The nine provinces that share Routes 8 and 12 attended the 23rd Sub-Committee Cooperation Meeting on March 2, 2023, in the Bolikhamxay Province of Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand.

Mr. Oudom Vongkaysone of the Bolikhamxay Foreign Affairs Department, Mr. Tran Manh Hung of the Ha Tinh Foreign Affairs Department in Vietnam, and Mr. Somvang AliEua of the Beungkan Provincial Office in Thailand co-chaired the event. The three leaders emphasized the tripartite commitment to creating infrastructure through collaboration.

As part of the coordinated effort to implement the agreements made at the 22nd High-Level Delegates Meeting of the nine provinces sharing Routes 8 and 12, Mr. Oudom Vongkaysone has recognized the proactive and thorough cooperation of Bolikhamxay Province with the relevant provinces. Ha Tinh was the site of the initial meeting that established the framework for this partnership.

Investment, trade, agriculture, education, healthcare, culture, sports, and tourism are just a few of the areas that Mr. Vongkaysone praised Bolikhamxay for actively contributing to. This thorough cooperation demonstrates the province's dedication to the shared objectives and development plans supported by Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand.

A lot of people are keeping a close eye on the transportation corridor that connects Bangkok, Nakhon Phanom, Thakhek, and Ha Tinh. This corridor combines Route 8 and Route 12. In order to advance this initiative, the Laotian Ministry of Public Works and Transport is coordinating a meeting with the Thai and Vietnamese Transportation Authorities.

With an investment of 1.2 billion Baht, the Laotian government has begun a massive infrastructure project to improve regional connectivity and trade. The project entails upgrading Highway 212 to Beungkan. This project is an element of a larger plan to enhance transportation connections in the tri-national area that comprises Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand.

In addition, officials from the Vietnamese province of Ha Tinh and the Laotian province of Bolikhamxay are getting ready to work together on a road proposal that would connect the Namphao and Cau Treo border crossings. This project, which has the support of Vietnamese aid, is going to improve the transportation infrastructure between the two neighboring nations. This project is a part of a larger plan to build a highway between Vientiane and Paksane in Bolikhamxay, Thanh Thuy in Nghe An, and Hanoi. The Vietnamese and Laotian governments have already agreed on a cooperative framework for this project. The Vietnamese Ministry of Transport and its Laotian counterpart have been investigating potential funding avenues and carrying out feasibility studies in order to realize this lofty goal. The authorities of Nghe An and Bolikhamxay have worked together more closely than before, holding conferences to review the project and forming survey teams to examine the terrain in person.

Officially sanctioning cross-border trade activities at the Ca Roong - Nongma border crossing, the Vietnamese province of Quang Binh and Laotian province of Khammouane have moved in line with the collaborative spirit of the 22nd High-Level Delegates Conference of the 9 Provinces. The two regions' economies will be able to work together more effectively thanks to this approval.

Quang Binh is urging the Vietnamese, Laotian, and Thai governments to work together to incorporate Routes 8 and 12 into the Greater Mekong Subregion Cross-Border Transport Facilitation Agreement (GMS-CBTA) in an effort to improve regional connectivity even further. Streamlining transportation and trade across the extended Mekong region is essential for economic growth and regional integration. This amendment would be a strategic move in that direction.