The Diplomat

The Last Days of Beautiful Luang Prabang: UNESCO experts insist that a huge dam would destroy the “authenticity and integrity” of the World Heritage Site in Laos.

Construction has just started on a huge dam just 25 kilometers upstream from the heritage town, and only four kilometers from the revered Buddhist shrines hidden inside the Pak Ou caves.Satellite information from the Stimson Center’s Mekong Dam Monitor proved that these warnings have been ignored, and ...

Tom Fawthrop

Inflation in Laos Reaches 22-Year High as Economic Crisis Worsens

Inflation continues to spiral out of control in Laos, with the country’s Statistics Bureau announcing this week that the country’s year-on-year inflation had risen to a 22-year high of 23.6 percent in June. According to a report in the state-run Vientiane Times, the consumer price index ...

Sebastian Strangio

Fuel Shortages Threatens Rural Crisis in Laos

For the past few months, the nation has been hit by rising global oil prices and a weakening local currency, which have led to a steep rise in the price of fuel and widespread shortages. In April, petrol and diesel prices rose 72 percent and ...

Sebastian Strangio

Laos-China Railway Inaugurated Amid Mounting Debt Concerns

Officials from China and Laos today marked the official launch of the $5.9 billion railway connecting the two nations, officially completing the first link of a long-envisioned rail line connecting southwest China with Singapore. The project will no doubt bring an economic jolt to Vientiane ...

Sebastian Strangio

Laos Tightens COVID-19 Restrictions as Infections Reach New Peak

Most of the cases have occurred in Vientiane, prompting the municipal authorities to declare a strict lockdown for two weeks beginning Sunday. Under the new restrictions, residents will be forced to stay in their homes unless obtaining food or medicine, or making their way to ...

Sebastian Strangio

Hydropower vs Heritage: Will Laos Lose Luang Prabang?

The Lao government’s high-risk plan to install a massive dam on the Mekong River, perilously close to the renowned UNESCO World Heritage site of Luang Prabang, shows a disregard for its legal obligations to protect the renowned site, according to conservation experts.Keep reading  ...

Tom Fawthrop

What’s Behind Laos’ New Budget Crackdown?

In recent months, the Lao government and media outlets have been vocal about regulating public expenditure. The latest significant manifestation of this is the government’s recent decision to put a cap on expenses claimed by its officials in a move to regulate their expenditure.A new ministerial ...

Tae-jun Kang

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