Vietnam and Laos discussed the role of people’s councils in making decisions and supervising land issues at a seminar held in the northern mountainous province of Son La on July 6.

The conference overview (source: VOV)

Vietnam’s National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan and her Lao counterpart Pany Yathotou co-chaired the event.

Speaking at the seminar, NA Chairwoman Ngan said following the two seminars on public debt management held in September last year in Laos and management decentralisation held in March in Vietnam, the two countries’ parliaments had gained valuable experiences, which helped enhance the activities of their elected officials and of State agencies.

According to Ngan, the seminar was a chance for representatives from the NA, Government and People’s Councils to share experiences and lessons in the area of land management in each country, as well as the role and functions of local people’s councils in passing decisions and monitoring the implementation of laws and policies on land.

NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan speaking at the conference (source: Thuong Hieu & Cong Luan)

Ngan said the seminar not only helped clarify the role and responsibility of the two countries’ legislatures on important issues, but also reflected increasingly practical and effective cooperation between their NAs and Governments.

The Vietnamese Chairwoman asserted that the Party, the State and the NA cooperate closely with their Lao counterparts and would contribute to the consolidation of the traditional friendship and special and comprehensive relations.

The Chairwoman of the Lao NA Pany Yathotou, for her part, said land played a very important role in the socio-economic development of each country. Both Laos and Vietnam had experienced periods of change in land management and use, she noted.

Although the two countries have attained encouraging achievements in socio-economic development in the new era, including the conversion of land into capital for construction and development, they also face many challenges in planning, management and use of land, according to the Lao top legislator.

She said that land issues in her country were similar to those that Vietnam had faced in the past. Thus, she said, the seminar was an opportunity for representatives of the two countries to exchange experience and learn from each other on how to solve land management and use issues./.

( VNF/VNA )