BANGKOK, April 28, 2026 — Mr. Kirati Veruwan, Vice President of the Neighbouring Countries Economic Development Cooperation Agency (Public Organization) (NEDA), attended a meeting with the 1st Budget Management Monitoring Sub-Committee under the Senate Committee on Budget Management Monitoring, chaired by Mr. Pamon Chaowsirikul, Chairman of the Budget Management Monitoring Sub-Committee. The meeting was held at the Committee Meeting Room CA 329, 3rd Floor, Parliament Building, to provide information and opinions on relevant issues regarding both operational progress and the budget for the Route No. 12 (R12) Improvement Project, specifically the section from Thakhek Town to the Na Phao Border Crossing Point in the Lao PDR.
The R12 Project is an initiative approved by the Cabinet of the Thai Government and the Government of the Lao PDR to jointly advance the upgrading and improvement of Route No. 12 to meet Asian Highway standards, with a total assistance amount of 1,833,747,000 Baht. This consists of a loan amount of 1,742,684,000 Baht and a grant amount of 91,063,000 Baht. The project specifies conditions requiring that various materials and equipment used under the project must originate from Thailand for no less than 50% of the contract value, and that construction contractors and construction supervision consultants from Thailand must be primarily utilized. The project will take approximately 30 months for construction, with the expectation that developing the said route will enhance trade and investment potential, develop logistics systems connecting Nakhon Phanom Province in Thailand to the Lao PDR, Vietnam, and China, and support connectivity among neighboring countries under the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) Economic Cooperation framework. As of the end of March 2026, the project has achieved 11.12% progress and is expected to complete construction and open for service by early 2028 to further facilitate travel and transport between nations.
