Vientiane. 13 March 2007. On March 15, over 300 representatives from the private sector, government and donor agencies will meet for the Second Lao Business Forum to resolve private sector issues and hear about government plans to improve the business environment and encourage investment.
In Thursday’s Forum, each of the four private sector working groups will raise a few key issues, propose solutions and seek decisions on these from the Standing Deputy Prime Minister, H.E. Mr. Somsavat Lengsavad, who chairs the Forum.
The four Working Groups, which concern energy & mining, tourism, manufacturing, and services & trade, will also report on other issues under discussion with the government. Government representatives will give presentations too on recent developments in the financial sector and on the government's Small and Medium Enterprise Development Strategy.
The Forum is a joint initiative of the government’s Committee for Planning and Investment, the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the International Finance Corporation. IFC’s Mekong Private Sector Development Facility (IFC-MPDF) serves as the secretariat for the Forum, facilitating Working Group and Forum meetings, conducting studies for the Working Groups and tracking progress on resolving issues.
Mr. Kissana Vongsay, President of the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry says that the Forum is proving a very useful tool for improving the environment for private enterprise. “Private Sector Working Groups and sub-groups for particular industries work hard throughout the year to identify and prioritize issues impacting a number of businesses. When these issues are presented to the joint government/private sector Working Groups, government staff do their best to resolve them. When progress on these issues is reported in the public Forum, people see that the government is serious about improving the environment for private enterprise.”
Among Private Sector requests to the government for this 2nd Forum, the Lao Coffee Association, under the umbrella of the Manufacturing Working Group, is asking for better implementation of tax collection rules so that profit taxes are collected based on sales rather that volume of coffee exported and that these taxes are collected quarterly and at one uniform rate at all provinces.
Also under the Manufacturing Working Group, the Lao Wooden Products Industry Association is asking for the government’s help in improving access to raw materials for furniture and other wood product manufacturers by assisting them to obtain necessary wood quotas.
The Tourism Working Group will ask the government to ensure implementation of an earlier agreement to collect a $1 fee from each tourist on arrival in order to finance tourism promotion. This Working Group will also propose the government to charge tourists the same US$30 fee for visas on arrival, rather than charging different fees based on nationality (i.e. $42 for Canadians, $35 for Americans and $30 for Australians).
The Transport and Infrastructure Sub-group of the Services & Trade Working Group will request streamlining customs procedures for goods in transit to a third country.
Also under the Services and Trade Working Group, the publishing industry will ask government for measures that will help stimulate the publishing of Lao language books. These include the establishment a Lao office to grant International Standard Book Numbers so Lao publications can be registered in Lao PDR.
A third important request from the Services and Trade Working Group is to ask the government to send the new draft law on intellectual property rights to the National Assembly for approval. Passage of this law is necessary both for attracting foreign investors who want to know their intellectual property is secure in Lao PDR, and because the law is a requirement for joining the World Trade Organization.
The Energy and Mining Working Group will ask the government to revise to the mining law to better promote the industry to investors, improve the management and provision of geological data, and build capacity to enable government staff to effectively manage the industry. Other proposals include establishing a mining association and a technical college for training government officials and industry staff.
The Forum was launched in March 2005, with funding from IFC and Grand Duchy of Luxembourg as part of the government’s commitment to improving the environment for private enterprise development and helping to attract more investors. “The Forum is also proving a valuable tool for government,” says Pascale Rouzies, who manages the Secretariat, on behalf of IFC-MPDF. “Previously there was no formal mechanism for raising issues with government, tracking progress on their resolution and ensuring that government commitments were effectively implemented. Nor did government have an efficient mechanism for discussing its concerns with the private sector and getting feedback on policy, laws and regulations. Now all of this takes place through the Forum and it has also helped to build trust on both sides and effective collaboration.”
Businesses are welcome to participate in the 2nd Lao Business Forum on 15 March 2007. To register, contact the LBF secretariat at IFC-MPDF, Lao Tel: (856-21) 450017-9. Fax: (856-21) 450020
