The situation in Laos is stable and the government is striving to achieve the Millennium Development Goals of halving poverty by 2015. One of the targets in Laos’ own strategy is to remove itself from the list of the world’s least developed countries by 2020.
Around 27 per cent of the population is still living on less than USD 1 per day. In 1992, almost half of the population – 46 per cent – was living below the poverty line. The country is still dependent on development aid and there is a lack of transparency in public administration.
Economic reforms have led to improvements in recent years. Since the mid-1980s, the country has been open to some foreign investment, and Laos has been a member of the south-eastern Asian partner organization ASEAN since 1997.
Even though most people still make their living from agriculture, other industries such as textile, tourism, minerals and electricity have become increasingly important.
Sweden will phase out its development aid to Laos by December 2011.
Progress for human rights
Many major deficiencies remain regarding human rights in Laos. The judicial system is weak and political opposition is not permitted, even though the flow of information via the internet and foreign radio and TV has reduced the population’s isolation.
At the same time, progress has been made in other areas. People’s ability to exercise their economic and social rights has improved. Laos is also working with the UN’s children’s fund UNICEF to secure women and children’s rights.
About 85 per cent of all children in Laos start school. However, many of them leave before they complete their elementary education. There are major gaps when it comes to education between cities and rural areas, various ethnic groups, boys and girls, and between rich and poor.
Sida’s focus areas in Laos:
- Natural resources and the environment
- Human rights and democracy
- Infrastructure
- Education
- Research.
