Abstract
As one of the five socialist countries, Laos is the only landlocked country in the Indo-China Peninsula and even in Southeast Asia, as well as a friendly neighboring country to China. With the condition of a closed geographic location and the resource-intensive industry development model, establishing special economic zones to attract foreign investments is an inevitable choice for Laos. Laos’ special economic zones were constructed late but developed rapidly; by relying on diversified investment subjects, multi-dimensional policy support and convenient investment services, they have become an important window for Laos in opening up to the outside world. However, the development of Laos’ special economic zones is not satisfactory, there are a series of problems such as poor management, slow development, serious homogenization and weak follow-up development. In the future, the development of Laos’ special economic zone should be based on actual situations, regional supporting infrastructures should be continuously improved, and effective models of the management of development should be formed to stimulate endogenous development driving forces.
About the authors: Haiping Luo, Ph.D., Associate Research Fellow at Central China Economic Development Research Center, Nanchang University, Master Supervisor, main research direction: study of world special economic zones; Liuxin Pan, Master Candidate of the School of Economics & Management, Nanchang University, main research direction: study on world special economic zones.
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Notes
- 1.
Source: World Bank, https://www.shihang.org/.
- 2.
Chinese website of the Vientiane Times, There Are 12 Special Economic Zones in Laos, They Generate Huge Values for the Lao Economy, January 23, 2019.
- 3.
The Economic and Commercial Counselor's Office of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Laos' Special Economic Zones Attract 806 Enterprises to Settle in. 2020-2-10, http://la.mofcom.gov.cn/.
- 4.
Northeast News, The Belt and Road Culture, Economy and Trade Visiting Mission Visited the Savan-Seno Special Economic Zone. 2017-9-30, http://fushun.nen.com.cn/.
- 5.
Chen Dinghui, A Brief Introduction to Laos' Special Economic Zones and Economic Zones [J]. Crossroads: Southeast Asian Studies, 2013(07):16–21.
- 6.
Huanqiu Network, Laos Boten Special Economic Zone Intends to Revive through China-Laos Cooperation, April 7, 2015. https://world.huanqiu.com/.
- 7.
Website of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone of the Lao People's Democratic Republic, A Brief Introduction to Special Economic Zones. http://www.gtsez.la/.
- 8.
Website of the Saysettha Development Zone, An Introduction of the Saysettha Development Zone. http://www.lvsdz.com/.
- 9.
Laos' Decree on the Special Economic Zones. https://wenku.baidu.com/view/9252c2bbf121dd36a32d827f.html.
- 10.
Kunming Municipal Commission of Development and Reform, The 10th Meeting of China-Laos Cooperation Was Held by the Provincial People’s Government on November 29, 2019. 2019-12-19, http://fgw.km.gov.cn/.
- 11.
The Economic and Commercial Counselor's Office of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, The Amount of New Contracts on the Projects Contracted by China in Laos during the period of January–November, 2019 Reached US$ 1.88 Billion. 2019-12-24, http://la.mofcom.gov.cn/.
- 12.
The Economic and Commercial Counselor's Office of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, China Has Dispatched 24,748 Laborers of Various Types to Laos as of November, 2019. 2019-12-24, http://la.mofcom.gov.cn/.
- 13.
The Economic and Commercial Counselor's Office of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, The China-Laos Trade Steadily Grew from January to November, 2019. 2019-12-24, http://la.mofcom.gov.cn/.
- 14.
The Economic and Commercial Counselor's Office of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, The Percentage of China's Investment in Laos' Special Economic Zones Was 23%. 2017-9-15, http://la.mofcom.gov.cn/.
- 15.
WorkerCN, Building a Community with a Shared Future of Lancang-Mekong Countries, Creating a Bright Future for Regional Cooperation. 2018-3-23, http://news.workercn.cn/.
- 16.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China, The Situation Regarding China's Participation in Lancang-Mekong Cooperation. https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/.
- 17.
Sohu.com, Boten Special Economic Zone: A Duty-free Paradise Rising under the Initiative of “The Belt and Road”. 2019-9-5, https://www.sohu.com/.
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Xishuangbanna Mobile Station, Driving the Cross-border Investment Boom: Boten-Mohan Economic Cooperation Zone Has Developed Greatly!, January 7, 2019.
- 19.
The Economic and Commercial Counselor's Office of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Strategic Plan of Laos. 2003-8-1, http://la.mofcom.gov.cn/.
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Luo, H., Pan, L. (2023). Report on the Construction and Development of Laos’ Special Economic Zones. In: Tao, Y., Yuan, Y. (eds) Annual Report on the Development of China’s Special Economic Zones (2021). Research Series on the Chinese Dream and China’s Development Path. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-6667-7_9
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