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Headlines:
Kip Finds Its Feet
Laos Joins the Durian Wars, Bets on Blueberries
Vietnam and Laos Shore-up Old Ties
Joint University Takes Shape
Disaster Aid Tests Self-Reliance
Thailand & Laos Eye $11B Target
QR Codes Conquer Cash
Power Giant Trims Down
US Visa Door Slams Shut
Sombath Case Still Unsolved
Kip Finds Its Feet
The kip stopped its freefall and inflation cooled from 24.5% to 4.8%, letting Vientiane tap bond markets again after years locked out. The World Bank expects 4.2% growth next year and foreign reserves have risen to $2.8 billion, enough for the central bank to feel comfortable cutting rates from 9% to 8.5%. But graduation from the UN’s poorest country list means less aid just as the country’s debt pile starts demanding attention again.
Read more: The Star (World Bank projection), The Nation (Debt impact analysis), The Star (Central bank measures), The Star (LDC transition details)
Laos Joins the Durian Wars, Bets on Blueberries
Beijing just opened its $7 billion durian market to Laos. Laos has 20,000 hectares planted with 270,000 trees expected to bear fruit by 2029. Those trees are expected to yield about 24,300 tons of fruit every year, once they’ve matured. Australia’s Costa Group is betting A$100 million that blueberries can be commercially viable in Champasak and promises 2,000 jobs over five years in a province where ag infrastructure remains patchy.
Read more: Fresh Plaza (Orchard Expansion), Qatar Tribune (Political Connectivity), VnExpress (Regional Market Expansion), The Nation (Rail Logistics), Fresh Plaza (Blueberries), Horti Daily (Investment Impact Overview), The Star (Blueberries)
Vietnam and Laos Shore-up Old Ties
Foreign ministers from Vietnam and Laos held their 12th annual consultation this week and promised deeper cooperation on everything from power transmission to university construction. The meetings resulted in all the usual diplomatic language about “special solidarity” while Vietnam’s prime minister called for stronger economic connectivity.
Read more: VNPlus (Legislator Meeting Details), VOV.VN (Ministerial Consultation Insights), Vietnam News(Diplomatic Cooperation Roadmap), VNPlus (Economic Connectivity Strategy)
Joint University Takes Shape
Laos and Vietnam plan to build a university together while expanding student exchanges in border provinces where 13 Lao schools already teach Vietnamese as an optional language. Education ministers met last week to fast-track preparations and bring work into line with Laos’ science-and-technology-training-focused development strategy through 2035.
Read more: Laotian Times (Education Collaboration Details), The Star (Regional Education Partnership)
Disaster Aid Tests Self-Reliance
When unprecedented rainfall hit this year, Laos’ Deputy Minister admitted what plenty of observers already knew - the country isn’t going to be able handle climate disasters on its own. Japan sent $7 million for temporary bridges, Vietnam suggested joint management of river basins, and Thailand promised support at the new friendship bridge opening. Minister Phosay Sayasone acknowledged “limited human resources, budget constraints, and lack of modern technology” while promising community-based responses that depend on World Bank training to come to fruition.
Read more: SGGP (Water Management Framework), The Star (Thailand Diplomatic Support), Laotian Times (Japan Disaster Aid), Vientiane Times (Disaster Management Commitment)
Thailand & Laos Eye $11B Target
Bangkok and Vientiane want bilateral trade to reach $11 billion by 2027, up from $8.2 billion last year. Trade through October already jumped a fifth to $8.18 billion. The five-year plan will be focused on logistics and supply chains with the Laos-China railway as the centerpiece for moving goods north.
Read more: Nation Thailand (Trade growth details), Vietnam Plus (Cooperation strategy)
QR Codes Conquer Cash
Lao travelers can now scan KHQR codes at 4.5 million Cambodian points of sale using kip with no transaction fees after central bank governors flipped the switch on phase two of cross-border payments in Phnom Penh. The first phase let Cambodians pay in Laos via Bakong app from August 2023.
Read more: VNA (Launch Details), Khmer Times (Zero Fee Payments)
Power Giant Trims Down
Électricité du Laos is hemorrhaging $100 million annually and forcing the state utility to cut 400 management jobs and negotiate with 55 power producers to shave another $20 million off their bill. Annual debt payments dropped from $700 million to $350 million but the company’s 2030 target for bringing the losses to an end suggest the bleeding won’t stop quickly. We’ll see if efficiency gains can offset structural problems in the organization.
Read more: Laotian Times
US Visa Door Slams Shut
Come January, ordinary Lao passport holders can forget about US visas - tourism, business, work, study, and family immigration have all been frozen under Trump’s executive order putting Laos on a list of 19 restricted countries. The Foreign Affairs Ministry is telling citizens not to bother applying to avoid rejection and lost fees. Diplomatic passport holders can still try on a case-by-case basis.
Read more: The Star
Sombath Case Still Unsolved
Thirteen years after community leader Sombath Somphone vanished at a Vientiane police checkpoint, the officials in power then - now President Thongloun Sisoulith and Assembly Vice-President Chaleun Yiapaoher - still run the country. Civil society groups want the UN to demand answers from a nation that hasn’t resolved any enforced disappearance cases. Ever. The chilling effect on civic engagement that the UN Working Group warned about continues to silence the people’s voices.
Read more: OMCT
That’s all for this week, thanks for reading.
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Excellent roundup, especially the disaster aid section. The timing paradox is brutal: just as Laos graduates from LDC status and loses concessional aid access, climate disasters are accelerating and exposing exactly the capacity gaps that aid was filling. I've seen this play out with small countries where the transition creates a funding cliff right when institutonal capacity is still being built. Japan's $7M for temporary bridges is a bandaid, but the real challenge is building systemic climate resiliance when your annual budget is already stretched thin and the World Bank training programs needed take years to operationalize.