Strengthening the effectiveness of official development assistance management in LAO PDR

Context

Lao PDR aims to graduate from Least Developed Country status by 2020. At the same time, progress will be made towards meeting the Sustainable Development Goals. Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals is embedded in the country’s National Socio-Economic Development Plan which reflects the three dimensions of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental. A recent mid-term review of the National Socio-Economic Development Plan shows that the graduation process will have a slowing effect on the level of Official development assistance financing in the country. Furthermore, traditional Official development assistance will decline even without Least Developed Country graduation as the country’s income continues to grow. Therefore, there will be increasing pressure to adapt to this new reality and use Official development assistance resources effectively.

This project is a capacity strengthening project that aims to address Official development assistance management needs of the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Department of International Cooperation and six provincial Sections for International Cooperation. The project will also provide capacity strengthening for the Department of Inspection at Ministry of Planning and Investment, particularly in relation to anti-corruption measures as well as the Sustainable Development Goals Secretariat housed in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Overall objective

The project’s overall objective is that Official development assistance effectively supports implementation of National Socio-Economic Development Plan whilst the specific objective is that key Lao agencies can effectively manage and coordinate Official development assistance.

Project intervention strategy

The project focuses on two results:

• the Department of International Cooperation has the capacity to effectively manage and coordinate Official development assistance through provincial Sections for International Cooperation and line ministries and report timely on Official development assistance; and
• the cross-cutting issues reflected in the Sustainable Development Goals are appropriately taken into account in Official development assistance interventions and support National Socio-Economic Development Plan.