Shops and restaurants in Laos are still not following the law because much, if not all, of their signs and banners are written in a foreign language. All signboards are legally required to feature the Lao language predominantly, on top and in the most prominent position, ...

Ensuring that Laos graduates from Least Developed Country (LDC) status in five years’ time has been the focus of discussion at the 10th Party Congress, a Party leader has said. Party Politburo member and Deputy Prime Minister Mr Somsavat Lengsavad highlighted this fact when speaking to ...

Almost every day, Lao local newspapers report about the apprehension of drug traffickers, while every so often they report the murder of innocent people such as women and children as a result of drug use, particularly amphetamines. One example was reported on 11 October when a ...

A huge number of people living in around 30 villages of Hadxaifong district, Vientiane, will have clean water coming from their taps next year after a local company completes the construction of the Thadeua water treatment plant. Work on the project began last year and is ...

Few households in Vientiane have installed treatment systems for their wastewater before it is discharged into drainage channels and collects in the city’s ponds and marshes. As it seems that many home owners in Vientiane don’t care about wastewater treatment or the quality of the water ...

On a remote bend of the Mekong River in northern Laos, where its muddy waters make a hard right turn through steep verdant hills, the 330-odd residents of Houaygno village are bracing for an imminent exodus. Vietnam’s state-owned PetroVietnam Power has chosen the site for the ...

Expansion of Vientiane’s Wattay International Airport will begin this year to meet growing passenger demand and accommodate VIP aircraft and delegations during the ASEAN Summit in November 2016. In 2011, the total number of passengers passing through the airport was 520,000 people but by 2014 this had ...

The Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare has provided cash and emergency relief materials to communities impacted by flash floods that hit Nam Eng village in Viengphoukha district of Luang Namtha province on Sunday. The people, however, still need other supplies, especially clothes, bedding and equipment ...

The Lao National Rubber Association will be established sometime this year in order to help provide a sustainable income for rubber growers. Many rubber growers, especially in the northern provinces, have been struggling with the low price of rubber on the world market and the limited ...

Situated in Laos’ Luang Namtha province, Boten is China’s gateway to Southeast Asia and will be a critical link in both the North-South and East-West economic corridors. In terms of the North-South corridor, it is the transit point for the Kunming-Bangkok Expressway, which passes across ...

Reporters in Laos must cover the news in greater depth, an official said as the country marked the 65th anniversary of Media and Publication Day, but sources claim journalists are hamstrung by a lack of press freedom in the communist nation, with the public increasingly ...

Even though the construction of a 60-km road linking Kasy and Maed districts is far from complete, travel between the two urban centres of Vientiane has already become easier. Project Manager Mr Somnam Vongphachanh talked to media last week about the progress made on the road ...

The Korean Economic Development Cooperation Fund from the Republic of Korea has signed a loan agreement for US$80.8 million (about 658 billion kip) with the Lao government. The funds will be used for the development of the Xepian-Xenamnoy hydropower plant in Champassak province. The loan agreement was ...

Industries that produce pollution may have to pay more taxes now that the Lao government has embraced the National Green Growth Strategy. Under the strategy, which Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith endorsed on Jan 30, the Ministry of Finance will impose taxes to discourage industries from producing ...

Vientiane Traffic Police Department confirmed on 22 September that more Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras are set to be installed throughout the city, aiming to help officers investigate crimes in the capital. The department’s Deputy Director Lieutenant Colonel Bounmark Soundalay told Vientiane Times there are now over 200 ...

Some primary schools in Laos have started offering English lessons. A group of primary students in Laos feels very excited and happy to learn English for the first time. The sounds of the ABCs and laughter can be heard from a long distance away. Keep reading ...

The Ministry of Education and Sports is sending over 20 volunteer teachers to educate illiterate rural areas around the country early next year to replicate an earlier successful Saravan province pilot programme. The teachers will come from the Physical Education Teacher Training College, Dongkhamxang Teacher Training ...

The Laotian government has given the green light to a special economic zone in the southern city of Pakse, a 625-hectare site dedicated to small and midsize Japanese companies. Businesses operating there will have corporate taxes waived for 10 years starting in the first profitable year, among ...

Bamboo or Lee traps that depleted fish stocks in the Mekong river when they were used by fishermen have been banned in Khong district of Champassak province in southern Laos. The Environmental and Social Manager of Sahong hydropower plant, Mr Somphone Phommanivong, told Vientiane Times the ban ...

Laos’ first telecommunications satellite (Lao Sat-1) will officially start business operations in March after successfully launching late last year and is keen to sign up government and private sector customers. Lao Sat-1 officials met in Vientiane on 23 February to introduce the satellite to potential government and ...