International Development Cooperation

While Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) in Laos is declining compared to Foreign Direct Investment and GDP growth, it is a crucial aspect of the Lao economy and central in the country’s engagement with the international community. This chapter focuses on the different forms and institutional configurations of ODA in Laos, including the role and prominence of multilateral organisations, bilateral donors and South–South cooperation. The chapter then focuses on the institutional configurations of ODA in Laos, particularly the Roundtable Process and the separate government commissions that cover relations with China and Vietnam. The chapter closes with a focus on key issues that emerge, particularly around dependence, the role of legitimacy and aid inefficiencies alongside concerns regarding environmental impacts and debt sustainability, while also showcasing the shift in donors and the decreasing importance of ODA relative to economic growth. Overall, Laos has a complicated set of relationships lacking a unified approach as not all partners collaborate through the Roundtable Meetings, further complicated by a lack of transparency in funding, particularly those involving South–South partnerships.