MPI organizes a meeting to update progress of the Prime Minister’s Order No. 02 on Improvement of Regulations and Coordination Mechanism on Doing Business in Lao PDR

Pakse, Champasak Province: on 12 November 2020, the Investment Promotion Department, Ministry of Planning and Investment held a meeting to update a progress of the Prime Minister’s Order No. 02 Dated 01 February 2018 on Improvement of Regulations and Coordination Mechanism on Doing Business in Lao PDR and Action Plan for 2020-2022. The meeting was attended by representatives from various provincial government offices and the private sector.
Chaired by Mr. Phonesay Vilaysack (Ph.D), Deputy Director General of Investment Promotion Department, Ministry of Planning and Investment, the meeting highlighted key achivements of PM Order No.02 implementation in 2020 and key priority actions 2020-2022 on targeted reforms of 10 Doing Business Indicators. Among others, the most outstanding reform is a reduction of time and procedures to register a new business from 173 to 17 days and from 9 to 3 steps. Other achivements include reduction in time and procedures to get a construction permit as well as allowing access to information through on-line platform, where application forms and others relevant documents can now be downloaded from the website. In addition, applying for electricity installation currently does not require a certificate signed by a village chief. Furthermore, tax regulations have been updated with three (amended) tax laws promulgated early this year. Time and procedures to import vehicle spareparts to be assemble and manufactured in Lao PDR and export mineral products was also reduced. Additional study is being conducted in 2020 to further reduce import-export documents.

In his closing remarks, the Chairman requested all concerned provincial government offices and private sector representatives to strengthen their efforts to ease business environment in Lao PDR by further reducing time, procedures and costs to attract quality domestic and international investment, enhance business competitiveness to facilitate sustainable growth and green economic development as visioned by the 10th party’s national resolution; and conitnue implementing the endorsed reform action plans 2020-2022 to improve the Ease of Doing Business in Lao PDR.

The meeting was supported by Lao Competitiveness and Trade Project (LCTP) – a multi-donor project funded by the World Bank Group, Australian Aid, Irish Aid, and USAID that aims to eliminate barriers to private sector-led growth by improving the regulatory environment, lowering trade costs and raising firm-level competitiveness.