China-Laos Railway: 'Golden corridor' of prosperity, education cooperation, and friendship
Photo shows a train at the Mohan Railway Station of the China-Laos Railway in southwest China's Yunnan Province. (Chinanews.com/Liu Yue)
Stretching from Kunming in southwest China's Yunnan Province to Vientiane in Laos, the China-Laos Railway has emerged as a "golden corridor." Embodying friendship, technology, sustainability, and openness, the railway carries the shared dreams of both peoples.
More than just a railway, it is a "prosperity road" driving regional economies, an "education pathway" for cross-border talent, and a "connectivity project" connecting the hearts of both peoples.
Since opening, the railway has reshaped development patterns in cities along its route by ensuring efficient transport capacity, injecting robust momentum into regional economic growth.
Pu'er city in Yunnan illustrates this transformation. Capitalizing on its location, the city has upgraded industries and fostered integrated growth in agriculture, culture, and tourism.
In Nandaohe village of Nanping town, just over 10 minutes from the Pu'er railway station of the China-Laos Railway, Baishapo village group launched a coffee-themed rural revitalization project. With 61 million yuan (about $8.55 million) invested, the project has created an integrated complex of coffee tasting, cultural exhibitions, tourism, and rural B&Bs. The project delivers fixed annual dividends of 400,000 yuan to local farmers while putting the once-sleepy mountain village on the tourism map.
Photo shows Luo Yaqiong, a villager in Nandaohe village, Nanping town, Pu'er city, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (Chinanews.com/Liu Yue)
For villager Luo Yaqiong, the change is life-altering. Once reliant on weather-sensitive coffee and tea harvests, her family earned about 2,000 yuan per month. Now, through a roasting workshop partnership, she receives over 3,000 yuan in dividends in addition to farm income, raising her household earnings to 5,000 yuan monthly.
"The environment has improved, incomes have grown, and our horizons have broadened," she said, noting the steady stream of foreign tourists she never expected to meet at her doorstep.
Villagers now find jobs locally through training in barista work, hospitality, and baking. Many households have doubled their incomes, while tourists from cities including Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou have begun to choose a long-term stay there, fueling refined development of the local cultural tourism.
The railway has also opened an "express lane" for international educational cooperation.
Students at Pu'er University in Pu'er city, southwest China's Yunnan Province share their experiences of studying across borders. (Chinanews.com/Liu Yue)
As a talent training hub for South and Southeast Asia, Pu'er University has steadily expanded its minor language programs to meet Belt and Road Initiative needs.
Since the railway's launch, the university has widened its enrollment reach, attracting Lao students from both northern and southern regions, according to Li Chunzhong, dean of the School of Foreign Languages at Pu'er University.
A 20-year-old Lao student studying at the university noted a growing "Chinese language fever" in Laos, where parents are eager to send their children to Chinese classes, and people ranging from bank employees to schoolchildren and even middle-aged learners are studying the language.
"Speaking Chinese makes it easier to find a job, with salaries sometimes one to two times higher than average," he said. This awareness has strengthened his resolve to pursue a career as a translator or Chinese teacher after graduation, acting as an "ambassador" for China-Laos people-to-people exchanges.
Liu Jieying, a senior majoring in Lao at Pu'er University who previously studied in Vientiane, has observed this trend firsthand. In Laos, Chinese language training centers are especially common, and evening classes are often packed, according to Liu. "Among the students are high schoolers preparing for Chinese proficiency tests to apply for universities in China, as well as working professionals hoping to boost their careers."
Convenient travel brought by the China-Laos Railway has also enabled people from different countries to deepen understanding and forge friendships.
Photo shows a view along the Yunnan section of the China-Laos Railway. (Chinanews.com/Liu Yue)
With China's expanding visa-free "circle of friends," demand for cross-border journeys continues to surge. The railway links iconic destinations—from Kunming and Xishuangbanna in China to Luang Prabang and Vientiane in Laos—making it a global "golden route" for tourism.
As of Sept. 20, the China-Laos Railway had handled 59 million passenger trips, including 580,000 cross-border trips by passengers from 115 countries and regions globally.
The number of passenger trains operating daily on the domestic section of the railway has surged from 8 to a peak of 86. On the Laotian section, services increased from 4 to up to 18 trains per day. The number of cross-border passenger seats has expanded from an initial 250 to 420 per train.
来源：人民网
编辑：熊睿
审核：刘毅 甘晶莹
监制：郑颖
