To that end, it plans to raise its investment in research and development to 2.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), up from 2 per cent now, while targeting to increase the contribution of scientific advances to economic growth from 55 per cent now to 60 per cent. It will also expand its high-speed rail network, grow its urban population and cut pollution, according to a development plan unveiled yesterday.

These measures will be the basis for the country’s growth – with a target of at least 6.5 per cent annually – for the next five years, said Premier Li Keqiang when presenting the draft of the 13th Five-Year Plan at the opening of the country’s annual parliamentary session.

The plan is a guide for economic and social progress until 2020. By then China hopes to have eradicated poverty and doubled its 2010 GDP and per capita income – important targets for the Communist Party’s political legitimacy.

The plan builds on the “five development concepts” of “innovation, coordination, green development, openness and inclusiveness” espoused by President Xi Jinping at the party’s Fifth Plenum last year.

Addressing about 2,900 delegates from the National People’s Congress (NPC), Li said it was imperative for China to adopt new technologies and industries while building up human resources and capital. These are part of the economic reforms China has been undergoing, as it aims to move away from traditional growth sectors such as steel, which are set to witness mass layoffs as the country slashes overcapacity.

“Obviously, replacing old drivers of growth with new ones… is a painful adjustment,” Li said. “But it is at the same time an upgrading process with great promise.”

As part of China’s urbanisation plans, he added, the government will grant urban residency to about 100 million people and create more than 50 million new urban jobs. By 2020, urban residents should account for 60 per cent of China’s population, up from 56 per cent now.

The plan also pledged to protect the environment, increase the proportion of China’s middle-income group and reduce the income gap, one of the world’s worst today.

Li said the plan’s success centres on harnessing the potential of the people, whom he described as “an inexhaustible source of power”. “We just have to get through this process, and we can, without question, reinvigorate the economy and ensure its dynamic growth.”

Zheng Xiaohe, an NPC delegate who works in the agricultural sector, said the plan was noteworthy for its “determination to alleviate poverty amid a slowing economy”.

“Taken together with its pledge to promote green growth, you can see that China is more concerned about climbing the happiness index than the GDP ladder,” he told The Sunday Times.

All flights by Singapore Airlines, Scoot, SilkAir, Tigerair, Jetstar Asia and SIA Cargo must be tracked throughout their entire duration.

This can be done either manually or automatically initially, but from Nov 8, 2018, only automatic tracking will be permitted.

The move is in line with the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) plans for flights to be tracked every 15 minutes by November 2018.

Flight tracking is being made mandatory to avoid another MH370 tragedy. The Malaysia Airlines flight vanished on March 8, 2014 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board. The Boeing 777 is presumed to have plunged into the Indian Ocean and has still not been found.

CAAS director-general Kevin Shum said: “The safety of the travelling public is always our priority. CAAS has worked closely with the industry to advance the implementation of the latest rules on enhanced aircraft tracking. When fully implemented, our airlines will have added assurance of the whereabouts and safety of their aircraft operations throughout their network.”

While the new requirement is unlikely to have any manpower impact on carriers, operators of single-aisle planes like Tigerair and Jetstar Asia will need to make significant investments.

This is because unlike widebody planes, smaller aircraft are not fitted with the necessary equipment and technology to support regular flight tracking.

Installing it takes several days and costs about $100,000, The Straits Times understands.

SIA’s acting senior vice-president of flight operations, Captain C.E. Quay, said: “We are supportive of the efforts to improve flight tracking capabilities. Singapore Airlines is already in compliance with CAAS’ new rules, as we have enhanced flight tracking capabilities that give us detailed oversight of our global flight operations.”

Managing director and chief operating officer of Tigerair Ho Yuen Sang said: “We have been working closely with CAAS in order to achieve the highest level of surveillance and tracking for our aircraft. We are confident that these industry-leading regulations represent a significant step forward in aviation safety which is our top priority.”

The MoU also aims to boost import and export activities between the two countries.

Pham Thiet Hoa, ITPC’s director, said under the agreement, both sides would cooperate to disseminate information about the free trade agreement between Vietnam and South Korea, and solve obstructions in investment and trade in each other’s markets.

