Vientiane, Aug 14 (IANS) The Lao state-owned Electricite du Laos (EDL) plans to implement a strategy to strengthen the country’s electricity supply in the second half of 2025.
According to Lao Economic Daily on Thursday, senior officials and staff from the EDL and related sectors met to review EDL’s performance and outline strategic plans, Xinhua News Agency reported.
The EDL faced significant challenges in the first half of the year due to global and regional economic volatility, as well as a sluggish domestic recovery. These factors have affected EDL’s ability to meet its performance targets, said the report.
The EDL is focusing on clear principles and policies to guide its operations and ensure alignment across departments. Staff are encouraged to work toward shared goals and follow the reform direction to improve efficiency and service delivery. It aims to provide reliable and sufficient electricity to the public while engaging in power trading to generate stable revenue for the government.
In addition, the EDL has set key objectives to drive reform. These include restructuring the organization, management systems, and workforce, adjusting electricity tariffs to reflect actual supply costs while continuing to support low-income and remote communities, renegotiating electricity generation pricing structures, and restructuring debts with banks and financial institutions.
It has also identified seven key performance indicators to measure operational effectiveness. These include ensuring electricity system stability and reliable service, reducing power outages, improving debt collection, strengthening operational foundations, increasing revenue streams, cutting administrative costs, and enhancing safety in transmission and distribution management.
To further reduce service disruptions and power outages, the EDL continues to prioritize infrastructure upgrades, including regular maintenance, replacement of aging equipment, transformer improvements, and more effective system management.
Meanwhile, Laos’ Ministry of Health is continuing its efforts to preserve and develop traditional medicine by integrating it with modern science, aiming to support economic development while ensuring environmental sustainability.
According to a report from the Centre of Information and Education for Health under the Lao Ministry of Health, a seminar was held in the Lao capital, Vientiane, on July 26, bringing together government officials, medical personnel, and other stakeholders to discuss the importance of conserving and developing Lao traditional medicine.
The seminar focused on discussing solutions to address weaknesses, obstacles, and challenges in conservation efforts, aiming to develop traditional medicine into a modern science that contributes to economic development, poverty reduction, and environmental sustainability, Xinhua news agency reported.
The seminar also aimed to raise awareness of the importance of preserving and developing traditional medicine. Participants stressed the need to explore and utilise traditional medicine to provide effective healthcare for the population. Protecting these valuable resources will ensure their long-term sustainability and help increase the production of high-quality, locally sourced medicines.
–IANS
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