Today, cross-border trade is not only limited to border areas, but has become a trade activity between countries and regions. Land border gates have become "gateways" or "bridges" for transferring goods between bordering countries. In general, cross-border economic cooperation often aims at the following goals: upgrading transportation, facilitating trade and promoting economic development in border areas.

The establishment of cross-border economic cooperation zones is a strategy and orientation to support the development process and promote the comparative advantages of border localities. The cross-border economic cooperation zone not only contributes to improving infrastructure, facilitating trade, attracting domestic and foreign investment into border areas, but also contributes to the development of regional and global supply chains.

Besides Lang Son and Quang Ninh, Cao Bang is a mountainous border province with an important strategic position in the northeast of the country as it has over 333km of border line with Guangxi province (China).

In 2022, the two sides successfully organized seven conferences; established a communication exchange mechanism between management agencies at Tra Linh Border Gate (Vietnam) - Longbang (China) and Soc Giang Border Gate (Vietnam) - Binh Mang Border Gate (China); two localities of Bao Lac (Vietnam) - Na Po (China), Trung Khanh (Vietnam) – Jingxi (China) established friendly district-city relations.

Pilot operation of traveling between Ban Gioc (Vietnam) - Detian (China) waterfall landscape area

On September 15, at the Vietnam-China bilateral checkpoint in the Landscape Area (Marker 834/1), the Standing Office, Cao Bang Provincial Coordination Committee (Vietnam) and the Joint Working Group, the Guangxi Coordination Committee (China) organized a pilot operation ceremony for tourists passing through the Ban Gioc Waterfall Landscape Area (Vietnam) - Detian (China).

The cooperation model to protect tourism resources of Ban Gioc (Vietnam) - Detian (China) waterfall is a new one, without precedent. The completion of the signing of the Agreement on Cooperation in the Protection and Exploitation of Ban Gioc (Vietnam) - Detian (China) Waterfall Tourism Resources has great significance in Vietnam-China relations, demonstrating the goodwill and determination of both countries to build a border of peace, friendship, cooperation and development.

The pilot operation of the Ban Gioc (Vietnam) – Detian Waterfall Landscape Area (China) is a premise to put this landscape area into official operation in the near future, promoting tourism cooperation, strengthening friendly exchanges between local people on both sides of the border and the people of Vietnam and China, making an important contribution to promoting the the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Building Cao Bang into an international goods transshipment center

Tra Linh is considered a prime location in the context that China is a major customer of Vietnam's agricultural products. Up to now, the export of agricultural products has focused mainly through Lang Son province’s border gates. Import and export goods tend to increase rapidly, but infrastructure such as warehouse and traffic systems at border gates do not meet the requirements. There is no transit warehouse to serve customs clearance inspection. Congestion of agricultural goods at border gates have occurred quite often, causing considerable damage to farmers and businesses.

Determining the advantages of Tra Linh, Cao Bang has approved the project to adjust the general planning for construction of Tra Linh Border Gate area with a total area of 177 hectares. This has helped attract more investment capital into the Tra Linh border gate economic zone.

Tra Linh border gate economic zone has been methodically and modernly invested with the constructions of a border gate control stations - the workplace of specialized forces such as Customs, Border Guards, Quarantine, and the Management Board of the economic zone.

The breakthrough content and focus of the 2020 - 2025 term of Cao Bang province is to develop the border gate economy, building Cao Bang into an international goods transit center. To do this, Cao Bang will continue to invest in improving the infrastructure of the border gate economic zone in a synchronous and modern direction, focusing on Tra Linh and Ta Lung international border gates; develop logistics services; organize and create favorable conditions for businesses engaged in import and export activities; apply measures to reduce costs and time of goods clearance.