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Headlines:
Ag Modernization Kicks Off
Exports Boom, Laos in the Black
Dirty Laundry & New Ideas in Banking
Transport Gets a Lift
COMAC Wants Lao Airlines
Lao Tourism Update
WB Backs Waste, Save The Children Fights Dengue
Big Money for Education and School Lunches
New Paths For Overseas Jobs
Gov't Policies Under Fire: Power, Cigs
EVs Get a Green Bond Boost
Party Takes Media Reins
Ag Modernization Kicks Off
The 2025 K-Green Agro Partnering event in Vientiane has resulted in 12 new deals between South Korea and Laos to beef up their agricultural partnership with smart farming technology. Laos is also connecting with China's Shandong Hi-Speed Road & Bridge on a push to supercharge production of rice, veggies, fruit, and livestock. The government’s work through these development programs is intended to bring traditional farming into modern production systems and has already raised 31,232 families out of poverty: 89.23% of its 2024 poverty reduction target.
Read more: Asian News Network (Smart Farming), The Star (Chinese Partnership), The Star (Poverty Reduction)
Exports Boom, Laos in the Black
Laos bagged a US$56 million trade surplus in April 2025, with total trade volume blowing past US$1.5 billion. Exports hit $813 million: electrical appliances, potassium salt, mixed gold, and agricultural products were at the front of the pack. Agricultural exports alone racked up US$977 million from January to May, putting them at 65% of the US$1.5 billion annual target. China, Vietnam, and Thailand have kept their positions as the primary trading partners. On the investment front, the International Finance Corporation has teamed up with Laos's Investment Promotion Department to work on smoothing out the Public-Private Partnership framework. The primary tasks will be to simplify investment rules and pull in more private cash for agriculture, logistics, and green businesses.
Read more: The Star (Trade Surplus), The Star (Export Growth), The Star (Business Environment)
Dirty Laundry & New Ideas in Banking
The Bank of Laos has spilled the beans on corruption in the banking sector that caused LAK 1.6 billion (USD 74,000) in losses during 2024. They’ve only been able to claw back LAK 137.43 million of that total. The report provides details about 21 corruption cases in several banks that lead to disciplinary action for 167 banking officials. Ouch. Laos sits at 114th on the 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index, but it's not all bad news: more than 50 non-bank financial institutions just met up to brainstorm new financial solutions. The Lao Bullion Bank rolled out an 'Official Gold Status Certificate,' which is backed by public gold and that can be used as loan collateral. Finally, Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone has set out his plan to get inflation down to single digits by the end of 2025 while keeping currency exchange rates steady.
Read more: Laotian Times (Banking Corruption), The Star (Financial Innovations), Asian News Network (Economic Plan)
Transport Gets a Lift
The government is pushing hard on transportation projects to juice connectivity. Works include upgrading Road No. 13 (North and South), Roads 2E, 2W, 12, and National Highway No. 9. Two expressways are in the pipeline: the Laos-China Expressway (Oudomxay to the Boten border) and the Vientiane-Hanoi Expressway. Good news on bridges as well, with the Huaykeo-Kontuen bridge 98.85% complete, and the 5th Lao-Thai Friendship Bridge 97.37% done. Transport metrics are actually exceeding 2025 targets with freight transport is up 0.95%, rail freight up 6.27%, and the Laos-China railway hauling 1.23 million passengers. Big numbers all around. Finally, Wattay, Luang Prabang, and Pakxe airports are all scheduled for modernization.
Read more: The Star (Infrastructure Projects)
COMAC Wants Lao Airlines
Chinese aviation giant COMAC is gunning for a 51% controlling stake in Lao Airlines. This isn't out of the blue; Lao Airlines just added a 90-passenger COMAC C909 regional jet into its fleet back in March, which is now flying domestic routes. The proposed takeover fits right into the reform plans Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone laid out at a recent National Assembly meeting and would also support COMAC's bigger play in Southeast Asia, which includes Indonesia and Vietnam in an attempt to give Airbus and Boeing a run for their money in regional aviation.
Read more: Finimize (COMAC Strategy), Investing.com (Acquisition Details), Reuters (Regional Expansion)
Lao Tourism Update
Laos received 1.2 million arrivals in Q1 2025 - a 28% increase over last year’s tally. Homegrown tourism chipped in with 774,000 travelers, up almost 5%. Thailand was front of pack for international visitors with 364,474 travelers, followed closely by China (330,531) and then Vietnam (281,911). Europeans saw a solid 20% bump (104,270 visitors), and the Americas were up 11% (39,772). The government says it has its sights set on growing tourism in Xieng Khouang and Vang Vieng next. In Luang Prabang, former Buddhist monks at Orange Robe Tours are offering (no pun intended) authentic experiences that teach visitors about Buddhist traditions and local heritage to try and offset the rush of tourists that has plagued blessed the city since the Laos-China Railway opened for service.