KOTRA yesterday also signed an MOU with the Saigon High-Tech Park to promote investment of South Korea firms in the hi-tech sector in Vietnam and boost co-operation between Vietnamese and South Korean businesses.

Roh Inho, vice president of KOTRA in charge of ASEAN and Oceania, said the Vietnam and South Korea FTA, which took effect last December, opened opportunities for Vietnam’s key export items, including farm produce, fisheries products, garment and textile and footwear to enter the South Korean market.

South Korea has a high demand for tropical fruits like mango and pineapple, making it a promising market for Vietnam, according to the KOTRA official.

With lower tariff duties under the FTA, South Korean firms will have opportunities to boost exports of raw materials and accessories for the garment and textile sector, household equipment, cosmetics and others.

In order to increase exports to South Korea, Vietnamese firms need to focus more on improving product quality, design and competitive prices.

Speaking at the Korea-Vietnam FTA in HCM City yesterday, Park Noh Wan, the South Korean Consul General in HCM City, said more than 2,500 South Korean firms were operating in HCM City and neighbouring localities.

Besides investment in labour-intensive industries like garment and textile and footwear, many invested in hi-tech sectors like electricity and electronics, contributing to the development of Vietnam’s industrial sector, he said.

Nguyen Thi Thu, deputy chairwoman of the HCM City People’s Committee, said the city welcomed foreign companies, including those from South Korea, to research investment opportunities in the city.

The city pledged to create the most favourable conditions for their operations, she said.

The continent’s installed hydropower capacity is now 538 GW or 49 per cent of the world total , according to a report from the Sixth International Conference and Exhibition on Water Resources and Hydropower Development in Asia, held in Vientiane from March 1-3.

Annual production in Asia is about 1,800 TWh, or 46 per cent of the world total, Aqua-Media International reported.

In addition, about 62 per cent of global hydro capacity under construction is in Asia, amounting to just under 100GW.

Asia is the most active region of the world for the development of water infrastructure and most of the world’s highest dams of all types are in Asia.

Laos is a part of this growth and is focusing on the development of hydroelectric power facilities as an appropriate method of achieving sustainable social and economic development through its electrification programme, as well as boosting revenue.

Hydropower potential in Laos is about 26,000MW. The target at present is for 10,000MW to be generated by 2020 and 20,000MW by 2030.

To ensure that hydro projects are safe and sustainable, and that environmental impacts are reduced, cooperation and technical assistance from a large number of private and government organisations is required.

The conference that has just ended in Laos is important because it enabled participants to share their experiences in water resource and hydropower development in Asia.

The event was considered beneficial to all those involved in the hydro, dams and water resources industries, including engineers, consultants, academics and government organisations.

The first conference was organised in Bangkok, Thailand in 2006, while the second was held in Danang, Vietnam in 2008, the third in Sarawak, Malaysia in 2010, the fourth in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and the fifth in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

This week’s conference presented balanced information about the role of hydropower in world energy supply and socio-economic development, as well as the multiple roles of dams.

The annual meetings also aim to keep professionals informed about technical, economic, financial, environment and social aspects of development through various publications, and to promote best practice.

It was noted that Asia is still facing challenges and climate issues. In 2014, more than half the world’s natural disasters occurred in Asia, where river basin floods caused economic losses of US$16 billion.

Water stress, which is intensifying in large areas of Asia including China, the Indian sub-continent and Central Asia, underlines the need for more storage of water.

In an interview yesterday, Civil Aeronautics Board executive director Carmelo Arcilla said the Philippines had sent requests for air talks to Indonesia and Thailand. Outside Asean, the country has sought air talks with Japan, India, Italy and Canada.

“We have identified a list of priority countries and we wrote them,” Arcilla said in an interview.

Arcilla said Thailand and Indonesia had yet to respond. However, the Philippines has received similar request from the government of Laos. Arcilla said talks with Laos could happen in the second quarter of 2016.

“We are keen on strengthening our bilateral relationship with Laos,” he said.

On Feb. 3, 2016, President Aquino signed the Protocols 5 and 6 of the Asean Multilateral Agreement in Air Services, or MAAS.

With the signing, Philippine air carriers will be allowed to fly “unlimited frequencies to and beyond the capital cities” of the Asean. This was expected to lead to better and more efficient connectivity and translate to more competitive fares and services.

