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BCEL-KT: Trade Summary (Nov 21, 2016)

Trade Summary

On Monday,  Lao Securities Exchange index edged up by 1.66 % to 999.12 points. The total trading volume was 1,900 shares from Electricity and Banking stocks, worth 9,735,000 kip. EDL-Gen gained 100 kip to closed at 4,900 kip for 200 shares, while BCEL closed at 5,150 kip for 1,700 shares matched. In addition, the other stocks had no trading; their prices remained stable at 6,100 kip for LWPC, 2,500 kip for PTL and 3,000 kip for SVN.

 

AirAsia Creates New Link to Laos

AirAsia has expanded its connectivity in Laos with the launch of flights between Kuala Lumpur and Luang Prabang.

Marking the first direct link between the two Southeast Asian cities, the new KL service will complement AirAsia’s existing Bangkok-Luang Prabang flights, and the direct services connecting KL and Bangkok with Vientiane.

“We are very happy to be the first and only airline to connect Luang Prabang to Kuala Lumpur directly,” said AirAsia’s CEO, Aireen Omar. “We are also pleased to be the airline that connects the people of Laos to two of the main cities in ASEAN, Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur, which are both major AirAsia hubs.

“We want to further champion connectivity to second and third-tier cities, and help to grow the market together,” she added.

The new flights will depart KL every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 0645 and arrive in Luang Prabang at 0840. The return services then leave the UNESCO-listed Lao city at  0925 and arrive back in KL at 1330.

Source: Travel Daily Media

Singapore-Laos Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement Enter Into Force

The new Singapore-Lao People’s Democratic Republic Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) entered into force on 11 November 2016.

The DTA provides clarity on tax matters and eliminates double taxation relating to cross-border transactions between the two countries.

A DTA between Singapore and another jurisdiction serves to prevent double taxation of income earned in one jurisdiction by a resident of the other jurisdiction.

A DTA also makes clear the taxing rights between Singapore and her treaty partner on different types of income arising from cross-border economic activities between the two jurisdictions.

The agreements also provide for reduction or exemption of tax on certain types of income.

Generally, Singapore’s DTAs and EOI Arrangements include provisions for the exchange of information for tax purposes. Treaty partners may request for information under the DTAs or EOI Arrangements from the Comptroller of Income Tax.

Source: CFO Innovation

Australia Continues to Support Financial Inclusion through Village Banks in Laos

The Australian Government has provided additional funding of 1.83 million Australian dollars for the project ‘Microfinance in Rural Areas-Access to Finance for the Poor’ (AFP) in Laos, according to a press release by GIZ on Nov 17.

The AFP project was initiated under German Development Cooperation in 2009. The Australian Government has provided substantial financial support to the project since 2013 in order to expand the geographical focus of the project to the provinces of Champassak, Saravan and Savannakhet and to advance work on financial literacy and consumer protection. The AFP project is being jointly implemented by the Lao central bank – Bank of the Lao PDR (BoL) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)

The project works towards improving access to –and responsible usage of – financial services in rural areas of Lao PDR through community-managed village banks. To date the AFP project successfully serves 529 village banks in six provinces of Laos on a monthly basis.

Mr Sonexay Sithpaxay, Deputy Governor of the Bank of the Lao PDR, Australian Ambassador to Laos Mr John Williams and German Ambassador Mr Michael Grau attended the signing ceremony. Mr Sithpazay thanked the Australian Government for their continued support to advance financial inclusion in Lao PDR. He acknowledged the project’s continued success and urged stakeholders to keep a strong focus on further increasing the quality of operations. Mr Sithpaxay added that the project has contributed well to improving the livelihoods of Lao people and creating more conducive microfinance sector regulations.

Australian Ambassador to Laos Mr John Williams congratulated BoL and GIZ for the effective project implementation, and highlighted the strong achievements of the project in bringing sustainable financial services to the underserved rural population, and building their knowledge, skills and attitude when it comes to household finances. He continued by emphasizing: ‘Australia is proud to be one of the Lao PDR’s most important partners in the microfinance sector.  We are delighted to be working closely with our friends from Germany and UNCDF, and with Bank of the Lao PDR to deliver these programmes for the Lao people.

“We understand that the projects are having a direct impact in strengthening rural entrepreneurship and incomes and supporting poverty alleviation. We know access to finance is a great enabler of inclusive private sector development,” William said.

