Thriving on China's Belt and Road, Laos border town ditches kip for yuan
So the success story here is:<p>&gt; [..] the yuan is now its main currency of trade.<p>1. They lost their own currency.<p>&gt; [..] it is also increasingly populated by many from across the border hoping to benefit [..]<p>2. The &#x27;investment&#x27; into the local area is actually being used to employ imported Chinese workers.<p>&gt; Jua, a 24-year-old truck driver, feels he has been &quot;kept alive&quot; by China. He is paid in yuan every month by a Chinese cargo owner.<p>3. Local businesses are being purchased or replaced with Chinese owners.<p>When they fail to pay back some loans [0], they will be forced to hand over large strategic areas, such as their mining lands [1] on a 99 year lease. Over the next 10 years we will likely see the erosion of Laos sovereignty.<p>[0] <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.voanews.com&#x2F;a&#x2F;laos-faces-debt-crisis-after-borrowing-billions-from-china-&#x2F;6641633.html" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.voanews.com&#x2F;a&#x2F;laos-faces-debt-crisis-after-borro...</a><p>[1] <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;File:Laos_Product_Exports_(2019).svg" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;File:Laos_Product_Exports_(201...</a>