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Headlines:
Climate Finance Hub to Backstop LDC Graduation
Looking for Friends: BRICS, SCO, Russia
Leaders Vow Security and Infrastructure Support
Lao Wind Starts Feeding Vietnam Grid
New Rail Bridge Plan for SEA/ BRI Trade
BRT Launch Prep and New COMAC Jet Service
Remittances Get Cheaper, H1 Inflows Rise
Disaster Cover and Flood Barrier Progress
Coffee Export Pivot Considered as US Tariffs Bite
UXO Clearance Frees Land for Safer Farming
Digital IDs, E-Immigration
Turkey Backs Food Security and Skills Training
UK Talks, Vietnam Coordination
Gold Industry Pitches Growth on Cultural Roots
Climate Finance Hub to Backstop LDC Graduation
The Ministry of Finance, the UNDP, along with the Embassy of Luxembourg and the Asian Development Bank opened a “Climate and Sustainable Finance Hub” to coordinate, build capacity, and scramble for funding as Laos continues preparations to graduate from Least Developed Country status next year. Early analysis indicates that there is a gap of tens of billions of dollars needed for 2026–2030 development priorities, and that’s a big financing problem because global aid is expected to drop as much as 17% this year.
Read more: Asia News Network
Looking for Friends: BRICS, SCO, Russia
The government reconfirmed that it is interested in BRICS and is carefully looking at what benefits membership might bring, with a decision on what to do next expected by year-end. Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone pitched BRICS’ role for countries in the Global South at the Eastern Economic Forum, where he met with, among others, Mr. Vladimir Putin. Laos also indicated that it wanted to expand its role in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation from that of a dialogue partner to full membership.
Read more: CryptoRank (BRICS interest), Laotian Times (reaffirmed), China Global South (regional view), Kursiv Media (SCO path)
Leaders Vow Security and Infrastructure Support
Xi Jinping met Lao President Thongloun Sisoulith in Beijing during the SCO Summit. The meeting resulted in mutual commitments for a long-term, strategic approach and support for each other on core national interests. Discussions covered exchanges on party and state governance as well as cooperation in defense, law enforcement, and security. Infrastructure was, as has long been the case, central to discussions, with references made to the China–Laos Railway and future connectivity plans. The Lao side says the relationship is the best it’s ever been.
Read more: CGTN (Beijing talks), Global Times (partnership)
Lao Wind Starts Feeding Vietnam Grid
The 600 MW Monsoon Wind Power Project started commercial operations on August 22, finally sending electricity into Vietnam under a 25-year PPA with EVN. Covering 68,000 hectares in southern Laos, the $950 million project is made up of 133 turbines and a 71 km transmission connection to the Vietnamese grid. Monsoon Wind Power Company Limited, backed by (among others) Impact Electrons Siam and Mitsubishi Corporation, was partially funded by the ADB. Construction created 1,600 jobs, more than 1,000 of which were local hires. The project should cut about 1.3 million tonnes of CO2 annually and will spend $1.1 million a year on a community development fund in support of local education, healthcare, and infrastructure.
Read more: CleanTechnica
New Rail Bridge Plan for SEA/ BRI Trade
China, Thailand, and Laos have agreed to speed up a second Nong Khai–Vientiane rail bridge to allow for direct Thai train services into Laos and then onward to the China–Laos Railway. The bridge will allow for more efficient freight transport on Belt and Road trade across mainland Southeast Asia.
Read more: China Global South
BRT Launch Prep and New COMAC Jet Service
Vientiane has set no-parking rules (best of luck!) along parts of the new Bus Rapid Transit route as it gets ready for a soft launch with a three-month free trial. The system uses 12-meter air-conditioned electric buses on dedicated lanes, operates between 6 AM and 10 PM, and has six main stations. In aviation, Lao Airlines ran the Chinese-made COMAC C909 aircraft on a commercial service into Thailand for the first time: the Chinese jet’s regional debut. Lao Airlines flies two C909s, with single- and two-class layouts.