In his speech, German Ambassador Mr Grau stressed the importance of financial services to advance local economic development, and the role village banks play in this process.  He further highlighted the project’s success in organizing local communities, holding elections to assign governance boards, and providing continuous capacity development for their members. Mr Grau proudly referred to the Lao-German government negotiations that we held at beginning of November and in which the German Government committed additional finance for the project as well.

The AFP project builds on more than ten years of experience with the overall objective to enable the rural population to access and make better use of sustainable financial services. To reach this goal, AFP has supported the Bank of Lao PDR in the formulation of the PRIME Ministerial Decree on Microfinance Institutions and setting up a market surveillance software system for the Financial Institution Supervision Department.

To enhance the sustainability of village-bank operations, the project funded specialized microfinance institutions that provide permanent oversight, technical support as well as saving and credit facilities for members. Today, seven specialized microfinance institutions are providing assistance to local village banks in 22 target districts. Three NSOs are already covering their expenditures through operating income, proving that the concept is financially viable. By October 2016, the project had facilitated the foundation of 529 village banks, which manage more than 58,173 active accounts. The value of accumulated savings already exceeds 102 billon kip (US$12.5 million). More than 18,500 members are currently borrowing a total volume of 93 billion kip (US$11.4 million) from their village tanks. AFP puts a special focus on the empowerment of women, and more than every third decision-making position in the village banks is now held by women.

The additional funding underlines that project stakeholders are committed to further enhance financial inclusion in Laos. AFP village banks have proven to be an effective instrument and an important pillar that is widely accepted by international donors, Lao government agencies and society. Important next steps are to build on the project’s knowledge and to scale up the approach to better support the additional 5,000 village funds which currently exist in Laos.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

Int’l School Students Set Sights on Asian English Olympics

The Australian International School in Vientiane plans to send 15 primary and secondary students to participate in the 2017 Asian English Olympics in Indonesia and is optimistic they will come back home with some medals.

The English Olympics is one of BINUS English Club’s (BNEC) most prestigious events. Established in 1992, BNEC has been widely acknowledged not only for its achievements in national and international competitions, but also for its ability to create innovative events.

Principal of the Australian International School, Mr Jose Ruthchan Portillo, talked about the competition after his students received The Best Friendly Participants’ award at the 13th International Mathematics and Science Olympiad (IMSO), held in Indonesia.

The Olympiad took place from November 9-13 in Tangerang City, Banten, and drew more than 400 students. The theme of the event was Smart, Skilled and Creative in a Joyful Competition Excellent’.

This year’s teams came from international schools in 23 countries, including Laos, Bulgaria, India, Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Brunei, China, Iran, Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Netherlands, Nigeria and Tajikistan.

The Olympiad aims to enhance the competencies of elementary school students in mathematics and science, motivate students to develop their intellectual capacity and skills in both subjects, and foster friendly relationships among primary school students.

In an interview with Vientiane Times on Friday, Mr Portillo said AIS students represented Laos at the event. During the competition, students took part in the theoretical examination, science experiments, social activities, tours and a cultural party.

Participation in the IMSO 2016 provides our students and teachers with a valuable experience. It will enable our teams to benefit from stronger and better selection and training of participants for international competitions, he added.

This year, Vietnam took the top spot among the 23 participating nations at the 2016 International Mathematics and Science Olympiad for Primary Schools with seven gold, two silver and three bronze medals for mathematics.

The Australian International School is a private educational institution comprising kindergarten to secondary school levels.

The staff come from a variety of countries and include experienced Lao teachers in the primary school and kindergarten sections.

The curriculum includes English, maths, science, information and communication technology, geography, history, environmental management, physical education, arts and dance.

This academic year, student numbers at AIS have climbed to around 500, while the school has more than 30 teachers.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

Forty-three People Killed in Two Weeks of Accidents

In just a two week span from October 31 to November 13, there were 221 road accidents around the country, causing 43 fatalities, according to the Traffic Police Department of the Ministry of Public Security.

The department told Vientiane Times on Friday that compared to the same period last month, the number of accidents dropped from 331 to 221, but the number of fatalities rose from 38 to 43.

Some 54 victims were left in a critical condition, 124 were seriously injured and 139 sustained minor injuries.

A total of 17 vehicles were written off, 183 sustained moderate damage and 172 sustained minor damage.

Vientiane topped the list with 62 accidents, killing eight people, while 84 people were injured and 123 vehicles were damaged.

This month saw festivities to mark the That Luang Festival, which meant a heavy increase in drunk driving.

Alcohol is recognised as being a major cause of road accidents and this year incidents of drunk driving are higher than ever.

