29/05/2026
Had a meeting with Her Excellency Sysay Leudedmounsone, Chief of the Central Committee for Organisation and Personnel, earlier this week. I conveyed my congratulations on her re-appointment to the Politburo of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party. With various portfolios of the former Ministry of Home Affairs transferred to other entities last year, the Organisation and Personnel Board now has even heavier responsibilities over human resource management and public administration.
I am glad that H.E. Sysay supports 🇸🇬 🇱🇦 cooperation in human resource development. It has been 25 years since Initiative for Integration (IAI) courses were launched in Lao PDR, as part of the Singapore Cooperation Programme - SCP. Regular courses are now conducted at the Laos-Singapore Cooperation Centre in Vientiane. Senior Lao officials also visit Singapore for programmes in leadership and governance, and for language training. Other topics covered in the courses include public policy and administration, economic development, trade facilitation, healthcare, and environment and sustainable development. More than 17,600 Lao officials have participated in our programmes to date, including Lao President Thongloun Sisoulith, National Assembly President Xaysomphone Phomvihane and PM Sonexay Siphandone.
H.E. Sysay and I agreed that our organisations should continue to have regular dialogues. This will allow us to scope out the coverage and modalities of our development partnership, so that it remains relevant to Lao PDR’s developmental priorities and reflects the bilateral agenda. We also expressed support for our respective countries’ hosting of various ASEAN meetings, including Singapore’s ASEAN chairmanship in 2027 and Laos’ chairmanship of the ASEAN Cooperation on Civil Service Matters from 2028.
As countries with small populations, human capital are valuable resources. I look forward to continuing to work with Lao partners to grow our partnership to develop human resources.
OSG
