Lao PDR

UNDP News

Lao Laws on Anti-Corruption and Women's Rights are now available in English

Official translation of Lao Laws into English is available on the National Assembly website

The Lao legal system has just been made more accessible for foreign investors with the second batch of laws translated into English being handed over to the National Assembly.

The translations, carried out in a collaborative effort by the UN Development Programme and the Singaporean Government as well as legal experts from the National University of Singapore, were delivered to National Assembly at a bestowal ceremony yesterday.

“We hope that making Lao laws available in English, with official endorsement from the National Assembly, will help the Lao PDR towards achieving its goal of being a state governed by the rule of law, which in turn would boost the confidence of foreign and domestic investors to invest in even larger amounts in the country,” Ms Sonam Yanchen Rana, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative, said.

“I am sure our collective efforts will serve as a modest contribution towards further integrations of the Lao PDR into the global market place,” Ms Sonam concluded.

This second batch of laws, 19 in total, that have been translated into English address issues such as anti-corruption, women's rights and children protection, budget procedure, secure transactions, National Assembly oversight, agriculture and resolution of economic disputes.

While translations of Lao laws have been undertaken in the past, this series of translations are officially recognized by the Lao PDR government.

“This will serve to enhance the understanding of the Lao legal system, rules and regulations by foreign entrepreneurs which in return will facilitate a more conducive environment for trade and investment towards sustainable growth,” Ms Sonam said.

A third batch of 17 laws is currently being translated, and is scheduled to be presented to the National Assembly in the first quarter of 2007. To ensure the translations are disseminated as widely as possible, the UNDP helped upgrade the National Assembly website ( www.na.gov.la ) which now details all 62 laws, including the 32 already translated into English.

As the internet is not yet widely available in the Lao PDR, efforts to widely disseminate the laws to foreign investors, the local private sector and the Lao people are also underway.