Lao PDR - Investment Climate Assessment : Policies to Promote Growth in the Non-Resource Sectors
The second Lao PDR investment climate assessment identifies the key constraints of the country's non-resource sector firms. This Assessment summarizes the results of a national survey conducted in late-2009 and draws on extensive interviews wi...
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| Format: | Other Poverty Study |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank
2012
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| Online Access: | http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/main?menuPK=64187510&pagePK=64193027&piPK=64187937&theSitePK=523679&menuPK=64187510&searchMenuPK=64187283&siteName=WDS&entityID=000386194_20111109011612 http://hdl.handle.net/10986/2795 |
| Summary: | The second Lao PDR investment climate
assessment identifies the key constraints of the
country's non-resource sector firms. This Assessment
summarizes the results of a national survey conducted in
late-2009 and draws on extensive interviews with
policymakers and practitioners. Survey results reveal the
nature of constraints that various non-resource sector firms
in Lao PDR currently face. The results provide an analysis
of the firms' performance and productivity. Supporting
an international exchange of knowledge, this survey's
results have been compared to numerous studies conducted by
the World Bank in over 100 developing countries, which share
similar methodological approaches. Due to rapid economic
growth in recent years, Lao PDR has emerged from low income
to middle-income country status in 2011, according to the
World Bank. The development of the non-resource sector is
essential to ensure sustainable and inclusive growth in Lao
PDR. Non-resource sectors are more stable than resource
sectors, and provide more long-term employment. The non
resource sector is expected to contribute more than half of
Lao PDR's real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth and
75 percent of the GDP in the medium-term. To achieve these
results, policies in Lao PDR should focus on creating a
positive enabling environment and that supports the
development of the non-resource sectors. Based on Lao
PDR's per capita income, this assessment's survey
analysis demonstrates that labor productivity is lower than
in neighboring countries and lower than in countries with a
similar level of income. Labor productivity in Lao PDR is
slightly lower than in Cambodia and Vietnam and
significantly lags behind the leading countries in the
region such as China, Malaysia and Thailand. Even though
labor costs are low in Lao PDR, data suggests that national
unit labor costs are roughly comparable to many comparator
countries, but are higher than in China and Thailand. |
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