The fate of the last surviving Irrawaddy river dolphins on the Laos-Cambodian border hangs in the balance after a Laos government official was reported as saying this week that construction of the dam would begin by the end of the year.Keep reading ...

Environmental groups have expressed alarm at the Laotian National Assembly’s approval of the concession for the Don Sahong Dam project, which has been described as an “ecological time bomb” about to be dropped on the Mekong River. The Laotian government and the project’s developer, Malaysia’s MegaFirst ...

Champassak officials officially launched the 16W Road contruction and enlargement project on Saturday that will help link Laos with the region. Provincial officials led by Deputy Prime Minister Dr Sonexay Siphandone attended the ceremony to officially open the 16W Road at Vangtao village in Phonthong ...

The United Nations (UN) has confirmed that it will continue to support the Lao government under the Cooperation Framework, to enable the government to design a clear strategy for the development of Laos. The Cooperation Framework builds on inputs from all key stakeholders, including the UN ...

Members of Wisconsin’s Hmong community are speaking out after reports that the Trump administration is seeking authority to deport thousands of Hmong residents to Laos. A State Department spokesperson on Monday confirmed to Wisconsin Public Radio that the administration is calling on Laos to accept deported ...

Vietnam’s transport ministry and the Korea International Co-operation Agency (KOICA) have agreed to study the feasibility of a 500 km-long railway link from Laos’ Vientiane to Vung Ang in central Ha Tinh Province of Vietnam. The study will be conducted with a $US3-million ODA grant from KOICA for ...

Unemployment among people with disabilities continues to be an unresolved issue, especially in remote areas, according to a report from the Lao Statistics Bureau. The report noted that Laos has a high rate of unemployment among people with disabilities compared to the overall population. Unemployment among this ...

The EU in Laos is providing support for the export of Lao goods to the European market through training sessions for government officials and associated parties. A training session conducted in Vientiane on Aug 2 was co-chaired by the political officer at the EU in Laos, ...

The Laotian government has issued an urgent order for officials to get stricter on foreigners entering the country. Everyone entering Laos from 7 March must have complete documents, said a source at the 1st Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge border checkpoint on 5 March. Keep reading   ...

Experts in the field of adolescent research came together this week to discuss their findings and how to adapt it to the national socio-economic and 2030 Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) agendas. Around 170 participants from government ministries, research institutions and international organisations in Laos attended the ...

The government has authorised a local company to mine gold ore on a 18.28 square-kilometre site over a period of 20 years. An agreement on the project was signed by Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Mrs Khamchan Vongsenboun and the company. The company will invest ...

ASEAN ministers of science and technology met recently in Vientiane to adopt the ASEAN Plan of Action on Science, Technology and Innovation (APASTI) for 2016-2025. The 16th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Science and Technology was organised in Vientiane by the Ministry of Science and Technology and presided over by ...

Land holders across Lao PDR, including some of the most vulnerable households, are expected to benefit from improved land administration and titling thanks to a project approved by the World Bank this week. The $31 million Enhancing Systematic Land Registration Project will be run by the government’s Ministry ...

Local officials have been promising for several years to send illegal foreign workers back home but so far this hasn’t happened. Director General of Labour Management Department of the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, Mr Phongsaysack Inthalath spoke to Vientiane Times at a meeting in Vientiane ...

Laos and Vietnam are preparing to upgrade two more local crossing points to official border crossings to facilitate international visits between them. The facilities to be upgraded are the Pa Hang-Long Sap crossing point between Laos’ Huaphan province and Vietnam’s Thanh Hoa province, and the Dak ...

The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a US$57 million project to help Lao PDR promote sustainable forest management, improve protected area management, and enhance livelihoods opportunities in eight provinces across the country. Project funding comes from the World Bank’s International Development Association, ...

Laos will not host a meeting of civil society organizations (CSOs) in Southeast Asia on the sidelines of an ASEAN summit next year, a local official said, citing potential criticism by participants against governments in the region and inadequate resources as among reasons for the ...

Villagers living near the Mekong River in Chiang Rai Thailand and Laos are finding it difficult to cope with sudden releases of water from dams upstream in China. More than 200 families living in Laos’ Bokeo province have suffered because of sudden increases in the height ...

New reports of Lao military operations against ethnic Hmong communities suggest the government is tightening its control over areas targeted for development and investment. According to a Radio Free Asia report on April 1, Lao military forces have repeatedly attacked Hmong living around Phou Bia mountain in Xaysomboun province, ...

Thailand’s Administrative Court on 25 December dismissed complaints over the Xayaburi Dam against five state agencies. However, the 37 plaintiffs, from eight Mekong provinces, say they will appeal further. The judge, who read the verdict, said the defendants had fully complied with their obligation according to the law, ...