2023 Volume 32 Issue 1 Pages 1-15
This study reviews the current status of the cross-border corridor development in Asia and Africa as a case study of Transport Development Studies. Major cross-border corridors include Asian Highway, Trans-Asian Railways, the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) economic corridors, Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) corridors, Transport Corridor Europe Caucasus Asia (TRACECA), Silk Road Economic Belt as a part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Trans-African Highway, Northern Corridors in East Africa, and West Africa Growth Ring. This study also investigates the investment plan, development stage, and institutional issues of the economic corridors of GMS. Three economic corridors of GMS are formulated by Cross-Border Transport Facilitation Agreement (CBTA). However, even though GMS member states signed and ratified the agreements of annexes and protocols, these rules are not implemented yet. Instead of CBTA, GMS member states implement and operate the cross-border transport rules based on bilateral or trilateral agreements because these are easy to manage. Certain conditions are required for transport corridors to become economic corridors. For example, economic corridors should be logistics as well as passenger corridors, including high-speed railways, to create an economic agglomeration. Port development is also important as a gateway of the economic corridors. In addition, the efficiency of border operation and document compliance in electrification is essential.
