Vietnam, Cambodia
to open more border gates

Viet Nam and Cambodia will open
three new international border gates early next year to fulfil an agreement on
road transportation between the two countries.

Photo: Vietnam+

They will be in Le Thanh (Gia Lai
Province, Viet Nam) - Oyadav (Andong Pich-Rattanakiri, Cambodia), Hoa Lu (Binh
Phuoc) - Trapeang Sre (Snoul-Kratie), and Bu Prang (Dak Nong) - O Raing (Mundulkiri).

The plan was agreed upon at an
annual conference between the leaders of Viet Nam’s Directorate for Roads and
Cambodia’s General Department of Transport yesterday in the Mekong Delta city of
Can Tho.

With this development, there will
be a total of seven international border gates linking the two countries, a
target set by a bilateral Agreement on Road Transport signed in 1998.

At the conference, officials also
signed an agreement to double the number of vehicles allowed to travel through
the two countries’ common border gates from 150 to 300 to boost bilateral trade
and tourism.

They also agreed to expand the
types of non-commercial vehicles allowed to travel through the border gates, and
a plan to co-operate on route management projects.

A total of 32 transportation
enterprises and units with 150 vehicles currently operate on Viet Nam-Cambodia
routes. Of the 150 vehicles, 60 run the four major routes from Viet Nam’s
provinces of Tra Vinh, An Giang, Can Tho and Ho Chi Minh City to Cambodia.

Central Highlands see positive socio-economic
changes

The Central Highlands Steering Committee held a conference in Buon Ma Thuot, Dak
Lak province on December 27 to review ten years of implementing the political
bureau’s resolution on socio-economic development and national defence and
security in the Central Highland region in the 2001-2010 period.

Over the past ten years, localities in the
central highlands have achieved impressive results in socio-economic
development. The average income per capita in the region increased remarkably
from VND2.9 million in 2001 to VND15.5 million in 2010 (making up 67 percent of
the nation’s average rate with economic growth rate reaching 11.9 percent per
year.

In the reviewed period, the Central Highlands
upgraded to two first-tier urban areas, and established two cities and four
towns. Infrastructure in both urban and rural areas in the region improved. 91
percent of communes possessed roads leading to the centre while 98 percent of
hamlets had access to the national grid. All communes have primary schools,
kindergarten, and health stations. Five provinces in the region have completed
compulsory high school education.

Vocational training and job generation also
gained positive results with nearly 1 million recruited workers including more
than 180,000 ethnic minority people. The unemployment in urban area dropped to
2.51 percent. Nearly 111,000 households escaped poverty. The proportion of poor
households fell to just 10.34 percent. In the ethnic minority group alone, the
rate of poor households dropped sharply from 47.8 percent in 2006 to 19.9
percent in 2010.

Delegates also pointed out some shortcomings in
the region. For example, socio-economic infrastructure in the region remains low
while the quality of human resources has not been improved. While the rate of
poor households decreased sharply, the rate of households fall into poverty
again remained high. Over 11,000 households have had enough land for production.

Deputy Head of the steering committee, Tran Viet
Hung said poverty reduction and hunger elimination for ethnic minority groups
remained an urgent task for the region. Therefore, he said it is necessary to
improve infrastructure in the region.

Laos, Vietnam promote legislative ties

Lao National Assembly Chairwoman Pany Yathotu has expressed her wish that the
legislative bodies of Vietnam and Laos will increase their cooperation,
especially in legislation.

On
receiving Dinh Xuan Thao, Head of the Vietnam NA’s Legislative Research
Institute, in Vientiane on Dec. 27, the Chairwoman said that the institute and
the Law Committee of Laos’ NA need to implement specific projects, such as
organising conferences and training for closer cooperation.
The same day, Thao, who is leading a Vietnamese delegation to Laos from Dec.
25-31, held talks with Chairman of the Lao NA’s Law Committee Davon Vangvichit.

The two sides exchanged experiences in their cooperation in the recent past and
discussed orientations for future cooperation.

Laos, Vietnam upgrade border landmark system

Vietnam and Laos have agreed to accelerate the implementation of a project to
reinforce and upgrade the border landmark system in 2011.

The agreement was reached at the 20th annual meeting of the Vietnam-Laos border
delegation, which is taking place in the Lao province of Luang PraBang.
The Vietnamese delegation was headed by Head of the Vietnam National Border
Committee and Deputy Foreign Minister Ho Xuan Son and the Lao delegation, was
led by Head of the Lao Border Committee and Deputy Foreign Minister Bun Kot Sang
Som Sak.
At the four-day meeting that will end on Dec. 28, the two sides agreed that
ministries, localities and relevant agencies of the two countries have
effectively implemented the Vietnam-Laos Agreement on National Border
Regulations and agreements reached at the previous meeting, thus helping
maintain stability, social order and security, as well as facilitating
socio-economic development in their border areas.
They agreed on measures to settle border management issues, including the issue
of unplanned migration, unregistered inter-racial marriages, cross-border trade
and transport facilitation, the upgrade of border gates and the construction of
socio-economic development works along the border line of the two countries.
Both sides also discussed the supplementations and amendments to the
Vietnam-Laos Agreement on National Border Regulations.

Lao Air Force delegation visits Vietnam

A
delegation of the Lao People’s Army Air Force and Air Defence Department, led by
Colonel Khamphat Mahaxay, is visiting Vietnam.

The delegation was received in Hanoi on Dec. 27
by Gen. Tran Quang Khue, deputy chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam
People’s Army.

Khue highlighted the special solidarity between
the two armies under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam and the
Lao People’s Revolutionary Party.
Cooperation in national defence in general and in air force and air defence in
particular have been implemented in many aspects, further strengthening the
friendship between the two countries and the two armies, he said.
Colonel Khamphat Mahaxay said the current visit to Vietnam is an opportunity for
the Lao delegation to learn about experiences in training, technology and air
force and air defence-related activities from the Vietnamese counterpart.

VNN/VOV/VNS