Appendix: Core of Connectivity in GMS

1East–West Economic Corridor (EWEC):

2About 1,450 kilometers (km) long, this Corridor is the only direct and continuous land route that now connects the Indian Ocean (or the Andaman Sea) to the South China Sea. This is the first of three major GMS corridors to be completed, except for a 40 km road section in Myanmar. The Second International Mekong Bridge between Mukdahan in Thailand and Savannakhet in the Lao PDR was inaugurated and opened on 20^th December 2006 making this direct link possible. An initial impact assessment of the development impact of this EWEC on, for instance Savannakhet Province (as reported by a study by Rattanay Luanglatbandith 2006) found significant benefits to having already incurred. These include (i) reduced travel time from the Lao-Viet Nam border of Lao-Bao-Dansavanh to Savannakhet by bus from about 12 hours to only about 3 hours; (ii) increase in FDI and joint ventures in Savannakhet Province, much of which has been influenced by EWEC development; (iii) expansion in employment and income-generating opportunities; and (iv) improvement of access of rural students to secondary schools and so on.

3North–South Economic Corridor (NSEC):

4Three different routes along the north–south axis of this corridor are Kunming–Chiang Rai–Bangkok via the Lao PDR or Myanmar route, Kunming–Ha Noi–Haiphong route, and the Nanning-Ha Noi route. The Mekong bridge between Houayxay on the Lao PDR side and Chiang Khong on the Thai side remains to be the missing link along the first route of the North–South corridor. This has now been approved by the 14^th GMS summit at Manila on 21^st June 2007 and will be ready by 2011. In this regard, the Lao PDR and Thailand have agreed on a site for the bridge. The governments of the PRC and Thailand have further agreed to share in financing the cost of the bridge on a 50–50 basis. Overall, work on the transport links under the two routes of the NSEC is progressing well toward the target completion date of 2010, with many sections in the PRC, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam having been completed in the last 2–3 years.

5Southern Economic Corridor (SEC):

6The SEC is defined by three main road sub corridors connecting major points in Cambodia, Thailand, and Viet Nam. The three sub-corridors are making good progress toward realizing the target completion date of 2010, with many sections in the sub-corridors already completed. Benefit monitoring reports for completed sections of the sub-corridors indicate that benefits are already being realized in terms of savings in travel time, lower travel costs for passengers and lower maintenance costs for vehicles, increased volume of trade, and generation of employment opportunities for the local population.

7Source: “14^th GMS Ministerial Conference” (retrieved on 30^th June 2007), available at http://www. adb.org/Documents/Events/2007/14th-Ministerial-Conference/default.asp

Transport Grid of GMS