Business opportunity draws Japanese investors to Laos
Business opportunity draws Japanese investors to Laos
Laos continues to attract foreign investors after the government has been working on improving all facilities including regulations, laws and various disciplines in an effort to boost the investment environment.
As a result, more than 30 Japanese delegates paid a swift visit to the Ministry of Planning and Investment as part of their working visit from March 3-6.
Executive Vice President at the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) Mr Soichi Yoshimura led the delegation to meet with Minister of Planning and Investment Mr Somdy Duangdy at the ministry office in Vientiane on Tuesday.
Mr Somdy said that he highly valued the visit of the Japanese businessmen.
“The visit of this delegation marks a significant step in relations between the two countries, especially for trade and investment,” he said.
Mr Somdy also advised that the government of Laos is working on preparations for Asean Economic Community integration by the end of this year.
“We (the government) work on improving our various regulations, laws and other disciplines to meet the requirements of regional and international standards,” he said.
Mr Somdy also told the Japanese guests that Laos has several interesting opportunities for investment, including in agriculture, handicrafts, processing industries and services.
The Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO), a Japanese public organisation aiming to boost external trade and foreign investment, officially opened a new office in Vientiane last year, signalling growing Japanese investment interest in Laos.
The office became the 74th overseas base and 10th in Southeast Asia for JETRO. The opening ceremony was witnessed by JETRO Chairman, Mr Hiroyuki Ishige with senior Lao government officials invited.
Mr Ishige hoped that the JETRO Lao Office would work to promote more investment from Japan as well as boost the growth of local industries.
According to recent figures from JETRO, Laos has been attracting more Japanese corporations of late and the number of Japanese companies operating in the country increased to over 100 in 2013 from 77 in 2012.
Last year, a number of Japanese companies established factories in the Savan-Seno Special Economic Zone, including Nikon and Toyota Boshoku Lao, which are set to become their production bases in Laos.
Toyota Boshoku Asia is an experienced producer of vehicle seat covers, employing modern technology in producing the covers to meet the demands of customers.
With the rising number of Japanese investors looking forward to operating their businesses in Laos, JETRO has opened its office to backup the investments from Japan and promote growing trade ties between the two countries.
JETRO also believes that political stability, cheap labour and robust economic growth are key factors to attract more investors to the country.
Up to now a total of 102 investment projects worth more than US$400 million, are currently being pursued by Japanese companies, specialising in several different sectors, especially in electricity, industry, handicrafts, agriculture and services.
Japan is ranked among the top ten foreign countries investing in Laos.
