Promote Sustainable Consumption and Production in ASEAN Region
Hybrid Workshop on Circular Economy in Lao PDR

Participants of the workshop in Luang Prabang.

HSF

Within the framework of the ASEAN Regional Project on Sustainable Consumption and Production, the Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) supported the Department of Planning, which is under the Lao Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) at organizing a hybrid workshop on circular economy from March 23 to March 25, 2022. The 3-day workshop aimed to raise awareness and build capacity among government leaders and officials in Lao PDR and encourage circular economy practices, especially as a tool to build back better in post-COVID recovery. More than 40 representatives from relevant line ministries in Lao PDR and experts attended the workshop at the offline setting in Luang Prabang while international experts and circular economy practitioners joined the workshop via Zoom, analyzing various aspects of the circular economy initiatives and strategies as well as their implementation in the ASEAN region and particularly in Lao PDR.

Chairing the workshop, Mme. Phonevanh Outhavong – Vice Minister of the Ministry of Planning and Investment of Lao PDR stated that the workshop would provide valuable inputs to the development of policies related to a circular economy in this country, especially in the context of the implementation of Lao PDR’s 9th National Socio-economic Development Plan and their endeavors to fulfill commitments in the Paris Agreement of COP26. Furthermore, she also expressed her appreciation and expectation for continued technical and financial support from development actors like HSF for a transition to a circular economy in Lao PDR in order to address challenges this country is facing in the process of graduating from the least developed country status.

During the workshop, representatives from the MPI and research institutes of Lao PDR presented an overview of the implementation of the 9th National Socio-economic Development Plan and an introduction to circular economy initiatives and their application in Lao PDR. Meanwhile, international experts from Sweden, Germany, and Vietnam were invited to the workshop to share a profound knowledge of circular economy as well as experiences of developing policies for a circular economy.

In addition, green entrepreneurs from Lao PDR, Vietnam, and Indonesia shared inspirational stories of how they turned their sustainable business ideas into action, which opened a discussion on what Lao PDR could learn from other countries in the ASEAN region about the application of circular business models in practice.