The Ministry of Industry and Commerce issued on Oct 19 an order to cancel the issuance of import licenses for tractors and walking tractors in an effort to cut production costs and promote commercial production in agricultural industry.
The No. 2982 Order states that a technical permission must be sought from the Department of Transport of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport before tractors can be imported, and they must be imported through international border crossings only.
Meanwhile, walking tractors can be imported through local, traditional and international border crossings without seeking technical licenses from the Department of Transport.
The importation of all types of tractors can be made on the condition that one farming family imports one tractor and they must seek documents from their respective village authorities proving that the tractor is needed for agricultural purposes.
Farmers’ groups, or cooperatives wishing to import any kinds of tractors must obtain documents from the agriculture and forestry office of the district or city in which they are located and the documents must state the purpose of the import and the quantity of the tractors with respect to the actual size of farmland.
Source: Lao News Agency