Laos and Australia: enduring bonds and shared achievements marked on Australia Day

On 26 January, Australians will celebrate our national day. It is a moment for us to cherish Australia’s diverse and multicultural society, shared values, and aspirations for the future. Australia’s rich heritage, stretching for more than 60,000 years from First Nations Australians to our newest citizens, guides us in how we engage respectfully and constructively with our region.

The Laos-Australia relationship is now 73 years long, continuous and unbroken. As we approach one year since our Prime Ministers signed the Laos-Australia Comprehensive Partnership, I reflect on our shared achievements and ambition this Australia Day.
First, people-to-people links are the foundation of Laos-Australia bond. We have built strong personal and professional ties that enrich both our nations, through scholarships, cultural exchanges, and community partnerships. We have a proud history of supporting Laos in primary education, health, media, infrastructure projects, and cultural and community development.
For over 70 years, Lao students have studied in Australia, receiving a high-quality education and returning home to contribute their expertise in government, business, science, health, and the arts.
The 75 new ‘Australia for ASEAN’ Scholarships our Prime Minister announced last year allowed us to offer 48 scholarships to Lao students in 2025, the highest number of Australia Awards Scholarships ever offered.
Through immunisation programmes and capacity building activities, our development cooperation is making a tangible impact on the wellbeing of Lao communities. With Australian-developed technology, a new programme to combat dengue fever infections will be launched in Vientiane Capital, with other urban areas to follow next year.
Second, Australia has reinforced our enduring commitment to our region by launching Invested: Australia’s Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040. We were fortunate to celebrate achievements in the first year of this strategy in an event here in Laos last year, hosted by Australia’s Prime Minister, alongside the Prime Minister of Vietnam.

I am proud that Australian businesses are breaking new ground here in Laos. In March, I will be travelling to Champasak Province for the launch of a new blueberry farm, run by Australian company Costa. Costa have already prepared 40 hectares of land and employed 80 staff, 95 percent
 of which are Lao.
Linfox – an Australian logistics company – announced last year they would invest over US$10 million in new fleet vehicles and forklifts in Laos. Linfox will deliver high-quality, safe and legally compliant services in Laos, contributing to Laos’ land-linked ambitions.
These new investments build on an already rich history of economic cooperation between Australia and Laos. Australia funded the first Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge – the first bridge across the lower Mekong significantly improving cross-border connectivity. ANZ was the first international bank to operate in Laos. AustCham Lao was the first foreign chamber of commerce in Laos, and 2025 marks its 20th anniversary.

Third, our climate and energy cooperations continue to grow and support sustainable development. We are building on our long-term partnership in water management and agricultural research, through which Australia and Laos have tackled groundwater, fisheries, and forestry challenges together. We are expanding cooperation on climate resilient agriculture, which builds on the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research’s 35-year partnership with Laos. We are supporting Laos to develop its framework for engaging in the global carbon market, to facilitate climate action, investment, and development.
Fourth, Australia remains committed to working with Laos, and ASEAN nations, to maintain peace, stability and prosperity in our region. Our defence and security cooperations with Laos fulfil this commitment through dialogue and practical engagement.
Lao and Australian soldiers and aviators will share expertise through the 2025 Indo-Pacific Endeavour exercise, as we have for the last three years. We celebrate Laos presenting the results of our joint malaria research at the Joint International Tropical Medicine Meeting in Bangkok. 
Laos and Australia are jointly combatting and disrupting transnational organised crime which affects the interests of our countries and the Mekong region. Australia’s law enforcement agencies are committed to working with Lao authorities for capacity building of investigation capabilities, including drug trafficking, technology-enabled crime, money laundering and crypto currency, and human exploitation.
We are deepening our cooperation with Laos to strengthen cyber security capacities, partnering with Lao agencies to enhance cyber incidence response, uplift cyber awareness, and build cyber security resilience.
As we celebrate Australia Day, I join you, our friends, to celebrate our shared achievements and enduring bonds. May the spirit of cooperation, respect, and trust guide us into the future.
 --Australian Ambassador to the Lao PDR
HE Megan Jones

By Advertorial Desk
 (Latest Update January 23, 2025)