Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh during a meeting with the Chairman of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Lan Tianli on November 7 called on the province to soon pilot the border economic cooperation zone.

Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Chairman of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Lan Tianli. Source: VGP

This economic cooperation zone is an initiative proposed by China and has been under negotiation with several countries, including Vietnam, since 2007. The model follows the concept of "two countries, one zone, free trade, and closed-loop operation.”

The zone will be divided into functional sub-areas (such as manufacturing, warehousing, customs clearance, commercial centers, and recreational areas) and will be jointly managed and operated by both governments, offering incentives to attract businesses.

The prime minister also invited Guangxi authorities to explore cooperation in areas such as developing a standard-gauge railway connecting Guangxi and Vietnam, as well as the digital economy, electricity, and clean energy sectors.

Chinh also urged China to expand the pilot model of smart border crossings, establish inspection and quarantine stations, and open new border gates and crossings to facilitate the import of Vietnamese goods, especially agricultural products, into Guangxi.

He emphasized that the Vietnamese government is committed to fostering closer cooperation between its localities and China, including Guangxi Province.

Lan Tianli, for his part, agreed with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s suggestions and confirmed that China will strengthen cooperation and improve transportation links, particularly through railways from Guangxi to Vietnam’s Dong Dang - Hanoi and Mong Cai - Haiphong. He also expressed the desire to expand the scale and quality of trade and investment cooperation further, enhance customs clearance efficiency through the "smart border" model, and collaborate on digital economy and electricity trade.

Guangxi is one of China’s leading provinces in trade with Vietnam. Last year,  the trade volume between Vietnamese localities and Guangxi reached $36.3 billion and continued with strong growth (32%) in the first seven months of this year.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, trade across the Vietnam-Guangxi border accounts for over 95% of the total trade volume across all land border crossings between the two countries. Vietnam has also been Guangxi’s largest trading partner for 25 consecutive years.