Agriculture tops investment in Vientiane province
Agriculture tops investment in Vientiane province
Vientiane province looks set to become one of the major suppliers of raw materials for the processing industry after receiving huge investment in the agriculture sector.
According to a report from Vientiane Planning and Investment Department, the province, some 60 km outside of Vientiane, has approved 115 investment projects worth US$382 million over the past few years.
Most of the investment projects in Vientiane province are in the agriculture and forestry sector thanks to the province having a large amount of fertile land and natural resources.
The investors were also attracted by the province being located near the capital city, one of the major processing industry bases in Laos.
Over the past two and a half years, the province has approved 35 agriculture and forestry investment projects worth US$158 million. The projects are for pig breeding, cassava cultivation and rubber tree plantations.
The province is also home to sweet corn growers, who can supply large amounts of the basic materials for the food processing plants there.
Vientiane Provincial Planning and Investment Department's Investment Promotion Division Director, Ms Khammui Xayyasouk, said the provincial authorities have named agriculture-forestry, the processing industry, mining and ecotourism as the four main areas with development potential.
Since 2011, the authorities have also approved two hydropower projects with a combined investment value of US$63 million and 20 mining projects with an investment value of US$20 million.
Th e authorities also approved nine projects in the service sector with a combined investment value of about US$20 million. These projects are for the construction of hotels, restaurants an d offices.
The top foreign investors in Vientiane province are Vietnam, with an investment value of US$131 million and China at US$28 million. A number of companies from France, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Israel and the USA are also major foreign investors in the province.
According to Ms Khammui, rubber tree planting is one of the outstanding investments.
Cassava plantation, pig breeding and some of the mining projects are also considered successful investments in the province.
There are also a number of other investments which have failed to meet the terms of their concession agreements.
The provincial authorities will continue to encourage the implementation of these projects in accordance with the terms of each agreement.
vientiane times
