Laos is ‘on track to graduate from least developed country status’: UN Assistant Secretary-General

Wignaraja also underscored the need to invest more in young people, to ensure the workforce is highly capable and competitive, by reinvesting in education and health.

“The averages of the national budget in these two sectors are far, far too low,” Wignaraja said, adding that quality education is needed to encourage students to stay in schools until completion of the curriculum.

Ms Wignaraja said the UNDP stands ready to support and work with Laos as it prepares to graduate from LDC status and fulfil the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Her visit comes at a prime time, when the government is formulating its 10th five-year National Socio-Economic Development Plan for 2026-2030. This is a critical framework that will witness Laos’ transition from LDC and determine whether the country can achieve all the SDGs by 2030 as planned.

The five-year development plan is being finalised amid internal and external challenges caused by financial difficulties, a decline in global aid flow, the global trade outlook, and tariff changes.

Preliminary assessments supported by UNDP suggest that Laos will require tens of billions of US dollars to finance its development priorities for the 2026-2030 period, with acute gaps in financing climate and human development needs.

To address these gaps, the government, in partnership with UNDP, on Monday launched the Climate and Sustainable Finance Hub to strengthen future development financing, in the presence of Wignaraja.

“I’m here to see what we can do to support the Lao PDR government and all the stakeholders to look at that next stage of development for Laos,” she said.

The Vientiane Times

Asia News Network

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