Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone speaks at the 5th session of the 9th National Assembly.  (Photo: //vientianetimes.org.la/)

Vientiane (VNA) – Despite challenges, Laos’s economy is projected to growby 4.8% in the first six months of 2023, Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone has said.

Addressingthe 5th session of the 9th National Assembly which opened on June 26, Sonexay highlightedthe economic and financial challenges facing Laos and outlined the key measuresput in place to tackle them.

Sonexay said the nation’s economy grew at 4.8% in the first quarter of this year and isexpected to gain growth of 4.9% in the second quarter, with the GDP projectedto value at 118,467 billion kip, (6.2 billion USD). However, he noted thatthe Lao economy remains vulnerable to internal and external impacts.

The government will continue measures to stabilise themacroeconomy and prevent it from falling into a crisis, focusing on addressingsensitive and volatile issues such as exchange rates, inflation, commodityprices, and budget collection.

Over the rest of the year, thegovernment will modernise the revenue collection system and create new revenuestreams so that more income is amassed for the payment of debts, he noted.

The Lao government is also committed to repaying8 trillion kip of its debts to private enterprises over the rest of thisyear by shifting the debts owed to private companies to commercial banks. Thiswill enable private enterprises to maintain their financial liquidity and helpthem overcome economic hurdles.

Attention will be paid to improving the investment environmentby reducing bureaucratic procedures and streamlining processes, and ensuring faster approval of proposeddevelopment projects while pushing for continued progress in ongoing megaprojects to boost growth.

Thegovernment also pledged to carry out more reforms among state-owned enterprisesand promote the production of 🍸goods and agricultural development for domesticconsumption and export./.