"In Laos, there are shops opened by Hunanese people in every market" - Interview with Zhao Wenyu, Counselor of the Economic and Commercial Department of the Chinese Embassy in Laos
2024-08-11
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Hunan Daily Omnimedia Reporter Tang Yaxin and Huang Xinran
"In Laos, there are shops opened by Hunanese in every market." On August 8, Zhao Wenyu, Counselor of the Economic and Commercial Department of the Chinese Embassy in Laos, was interviewed by the Hunan Daily "Entering ASEAN" interview team in Vientiane, Laos. He said that the China-Laos Railway has opened a new milestone in China-Laos cooperation. The vast number of Hunan businessmen in Laos have taken the initiative to play their advantages and more actively integrated into the "Belt and Road" construction, adding more help to promote bilateral trade between the two countries and build a community of shared future for China and Laos.
(Interview scene. Photo taken by Hunan Daily Omnimedia reporter Guo Liliang)
China and Laos share the same mountains and rivers, and are socialist friendly neighbors with a common future and destiny. "The China-Laos Railway has accelerated the development of China-Laos trade, one step at a time," Zhao Wenyu said. In 2021, the total import and export trade between China and Laos was US$4.35 billion, and this figure rose to US$7.1 billion in 2023. From January to June this year, China-Laos import and export trade reached US$4.16 billion, a year-on-year increase of 31.6%.
"The opening and operation of the China-Laos Railway has also created many distinctive brands." Zhao Wenyu said that relying on the China-Laos Railway and the New Land-Sea Corridor, Huaihua, located in the mountainous area of western Hunan, has been transformed into an international land port, continuously deepening its opening up to the outside world, and its inland hinterland has gradually become an open frontier.
In January 2022, the first China-Laos international freight train departed from Huaihua, Hunan. This is the first international freight train from Hunan to ASEAN, adding a new logistics channel for the central region to connect with ASEAN. Huaihua also became the first city in central my country to realize the two-way operation of China-Laos trains, which greatly boosted the economic and trade cooperation between Huaihua and ASEAN.
(Interview scene.)
The China-Laos Railway has brought new prospects, and Hunan businessmen in Laos have become more active.
"The Hunan Chamber of Commerce in Laos is the largest and most influential Chinese Chamber of Commerce organization outside of China in Laos." Zhao Wenyu said that over the years, with the courage to be the first in the world and the spirit of "enduring hardships and patience", the majority of Hunan businessmen in Laos have been constantly pioneering and forging ahead, turning small businesses into big businesses, continuously expanding their influence, and showing a good image of China. The Hunan Chamber of Commerce in Laos has more than 2,500 members, covering the entire territory of Laos. The Chamber of Commerce continues to contribute to promoting bilateral economic and trade exchanges between China and Laos and win-win cooperation.
This year is the first year of the implementation of the "Action Plan of the Communist Party of China and the Lao People's Revolutionary Party on Building a Community of Shared Future between China and Laos". The two sides will continue to promote "five actions" such as strategic communication and mutual trust, cultural exchanges and tourism. Zhao Wenyu said that in the future, he hopes that Hunan businessmen and enterprises in Laos will better integrate their own development into the process of high-quality joint construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative.
(Hunan Daily, Vientiane, Laos, August 9)
