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Vietnam, China to develop shared border economic zones
Numerous suggestions for a plan to develop cooperation towards the establishment of Vietnam-China border economic zones were made during a seminar organised by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT) in Hanoi on Jan. 7.
The seminar was attended by a delegation from China ’s Yunnan province, who agreed that a joint working group should be established to effectively implement the plan.
The Chinese delegation also suggested that Vietnam improve and develop the road networks around the border areas to facilitate the transport of goods, as well as draw up preferential policies, including tax exemptions for goods traded by tourists and local residents at border economic zones.
In accordance with an agreement reached by Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao on Oct. 22, the two sides are speeding up feasibility studies for the planned project.
According to the MIT, Vietnam possesses 25 border economic zones. However, no blueprint exists for a model for border economic cooperation zones as it is a new concept, meaning that the country has yet to develop policies applicable to this model.
The ministry said that the government has widened the scope of policies regarding tax and land use for economic and trade development in border zones, including zero tax rates for purchases of goods worth 500,000 VND or less for each tourist and 2 million VND for each border inhabitant. However, Vietnam is facing difficulties in managing this policy as it is widely abused by cross-border smugglers.
The ministry noted that the opinions offered at the seminar would be incorporated into the design of mechanisms and policies governing the development of cooperation towards successful Vietnam-China border economic zones.
vna
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