Read more: Laotian Times (BRT rules), Air Data News (C909)
Remittances Get Cheaper, H1 Inflows Rise
LDB Bank has partnered BNK Busan Bank to offer free remittance services for about 8,000 Lao workers in Korea, cutting costs under the Employment Permit System and Seasonal Work Program. The tie-up adds to LDB’s existing network of 17 financial institutions in nine countries. Remittances are still a critical forex source for Laos - more than $29 million was sent into the country in the first half of 2025. Outbound labor flows are on the increase, with more than 76,000 workers having departed in Q1 and more than 350,000 since 2021. Most workers are leaving because of high inflation and low local wages, primarily for Thailand, South Korea, and Japan.
Read more: The Star (free remits), Laotian Times (H1 inflows)
Disaster Cover and Flood Barrier Progress
The government is expected to get a $2 million payout from the Southeast Asia Disaster Risk Insurance Facility after a series of typhoons and floods. The money will add liquidity for emergency response as infrastructure upgrades continue. In Vientiane, Phase II of the Mekong River Erosion Prevention and Development Project is 90% done, covering a 9.34 km stretch with new embankments, a riverside park, and an access road. Financing includes a $57.6 million concessional loan from Korea’s EDCF and $9.9 million from the government. Completion is expected in June 2026.
Read more: The Insurer (payout), Laotian Times (barrier works)
Coffee Export Pivot Considered as US Tariffs Bite
The government is considering a shift in coffee exports from the US to Russia thanks to hefty new US tariffs. Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone said Russia is able to take more Lao foodstuffs, led by coffee, if US-bound sales become unviable. World coffee prices have been rising due to bad weather and policy changes, tightening global supply in favor of producers like Laos. The US is still a large consumption market, and industry groups continue to look for exemptions on duties, but appeals have so far fallen on deaf ears.
Read more: Khmer Times
UXO Clearance Frees Land for Safer Farming
Norwegian People’s Aid found 488 unexploded ordnance and seven 60 mm mortar shells on a coffee plantation in Pakxong, Champasak province. The items are mostly cluster munitions left over from the “Vietnam War”. Clearance operations reduce injuries and open up land for productive agriculture in an important coffee-growing district.
Read more: ScandAsia
Digital IDs, E-Immigration
Laos is expected to roll out digital identity cards beginning in October, replacing paper documents. Biometrics adoption is on the rise for law enforcement globally - good news for efficiency, maybe not so good for privacy. For travelers, a new Lao Digital Immigration Form has been introduced, and it requires foreign visitors to submit details and documents online three days before arrival and to show a QR code at checkpoints.
Read more: CoinGeek (digital IDs), ScandAsia (e-immigration)
Turkey Backs Food Security and Skills Training
The Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency installed cold storage units at the Ministry of Agriculture with a capacity for 300 tons of rice seeds to protect and secure high-quality seed stocks during floods and droughts. The $120,000 project is in support of emergency readiness and increased national productivity. TİKA also renovated a vocational training center for the Lao Women’s Union, adding courses in sewing, embroidery, weaving, and entrepreneurship for women and local disadvantaged youth.
Read more: Laotian Times (TIKA support)
UK Talks, Vietnam Coordination
London played host to the fourth UK–Laos Political Dialogue, co-chaired by Minister Catherine West and Deputy FM Maythong Thammavongsa. Plans for a UK-Lao Friendship Society, trade, security, climate, and consular cases were all on the review agenda as the two countries celebrated 70 years of diplomatic relations. Closer to home, Vietnam’s Acting Foreign Minister Lê Hoài Trung spoke with Lao Foreign Minister Thongsavanh Phomvihane to talk about improved coordination between the two ministries, figure out how to move high-level agreements forward, and make plans for an official visit.
Read more: UK Government (dialogue), Vietnam News (phone call)
Gold Industry Pitches Growth on Cultural Roots
The inaugural Laos Gold Festival brought together industry leaders, policymakers, and the public in Vientiane from September 5–7 to celebrate all things gold. Deputy Prime Minister Kikeo Khaykhamphithoune and other senior officials took part, with Lao Bullion Bank CEO Chanthone Sitthixay outlining a vision to innovate, connect producers with international markets, and re-position gold as both an economic asset and cultural symbol. The event was expected to have about 30,000 visitors over the three days.
Read more: The Star
That’s all for this week, thanks for reading.
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