Tourism to boost Lao PDR's economic growth

Tourism has directly resulted in 114,000 jobs being created in Lao PDR.

Tourism in Lao PDR was slow for almost five years but as this country watch the tourism boom in neighbours Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore now it is ready to take some action for its own tourism growth.

With a total area of 236,800 square kilometres, around 70 percent of Laos' terrain is mountainous, reaching a maximum elevation of 2,820 meters in Xieng Khouang Province.

The landscapes of northern Laos and the regions adjacent to Vietnam, in particular, are dominated by rough mountains.

The Mekong River is the main geographical feature in the west and, in fact, forms a natural border with Thailand in some areas.

To help develop the sector, Lao PDR collaborated with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 2015 to launch a Tourism Infrastructure Project. The ADB provided the country with a USD 40 million project loan to help it build tourism infrastructure.

The tourism sector is aiming one target audience in mind, China. A local media report from last month said that the Lao PDR government is enhancing certain tourism services to attract more tourists from China in particular.

The growth of the tourism sector will also create additional jobs for the people of Lao PDR and further improve its services sector.

According to the United Nation’s World Travel and Tourism Council, tourism has directly resulted in 114,000 jobs being created in Lao PDR. As a whole, tourism and its related services have contributed over 385,000 jobs in the country.

With Lao PDR’s workforce being largely unskilled, the expansion of the country’s tourism sector is key as it allows workers to develop skills and move up the economic ladder.