VN, Laos promote special ties

General Secretary of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party and President of Laos Bounnhang Vorachith

This will be the second official visit of General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith to Viet Nam. Via the tour, Mr. Bounnhang Vorachith hopes to affirm the consistent diplomatic guideline of Laos, especially in maintaining and promoting the friendly relations, special solidarity, and comprehensive cooperation between Viet Nam and Laos. 

Over the past years, the two sides have paid due attention to the economic, trade and investment ties. As of late October 2017, the two-way trade turnover fetched US$ 720.4 million, representing a year-on-year surge of 8.7%. Viet Nam shipped US$ 426.2 million of goods to Laos. Meanwhile, Laos exported US$ 294.2 million of goods to Viet Nam, up 3.8% against the same period last year. 

So far, Vietnamese investors poured US$ 3.6 billion of investment in 409 licensed projects in 17 out of 18 provinces and cities in the neighboring country. In the first ten months, two new FDI projects got investment licenses worth US$ 12.816 million.  

In terms of transport, the two countries signed a deal on construction of Ha Noi-Vientiane highway and an agreement on five-year plan development (2016-2020 period). 

In 2017, Viet Nam granted 1,246 scholarships for Lao students. 

Other fields of cooperation including science, technology, society, agriculture, information, communications, labor, culture, arts, sports, tourism, and museums were paid due attention. 

The relations among ministries, sectors, industries, judicial branch, and localities have been promoted with practical outcomes./.

By Kim Loan