Lao Prime Minister to make official visit to Singapore on July 9
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It will be Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone’s first official visit here since taking office in December 2022.
ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO
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SINGAPORE - Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone will be in Singapore for a one-day visit on July 9, at the invitation of Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.
This will be Dr Sonexay’s first official visit here since taking office in December 2022 .
The Laotian leader, who will be accompanied by ministers and senior officials from his country, will receive a ceremonial welcome by PM Wong at Parliament House.
Parts of the Istana, where such official visits are typically hosted, are currently undergoing major restoration works
In the afternoon, Dr Sonexay will attend an official lunch hosted by PM Wong, after both countries sign two memorandums of understanding in the areas of carbon credits and education cooperation.
Dr Sonexay will then call on President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the Istana.
Several high-level officials from Singapore have made visits to Laos in 2024, including Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, who attended the Asean foreign ministers’ retreat in January.
Singapore has longstanding bilateral relations with Laos, which is also the current chair of Asean.
The two countries have several areas of cooperation, including the green economy and education.
As part of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore Power Integration Project that started in June 2022, Singapore has imported up to 100MW of renewable hydropower
Singapore and Laos have also been in discussions on how carbon credits can be transferred between the two countries to help them achieve their climate targets in a way that meets requirements under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, an international treaty on climate change adopted in 2015.
Both countries also enjoy strong people-to-people ties, with Singapore institutes of higher learning partnering with Laos’ educational institutions and companies on student exchange and community service programmes.
The Republic also supports Laos’ socio-economic development goals through ongoing capacity-building programmes under the Singapore Cooperation Programme, and training programmes conducted at the Laos-Singapore Cooperation Centre in Vientiane.
