Hanoi (VNA) – The Joint Committee for the Greater Mekong Sub-regionCross-Border Transport Facilitation Agreement (GMS-CBTA) convened its 6thmeeting in Hanoi on March 15, attracting the participation of the six GMScountries.

Vietnamese Minister of Transport Nguyen Van Thesaid Vietnam has taken part in a number of bilateral and multilateralcooperation frameworks, including the GMS, which is sponsored by the AsianDevelopment Bank (ADB) and comprises Vietnam, China, Laos, Cambodia, Thailandand Myanmar.

Transport connectivity is a leading priority inthe GMS programme, he noted, adding that the GMS Transport Strategy recommendsexpanding the regional connectivity of hard infrastructure, including roads andrailways.

Notably, the GMS countries pledged to implementthe GMS-CBTA through applying policies facilitating the cross-bordertransportation of people and goods, thus fostering economic cooperation anddevelopment, The noted.

He added that the countries agreed to turninfrastructure built under their coordination into economic corridors,promoting the exchange of goods, people and vehicles among the member nations,creating jobs, developing tourism and trade and creating connectivity.

At the meeting, GMS ministers discussed thedevelopment of transport infrastructure, focusing on promoting connectioncorridors. They also looked into ways to turn the corridors into economiccorridors so as to boost trade and tourism.

ಞ[Transport – a highlight of GMS Economic Cooperation Programme]

The officials discussed several key issues,including adding the completed corridors to the list of cross-border transportfacilities in Protocol 1 of the GMS-CBTA. National Highway 12 that traversesCha Lo Border Gate in the central province of Quang Binh and National Highway 8in neighbouring Ha Tinh province of Vietnam are proposed to be added to thelist so as to optimise Vung Ang Port in Ha Tinh and the East-West EconomicCorridor, which runs through Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar. 

They also agreed to connect new cross-bordercorridors from Vietnam through China to Myanmar.

At the meeting, participants signed an “earlyharvest” memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the GMS-CBTA.

According to the Vietnamese Ministry ofTransport, the MoU is an order requesting the countries simultaneously carryout the commitments within the GMS framework. They will work out a consistentimplementation process of the one-stop-shop model, a process of guaranteeingvehicles that travel across border and a common license for vehicles to enterall member nations via the corridors.

The countries will grant 500 licenses underProtocol 3 of the GMS-CBTA and mutually recognise these licenses. They willalso implement the agreement’s regime for temporary imports of motor vehicles,which allows temporary imports to be exempt from import duties and customsguarantees.

The MoU is important as it will create a legalframework for many types of vehicles to transport goods and people across borderof the member countries, thus reducing logistics costs.-VNA