Lao Deputy PM Pledges to Support Vietnam Firms to Boost Investments

Lao Deputy Prime Minister Somsavad Lengsavath has pledged to assist Vietnamese investors in Laos to boost investment cooperation between the two countries. Mr. Lengsavath made the statement at a meeting in Laos’ southern Attapeu town on February 25 to listen to opinions from the investors. At the meeting, Laos-Vietnam Insurance Joint Venture Company signed three contracts for Hoang Anh Gia Lai Joint Stock Co’s sugarcane complex, rubber latex processing plant and rubber growing project. President of the Association of Vietnamese Investors in Laos (AVIL) Tran Bac Ha noted that Vietnam is currently operating 222 projects in Laos with a total investment of $3.8 billion. The Lao leaders praised the roles that AVIL and the Vietnamese investors play. They expressed their delight that the two countries has increased investment cooperation despite the gloomy global economic situation. Vietnam expects to invest around $7 billion in Laos by 2015, Minister of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh said earlier at the Vietnam-Laos Economic Cooperation Conference in Danang. (vietnamplus.vn Feb 26, dddn.com.vn Feb 26)