Delays in the signing of the said protocols were earlier credited to limited slots in Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport, which suffers from congestion due to growing air and passenger traffic and limited expansion space. These limitations are currently being addressed by several government agencies.

In line with the MAAS signing, the CAB is assisting Philippine air carriers in securing additional flight schedules with each of the nine other member states of the Asean.

The Philippines targets to have new flights operational within the next six months, the Department of Transportation and Communications announced earlier.

Arcilla said the country was also seeking expanded flying rights to Canada, but he said the Northern American country had begged off.

“Canada said they are not yet ready to have air talks this year,” Arcilla said.

He said the country was likewise seeking to hold negotiations with Italy in the second quarter of 2016, although this had yet to be finalized. Italy is among the routes being targeted by domestic carriers like Philippine Airlines as a second destination in Europe.

PAL’s only direct European route is between Manila and London. Arcilla said there was also a need to update flying rights with the United States government.

“With respect to designation and route structure [ to the US], it is still very restrictive,” he said.

Some analysts say it is a potential coming of age for the relatively isolated country, still run by an opaque old guard communist regime with Cold War memories of being bombed by the United States during the Vietnam War. This year will see world leaders meeting in its riverside capital.

In September, a US president will visit for the first time as Vientiane hosts the Asean summit. The US has donated millions of dollars to clear unexploded ordnance left behind by the Indochina War, and been supporting Laos’ education system.

Because of its strategic position, Laos is emerging as a magnet for competing powers. Most recently, it has flirted with China, signing on to a US$6 billion railway linking China with Thailand and allowing rampant Chinese investments in the north.

Japan is also an increasingly major player in Laos. At the Mekong Summit last year, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe unveiled 750 billion yen (US$6.6 billion) in official development assistance (ODA) to the Mekong region over the next three years. A few months earlier, Japan announced a $110 billion commitment to support infrastructure in Asia.

“China supports north-south linkages, Japan supports east-west linkages,” said a diplomat based in the region. “It is widely acknowledged that Japan is the largest ODA donor in Laos, possibly in the entire Mekong region.”

Not to be outdone, China launched the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Framework last November at a meeting with Asean in Jinghong, Yunnan province. The idea: to promote sustainable development and regional integration, including people-to-people exchanges.

This year, with changes at the top in the secretive Politburo, Laos appears to have returned from a seemingly pro-China stance to balance major powers and lean towards old ally Vietnam again. Current Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Thongloun Sisoulith is expected to be elevated to Prime Minister on March 20.

“Thongloun… is viewed as somewhat of an internationalist who wants to promote closer ties not only with Laos’ Asean neighbours, but also with the United States and Japan,” Murray Hiebert, senior fellow and deputy director of the Sumitro Chair for Southeast Asia Studies at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, wrote last month in the CSIS blog. “Thongloun is not anti-China but wants to hedge Laos’ foreign policy with broader regional and international ties.”

CSIS associate fellow Phuong Nguyen said in an interview: “The chairmanship… is a very big deal for Laos. Apart from dynamics with the major powers, this is the first year that the Asean Economic Community (AEC) is in effect and it is on Laos’ watch.

“They see their job as also helping to implement to the extent that they can, the goals of the AEC and even own some of the items, for example trade facilitation and small and medium enterprises.”

But even as the nation of seven million is courted by major powers, some analysts are cautious not to overstate Laos’ case.

“Laos has gained prominence this year because it chairs Asean at a time of heightened geopolitical tension in the region,” said Professor Thitinan Pongsudhirak, director of Chulalongkorn University’s Institute of Security and International Studies, in an e-mail interview.

Last week’s Asean foreign ministers retreat – the first of a series of meetings culminating in the September summit – saw little dissonance among Asean ministers as Laos worked hard to balance all interests, sources say. But Laos still walks a tightrope.

It has been “easy prey for Chinese economic expansionism”, wrote Prof Thitinan. Without the chairmanship, Laos would “revert to its small-state dilemma of having to straddle contentious bigger neighbours”.

He cautioned: “That Laos gets a lot of bandwidth now is rotational and ephemeral. Its external challenges of maintaining some geopolitical space, and internal upward pressure for reform, will persist after its chairmanship ends.”