Second Level Brags................22/03/2014 Casino slated for Khonephapheng A proposal to build a special economic zone (SEZ) at Khonephapheng waterfall and the surrounding area in Khong district will be submitted to the government at the end of this month for consideration and approval. Deputy Governor of Champassak province, Mr Buasone Vongsongkhone, spoke with Vientiane Times on Monday, reporting on the outcome of a meeting to discuss the proposal. The two-day meeting in Vientiane last week was organised by the Lao National Committee for Special Economic Zones (NCSEZ), aiming to get more input from the relevant sectors to ensure the proposal is more comprehensive before submitting it to the government. Mr Buasone said the zone is designed to include a casino and other facilities in keeping with tourism in the Khonephapheng waterfall and Siphandone (Four Thousand Islands) area, such that they do not harm the environment. “At the meeting we discussed how to regulate the casino to ensure the zone has proper security,” he said. Meeting participants also discussed how the project could capitalise on the potential of the region, contributing to sustainable tourism development and generating job opportunities for local people. Champassak provincial authorities have allocated 7,000 hectares for the potential development, which would be divided into four zones: Zone A (480 hectares), Zone B (797 hectares), Zone C (2,120 hectares) and Zone D (3,678 hectares). Khonephapheng is the largest waterfall in South-East Asia, attracting thousands of tourists to the area every year. The proposed SEZ will be about 1km from the waterfall. Director of the provincial Department of Planning and Investment, Mr Saithong Xayavong, said Champassak authorities have been preparing for this project for four years. The zone is designed to include tourism-related activities, aiming to become a major visitor attraction in the region. “Several companies are interested in developing the zone but we are waiting for approval from the government,” he said. Mr Saithong said the Siphandone area is already a popular tourist destination and that when more facilities are built many more tourists will visit the region. Champassak authorities have planned three SEZs in the province. The other two are located at the Vangtao-Chongmek border checkpoint in Phonthong district and on the Bolaven Plateau in Pakxong district. None of the three projects has yet been approved by the government. SEZs are a form of development aimed at attracting foreign investment and generating job opportunities for local people as well as helping to drive the countrys economic growth. The government attaches great importance to developing SEZs to boost the countrys growth, which is crucial to lifting people out of poverty and enabling Laos to graduate from the list of least developed countries by 2020. There are now 10 operating SEZs in Laos, covering an area of more than 13,500 hectares and creating about 8,000 jobs. Among the existing zones are the That Luang Marsh SEZ in Vientiane, the Savan-Seno SEZ in Savannakhet province, the Golden Triangle SEZ in Bokeo province, the Boten Dankham SEZ in Luang Namtha province, the Vientiane Long Thanh Golf Course in Vientiane, and the Phoukhiew SEZ in Khammuan province.
Posted on: Thu, 20 Mar 2014 03:17:13 +0000
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