document: The official opening of the Channel Tunnel later this year promises to help revitalise the north-west regions of Belgium , even though the country 's biggest ports will suffer a loss of traffic . The chambers of commerce in Veurne and Courtrai , along with the West Flanders Regional Development Authority in Bruges , are gearing up to become part of what they refer to as the ` new European Metropolitan Area . ' This takes in the Nord-Pas de Calais in France , Western Flanders and Hainaut in Belgium , and Kent in the UK . The potential for this region is enormous . According to Mr Anthony Vande Candelare , an urban planner who made a study of the influence of the Channel Tunnel on the west of Belgium and the North of France : ` Overnight , the Belgian coast and the North of France will become the centre of Europe . ' Mr Jo Libeer , managing director of the Courtrai chamber of commerce , is equally optimistic about the likely impact on the area of the tunnel . ` With the TGV and the chunnel this region , which was sort of in the corner of Europe , will now be in the middle of a new developing area , ' he says . This is no bad thing for Belgium . In its last economic survey of the country , the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said the Belgian economy had deteriorated ` progressively ' since the 1980s . ` And over the last 10 to 12 months it has taken a distinct turn for the worse . ' Furthermore , Flanders , the area most likely to benefit from the arrival of the tunnel , has recently suffered more rapid increases in unemployment than in Wallonia and the Brussels region . The unemployment rate , which in 1990 was 9.5 per cent in Flanders has risen to 13 per cent . The Belgian chambers in the regions most directly affected believe there are two main areas for development : firstly , increasing traffic through western Flanders as holidaymakers and freight carriers head towards the tunnel-opening in Calais ; and secondly tourism . To benefit fully , however , a crucial 7km stretch of the E40 European motorway between Veurne and the French border has yet to be completed . Once this is done it will be possible to drive from Russia to England without leaving a motorway , says Mr Philippe Claerhout , chairman of the Veurne chamber of commerce and industry . Fortunately , plans to complete the stretch have been agreed and it should be open some time next year . On the downside , the Westhoek region is badly placed to benefit from rail transport . ` Even after the doubling of the tracks and electrification of the railway line between Ghent and De Panne , we will still be a remote corner , ' says Mr Claerhout . Furthermore , Belgium 's biggest ports are expecting traffic loads to fall , as freight and passengers are directed towards Calais . Worst affected will be Ostend and Zeebrugge , two ports hoping to hold their own by concentrating on links with ports in the north of England . Nonetheless , the improved , if imperfect , transport communications of the West Flanders region are apparently paying off . Mr Geert Sanders , who works for the Regional Development Authority of West Flanders , says there is already evidence that the region 's enhanced communications are attracting new businesses . For example , Baronie , a Dutch chocolate company , is opening a new base in the southern part of West Flanders . There is , however , a danger that Belgium will not make the most of the commercial opportunities - ` we will try to attract new industry , but our region is very small and our industrial zones are full , ' says Mr Ludo Verstraete , of the Veurne chamber of commerce . The Belgian authorities have dragged their feet over decisions to dedicate new areas , he says . The other main focus for development is tourism . As Mr Claerhout says : ` We need to convince people from other countries that it is worth their while to stop in Westhoek at the time of their journey through the North of Europe to England . ' The potential is there . West Flanders is home to some of the best-known World War One battlefields , and promoters of the region insist that its large , open green spaces will , when properly developed , attract foreign visitors . But once again , there is a danger that Belgium will miss out . It has been slower to develop the tourist potential of the Channel Tunnel than France . Around Calais , a commercial and leisure centre , hotels and activity parks , known as ` La Cite de L'Europe ' , are springing up while Lille is home to Euralille , a similar development . As Mr Verstraete of the Veurne chamber of commerce says : ` Tourism is very important ... we really have to develop our hotels and tourist infrastructure . ' But the biggest advantages for Belgium will come from close co-operation between the national and federal authorities and their French and UK counterparts . In a Europe without frontiers , this will be the most effective way of benefiting from the the Channel Tunnel .
extractive_keyphrases: official opening channel tunnel belgium western flanders chunnel rapid increases holidaymakers freight carriers traffic loads european metropolitan area development