Laos Strengthens Irrigation Dam Safety Inspection Capacity with South Korea

The Lao-Korea Irrigation Development Center, in cooperation with the Department of Irrigation under the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, has organized a two-month training program on irrigation dam stability inspection from September to October 2026. The program, held under the Project for Establishing the Management and Inspection System for Irrigation Dam Stability in the Lao PDR, was chaired by Mr. Khamphachanh Vongsana, Director General of the Department of Irrigation, and attended by technical officials from relevant units. Participants are receiving theoretical and practical training in civil engineering, geology and hydrology, including field inspections at the Nam Chim irrigation dam in Phonhong District, Vientiane Province, and Nam Phouk irrigation dam in Sangthong District, Vientiane Capital. Experts from the Korea Rural Community Corporation are providing technical instruction and sharing practical experience. Mr. Khamphachanh urged participants to actively acquire new knowledge and practical skills, noting that the department had limited experience in specialized dam stability inspections. The training is expected to strengthen dam safety management, support sustainable operation of irrigation infrastructure and improve preparedness for risks associated with increasingly unpredictable climate change. General Khamlieng Outhakaysone, Member of the Politburo of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party Central Committee, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of National Defence and Chairman of the National Disaster Management Committee, led a delegation to Oudomxay Province on September 1, 2026, to inspect flood relief and recovery operations. The 103 Hospital and Tahua International Trade Sole Co., Ltd. signed a cooperation agreement on the development of extracorporeal lithotripsy technology in Vientiane on September 1, 2026. The Southeast Asia Disaster Risk Insurance Facility (SEADRIF) Insurance Company has paid a total of US$1.1375 million to the Government of the Lao PDR and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) following heavy rainfall and widespread flooding that has affected more than 260,000 people across the country. In a major push to modernise its tourism sector, the Xieng Khuang Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, hosted a key dissemination seminar in late August 2026. Temporary shelters in Luang Namtha Province are urgently seeking clean drinking water, food, clothing and other essential supplies after flooding affected 34 villages on August 29–30, 2026.