Increasing investment in Development Triangle Area

The view was shared by delegates to a forum on investment and cooperation in the Mekong subregion, held in Dak Lak province on November 9.

They said these policies aim to take advantage of the strength and resources of each country, serving as the key to removing existing obstacles to investment attraction in the region.  

The three countries should coordinate closely in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) and official development assistance (ODA) from other regions to major transport projects, connecting 13 provinces in the Development Triangle Area with seaports in South Vietnam, they said.

The delegates suggested building large-scale commercial material supplying areas to encourage and lure investment in production bases and for-export product processing plants along arteries linking Vietnamese seaports to major world markets.

They also proposed that the governments of the three countries speed up investment licensing, especially for big projects on hydro-power, mining, cash crop planting, and infrastructure construction.

The Cambodia-Lao-Vietnam Development Triangle Area comprises 13 provinces, covering a total natural land area of 144,000sq.km. and with a population of approximately 7 million.

To date five Vietnamese provinces in the area have attracted 75 projects from Cambodia and Laos with a total registered capitalisation of US$95.5 million.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese businesses have invested US$3.09 billion in 75 projects in Lao and Cambodian provinces within the area.

However, the results have yet to match development potential as well as the strategic relationship between the three countries.