Depth report

　　

About a 30-minute drive northeast of the center of the Lao capital, Vientiane, is the Saysertha Integrated Development Zone. In the development area, tropical plants are lush, and factories are neatly arranged. Saitha Comprehensive Development Zone is the only national overseas economic and trade cooperation zone of China in Laos, and is also a national special economic zone of Laos. As an early harvest project of the "Belt and Road" construction plan, the Saitha Comprehensive Development Zone plays an important role in promoting the industrialization process of Laos and elevating the level of economic and trade cooperation between China and Laos.

131 enterprises have settled in, filling gaps in many fields

The factory of Bader Garment (Laos) Co., Ltd. is located in the Saitha Integrated Development zone, covering an area of more than 20,000 square meters. Entering the factory workshop, the reporter saw a production line, local employees are rushing to export to Europe clothing.

"We have introduced advanced automatic cutting beds, computer sewing equipment, and 25 Chinese managers to carry out training and guidance, adopt lean production management and production execution system, and strive to build a first-class garment factory in Laos." Bedde clothing (Laos) Co., LTD. General manager Sun Linhua told reporters.

Headquartered in Jiangsu, China, Bader Garment Group has previously set up factories in Yangon, Myanmar, and Kampong Speu province, Cambodia. Two years ago, the Group came to Laos and set up a factory in Saitha Comprehensive Development Zone. The factory has 40 production lines, employs 2,000 employees, and designs an annual production capacity of 20 million sets of various knitted garments, products are sold to European, American and Japanese markets.

Lao worker Lida hades from the northwestern province of Xayaburi. Although she first came into contact with modern production equipment after coming to the factory, she quickly mastered the operation techniques through training. "There is a guarantee of work here, meals are subsidized, dormitories and utilities are borne by the company, in addition to some pocket money, most of the salary can be sent home." I hope Xayaburi will have such a modern factory in the future." 'said Rita.

The Saitha Comprehensive Development Zone is positioned as "one city and four districts", that is, the carrying area of Vientiane industrial ecological New City and international production capacity cooperation, the demonstration area of China-Laos cooperation development, the core area of Vientiane New City, and the livable area of harmonious living environment. At present, the development zone has attracted 131 enterprises from China, Japan, Singapore, Thailand and other countries and regions to settle in, with a total investment of more than 1.5 billion US dollars and 6,000 migrant workers. After all the enterprises currently settled in the development zone are put into operation, the annual output value is expected to exceed 1.8 billion US dollars and create more than 10,000 jobs.

Laos-china Railway Co., LTD., Bader Garment (Laos) Co., LTD., Lao Union Pharmaceutical Group Co., LTD., New Hope (Laos) Co., LTD. Each joint venture carries the hope of industrialization in Laos. "The development zone has introduced a number of well-known enterprises, helping Laos fill gaps in many manufacturing fields such as electronic product manufacturing, biomedicine, agricultural product processing and textile processing, which has significantly promoted the industrial development of Laos." Saitha comprehensive development zone investment service center director Tong Luo said.

We will build low-carbon demonstration zones and accumulate green development experience

Green trees, white clouds, blue sky. New energy vehicles with blue bodies, new energy buses with white bodies and trucks pass by on the roads of the development zone from time to time.

The construction of a low-carbon demonstration zone based on the Saiserta Comprehensive Development Zone is an important measure to implement the action plan on building a China-Laos community with a shared future. In recent years, the comprehensive development zone has been actively promoting the construction of low-carbon demonstration areas, and solar street lights, new energy buses and environmental monitoring equipment can be seen everywhere in the development area.

The reporter took a new energy vehicle, the car is cool and comfortable. Driving in the development area, the solar smart street lights on both sides of the road are particularly eye-catching. There are more than 3,000 sets of these solar street lights, all from China.

"At present, the new energy fleet of the development zone includes 12 buses, 8 cars and 8 trucks. Enterprises in the park have a great demand for the transportation of construction materials, raw materials, machinery and equipment, and finished products, with an average daily cargo flow of 1,000 to 1,500 tons, and we will continue to introduce clean energy trucks in the future." Saiserta comprehensive development zone investor Lao-China Joint Investment Co., LTD. General manager Xiong Jun told reporters.

The Saiserta Low-carbon Demonstration Zone is a South-South cooperation project on climate change carried out by the governments of China and Laos relying on the Saiserta Comprehensive Development Zone, and is one of the "10 low-carbon demonstration zones" cooperation projects carried out by China in developing countries. According to the memorandum of understanding signed by China and Laos, the two sides will carry out a series of cooperation, including low-carbon transportation to promote the transformation of low-carbon lifestyle, and low-carbon lighting to enhance the level of green infrastructure construction.

"We hope to accumulate valuable experience in green development for other parts of Laos by building the Saitha low-carbon demonstration zone." Benkan, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of Laos, said that the Lao government encourages the use of clean energy to promote economic and social development in a green and sustainable direction. "The implementation of the Saitha Low-carbon Demonstration Zone project will play an important role in Laos' efforts to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050, and will strongly promote the sustainable economic and social development of Laos."

"With the road to the garden, the garden to promote the road" to help achieve industrial upgrading

The Vientiane South Station of the China-Laos railway, 10 kilometers from the Saitha Comprehensive Development Zone, is a busy scene. The huge boom of the crane accurately grabs containers full of goods and lifts them onto the international freight train of the China-Laos railway. Along the China-Laos Railway, Lao agricultural products and manufacturing products have embarked on their journey to China.

Since the opening of the China-Laos Railway in December 2021, Laos has further integrated into the regional connectivity network, and the development conditions of the Saitha Comprehensive Development Zone have become more perfect. "Now, customs clearance can be completed within 10 hours when materials are transported from Kunming to Vientiane, which provides an important guarantee for garment export delivery." Sun Linhua said that the China-Laos railway provides a stable and reliable mode of transportation. "With the opening of the China-Laos railway, logistics in the development zone has become more convenient, costs have been greatly reduced, and transportation and production methods have become greener," said Thongluo.