Socio-Economic Development

Vientiane Completes New 9.3-Kilometer Mekong Embankment

On 1 July, Vientiane officially opened a new 9.3-kilometer stretch of Mekong riverfront featuring parks, walking and cycling paths, sports facilities, and flood protection infrastructure following the completion of Phase II of the Mekong River Integrated Management Project. The new embankment extends from Wat Nak village in Sisattanak District to...

Laos Raises Tax-Free Income Threshold Under New Personal Income Tax Rules

Laos has officially raised the monthly income exempt from personal income tax from LAK...

Laos Reports Economic Growth as Inflation Slows to 7.4 Percent in June

Laos recorded 5 percent economic growth in the first half of 2026, while inflation...

Laos Restores Higher Fuel Excise Taxes as Emergency Relief Measures End

On 24 June, Laos reinstated higher excise taxes on fuel, restoring regular gasoline tax...

Japan Approves USD 2.3 Million Scholarship Grant for Lao Civil Servants

Japan has approved JPY 378 million (USD 2.3 million) in scholarship funding to support...

Technical Consultation Held for Lao 5th Population and Housing Census 2025

On Sunday, the Lao Statistics Bureau (LSB), Ministry of Planning and Investment, and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), in collaboration with the United States...

Vientiane Residents Block Road with Drainage Pipes to Speed up Repair

Residents of Chanthabouly District in Vientiane Capital, have resorted to using concrete drainage cement pipes to block a road in hopes of expediting the...

Japan Supports School Improvements in Savannakhet and Oudomxay

The Government of Japan is providing grant assistance worth approximately USD 200,000 for two education projects in Savannakhet Province and Oudomxay Province for the...

Ministry of Health Vows to Improve Hospital Care and Service in Laos

The Ministry of Health has pledged to tackle the issue of inadequate hospital care and service in response to public demands for improvement at...

Could Technology Solve the Problem of Illegal Parking in Vientiane? 

Pedestrians in Vientiane Capital are routinely forced to walk into oncoming traffic as they navigate around vehicles parked on the footpath. Despite hundreds of...

Staff Shortage, High Production Costs Remain Key Obstacles To Lao Businesses

The Macroeconomics Research Institute (MRI) recently conducted a survey to identify the main obstacles businesses are facing in Laos. According to the survey results, the...