Vientiane - The Government and two United Nations agencies today unveiled advances in statistics and data management intended to bolster Lao PDR’s progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The first is an upgraded database that organizes and consolidates data on national social-economic indicators, and makes it readily available for planning, monitoring and advocacy purposes.

The new database (based on an earlier version developed by the Department of Statistics,Ministry of Planning and Investment with support from UNFPA and UNICEF) is known as LaoInfo version 5.0. It contains over 500 indicators from a variety of data sources, including the 2nd MDG Progress Report, 2005 Census, Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey and the Lao Reproductive Health Survey.

Read the press release

Read the opening remarks of UNICEF Representative Ms Laila Ismail-Khan, at the launch of the LaoInfo V5 and MICS3 Final Report, on behalf of UNFPA and UNICEF