Laos to play to strengths in AEC
Laos to play to strengths in AEC
Laos is still exploring the strengths that will allow it to be competitive in the Asean Economic Community (AEC) when regional integration takes place in 2015, according to the Minister of Industry and Commerce.
Dr Nam Vinhaket spoke to media during the ongoing government open meeting in Vientiane on Wednesday about the country's place in the AEC.
Dr Nam said Laos would not be interested in selling every type of product on the AEC market.
“We should focus on producing goods that will fetch a high price in neighbouring countries, and import products they can make more cheaply,” he said.
“We will only focus on promoting our strengths through products that can compete with other countries.”
Dr Nam urged the relevant sectors to work towards identifying the country's strengths and how best to continue their development, and said it was important to come up with new ideas for the market
He said no Asean country was good at everything; Singapore and Thailand were good in the service sector, and perhaps Laos could learn from their example.
While the minister would not provide specific details on the types of products Laos could sell on the AEC market, he used the example of organically-grown cabbages to further explain pricing differences.
He said an organic cabbage grown in the Bolaven plateau in southern Laos would fetch as much as 50 baht (12,500 kip) per kg in Thailand because of high demand for organic produce, whereas a cabbage grown in Thailand using chemical fertilisers would be worth considerably less.
“Cambodia currently buys cabbages from Vietnam but now they are very interested in importing organic cabbages from Laos,” Dr Nam said.
“We need to come together and discuss what more needs to be done, rather than leaving it to individual producers.
“We should come up with a project plan to boost productivity and exports to other markets.”
The minister said Lao people should not worry too much about the AEC as Laos had some strong points to rely on.
One such strength is likely to be the country's shared border with China – the world's largest market – and studies on what products China needs will be vital.
The AEC will allow for the freer flow of goods, services, investment capital and skilled labour within the Asean region to create a single market of 600 million people.
It is hoped the move will attract trade, investment and tourism from the rest of the world as entrepreneurs setting up a business in one of the 10 Asean countries will be able to work easily with the rest of the group.
The AEC will provide both opportunities and challenges for Laos and the country will need to work hard to prepare for integration.
Experts say one of the main challenges for Laos at the moment is a limited understanding of what the AEC entails, with small and medium enterprises expected to be hit the hardest by the single market.
The Asean grouping comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
vientiane times
