An Giang (VNA) – The Mekong Delta province of An Giang, billed as aneconomic centre that links Ho Chi Minh city, Can Tho city and Cambodia’s PhnomPenh, has paid due attention to developing border trade and logistics infrastructure so as to tap its border economicpotential.

Sharing a borderline of more than 100 kilometres with Cambodia, the provincehas five international border gates, two main others and a sub one. There are13 border markets and four sites for examination and supervision of the importsand exports recognised by the General Department of Vietnam Customs in five districts and townships.

It has approved investment policies for 168 projects on border tradeinfrastructure development with over 29.8 trillion VND (1.17 billion USD) in totalregistered capital so far.

Under a project to develop the province’s border trade by 2025 with a vision to2030, border trade is envisaged to become an important locomotive for the localeconomic growth, making An Giang become a key transshipment centre of theMekong Delta region and the whole country.

During the 2021-2025 period, the province targets trade revenue via bordergates at 9 billion USD, up 15% from 2016-2020, with export turnover growing 10% per year on average to reach some 636.7 million USD by 2025.

According to Director of the province’s Trade and Investment Promotion CentreLe Trung Hieu, as border trade has an important role to play in the province’seconomic growth, An Giang organises an annual international trade fair inborder areas, and arranged delegations to attend business matching events,exhibitions and fairs in Cambodia. They are the bold steps contributing toboosting trade exchanges between An Giang and Cambodian localities.

Along with calling for large corporations to invest in border economic zones, theprovince is penning incentives to mobilise resources to build infrastructure atthe areas, helping bolster the border economic development, he added.

Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Le Hong Quang said under itsmaster plan during 2021-2023 with a vision to 2050, An Giang will focus on developingborder economic zones and economic corridors in tandem with ensuring defence-security,while calling for investment to branch out transport, clean energy and logisticsinfrastructure, paving the way for the province to become a trade centre thatconnects the Mekong Delta region with the Cambodian market, and other ASEANones.

Last year, the province’s trade turnover via border gates was nearly 2.47billion USD. In the first quarter of this year, the figure was some 520 millionUSD. Major exports are rice, fruits, vegetables, fertilisers, cement, steel andanimal food, among others, while imports include rice, sand, mango and iron ores./.