Lao Symposium Calls for Social Protection to Shield Workers from Rising Climate Risks

Participants discussed coordinated climate adaptation measures centred on workers’ needs, including guidelines and practical steps to prevent occupational safety and health risks and protect informal and rural workers from heat stress.

Integrating social protection into climate adaptation strategies is becoming increasingly important for protecting workers in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, where rising temperatures, changing rainfall and extreme weather threaten livelihoods and working conditions, participants heard at the country's third annual Symposium on Social Protection.

Held in Vientiane on 23 October 2026 under the theme "Empowering Workers and Adapting Systems for a Changing Climate", the symposium was organised by the International Labour Organization (ILO) through the European Union-funded SOLAR Phase II project, in partnership with the Lao Social Security Organization and the National University of Laos.

Policymakers, provincial implementers, development partners, researchers and young people gathered to examine how social protection can respond to climate pressures, with discussions covering workplace safety, access to health care, resilient farming and financial preparedness for disasters.

Extending coverage to informal and vulnerable workers

Opening the event, Bouahome Phommachanh, Acting Director General of the Lao Social Security Organization, identified expanding social security coverage as a priority for protecting vulnerable workers and their families, particularly those earning a living in the informal economy.

She stressed that climate-related risks are already affecting livelihoods and working conditions, making broader coverage an important part of the response to challenges facing workers.

Karla Leitzke, attaché at the EU Delegation to Lao PDR, reaffirmed the European Union's support for extending social protection to informal and vulnerable workers in the coffee, tea and forestry sectors, linking this commitment to sustainable, inclusive growth that creates decent jobs and protects people and the environment.

Workplace safety and farming practices need to adapt

Participants discussed coordinated climate adaptation measures centred on workers' needs, including guidelines and practical steps to prevent occupational safety and health risks and protect informal and rural workers from heat stress.

The discussions examined how health care and social security coverage could respond to an increasing incidence of workplace injuries and illnesses, alongside support for cooperatives adopting farming practices that can withstand climate pressures and improve agricultural productivity.

Disaster risk financing mechanisms formed another part of the agenda, reflecting the need to consider financial preparedness together with measures that protect workers' health, incomes and access to services.

Loveleen De, Social Protection Programme Manager at the ILO, said more frequent extreme weather, rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns were increasing risks to workers' health and livelihoods across Lao PDR, giving social protection systems a crucial role in safeguarding well-being and strengthening resilience.

Students and public activities bring fresh perspectives

Dr Somkhit Boulidam, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the National University of Laos, highlighted the contribution of academia and young people to developing social protection solutions, pointing to students' growing interest in policy and development issues.

Teams from different university faculties prepared proposals on climate-resilient social protection for Lao workers and communities, bringing ideas that reflected society's changing needs and the challenges facing people exposed to climate risks.

The symposium created opportunities to exchange ideas on shared challenges and engage the public through the photography exhibition "Through Your Lens: Human Resilience in the Face of a Changing Climate", together with local youth-led storytelling and theatre initiatives.