The Việt Nam – Laos Logistics Business Forum 2026 held in Vientiane on May 26. — VNA/VNS Photo Xuân Tú

​VIENTIAN — Việt Nam and Laos are stepping up cooperation in trade, transport and logistics connectivity as both countries seek to strengthen supply chains and facilitate cross-border commerce, officials said at the Việt Nam – Laos Logistics Business Forum 2026 held in Vientiane on May 26.

The forum was jointly organised by the Lao Ministry of Industry and Commerce’s Foreign Trade Department, the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Agency of Foreign Trade, and the Vietnam Trade Office in Laos. It brought together government officials, industry associations and hundreds of businesses operating in logistics, multimodal transport, warehousing, import-export and e-commerce.

Speaking at the event, Kingsadone Phetdaoheuang, Director General of the Foreign Trade Department under Laos’ Ministry of Industry and Commerce, said the forum was aimed at translating bilateral cooperation agreements into concrete action. She highlighted Laos’ efforts to transform itself from a landlocked country into a regional connectivity hub linking the Mekong sub-region and ASEAN, creating new opportunities for industry, agriculture and cross-border trade.

To realise this vision, Laos is implementing its Trade and Transport Facilitation Action Plan for 2025–2030, which targets to cut import-export licensing times by at least 40 per cent, reduce customs clearance times at border gates by a minimum of 50 per cent, raise the national Logistics Performance Index (LPI) by at least 40 per cent, and eliminate at least half of unnecessary checkpoints along domestic transport routes. The country is also seeking Việt Nam’s support in sharing experience and enhancing logistics infrastructure transport routes.

Laos is focusing on 12 strategic measures under the direction of the National Trade and Transport Facilitation Committee, she said, adding that the country hopes Việt Nam will share its experience and strengthen connectivity in warehousing infrastructure to help ease transport cost bottlenecks and expand access to the sea through the Vũng Áng Port complex in Hà Tĩnh, central Việt Nam.

Trần Thanh Hải, Deputy Director General of Việt Nam’s Agency of Foreign Trade, said logistics cooperation between the two countries should become more modern, integrated and sustainable amid global trends toward digitalisation, green development and resilient supply chains. He called for closer collaboration in logistics infrastructure, multimodal transport, digital transformation, customs modernisation and business connectivity.

Hải underlined the significant potential for logistics cooperation between Việt Nam and Laos, noting that Việt Nam has advantages in seaport infrastructure, logistics network and international connectivity, while Laos holds a strategic position in the Greater Mekong Sub-region as a vital link between ASEAN and inland Asia.

He said that with more effective linkages, the two economies could complement each other in developing regional supply chains, not only meeting bilateral transport and trade but also attracting transit cargo from third countries, thereby generating higher added value for both countries’ logistics sectors.

During discussions, participants identified high cross-border logistics costs, infrastructure bottlenecks, procedural issues at some border gates and incompatibility in electronic customs documentation as key challenges. They agreed that greater digitalisation and investment in multimodal transport, including road, sea and the proposed Vũng Áng – Vientiane railway route, would help address these obstacles.

The forum is expected to open a new chapter in Việt Nam – Laos economic cooperation, supporting the goal of raising bilateral trade turnover to more than US$4 billion in 2026 and eventually $10 billion by 2030. — VNA/VNS