National Highway 217 running through central Thanh Hoa province will beupgraded and expanded under the second Northern Greater MekongSub-region (GMS) Transport Network Improvement Project.
Aceremony to kick-start the project was jointly held by the Ministry ofTransport, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Thanh Hoa provincialPeople’s Committee in Cam Phong commune, Cam Thuy district on June 25.
The project is part of the GMS Economic CooperationProgramme ratified by leaders of regional countries at the GMS Summit inJuly 2005.
The 88.2km national highway will be upgraded at atotal cost of 97.4 million USD with 75 million USD coming from the ADB.The improvements will be completed in 2016.
As part of thenortheastern corridor, the national highway is seen as a strategic routethat links Laos’ northeastern region with the north of Vietnam and NghiSon seaport in Thanh Hoa province.
The upgrades will help improve local people’s access to social services and create good links with Thailand and Laos.-VNA