Since "the Second GMS Economic Cooperation Leaders Meeting" has been held in 2005, GMS countries have made remarkable achievements in the infrastructure construction of road, railway, waterways and aviation, especially the implementation and further carrying out of the "Strategic Framework for Action on Trade and Investment Facilitation in the Greater Mekong Subregion" (hereinafter referred to as "Framework for Action") creates a very favorable condition for the build of the Economic Corridors.

     GMS governments and business sectors currrently pay attention on how to transform the Transport Corridors to Economic Corridors and how to make countries and regions along the corridor benefit from it as well as to create new GMS economic growth pole.

At present, there is no organization devoted to promote the economic corridor development cooperation and the participation of local governments and enterprises.

    As a priority project of GMS cooperation, the economic corridor build appeared to be inadequate. So the establishment of a long-term, efficient and practical mechanism to promote the GMS Economic Corridor and conforming to the current development trend of GMS economic cooperation is imperative.

    For this purpose the Ministry of Commerce clearly pointed out to start-up the GMS Economic Corridor development project in the "China Action Plan" in implementing the GMS trade and investment facilitation.

    The ministry commissioned the Bureau of Commerce of Yunnan province to carry out "Topic research on build and development of GMS South-north Economic Corridor" to provide measures and ideas for the Ministry of Commerce in order to promote the economic corridor development.

    The study report attracted great concerns of the Ministry of Commerce, expert groups were organized to do research in Yunnan and Guangxi.

In consultation with relevant ministries and commissions and the views of GMS countries, earlier this year under the commission of the Ministry of Commerce, ADB completed "The Framework Document for Institutional Arrangement of GMS Economic Corridor Development", further elaborating the co-operation mechanism regarding the overall planning, institutional arrangement, organizational framework as well as following-up steps. 

The proposition of establishing a long-term mechanism for "GMS Economic Corridor Forum" takes shape.

In view of making full use of regional advantages of Yunnan province, consolidating its status in GMS cooperation, expanding economic and trade relationships between Yunnan and neighboring countries and enriching content of activities in Kungming Fair, the Bureau of Commerce of Yunnan province takes active measure to apply for the holding of "GMS Economic Corridor Forum" during the 16th Session of Kunming Fair to the Ministry of Commerce.

In February this year, during his work reporting journey to the Ministry of Commerce, deputy governor Gu Zhaoxi proposed to arrange the forum held in Kunming, which got positive response from the Ministry of Commerce.

The Ministry of Commerce put the proposal of setting up the "GMS Economic Corridor Forum" into Premier Wen Jia Bao's speech in the third GMS Leaders Meeting which held in Laos' Vientiane on March 31.

The official presentation of the initiative is proposed by the Chinese government and is one of the important achivements of the session of the summit meeting.