ADB Increases Assistance to Laos to Help Mitigate Global Financial Crisis Impact   The Asian Development Bank has pledged to increase its financial assistance to the Lao PDR in the next two years, aiming to help Laos mitigate the impacts of the current global financial crisis.

Laos Did Not Reach its Tourism Goal in 2008   Lao officials admit that the number of foreign tourists visiting Laos during 2008 did not meet their goal of 1.8 million people due to the global economic crisis and political problems in neighboring Thailand.             Read details in Lao.

Laos to Continue Strict Inspection of Sawmills and Wood-Processing Plants   The goal is to stem illegal logging and illicit timber trade by making sure that only processed woods are exported, and the processed woods come from logs that have been lawfully cut down in concession areas and according to granted quotas.

Laos Elephants At Risk of Extinction   Laos is known as the land of a million elephants. But the elephant population has been continuously on the decline, with currently less than 1,000 wild elephants and about 500 domestic ones remaining.

U.S. Government Assists School Children in Rural Laos   Attepeu is one of three provinces to benefit from an assistance worth $9 million provided by the U.S. government to the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) to fund the expansion of its School Feeding Project over the course of three years.

Environmental Groups Oppose Construction of Proposed Dams on Mekong Mainstream   They say the dams could displace thousands of villagers and harm hundreds of species including the giant catfish(Pa Buk)and the Irrawaddy dolphin (Pa Kha).

Laos: Issue of Illegal Lao Workers in Thailand Is Increasingly Serious   Lao officials acknowledge that illegal Lao labor in Thailand is becoming an issue of increasing concern. The number of these workers in Thailand, according to Thai authorities, is approximately 300,000.