, the three countries agreed to add Vietnam’s Binh Phuoc province, Cambodia’s Kratie province, and Laos’ Champasak province to the area. Its cooperation focuses on the fields of security, external affairs, transport, industry, agriculture, trade, investment and environmental protection.

GMS leaders vow greater cooperation

GMS leaders at the sixth GMS Summit 

Leaders of the nations in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) delivered their commitments to stronger subregional cooperation at the plenary session of the sixth GMS Summit in Hanoi on March 31.

Right after the opening speech of Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen highly valued the GMS 25-year cooperation, with numerous achievements in enhancing the region’s competitiveness and building a community of prosperity, peace, and solidarity. 

The GMS cooperation has supported its members in achieving the millennium development goals, particularly promoting the inclusive and sustainable development and addressing challenges such as water shortage, poor infrastructure and global economic instability.

He suggested the GMS members nations connect with each other more effectively via investment in infrastructure, energy and transport, and agreements on transport facilitation and economic special zones along their borderlines, thus contributing more comprehensively to the regional economy.

The GMS countries need to increase regional technology transfer in building physical and digital infrastructure, thus facilitating investment, free trade and tourism, while promoting regional comprehensive and inclusive development via effectively implementing the GMS’s programmes for a region of integration, peace, prosperity and stability.

State Counsellor of China Wang Yi underlined the cooperation among the six GMS nations over the past 25 years, saying that they share mutual benefits and thus have the responsibility for boosting prosperous development, regional cooperation, and economic growth. 

He suggested the GMS nations create new opportunities for development, increase value chain, financial support and cooperation among border areas and industrial parks, while working more closely together to reach common prosperity.

Congratulating the GMS nations on their achievements in implementing the subregion’s action plans and cooperation agreements, Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith said Laos pledges and give priorities to establishing a cross-border transport network and an one-stop mechanism in border areas, as well as boosting cooperation in all economic fields, particularly in the subregion’s economic corridors.

The GMS nations need to fully tap their potential via joint development projects, while luring financial resources and ensuring green growth and common prosperity for the whole subregion, the Lao PM said.

He also called on the six nations to increase technology transfer, narrow the development gaps among them, enhance their competitiveness, and boost public-private-partnership as well as business cooperation.

Vice President of Myanmar U Henry Van Thio welcomed the Hanoi Action Plan 2018-2022 as well as the Regional Investment Framework 2022 and the GMS sectoral cooperation strategies.

He called on the GMS countries to ensure financial resources to implement projects, focusing on inspecting their progress annually.

GMS is a mechanism that looks toward action to make itself a better region. To achieve this, the member countries need specific action plans to strengthen multinational cooperation, he said. 

Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha hoped the GMS countries will enhance cooperation and develop hi-tech human resources to meet the requirements of the fourth Industrial Revolution as well as promote regional connectivity.

The GMS nations should strongly engage in global supply chain, back small-and-medium-sized enterprises, and increase people-to-people exchanges to build a sustainable subregion, he said.

At the session, the GMS leaders reviewed and ratified three key documents, namely the Joint Statement of the GMS-6, the Hanoi Action Plan 2018 – 2022, and the Regional Investment Framework 2022.

ADB expects stronger GMS growth

ADB President Takehiko Nakao (first R) and GMS leaders at the sixth GMS Summit

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) expects the economic growth of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) will continue to expand in 2018, ADB President Takehiko Nakao said at the sixth GMS Summit in Hanoi on March 31.

Since its establishment in 1992, the GMS programme has brought tremendous benefits to the subregion, especially increasing connectivity and capacity in various fields, he added.

The economic growth of the GMS nations is impressive, and in 2018, ADB expects most of the GMS countries will be among the fastest growing economies in Asia-Pacific.

He said he has great optimistic view about the future continuous growth of the GMS countries, noting that some countries, including Vietnam, enjoying a growth of 7 percent, which is expected to double in the next 10 years.

GMS growth is based on the countries’ effective policies, open investment mechanism, and market-oriented reform.

ADB will continue supporting the GMS to build a subregional investment framework from now to 2022 with over 200 projects. The list of the projects will be updated regularly in the coming years, focusing on mitigation of climate change, agriculture, health care, human resources competitiveness, and urban development, he said.

The sixth GMS Summit took place in Hanoi on March 31, with the participation of leaders of the regional countries and representatives from ASEAN, the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank.

Themed “Leveraging on 25 years of Cooperation, and Building a Sustainable, Integrated, and Prosperous GMS”, the summit reviewed the 25-year path of GMS cooperation, and discussed opportunities and challenges the subregion is facing as well as major orientations for GMS cooperation in the coming time.

GMS was established in 1992 as an initiative of the Asian Development Bank. The GMS Programme is the most complete cooperation programme that involves Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, and China’s Yunnan and Guangxi provinces. Priority fields include infrastructure development, energy, telecommunications, tourism, trade-investment, human resources, and the environment.

VNA