This aerial photo taken on June 15, 2021 shows the Phonethong bridge under construction in Vientiane, Laos. (CREC-5 / HANDOUT VIA XINHUA)
With the completion of the China-Laos Railway within sight, experts say the project will play a crucial role in improving Laos' connectivity and supporting its post-pandemic recovery.
"By completing the project on schedule despite the pandemic, this is going to help a lot for Laos' post-pandemic recovery and this can promote trade, investment and tourism," said Phouphet Kyophilavong, associate professor and dean of the Faculty of Economics and Business Management at the National University of Laos in Vientiane.
Noting that COVID-19 infections have remained low in Laos despite a recent outbreak, Phouphet said that the project, when completed in December since starting of construction in late 2015, is expected to help strengthen Laos' cooperation with China and other regional countries that have managed the pandemic relatively well.
The railway is a major project under the Belt and Road Initiative, one that also synergizes with the Lao government plan to transform the Southeast Asian country from a landlocked country to a land-linked hub
The Phonethong super bridge, the longest along the China-Laos Railway with a length of 7,528.56 meters and 231 piers is nearing total completion following the success of all piers and main structure in June. In August, the electrified passenger and cargo railway will conduct its first trial run, according to Vientiane Times.
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While most of the construction sites are located in tropical mountainous areas, with complex geographical and poor traffic conditions, Xiao Qianwen, general manger of the Laos-China Railway Co, a joint venture for the project's construction and operation based in Vientiane, was quoted by Xinhua News Agency as saying the company has been striving to complete construction on Dec 2, the Laotian National Day.
The railway, which is the first modern railway in Laos and the longest outside China in Asia, is a major project under the Belt and Road Initiative, one that also synergizes with the Lao government plan to transform the Southeast Asian country from a landlocked country to a land-linked hub. It stretches more than 1,000 kilometers from Kunming, capital of China's Yunnan province, to Laos' Vientiane, and is expected to slash the travel time between the two cities to less than one day when completed, according to China State Railway Group Co.
The Lao section, which links Boten border gate in northern Laos with Vientiane, spans over 410 kilometers, with trains set to operating speeds of 160 km per hour. It will cut transport costs by 30-40 percent compared with traveling by road. The China section in Yunnan province entered a period of appraisal for approval this month after finishing construction.
Noting that Laos is one of the 32 landlocked developing countries in the world and the only one of its kind in Southeast Asia, Sandra Seno-Alday, lecturer of international business at the University of Sydney Business School, said the new China-Laos Railway will be an important piece of infrastructure that increases the nation's transport connectivity with other parts of the region.
"Landlockedness has been identified as a really big challenge to economic development, simply because about 90 percent of world trade is done by sea," Seno-Alday said.
"The transport network, in turn, should give Laos access to tourism markets around its neighbors and particularly China because China is a massive market for pretty much everything," she said.
The Laos-China Railway will lay a new foundation for the introduction of foreign investment, and Laos will surely take the advantage to participate in the regional and global industrial chain.
Valy Vetsaphong, Advisor to the Lao prime minister and vice-president of the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry
"The Laos-China Railway will lay a new foundation for the introduction of foreign investment, and Laos will surely take the advantage to participate in the regional and global industrial chain," said Valy Vetsaphong, advisor to the Lao prime minister and vice-president of the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
"I believe that the completion and operation of the Laos-China railway will promote the post-pandemic recovery of neighboring countries and the whole region," Valy said.
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Noting physical infrastructure supporting international business and trade will be a key factor for a company's overseas expansion, Seno-Alday from the University of Sydney said the Lao government has also done "an excellent job" of establishing the equally important policy infrastructure to support trade.
This includes trade facilitation measures that will allow smooth movement of goods across borders and make it easier for international companies to do business in Laos, Seno-Alday said.
Litthikay Phoummasak, president of the Small and Medium Enterprise Promotion Association of the Lao PDR, or Lao SME, said he expects the railway to create more business opportunities for companies in Laos and beyond, particularly those in the tourism and logistics sector.
For example, Laos can serve as a distribution warehouse for Chinese products to neighboring countries.
Litthikay said countries should speed up business development as well as enhance cooperation, which has been disrupted during the pandemic.
"We welcome not only investors but also partners to work with Lao SME Association as well as our members to do something together to make the expensive railway project be useful and beneficial to every stakeholder as well as the Lao people and the SME businesses in Laos," Litthikay said.
Phouphet from the National University of Laos said that like many countries, Laos has also been suffering from economic slowdown and increased poverty due to the pandemic.
The economic growth of Laos declined to an estimated 0.4 percent in 2020, the lowest level in three decades, according to the World Bank.
"I hope that the railway project is going to be finished on schedule and (that it) can help the Lao economy to recover from the pandemic," said Phouphet.
As the railway is expected to further link with other member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, including Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore, Phouphet said the project will be a good example for the ASEAN region in promoting trade, investment and the free flow of labor.