According to the Traffic Police Department, motorbikes were involved in 95 percent of the accidents, with male drivers making up 90 percent of the fatalities.

The number of road accidents overall continues to increase. About 90 percent of accidents involve drunken driving, speeding and other violations of the traffic rules. Many accidents occur on weekends and special occasions when people get together to drink.

A recent accident occurred along T4 Road in Donkoy village, Sisattanak district, Vientiane, when a car and two motorbikes were involving a fatal collision while driving in opposite directions.

Mr Phaivanh, 32, from Phonsavanh village, Sisattanak district, died in the crash, while Mr Chanthasone, from Oudomphon village, Xaythany district, sustained moderate injuries.

Another incident occurred along Road 13 North in Songpeuay village, Naxaithong district, when a pickup and a motorbike were involved in a collision that killed the motorbike rider instantly.

Police said the pickup was travelling past Songpeuay market when it collided head-on with the motorbike. The deceased was named as Mr Vankham, 37, from Phonkhor village, Hadxaifong district.

Yet another accident occurred in Viengphoukha district, Luang Namtha province, when an excavator crushed a man after it fell off the back of a truck. The victim was identified as Mr Oudomxap, 32, from Nahom village, Namtha district. Police are continuing their investigations into all of the incidents.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

Regional Health Officials Mull Ways to Control Infectious Diseases

The prevention and control of infectious diseases will be more effective in the Mekong Sub-Region and Asia-Pacific Region after international health officials met for talks in Champassak province last week.

Health officials from Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam discussed how to combat emerging diseases and public health emergencies that are now threatening people’s health in the region.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Regional Workshop on Implementing Asia-Pacific Strategy for Emerging Diseases and Public Health Emergencies in the Mekong Sub-region, Minister of Health Associate Prof. Dr Bounkong Syhavong said that over the past few years, countries in the Mekong Sub-Region and Asia-Pacific Region have faced outbreaks of various infectious diseases like SARS, bird flu and Zika.

I hope that discussions among health officials in the region will help us keep diseases at bay and prevent future outbreaks, he said.

In addition, the workshop encouraged medical professionals in the region to work in a more coordinated manner to combat diseases.

Measures adopted by health officials included capacity building and good standards preparedness for preventing and handling infectious diseases.

Participants agreed the workshop would promote coordination and cooperation among health officials in Laos and other countries in the region.

This included an agreement to work closely together in the event of a future outbreak of infectious disease.

Lao health officials from Phongsaly, Luang Namtha, Oudomxay, Bokeo, Huaphan, Xieng Khuang, Khammuan, Saravan, Xekong, Attapeu and Champassak provinces attended the workshop.

 

Source: Vientiane Times

Govt, Int’l Organisations Plan Disaster Risk Management Project

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has kicked off preparations to implement two disaster risk management projects in Luang Prabang and Xayaboury provinces.

The two projects, Community Resilience through Education and Community Action in Laos and Scaling up Community Based Disaster Risk Management and School Safety in Laos, will focus on the two provinces.

The projects are supported by the New Zealand government and the European Union (EU).

A meeting to discuss preparations for the two projects took place in Vientiane province last week and was attended by Deputy Director General of the Department of Disaster Management and Climate Change, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Mr Syamphone Sengchandala, and experts from Save the Children International in Laos and other international organisations.

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the work plan for disaster risk management in Laos and plans to carry out the two projects.

According to the Lao National Committee for Disaster Prevention and Control, many provinces around the country were affected by flooding this year including Luang Prabang, Xayaboury, Oudomxay, Luang Namtha, Xieng Khuang, Huaphan, Bokeo, and Xaysomboun.

Farmland, livestock and other property sustained impacts from the flooding and many people and households suffered losses. Luang Prabang and Xayaboury provinces suffer from flooding almost every year.

In July, some 174 families in Botaen district, Xayaboury province, were affected to varying degrees, mostly in Nakha, Botaen, Donsavang, Taokeua and Nhai villages. The flooded area included 60 hectares of rice fields, 56 fish farms and some houses.

Luang Prabang province was also affected by floods, thunderstorms and strong winds.

Speaking at the meeting, Mr Syamphone said Disaster risk management and climate change is an issue that Laos and other countries around the world have been encountering and trying to solve.

It’s affecting socio-economic development, especially rural communities and livelihoods. Laos is trying to cope with disaster management and climate change by cooperating with development partners, sponsors and other international organisations, he added.

Source: Vientiane Times