Read more: Laotian Times (Tourism Growth), BBC Travel (Monk-led Tourism)
WB Backs Waste, Save The Children Fights Dengue
The World Bank has committed $37.85 million to improve waste management, mostly in Vientiane Capital from this year through 2031. This project is expected to help 645,000 Vientiane residents by spending on waste collection gear, upgrading landfill facilities, and getting pollution control systems in place. It’s expected to create opportunities for 264 waste pickers and aims for 100% solid waste collection coverage. Save the Children International is scaling up its 'Driving Down Dengue in Laos' project with plans to release Wolbachia-carrying mosquitoes in Vientiane this July. The plan follows a 2023 pilot that had 99% public buy-in, has trained health officials, and will be implemented in 164 villages with the support of 228 village health volunteers. Laos suffered more than 20,000 dengue cases and 11 deaths in 2024.
Read more: Mirage News (Waste Management), Laotian Times (Dengue Control)
Big Money for Education and School Lunches
The government has announced a LAK 215 billion (USD 9.97 million) investment in education, spread across 148 districts. The package includes LAK 106 billion for a souped-up school lunch program that will increase the daily food allowance per student five times, from LAK 1,000 to LAK 5,000. LAK 5 billion is earmarked to print new textbooks to replace those that were damaged in the floods, and another LAK 91.54 billion will be allocated to student allowances for high-fliers, vocational learners, and teacher trainees. Laos is also improving its national skills assessment and certification system with the Mutual Recognition of Skills Capacity Building Programme. The Skills Development Institute has rolled out an updated Skills Assessment Manual that is intended to make labor mobility across ASEAN easier by standardizing certification.
Read more: Laotian Times (Education Funding), Human Resources Online (Skills Certification)
New Paths For Overseas Jobs
The government has opened a new door for legal overseas work with a new E-10-2 visa program, designed specifically for South Korea's fishery sector. This program is for workers aged 20-45, offering contracts up to 3 years (with possible extensions) and minimum monthly salaries of KRW 2.6 million (USD 1,922). Not bad. Workers have to finish a two-week training program, that covers safety, Korean culture, and fishing rules. This is a big deal, and it is partly in response to reports that 73,000 Lao citizens were working illegally abroad in 2024. US visa data shows Laos has a 9.55% tourist/business visa overstay rate, one of the highest rates globally, but surprisingly, Laos shows exceptional compliance for student/exchange visas, with just a 6.49% overstay rate - reportedly the lowest in the world.
Read more: Laotian Times (Korea Employment), The Star (Visa Compliance)
Gov't Policies Under Fire: Power, Cigs
The National Assembly has put the government on the spot, asking them to reevaluate recent electricity price hikes as economic concerns pile up. The power price jump has squeezed households and businesses, while state utility Electricite du Laos is wrestling with deep debt resulting from years of subsidized rates. The government has promised to study the impact and look into figuring out how to best help vulnerable groups. Here's another hot potato: a 2001 deal between Imperial Brands and Laos set up a joint venture with a 25-year tax freeze on cigarettes. This deal led to some of the world's cheapest cigarette prices and, in a surprise to nobody, a 37% male smoking rate. Business tycoon Sithat Xaysoulivong has raked in more than $28 million in dividends from the deal. Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone has hinted the contract won't be renewed when it finally runs out in 2026.
Read more: The Star (Electricity Prices), The Diplomat (Tobacco Deal)
EVs Get a Green Bond Boost
LOCA, the ride-hailing startup, has just dropped a USD 2.5 million Green Bond to turbocharge EV adoption across Laos. This Green Bond, backed by the Bank of Laos, is a big step for capital market development. LOCA says that they plan to use the money to expand charging infrastructure nationwide, turn old gas stations into EV charging hubs, and scale up their LOCA MINI electric taxi fleet. Laos has already seen EVs take off, with BEV registrations climbing sharply from 1,414 in 2022 to 5,100 in 2024. Projections are for more than 8,000 registrations by 2025 and 15,000 annually by 2030. LOCA itself runs with 1,000 drivers, 90% of whom are already in EVs, and they're intending to have a completely EV fleet by 2025. EV drivers in Laos are saving a huge 70% on fuel costs, and the charging infrastructure pretty much covers every BEV driver in the country. Impressive.
Read more: Laotian Times
Party Takes Media Reins
The Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism is handing over control of five major media agencies directly to the Propaganda and Training Board of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party Central Committee. The affected organizations are the Press Department, Lao News Agency, Lao National Television, Lao National Radio, and the Vientiane Times newspaper. This shake-up will result in further centralization of media management under Party oversight, which they are selling as an improvement by saying it will streamline state operations and boost nationwide information coordination. No further comment here.
Read more: Vietnam Plus
That’s all for this week, thanks for reading.
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