A conference on the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) and global trade was held in Hanoi on Friday within the framework of the first-ever GMS Business Summit initiated by Vietnam to boost open trade and build a multilateral trade system in the region.

The event enabled participating businesses to talk with government agencies of GMS countries on the benefits, opportunities and challenges from globalization and cross-border trade, which are crucial to the GMS development.

Enterprises were also updated about the cooperation achievements that GMS countries have gained over the past 25 years.

The GMS countries are Cambodia, Lao, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Chinese provinces of Yunnan and Guangxi.

The session offered an opportunity for delegates to recognize and evaluate changes and developments in international trade order and reposition of GMS countries in regional and global trade panoramic.

The panels also discussed solutions to catching up with new developments in the global economy and continuously capitalize on tremendous opportunities that are set for the GMS economies.

Stronger cooperation needed

Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh highlighted notable achievements of the GMS over the past time, including the development of economic corridors by outlining nine priority railways to increase railway connection.

GMS countries have ratified the Agreement on Facilitation of Cross-Border Transport of Goods and People, signed the “Early Harvest” Memorandum of Understanding, implemented the one-stop-shop model, and cooperated in the field of e-commerce, he said.

The Vietnamese official underlined huge opportunities for the GMS to forge economic and trade links and cooperation with China and India through economic corridors and free trade agreements signed between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China and India.

It is also possible to connect the GMS Economic Cooperation Programme with other regional cooperation structures such as ASEAN, Mekong-Japan Cooperation, Mekong-Ganga Cooperation, and Belt and Road Initiative in addition to joining regional and global value chains, especially in the fields of their strengths such as garment-textile, footwear, agriculture, seafood and tourism.

However, Khanh also put an emphasis on challenges posed to GMS countries such as limited number of cooperation projects in cross-border trade promotion and facilitation in the region and differences in border gate and e-commerce management regulations and policies, causing difficulties to harmonize regulations to make it easier for trade.

He called on GMS nations to continue promoting open trade and build a multilateral trade system.

To this end, it is necessary to upgrade border gates, simplify administrative procedures, harmonize customs procedures and control effectively border gates.

It is also essential that border management agencies enhance cooperation, expand the one-stop-shop models along economic corridors and sign agreements on mutual recognition of standards on food hygiene and safety, animal and plant quarantine.

The GMS should develop transport infrastructure and logistics along economic corridors, and database to facilitate trade, he suggested.

The region needs to increase opportunities to support businesses, especially small-and medium-sized ones, to take part in regional value chains, he recommended.

At the session, delegates exchanged the situation of cooperation in trade and investment among GMS countries.

They also talked about new development trends in the global economy that have impact on GMS countries and require adjustments of policies and enhancement of GMS cooperation such as building the ASEAN Economic Community, developing e-commerce, shifting to digital economy, and leveraging on opportunities from new-general free trade agreements and the fourth industrial revolution.